Why Study History?

Readings in Philippine
History

 Ms. Bel Patrice T. Tisuela

 History is the story
of the past

It is the story of people, places and

events
Is History Useful?

■ It doesn’t help build schools, fight

fires, perform operations, help sell
merchandise, or launch a space
shuttle.
■ So…why do we study history?
History Helps Us Understand
OUR WORLD
■ You cannot understand people if
you do not understand their past
■ You cannot understand our
community if you do not know how
it came to be
■ You cannot understand our nation
without history
■ You cannot understand our world if
you do not understand history
History Give Us Identity

■ Studying history gives people a

sense of nationalism
■ It gives groups such as ethnic,
organization, even schools a sense
of identity
■ It gives family and personal identity
as well
History Helps Us Understand
People
■ People make up society and it is
very hard to test how that kind of
group behaves when it is made up
of 4 billion people
■ History acts as a “social laboratory”,
one of the few way we can help
predict the future behavior of such
a large group
Those That Study and
Understand History Become
Good Citizens
■ It provides national identity

■ Provides examples of success, morality

and of course the examples of the
opposite
■ Helps us understand current world affairs
and conflicts by understanding the root of
the problems
■ Provides support for making decisions
and encourages, “responsible public
behavior, whether as a national or
community leader, an informed voter, a
Now that I have you all
convinced history is
important…
How do you take the first steps to
become a historian?
Jobs of the Historian
■ Historians have at least
four different jobs
■ Each of these jobs is
important to understand
the past so we are able
to understand
ourselves, our society
and our world
 How can Historians
find out about the past?
Task

 Draw an object or bring one into class, that

represents something from the past that is
important to you.

 Explain what exactly this object represents

about your past.
Objects from the past
are called
Artifacts
 Activity
 In pairs choose an artifact

 Study it together and complete

the questions
1) Identify or describe the object you have
chosen?

2) How old do you think it is?

3) What do you think it was used for?

4) What does this object tell you about life in the

past?

5) Do you think the object comes directly from

the past or is a replica of the time?
QUESTIONS AND ISSUES IN
HISTORY

 WHAT IS HISTORY?
 WHY STUDY HISTORY ?
 AND HISTORY FOR WHOM?
 THESE QUESTIONS CAN BE ANSWERED BY
HISTORIOGRAPHY
HISTORIOGRAPHY
 IS THE HISTORY OF HISTORY
DIFFERENCE BETWEEN HISTORY AND
HISTORIOGRAPHY
HISTORY- STUDY OF THE PAST , THE EVENTS
THAT HAPPENED IN THE PAST, AND THE CAUSES
OF SUCH EVENTS,
HISTORIOGRAPHY- IT IS HISTORY ITSELF(i.e.,
How was certain historical text written? Who wrote it?
What was the context of its publication ? What particular
historical method was employed? What were the sources
used ?)
Let the STUDENTS have a BETTER
UNDERSTANDING of HISTORY
 ROLES OF HISTORY
 STATES use history to UNITE a nation
 A tool to LEGITIMIZE regime and
FORGE a sense of collective identity
through collective memory
 Lessons form the past can be used to
MAKE SENSE of the present.
 Learning from the past mistakes can help
people NOT TO REPEAT them.
Is your object a Primary of
Secondary source?
 Sources which come directly from the
past, giving first-hand information are
known as Primary Sources.

 Secondary sources are evidence that comes

from a later date. They are written after the
event.
 Sources

 Primary 
Secondar
y
 Primary Sources
 Give examples of primary sources under
each heading

Written Visual Oral Artifact

 Written Visual Oral Artifacts
Diaries Paintings Interview Tools
Letters Photos s Bones
Census Speeches Jewellery
Government
Reports
Autobiograp
hy
Newspapers
manuscript
Secondary Sources
 Secondary sources are evidence that
comes from a later date. They are written
after the event.

 A textbook is a secondary source as it

was written long after most of the events
that it describes
Can you think of other
examples of secondary
sources
 Biography
 Movies
 TV or radio documentary
 Internet
 History books
 ( Many secondary sources are put together
using many different primary sources)
Which of the following are
Primary or Secondary sources?

a) The Census
b) The Irish Times
c) The Mona Lisa
d) History text book
e) The GPO
Where do we find
sources?

Libraries Archives Museums

 Historians will use as many sources as
possible and then compare what they have
found. Why?

 This is to make sure that the story of the

past is as accurate as possible.

 This is called cross-checking

 How do historians
judge the reliability of
sources?
Historians judge whether the
source is:
a) Bias
b) Accurate
c) Prejudice
d) Exaggerated
e) Propaganda
f) Fact or opinion
 Explain the meaning of each of these.
a) Bias – This means that the writer may have a strong ,
personal opinion about an event and tries to show that their
opinion is right.

b) Accurate – this means correct or exact.

c) Prejudice – is where writers have made up their minds in

advance and present only their own point of views

d) Exaggerates –this is when a writer makes something seem

greater than it really is.

e) Propaganda – is where writers are trying to win the reader

over to their point of view using posters, radio, TV and
speeches
How do Historians put events
in order?
 When historians find out information about
the past, it is important to get events in the
right order.
 They usually use dates.
 This makes it easier for people to follow
the story of what happened.
 This is called chronological order.
There are a number of ways
historians measure time to
describe past events.
The Detective
■ Investigates the past
■ Determines what
happened
■ Separates truth from
falsehoods or
misinterpretations
■ Separates out bias in
historical writing to find
the truth (or as close as
possible)
The Storyteller
■ Tells the story of history
to others
■ Imparts lessons,
morals, and other
learning of history
■ Entertains and
fascinates with the epic
story of our history
The Judge
■ Judges history and
makes moral decisions.
Example: was
someone evil or just
misunderstood?
■ Ever heard the saying,
“We will see how
history judges me?”
■ Sorts what should be
emulated and what
should be discarded
The Philosopher
■ Is a reflector and may
also be speculating on
what was right or wrong
■ Ponders important
questions and attempts
to pull out meaning
from history
■ Not only speculates on
the lessons of the past
but also may attempt to
predict the future
The End Is Just the Beginning
■ Are you willing to put
on the four hats of
historian and attempt to
understand the past…
■ In order to ensure a
brighter future for
yourself, for your family,
for your community, for
your nation, and for
your world?