Week 2 Meaning and relevance of history

A. The different meanings and uses of history

B. The characteristics, types, and differences between primary and secondary
sources.
C. External and internal criticism
D. Repositories of primary sources

Introduction

This chapter introduces history as a discipline and as a narrative. It represents the

definition of the history, which transcends the common definition of history as the study
of the past; this also discusses several issues in history that consequently opens up for
the theoretical aspects of the discipline. The distinction between primary and secondary
sources is also discussed in relation to the historical subject matter being studied and the
historical methodology employed by the historian. Ultimately, this chapter also tackles the
task of the historian as the arbiter of facts and evidences in making his interpretation and
forming historical narrative.

1. Pre-competency

True or False

Pre-Assessment
Questions:
a. “History is tsismis.”
b. Historical sources that were not written should not be used in
writing history.
c. History and historiography are one and the same.
d. History has no use for the present, thus, the saying “past is past” is
true.
e. History is limited to the stories of heroes versus villains, as well as
that of Great Men.
f. There is such a thing as Women’s History.
g. Only primary sources may be used in writing history.
h. One type of external criticism is to determine if the document’s
paper type and the ink used in its text was in existence and utilized
during the period that it was supposedly produced.
i. Internal criticism is done by looking at a source’s quality paper and
type of ink, among others.
j. The historians are researchers. Thus, they are the only source of
history.

2. Learning Resources
What is history?
 • “What is history” How do historians study the past in contrast to
non-historians”.
https://www.valdosta.edu/history/documents/what-is-history.pdf
• “Branches of History”. https://leverageedu.com/blog/branches-
of-history/
• “History and Historiography: What is the Difference?.
https://observatory.tec.mx/edu-news/history-historiography
• “History”.
https://ddceutkal.ac.in/Syllabus/MA_Education/Education_Paper
_5_history.pdf (Please see pages 2-6.)

Source evaluation guide

• https://www.valdosta.edu/history/documents/what-is-history.pdf
• "The Research Process”.
https://ncu.libguides.com/researchprocess/evaluatinginfo
Explanations on Primary and Secondary Sources
• “Primary Sources: Primary vs. Secondary Sources.”
https://cloviscenter.libguides.com/primarysources
• “What are Primary Sources?”. https://www.lib.uci.edu/what-are-
primary-sources
• “Primary Sources: A Research Guide.”
https://umb.libguides.com/PrimarySources/secondary
• “What is internal and external criticism?”.
https://hasorno.com/what-is-internal-and-external-criticism-of-
historical-sources
• “Historical Research.”
https://researchbasics.education.uconn.edu/historical_research/
#
•
Video Documentary
https://youtu.be/RKqgfCtDx0M - Code of Kalantiaw

Explore

Read the following scenarios and provide and respond to the

question/s provided:

1. The National Archives of the Philippines (NAP) is one of the main

repositories of historical documents that pertain to activities and
 events in the Philippines during the nineteenth century. In the past,
researchers could actually view and touch the archival sources that
they would like to study or examine. At present, however, one can
now only look at the digitized or photocopied version of records such
as the Asuntos Criminales and Memorias de Manila. While there is
no doubt that the documents kept by the NAP are primary sources,
are their photocopied and digitized versions primary sources as well?
2. In the aftermath of Second World War, many historical records were
burned or lost. To partially address the loss of information and
knowledge about the past of many communities, a project called the
Historical Data Papers was launched during the early years of
Philippine independence. Public school teachers were tasked to
conduct gather information about their town’s past mainly by
interviewing key informants in their communities, such as senior
citizens and prominent personalities. What type of primary source,
then, was utilized by those teachers?
3. Click on this link to access the Historical Data Papers (HDP) of
Bacacay, Albay and read pages 1 to 6:
https://nlpdl.nlp.gov.ph/HD01/p3/m1/md1/bs/datejpg.htm. Using
what you have studied regarding the internal criticism of sources (let
us assume the information you will read are based on interviews and
the writer’s own memories of events contemporary to them), what
questions can we ask to assess the HDP as a narrative of Bacacay
town’s past? What other primary sources do you think we could
utilize to either confirm the accuracy of the information provided in
the said document and to further provide a complete picture of
Bacacay’s past from the precolonial period to the Post-War era?
4. Please study the following advertisements thaty saw print in the
Philippines Free Press during the 1920s. What can you say about
the expected role and characteristics of women in society during that
era? What other sources do you think you can use to support your
contentions? What were the motivations of those who produced
these ads? At that time, what would their genders have been?
5. Sites of Primary Sources on the Philippines. Try to explore the
following sites below. Some are sources of periodicals, manuals,
magazines, and government reports, among others. Try to take note
of documents that you found interesting.

“The United States and its Territories.”

https://quod.lib.umich.edu/p/philamer/
 “Filipinas Heritage Library Catalaogue.”
https://opac.filipinaslibrary.org.ph/cgi-bin/koha/opac-
shelves.pl?op=view&shelfnumber=319 (Look for “READ ONLINE”)
“Center for Research Libraries.”
https://gpa.eastview.com/crl/sean/?a=p&p=home&e=-------en-25--1-
-img-txIN-El%20Comercio---------
&fbclid=IwAR1q0hOMe3EKHo2emF2yWUlntWuXT7mmyBnWuCLc
cDOM73QR2f-m7HMVM9g (Click on the “33” that is on a map
representation of the Philippines. It will lead you to several Spanish
and American era periodicals.)

Discussion Board. Try to respond to these questions or statements:

Explain the mantra which says “ no document means no history”.

Do you agree that “facts cannot speak for themselves”
What is history for you?
Have you experienced an event in our society that you would consider as historical?
Why study history and how important is the Philippine history in our lives?
As a Filipino, what can you say about the Philippine history and how it is taught in
our schools?

Is history a science, art, or both?

Post-competency Checklist (Formative Assessment)

• Essay:
You know have an idea of the types of primary sources that are part of your daily
life or even reflect your existence. For this exercise, please follow the following
steps:
1. Collect at least 5 primary sources/documents that serve as witness to your
life, from the time you were born up to the present.
2. Enumerate these in your essay.
3. Use these documents to produce an interpretation of your past and current
state. It can be about how you have grown and changed as a person, events
that have transformed you, or the different places that have been part of your
life, among others. The important thing is that you tie these sources into a
theme.
4. This essay should be about 1-2 pages, double-spaced, font 12. Once you
have completed this, you have just produced a secondary source about your
life.