CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION TO HISTORY

I. Objectives:
 To be able to understand the meaning of history as an academic discipline and to be
familiar with the underlying philosophy and methodology of the discipline.
 To apply the knowledge in historical methodology and philosophy in assessing and
analyzing existing historical narratives.
 To examine and assess critically the value of historical evidences and sources.
 To appreciate the importance of history in the social and national life of the Philippines.

II. Concept Notes:

1. Definition and etymology of history
 The origin of the word History is associated with the Greek word “historia” which means
“information” or “an enquiry designed to elicit truth”
 is a study of man and his achievements from beginning of written records to the present
 History has been defined differently by different scholars

2. Elements of history
P-olitics
E-conomics
R-eligion
S-ocial
I- ntelligence
A-rt

3. History as a social sciences and its relation to other fields of disciplines

a. History and Political Science
 A historian is not merely concerned with the tracing of the history of the political process
by a narration of the episodes. But he has to learn the nature of fundamental political
principles and basic forms of political institution.

b. History and Economics

 History is closely related to economics as the activities of man in society are very closely
related with the economic matters. Thus, the historian of any period must possess at least
a rudimentary knowledge of the economics.

c. History and Sociology

 Both history and sociology are concerned with the study of man in society and differed
only with regard to their approach. Max Weber acknowledges the initial dependence of
sociology upon history. Although, history too benefits from the interaction.

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d. History and Psychology
 A historian must have to show some psychological insights while making an analysis of
the motive and actions of men and societies.

e. History and Geography

 It would be impossible to study certain branches of history without rudimentary
knowledge of geography

4. Sources of Historical Data

 Published documents -created for large audiences and were distributed widely (i.e. books,
magazines, newspapers, government documents, pamphlets, posters, laws and court
decisions)
 Unpublished documents-personal in nature and may be difficult to find because of few
copies existing. (i.e. diaries, journals, school report cards and business ledgers)
 Oral traditions/oral histories-provide another way to learn about the past from people
with first-hand knowledge of historical events
 Visual documents and articles- include photographs, films, paintings and other types of
works. Visual documents usually capture moments in time

5. Distinction of primary and secondary sources

Primary sources - are those sources produced at the same time as the event, period, or
subject being studied
- It contains original information that is not derived from interpretation, summarizing
or analyzing someone else’s work
Examples:
1. Autobiographies
2. Speeches
3. Essays by persons expressing his own view
4. Receipts
5. Letter to the Editor expressing the writer’s views
6. Laws, ordinances, letters of instructions, decrees
7. Books containing direct quotations of the events
8. Newspaper articles reporting directly about the event
9. Diaries and journals
10. Reports
11. Eyewitness accounts
12. Letter
13. Editorials
14. Transcript of record

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 Secondary sources - are those sources, which were produced by an author who used
primary sources to produce the material

Example:
1. Textbooks
2. Encyclopedia entries
3. Magazine articles about a topic
4. Teacher’s reports on student behaviour as reported to school counsellors
5. Reports from a person talking about the subject matter

6. Historiography/ historical method (Internal and External)

External criticism - is the practice of verifying the authenticity of evidence by examining
its physical characteristics; consistency with the historical characteristic of the time when
it was produced; and the materials used for the evidence.

Internal criticism - is the examination of the truthfulness of the evidence

Other methods also used are as follows:

Positivism – emphasizes the mantra “no document, no history”

Postcolonialism - emerged in the twentieth century when formerly colonized nations

grappled with the idea of creating their identities and understanding their societies against
the shadows of their colonial past

Importance/values of history
1. Disciplinary value: History is quite fruitful for mental training. It trains the mental
faculties such as critical thinking, memory and imagination
2. Informative value: History is a wonderful treasure-house of information and can
offer guidance for the solution to all human problems pertaining to science and art,
language and literature, social and political life, philosophical speculation and
economic development
3. Cultural and social values: It is essential that one should understand the importance
of his/her own cultural and social values. We should also develop attachment
towards our cultural heritage
4. Political values: History is regarded to be the past politics
5. Nationalistic value: History teaching renders an effective service in imbibing the
young minds with a sense of patriotism
6. Internationalistic value: History shows the dependence and interdependence of
nations which is the root of internationalism. The domain of history is very
extensive and wide.

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 7. Educational value: History has unique value and importance because it is the only
school subject which is directly and entirely concerned with the behavior and action
of human beings
8. Intellectual value: A large number of intellectual values accrue from the teaching of
history. It sharpens memory, develops the power of reasoning, judgment and
imagination
9. Ethical value: History is important in the curriculum because it helps in the teaching
of morality
10. Vocational value: History has its vocational value. There are several openings for
persons well qualified in the subject

CHAPTER 1: STUDENT ACTIVITY

Guide Questions:
1. Explain the definition and importance of the study of History. 10pts

2. How did the Filipinos learned from their history? 10pts

3. How will you recognize the study of history as an important tool to achieve national
unity? 10pts

4. Why do we need to study Readings in Philippine History? 10pts

5. Prove that “not all histories are pleasant”. 10pts

Activity 1:
Individual: Each individual should give me their own understanding about the importance of
history on the following areas by giving examples that they observed in our society today.
Discuss the answers by using different techniques like news casting, poster making or collage
making.

A. Relationship with Family

B. As students and relationship with peers
C. As a community settler and relationship with the neighbourhood
D. As follower of the church in relation with faith
E. As Professionals in their workplace (example: Doctor, Lawyer, Secret Agent, Engineer,
etc)

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Activity 2:
Written activity: Comparative analysis on primary and secondary sources
Objective: To be able to know how to evaluate primary sources for their credibility, authenticity
and provenance.
Instruction: Students will write a comparative analysis of primary and secondary sources.

Scoring Rubric:
Content/Relevance - 12
Structure/Form - 8
Syntax - 5
Clarity of Ideas - 5
Total: 30

Notes:
Module will be sent weekly. (Wednesday)
Submission of exercises, papers, activities and etc. will also be weekly. (Wednesday)
Any questions and concerns, you may contact me at my Facebook messenger Shendy M.
Acosta or my contact number 09273764445
I am Madame Shendy M. Acosta or you may address me as Madame Shen.

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