Chapter 15: Historical Research Answers to Review Questions

15.1. Define historical research. Historical research is the type of research that examines past events or combinations of events to arrive at an account of what has happened in the past. 15.2. Why would a person want to conduct historical research Historical research is conducted to Uncover the unknown, Answer questions, Identify the relationship that the past has to the present, Record and evaluate accomplishments of individuals, a encies, or institutions, Aid in understandin the culture in which we live. 15.!. How can historical research tell us anythin" a#out the present Historical research can show patterns that occurred in the past and over time which can help us to see where we came from and what kinds of solutions we have used in the past. !e usually will see that what we do today is specifically rooted in the past. Understandin this can add perspective on how we examine current events and educational practices. It can also show us that we do not need to continually reinvent the wheel because we should always start with what history tells us. 15.$. What are the steps involved in the conduct of historical research Here are the five steps" #. Identification of the research topic and formulation of the research problem or question. $. %ata collection or literature review &. 'valuation of materials (. %ata synthesis ). Report preparation or preparation of the narrative exposition *uch of the time in conductin historical research involves the process of collectin and readin the research material collected, and writin the manuscript from the data collected. +he researcher often oes back,and,forth between collectin , readin , and writin . 15.5. %dentify the sources of historical research topics Here are a few sources of topics" -urrent issues in education %esire to understand the impact of a specific individual, an institution, or a social movement on an educational policy or educational reform

.ou mi ht want to understand the relationship amon different events /e. ., decisions to use busin and then to drop busin to schools0 %esire to understand the historical roots of an educational policy .ou may even decide that past events have not been presented accurately so you decide to write up your new interpretation /which must be based on some evidence0.

15.&. What type of infor'ation is used when conductin" a historical research study Information in documents, records, photo raphs, relics, and interviews. %ocuments and records include, for example, written or printed materials such as diplomas, cartoons, diaries, memoirs, newspapers, photos, yearbooks, memos, periodicals, reports, files, attendance records, census reports, bud ets, maps, and tests. 1ral histories is another very useful type of information. An oral history is what you obtain when you interview a person who has had direct or indirect experience with or knowled e of the chosen topic. Relics are also used and include, for example, articles of clothin , buildin s, books, architectural plans, desks, or any other ob2ect that mi ht provide useful information about the past. 15.(. Where would you find the historical infor'ation needed for a historical study *ush historical information exists in libraries and the 3ational Archives. However, historical documents can be found in other places such as local courthouses and school board central offices as well as individual schools. -onductin an oral history with a person who has experience with the topic of interest is also a ood source of information. 15.). What is the difference #etween a pri'ary and secondary source A primary source is an ori inal, first hand record or account or artifact that has survived from the past4 it has direct involvement with the event bein investi ated. A secondary source is an account of the past created after the event or created from primary sources. 15.*. What is the difference #etween e+ternal criticis' and internal criticis' 'xternal criticism refers to determinin the authenticity, validity, or trustworthiness of the source /to see if the source is what it claims to be04 internal criticism refers to the determination of the reliability or accuracy of the information contained in the source4 it is important for determinin what a ood interpretation is of the information contained in the source. 15.1,. What is 'eant #y positive criticis' 5ositive criticism is a strate y for internal criticism and it refers to makin sure that you understand the meanin conveyed in the source. 15.11. What is 'eant #y the ter's -va"ueness. and -presentis'. and how do they relate to positive criticis'

Historical interpretation is often difficult because of va ueness or uncertainty of the meanin of words and phrases, and because of the tendency called presentism which refers to the assumption that present,day connotations of terms also existed in the past. +hese problems make positive criticism /understandin the meanin conveyed in the source0 difficult. 15.12. What is ne"ative criticis'/ and how does a person conductin" a historical study achieve ne"ative criticis' 3e ative criticism refers to establishin the reliability or authenticity and accuracy of the content of documents and other sources of information. .ou must determine if the content in the document or source is accurate4 this determination is achieved by usin the followin three heuristics" -orroboration ,, comparin documents to each other to see if they provide the same information and lead to the same conclusions. 6ourcin 7 identifyin the author, date of creation, place of creation, or other information that identifies the source. -ontextuali8ation 7 identifyin when and where the event took place and the context in which it took place. 15.1!. What 'ethodolo"ical pro#le's 'i"ht a person encounter when synthesi0in" 'aterial and preparin" the narrative report 6ynthesis is the selection, or ani8ation, and analysis of the materials collected. +he materials must have met the tests of internal and external criticism. %urin data synthesis and report preparation, the researcher must be careful to avoid the followin four methodolo ical problems" #. -onfusin correlation and causation. ,,+his is enerally not a problem as lon as the historical researcher focuses on eneratin ideo raphic knowled e rather than nomothetic knowled e. ,,Ideo raphic knowled e is knowled e of the local and particular4 nomothetic knowled e is knowled e of eneral relationships or scientific laws. $. %efinin and interpretin key words, terms, and phrases /i.e., the issues of va ueness and presentism must be addressed0. &. %ifferentiatin between how people should behave and evidence indicatin how they did in fact behave. (. *aintainin a distinction between intent and consequences. +his can be difficult because the events took place in the past. .ou cannot assume that the consequences observed in the past were necessarily intended by the historical actors.