MODULE 1

Basic Concepts, Importance, and Ways in

Understanding History
At the end of this module, you are expected to:
1. discuss the concepts in understanding history;
2. differentiate primary from secondary source;
3. identify credible sources and know how to evaluate
their provenance; and
4. appreciate the relevance of history and its
application to life, as individual or members of the
humanity.
 EXTERNAL AND
INTERNAL CRITICISM
 What is External Criticism in History?
External criticism refers to the genuineness of
the documents a researcher uses in a historical
study.
External criticism has to do with the
authenticity of a document
It is also known as lower criticism
It is a tool used by historians to determine the
validity of a document, particularly a document
with some sort of historical significance.
External Criticism
It ventures towards inquiry regarding
(a)authorship;
(b)originality and accuracy of copy; and
(c)if errors are found it helps assess the
nature of errors found, i.e., if they are
scribal errors or other kinds of errors.
 Internal Criticism
Internal criticism refers to the accuracy of
the contents of a document.

Internal criticism has to do with what the

document says.
 Importance of External Criticism
External criticism is essential when
historians check the source to verify whether
it's biased or not. This process is important
when analyzing data, because we have to
question whether or not we can trust the data
and use it as a reference point.
It is a process by which historians determine
whether a source is authentic by checking the
validity of the source.