Comments on: Why Most People Think Memorizing Historical Facts is Useless (and Why It Isn’t)

By: Achal Dave

Achal Dave — Wed, 07 Apr 2010 00:50:59 +0000

I understand that knowing certain dates helps us understand history, but I really don’t think we need to know exact dates. I mean, we need to know that Columbus got to America in 1492, but we don’t need to know what year people were born in. Rather, history should revolve around decades. That actually helps us understand history, but memorizing dates doesn’t help us connect things.

By: Mr. Powell

Mr. Powell — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 15:03:49 +0000

I appreciate everyone’s comments, and I’d like to address the point about report on Oklahoma student performance. Although this particular report may be fraudulent — I cannot personally do the research to be certain either way — I can say, unequivocally, that its findings match my personal experience concerning the level of ignorance of publicly schooled children and the general populace. Although I teach a homeschooling program, I have tutored high school students from California and Texas, and both the type of instruction they received, and the resulting facsimile of knowledge they obtained from it were absolutely depressing. I have eight year old students who understand history better!

By: Andrew

Andrew — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 13:30:11 +0000

Hi,
That’s really a good perspective and I will be reading more posts on this.

I enjoyed studying history (i studied the subject for 13 years before joining university) but did not enjoy the way it was taught. Especially studying issues on year-by-year basis.

History is important. The farther back you are able to look into the past, is the farther ahead you will look into the future (cant remember where i read that)

A prof. friend (PhD Engineering) reluctantly offered to teach Unit: History of Engineering Technology, to fifth year, engineering students. He has realized, to his amazement that he thoroughly enjoys teaching the unit and it his only unit that enjoys 100% attendance. The students just love the historical perspective that it gives them to understand where they are coming from and which direction tech may take in future.

Sorry for the lengthy post but just a simple illustration

By: pbhj

pbhj — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 13:26:27 +0000

In case you missed it – http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=1111012 discussion of your post.

By: Preston L. Bannister

Preston L. Bannister — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 07:01:57 +0000

Oddly, you are illustrating the point I most often want to make about the teaching of history, and where it goes wrong.

History is a story! Children love stories (when well told). Both children and adults communicate and reason in terms of stories. A good teacher of history should be a good storyteller.

History is not about names and dates and places. History is about context. History is a web of connected series of events, where why is most important, where relative timing (the sequence of events) is more important than absolute dates. When you understand the “why” and the sequence, only then do the absolute dates become useful.

History should start with telling the story.

By: Rob Nagle

Rob Nagle — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 03:04:50 +0000

I agree with your argument, but I want to point out one thing…

I recognized the poll of Oklahoma high school students you mentioned near the top from an article I read a few months ago.

In , at the political website FiveThirtyEight.com, Nate Silver provides substantial evidence that the numbers in that poll were likely fabricated — Oklahoma students actually do pretty well on that test.

Nonetheless, far too few of them see them in context and can show how those facts and events lead us to where we are today.

By: saari

saari — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 02:25:27 +0000

To help illuminate the flow of historical events for students the question asked should be “Why did the Pilgrams land at Plymouth Rock?” not when. The date is useful in cross referencing with other historical events, to construct a story line in context of other happenings, but the date is in itself not terribly useful to memorize. We ask the wrong questions to achieve the learning you hope for.

By: History At Our House » Why Most People Think Memorizing Historical Facts is Useless (and Why It Isn’t) | danielmiessler.com

Tue, 09 Feb 2010 01:39:56 +0000

[...] Why? Because the empowerment that one can derive from history is real, and it can only be derived from history. A mind equipped with proper historical knowledge understands how the world around it came to be (for better, and for worse), can see where civilization is headed, and more fully appreciates the man-made values that make life worth living. By contrast, a mind that is not equipped with the unique perspective that history can provide is stranded in a world shaped by forces it does not understand, moving in a direction it cannot predict, surrounded by values it cannot fully appreciate and defend. via historyatourhouse.com [...]