Historical Thinking
Summary
TLDRThis video lecture introduces key concepts of historical thinking, emphasizing the use of primary and secondary sources to interpret the past. It covers the importance of historical evidence, significance, and the interplay of causes and consequences in shaping events. The lecture also highlights the need to understand historical perspectives by avoiding presentism and recognizing the differences between past and present. Finally, it discusses the coexistence of continuity and change in history, stressing that these concepts can occur simultaneously. The lecture sets the foundation for deeper exploration throughout the year.
Takeaways
- 📝 Take notes on key ideas and questions, but no need to write down everything, as slides are provided.
- 🔍 Historians use evidence, such as primary sources, to interpret and write about the past.
- 📜 Primary sources include diaries, newspapers, videos, music, etc., and are essential for creating historical accounts.
- 📚 Secondary sources, like textbooks, are based on primary sources and serve as interpretations of historical events.
- ⏳ Historical significance is based on deep consequences or how something reveals beliefs or values of a specific time.
- 🔄 Importance and significance of events can change over time and vary between different groups.
- ⚙️ Events have multiple short- and long-term causes and consequences, some of which are unintended.
- 👥 Historical actors often do not foresee all the consequences of their actions, which can have far-reaching impacts.
- 🚫 Presentism should be avoided, meaning we shouldn’t impose our modern beliefs on people from the past.
- ⏱️ Continuity and change can happen simultaneously, with gradual or sudden changes, and turning points shift the pace or direction of history.
Q & A
What is the main purpose of the video lecture?
-The main purpose of the video lecture is to introduce students to the key concepts of historical thinking, including how historians interpret the past using evidence and sources.
What are primary sources, and why are they important in historical analysis?
-Primary sources are direct pieces of evidence from the past, such as diaries, newspapers, videos, or music. They are important because historians use them to draw inferences and create interpretations of historical events.
How do secondary sources differ from primary sources?
-Secondary sources are accounts or interpretations of past events created by using primary sources as the foundation. For example, textbooks are secondary sources based on collections of primary sources.
What are the two main criteria for determining historical significance?
-Historical significance is determined by two criteria: (1) the event or person had deep consequences for many people over a long period of time, and (2) the event or person reveals something about the values or beliefs of a specific time or place.
Why can historical significance vary over time or between different groups?
-Historical significance can vary because different societies or groups may value different events or people. What is important today may not be seen as important 100 years from now, and different groups may have conflicting views on what is significant.
What factors influence why historical events happen and what consequences they have?
-Historical events are influenced by multiple causes, including individual actions, group actions, social, political, economic, or cultural forces. These causes lead to various outcomes or consequences, some of which are intended, while others are unintended.
What is 'presentism,' and why should it be avoided when studying history?
-Presentism is the act of imposing current values and beliefs on people of the past. It should be avoided because the past is a different world with its own unique context, and historical actors should be understood within their time's political, social, and cultural conditions.
Is it possible to judge the actions of historical figures? If so, how should it be approached?
-Yes, it is possible to judge historical figures, but it should be done by considering them in their historical context. We can disagree with their actions without imposing modern values onto them.
How do continuity and change interact in history?
-Continuity and change often coexist in history. While some things stay the same, others change, and these processes can occur at different speeds—either gradually or suddenly. They are not mutually exclusive but happen simultaneously.
What is a turning point in history, and why is it significant?
-A turning point is a moment when the process of change shifts direction or speed. These moments are significant because they often mark critical changes in historical events, leading to new developments.
Outlines
📚 Introduction to Historical Thinking
The lecture begins by encouraging students to take notes and ask questions during the course. It introduces the concept of historical thinking, emphasizing the importance of evidence and primary sources in constructing historical narratives. Primary sources are defined as the tangible remains from the past, such as diaries, newspapers, and digital media, which historians use to draw inferences about past events and people. The lecture also distinguishes between primary and secondary sources, with the latter being accounts or stories based on primary sources, like textbooks. The concept of historical significance is explored, discussing how events or individuals are considered important due to their lasting impact or their ability to reveal the values and beliefs of a particular time or place. The lecture concludes by noting that significance can vary over time and among different groups.
🔍 Causes, Consequences, and Perspectives in History
This section delves into the complexities of historical causation and consequence, highlighting that events have multiple causes with varying levels of influence, leading to multiple outcomes. It discusses the concept of historical actors and the distinction between intended and unintended consequences. The lecture stresses that many historical events are not inevitable but are the result of human decisions. The concept of historical perspectives is introduced, cautioning against 'presentism'—the imposition of modern beliefs and values onto historical actors. It emphasizes the importance of understanding people in their historical context, considering political, economic, social, and cultural conditions. The lecture also acknowledges the multiplicity of opinions and perspectives that existed in the past, which adds to the complexity of historical study. Finally, the idea of continuity and change is introduced, explaining that both can occur simultaneously, and the concept of turning points, which are pivotal moments that alter the direction or pace of change, is briefly mentioned.
🏁 Conclusion of the Historical Thinking Overview
The final paragraph of the script serves as a conclusion to the introductory video on historical thinking. It summarizes the key points covered in the lecture, including the importance of evidence, primary and secondary sources, historical significance, causes and consequences, and historical perspectives. The lecturer reminds students that these concepts will be revisited throughout the year and encourages them to discuss the video in class. The lecture ends on a note of appreciation for the students' attention and engagement.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Historical Thinking
💡Evidence
💡Primary Sources
💡Secondary Sources
💡Historical Significance
💡Causes and Consequences
💡Historical Perspectives
💡Presentism
💡Continuity and Change
💡Turning Point
Highlights
Encouragement for students to take notes on key ideas and record questions for class discussion.
Introduction to the concept of historical thinking and the types of questions historians ask.
Explanation of evidence as the foundation of historical accounts, based on inferences drawn from primary sources.
Definition and examples of primary sources, including diaries, newspapers, and even YouTube videos.
Clarification of secondary sources as accounts created using primary sources, with textbooks as an example.
Discussion of historical significance, emphasizing the importance of events that had deep consequences for many people over time.
Understanding that the significance of historical events can vary over time and between different groups.
Exploration of causes and consequences, noting that events result from multiple short- and long-term causes.
Introduction of the concept of 'trigger events' that initiate significant historical changes.
Distinction between intended and unintended consequences of historical actions.
Explanation of historical perspectives, stressing the importance of understanding the past within its own context.
Warning against 'presentism,' or imposing modern values on historical figures and events.
Acknowledgment that history involves multiple perspectives and disagreements, making it complex and 'messy.'
Introduction to the concept of continuity and change, with the idea that they often coexist in history.
Brief mention of 'turning points' in history, where the process of change shifts in direction or speed.
Transcripts
is our first video lecture of the year
and as we or as you
watch and listen to me over the next few
minutes i would encourage you to take
notes of key ideas
to record any questions that you have
things that you want me to go over in
class because i because i will do that
but it's not necessary to record
everything that's written down on the
screen in part because you should have a
copy
of these slots
okay so let's get started historical
thinking so how do we how do historians
think
and what questions do historians ask and
attempt to answer about past individuals
past events etc
so the first thing that we're going to
talk about is evidence okay it's and
that's the stuff that historians use
to
tell or write
their accounts their version of the past
so
historical accounts
stories about the past are only
interpretations of what has come before
and they're based on
inferences um
that are drawn from primary sources and
primary sources are a really important
concept and these are the
bits and pieces of the past that remain
not
everything from the past is capped
okay if you think about everything that
you've produced today
some of it is gone we've lost it to time
but some of it some of it remains okay
um
um
so we've got primary sources those bits
and pieces and we draw historians draw
inferences or conclusions about the past
about the people of the past about a
particular event
using
the evidence using primary sources
so examples of primary sources might be
a diary might be a newspaper might be a
youtube video it might be music
it might be a theater production okay so
the bits and pieces
can be just about anything right lots of
historians are using web-based resources
right now okay when they're writing
about the recent past okay so those are
all examples of primary sources
secondary sources it's worth pausing and
exploring the concept of a secondary
source
a secondary source is basically um an
account a story of something from the
past that is created
using primary sources so
primary sources are like the foundation
of secondary sources
so to use an example
if we had a textbook in this class the
textbook would be a secondary source
and it would be a secondary source
that's based on a collection of primary
sources
okay we're going to move on now and talk
about historical significance um how you
know it's basically about the important
stuff from the past
so when we're looking at
the past and we're thinking about
the
important bits and pieces the important
things that happened in the past we have
two main criteria one is that the thing
the event the person
they're significant
or important
because they had deep consequences for
many people over a long period of time
okay
so
you know your parents might think that
brushing your teeth in the morning is
really important but in the grand scheme
of is it significant maybe we'd say no
right so when we're talking about
significance and we're thinking of
resulting in change these are
bigger things that affected many people
we might also say that something is
significant because it's revealing it
tells us something about the values the
beliefs etc of a particular place at a
particular point in time or of a
particular people at a given time right
so it tells us something it reveals
something
there are two additional though
important points
and that is why something is important
and if it's important could vary over
time just because we think something is
important today
100 years from now
canadian society ontario toronto they
might not think that it's important
and the other thing to keep in mind is
that groups
think different things are important
right there's not necessarily agreement
as to why or what is important
so importance or significance varies
from group to group
okay now we're going to talk about uh
causes and consequences so
why do events happen and what are their
impacts
well the first thing to keep in mind is
that there are always multiple short and
long term causes of things
and these causes these multiple causes
result in multiple consequences or
outcomes
there are
causes that vary in their influence some
are more important than others
some causes are trigger events they
actually
start the ball
rolling
um
events result from the interplay of a
variety of forces or factors so
things happen because of individual
actions because of group actions
because of social political economic or
cultural forces or conditions right so
there's multiple factors at play
historical actors and this is a really
important point um are not necessarily
thinking about all of the consequences
that flow from their action so we talk
sometimes
about
intended and unintended
consequences
and finally
things aren't necessarily inevitable
things happen in large part not all
things but many things happen because we
cause them people cause them to happen
and so we have to keep that in mind that
they only happen because we've made
decisions not all things
but lots of things
okay the next one historical
perspectives so how can we better
understand the people of the past
so historical perspectives
well
there's first thing to keep in mind is
this there's a big difference between
our current world
and the past they're two they're
different places with different values
and different belief systems
and so because of that when we're
studying the past it's important to
avoid what is called presentism you can
see it in bold here on the screen
and that is imposing our own beliefs and
values on actors in the past
that doesn't mean though that we can't
judge the actions of the people in the
past we just can't impose our values on
them
um the people we study in the past are
best
they're best considered in their own
historical context in other words what
were the political conditions what were
the economic conditions what were the
social and cultural conditions at the
time so we best understand the people of
the past by understanding what was going
on politically what was going on
economically etc
it is important to remember though that
we don't need to identify with or
empathize with the people of the past
we can disagree
on their actions we can disagree with
what they did or said okay and it's
important to remember that we're allowed
to be a little bit judgy
and it's also important to remember
that
the past isn't like not everybody in the
past agreed
like people disagree and so there were
always a multitude of opinions and
perspectives in the past
which makes history kind the study of
the past history kind of messy because
we have to wrap our minds around what
different people were saying and doing
and thinking
okay so historical perspectives
now on to our last concept
continuity and change how can we make
sense of the complex flow of the past
so continuity
it is what it sounds like things that
are staying the same
changes okay an alteration
right
and it's important and there's a little
bit i want to add here change it might
be really gradual it might happen at a
snail's pace okay or it could happen
really quickly all of a sudden and so we
have both things though
both continuity and change can coexist
it's not that we've got continuity here
but no change and we've got change but
no continuity here
no what it is is we've got continuity
and change
coexisting happening at the same time
right
although there can be slight slight
variations
and finally and this is just something
we want to add in and we'll come back to
this later in the year is there's this
idea of a turning point
and again we are going to highlight some
of these in canadian history but they
are these moments when the process of
change shifts in direction
or in pace or speed
okay it's just something to keep in mind
okay
so that's it for now um that's the
introductory video on the historical
thinking skills as i said we're gonna be
coming back to these throughout the year
but we're gonna pause and take a few
minutes in class to talk about this to
talk about this video okay folks that's
it thanks a lot
Voir Plus de Vidéos Connexes
5.0 / 5 (0 votes)