Caraga state university
Ampayon, Butuan City 8600, Philippines
URL: www.carsu.edu.ph
MEANING AND RELEVANCE
OF HISTORY
MEANING OF HISTORY
acts, ideas, or events that will or can shape the course
of the future; immediate but significant happeningsdictionary.com
As a discipline, Merriam-Webster (2018) defined history
as “a chronological record of significant events (such
as those affecting a nation or institution), often
including an explanation of their causes.”
History (from Greek historia, meaning "inquiry”,
knowledge acquired by investigation")
HISTORIOGHRAPHY
refers to how, what, and why history is written.
 It is about the methods and practices used in
producing history, the development of history as a
discipline, or the philosophy or significance of historical
writing.
MEANING OF HISTORY
History is the study of life in society in the past, in all
its aspect, in relation to present developments and
future hopes. It is the story of man in time, an inquiry into
the past based on evidence.
MEANING OF HISTORY
Evidence is the raw material of history teaching and
learning
inquiry into what happened in the past, when it
happened, and how it happened
an inquiry into the inevitable changes in human affairs
in the past and the ways these changes affect,
influence or determine the patterns of life in the
society.
MEANING OF HISTORY
Historians use all forms of evidence to;
examine,
 interpret,
 revisit, and
reinterpret the past.
RELEVANCE OF HISTORY
allows us to understand our past, which in turn allows us to
understand our present.
have to look to history for answers.
People often say that “history repeats itself,” but if we study
the successes and failures of the past, we may, ideally, be
able to learn from our mistakes and avoid repeating them in
the future. –coursehero.com
RELEVANCE OF HISTORY
Studying history can provide us with insight into
our cultures of origin as well as cultures with which we might
be less familiar, thereby increasing cross-cultural awareness
and understanding.
WHY STUDY HISTORY?
Peter N. Stearns in 1998 has published an article
with
the
American
Historical
Association
that
enumerated the reasons why we should study history.
Here are some of his justifications why the subject is
worth our attention:
1. History helps us understand people and societies.
In the first place, history offers a storehouse of
information about how people and societies behave.
WHY STUDY HISTORY?
2. History helps us understand change and how the
society we live in came to be.
The past causes the present, and so the future.
Any time we try to know why something happened, we
have to look for factors that took shape earlier.
Sometimes fairly recent history will suffice to explain a
major development, but often we need to look further
back to identify the causes of change.
WHY STUDY HISTORY?
3. History contributes to moral understanding.
History also provides a terrain for moral
contemplation. Studying the stories of individuals and
situations in the past allows a student of history to test his
or her own moral sense, to hone it against some of the
real complexities individuals have faced in difficult
settings.
WHY STUDY HISTORY?
4. History provides identity.
Historical data include evidence about how
families, groups, institutions and whole countries were
formed and about how they have evolved while
retaining cohesion.
WHY STUDY HISTORY?
5. Studying History Is Essential for Good Citizenship.
A study of history is essential for good citizenship.
Sometimes advocates of citizenship history hope merely
to promote national identity and loyalty through a history
spiced by vivid stories and lessons in individual success
and morality.
SKILLS IN STUDYING HISTORY
Moreover, Stern has identified a number of
skills that a student may develop in studying history.
These include the following:
1. The ability to assess evidence.
Learning how to interpret the statements of past
political leaders—one kind of evidence—helps form the
capacity to distinguish between the objective and the
self-serving among statements made by present-day
political leaders.
SKILLS IN STUDYING HISTORY
2. The ability to assess conflicting interpretations.
Learning how to identify and evaluate conflicting
interpretations is an essential citizenship skill for which
history, as an often-contested laboratory of human
experience, provides training.
SKILLS IN STUDYING HISTORY
3. Experience in assessing past examples of change.
Comparing particular changes to relevant
examples from the past helps students of history develop
this capacity. The ability to identify the continuities that
always accompany even the most dramatic changes
also comes from studying history, as does the skill to
determine probable causes of change.
NATIONAL HISTORICAL COMMISSION OF THE
PHILIPPINES
“A Filipino society with citizens informed of their
history, who love their country and are proud of their
cultural heritage.”
References:
Dolina, Virgilio, Nery, Imelda, and Sion, Paul John (2019). Readings in Philippine History, 2-7
Copyright 2019 ISBN 978-621-95942-4-0
https://www.enotes.com/homework-help/why-important-study-history-explain-youranswer389341#:~:text=Studying%20history%20is%20important%20because,us%20to%20understa
nd%20our%20present.&text=Studying%20history%20can%20provide%20us,cross%2Dcultur
al%20awareness%20and%20understanding.
https://www.dictionary.com/browse/history
https://www.coursehero.com/file/23040622/Studying-history-is-important-because-itallows-us-to-understand-our-past/
https://ddceutkal.ac.in/Syllabus/MA_Education/Education_Paper_5_history.pdf