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History: what do students think?
Key issue addressed by the study
This study aimed to:– reveal the ideas about history which young people bring as
preconceptions to their learning– explore the links between views of history and social
cohesion among indigenous and non-indigenous students in England and the Netherlands
Young people’s views of history Young people saw history as important for understanding
their society Pupils were interested in different periods of history from
those they could typically study at secondary school Around 40 per cent of young people from the UK agreed that
sharing a common history creates “mutual bonds”
The kinds of history students are interested in
All the groups of students:– recognised the importance of their country’s
history– believed history helped them understand the
society they lived in – believed family history was important; more so
for BME students than for non-BME students
Historical periods students are most interested in
All the students liked these topics:• ancient history• post war era from 1945
to the present• 1900 to 1945
Students’ interest areas as compared with the national curriculum
Students’ preferences were at odds with the periods most commonly taught under the secondary curriculum e.g. – Currently very little
teaching of post-war events
– Teaching of ancient history limited almost entirely to primary aged pupils
Young peoples’ definition of identity
Depending on their background students tended to identify with their country of residence or by their/their parents’ country of origin/ religion
Very few students from either country regarded their prime identity in terms of either ‘world citizen’ or ‘European’
Who were the children in the study?
442 students from metropolitan areas in the Netherlands and England
The students were aged 14 -18 years and were of various ethnic backgrounds
How was the information gathered? Student questionnaire with questions about
e.g. identity, importance of history, historical periods
Students’ answers were grouped according to various criteria: the country of residence (England or the Netherlands), ethnic background, gender, age, level of education, etc
How can teachers use this evidence?
Young people, particularly from ethnic minority backgrounds, rated family history as highly important– Could you include family history as part of school
history to make it more meaningful to them? Students expressed greater interest in some
periods of history rather than others– Would it be helpful to explore with your students
the less popular periods of history and possible teaching/learning approaches?
How can school leaders use this evidence?
Young people stated they liked ancient history most. What do students in your school think?– Could you survey your students to find out which
periods of history they are interested in? – Having surveyed your students could you organise
professional development for your colleagues to explore how they could incorporate students’ preferences into the curriculum?
Follow-up reading Study reference:
Grever, M., Haydn, T. and Ribbens K. (2008) Identity and School History: the Perspective of
Young People from the Netherlands and England British Journal of Educational Studies, Vol. 56, No. 1, March 2008, pp. 76-94
You might like to read a more detailed summary, accessible at:
http://www.standards.dfes.gov.uk/research/themes/pupil_voice/studentsthink/
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