History Education (BA)

Program Educational Goals

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The history education degree is part of a nationally accredited program that leads to certification to teach middle school and high school social studies.  The program educational goals align to professional standards established by the National Council for the Social Studies and the Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation.

1. Historical Knowledge-graduating majors will be able to:

• identify reliable primary and secondary historical sources
• tell stories that place specific experiences in wider historical scope
• explain and identify historical continuity and historical change over time
• locate past events in wider geographic and temporal contexts

1. Historical Practice-graduating majors will:

• to the extent possible, work with archival resources that they have collected, organized, and questioned in terms of credibility, position, perspective, and relevance
• craft their own research questions and be able to research these questions on their own
• analyze texts in order to develop their own, original interpretive accounts of the human past-while evaluating competing historical arguments, where relevant
• demonstrate familiarity with the ethics of historical inquiry including acknowledgement of their sources, their informants, and the work of other historians
• produce historical texts that speak to a range of audiences in a variety of media

3. History, Citizenship, and Public Engagement-graduating majors will:

• offer new approaches to existing analyses and narratives in light of new evidence
• explain competing perspectives and clarify complex historical phenomena through the consideration of conflicting sources
• summarize, appraise, and synthesize historical arguments
• be able to connect their considerations of the past with the present in order to become

4. Social Studies Content Knowledge - graduating majors will:

• demonstrate knowledge of disciplinary concepts, skills, tools, and habits of mind of the social studies, including history, civics, economics, geography, and the social/behavioral sciences.

5. Planning Learning Sequences - graduating majors will:

• plan learning sequences that demonstrate social studies content knowledge which are aligned with national and state social studies content standards.

6. Assessment Practices - graduating majors will:

• design and implement authentic assessments that measure learners’ mastery of social studies disciplinary skills and knowledge.

7. Instruction - graduating majors will:

• design and implement learning experiences that engage learners in disciplinary inquiry, skills, and knowledge of the social studies.

8. Civic Engagement - graduating majors will:

• engage learners to ask questions, investigate answers using disciplinary tools and content, communicate conclusions, and take informed action toward achieving a more inclusive and equitable society.

9. Habit of Mind - graduating majors will:

• use theory, research, and reflective practice to inform their planning and instruction.