From the coming of the knights to EU membership. An innovative Maltese history textbook based on history thinking skills and evidential work

F om he Coming o he Knigh s o EU Membe ship An inno a i e Mal ese his o y ex book based on his o y hinking skills and e iden ial wo k Vella, Yosanne. „F om he Coming o he Knigh s o EU Membe ship: An inno a i e Mal ese his o y ex book based on his o y hinking skills and e iden ial wo k.“ Ecke .Bei äge 2010/11. h p://www.edume es.ne /u n/u n:nbn:de:0220-2010-00524. Ecke .Bei äge 2010/11 Yosanne Vella Diese Publika ion wu de e ö en lich un e de c ea i e-commons-Lizenz: Namensnennung-Keine komme zielle Nu zung-Keine Bea bei ung 3.0 Unpo ed; h p://c ea i ecommons.o g/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/deed.de Vella – An Inno a i e Mal ese His o y Tex book 1 F om he Coming o he Knigh s o EU Membe ship ; an inno a i e Mal ese his o y ex book based on his o y hinking skills and e iden ial wo k. D . Yosanne Vella Senio Lec u e Facul y o Educa ion, Uni e si y o Mal a In oduc ion F om he Coming o he Knigh s o EU Membe ship is a new Mal ese his o y ex book o 13 o 15-yea olds choosing his o y as hei special op ion subjec in seconda y school. This ex book was edi ed and pa -au ho ed by he au ho o his pape and published by he Mal ese His o y Teache s’ Associa ion in Oc obe 2008. This ex book co e s he main his o ical e en s ha a e p oposed in he s a e seconda y le el his o y cu iculum o his o y special op ion g oups, e e ed o in Mal a as he SEC Syllabus. The i s school lea ing na ional examina ion based on his cu iculum was held in May 2009. I ha e been wo king in his o y pedagogy o o e 20 yea s, bu up un il now I ha e a oided w i ing his o y ex books. Fo yea s he e ha e been many complains abou he lack o his o y ex books in all le els in Mal ese schools, howe e I ha e esis ed he idea o being in ol ed in he w i ing o one because I suspec ed ha in some ways he absence o a book was a blessing in disguise. Th oughou he yea s I ha e as a eache educa o been p i ileged o ha e wa ched some his o y lessons gi en by my B.Ed and P.G.C.E. s uden his o y eache s which ha e been absolu ely b illian . These wonde ul his o y eache s in ol ed hei s uden s in e ec i e asks and ac i i ies which uly engage his o ical hinking. I ha e o en wonde ed would hese his o y lessons ha e occu ed had he e been a ex book? The emp a ion o ollow sla ishly he o icial his o y ex book migh ha e been oo g ea o esis , and excellen his o y lessons migh ha e been eplaced by medioc e ones. The las hing ou seconda y school his o y s uden s need is a ex book o be lea n o by hea . Tha is no how good his o y lea ning wo ks. S uden s need o be bomba ded wi h a a ie y o eaching app oaches whe e he ocus is on ac i e lea ning in ol ing unde s anding his o ical knowledge wi h a ocus on p ima y his o y sou ces and analyses o di e en pe spec i es and in e p e a ions. I am no he only one who belie es ha ex books a e no necessa ily bene icial; his is wha Ch is ine Counsell has o say: “Teache s who a e lea ning o lead discussion, o de ise ac i i ies ha will suppo discussion wi h younge o weake pupils, eache s who a e hinking ha d abou hei discipline ( he ac ha i is p o isional and con es ed) need suppo They need nu u e. They don’ need ixed o single ex books! This can only close down his o ical discussion in he lesson and inhibi challenging p o essional hinking among eache s.” Counsell:2004:29 u n:nbn:de:0220-2010-00524 Vella – An Inno a i e Mal ese His o y Tex book 2 Con es ing es ablished no ms in his o y ex book w i ing in Mal a Howe e , wi h some cau ion i is possible o a oid he pi alls o adi ional his o y ex books. The e o e as he edi o /w i e o his ex book I was e y ca e ul o make su e ha he objec i e o F om he Coming o he Knigh s o EU Membe ship would no be o c ea e an all encompassing co e age o he SEC syllabus, some hing o be egimen ally ollowed by he class eache . On he con a y his ex book is mean only o o e a supplemen o he syllabus o be used in conjunc ion wi h a ious o he ac i i ies. The p ac ical examples ound in his ex book pu posely only ouch a ew o he sub- opics in he syllabus. I co-o dina ed and edi ed his book howe e I w o e i oge he wi h nine o he w i e s. All hese w i e s a e expe ienced seconda y school his o y eache s and mos o he exe cises we con ibu ed a e ied and es ed asks we c ea ed and used wi h ou own classes and which p oduced exci ing esul s. These asks a e eally mean o ac as empla es, on which eache s can build simila in e ac i e ac i i ies. This ex book was pu posely s uc u ed no o ups age he eache s who mus con inue o be he inno a o s o ac i e his o y lea ning. When I app oached he His o y Teache s’ Associa ion wi h my p oposal o he c ea ion o a his o y ex book o his o y op ion classes, he Commi ee immedia ely welcomed he idea and ga e me hei ull suppo . I explained ha his was no going o be a no mal his o y ex book based on na a i e bu a he a o ally new app oach in his o y ex book w i ing in Mal a. This p ojec , o indeed one can call i a p ojec a he han a me e book, was going o be a eam e o . I wan ed he w i e s o be all p ac ione s in he class oom, his o y eache s who we e in e es ed in his o y hinking skills and wo king wi h sou ces. The pedagogical p inciples behind he eaching app oach in his ex book a e no based on Mal ese adi ional his o y eaching app oaches which es on he assump ion ha his o y is a eady p oduc ; he w i ings o his o ians, and he e o e should only in ol e ansmission o in o ma ion and ac s. The emphasis o his book is on he 'wha ' o each no he 'how' o each. The eaching app oach behind his ex book is di e en om adi ional app oaches in ha besides he his o ical in o ma ion he exe cises in ol e sou ce analysis and ocus on speci ic his o y hinking skills, wha R.Ben Jones ou lined back in 1973 as a his o y eaching me hod ha "lays less emphasis on con en and mo e on he p ocess o lea ning". (p.14) u n:nbn:de:0220-2010-00524 Vella – An Inno a i e Mal ese His o y Tex book 3 Pedagogical p inciples behind lea ning objec i es o ex book The eaching app oach adop ed o his ex book has p o ed o be highly success ul and e ec i e in his o y eaching (Sco , 1978; Shemil ,1987; Ha ne ,1995; Lee, Pe e , Dickinson, Ala ic & Ashby, Rosalyn ,1996; Vella, 2004)). I is an app oach which challenges s uden s’ hinking and p oduces highe o de hinking, all pe ec ly possible e en wi h young pupils. Lee, Dickinson and Ashby (1996) showed ha child en’s hinking in his o y is a mo e sophis ica ed han p e iously imagined. A e analysing child en’s ideas on es ing explana ions in his o y, Lee, Dickinson and Ashby (1996) ad ise: “F om he poin o iew o day- o-day class oom his o y eaching, ou analysis so a sugges s ha we need o ecognise ha qui e young child en can begin o make sophis ica ed dis inc ions and de elop powe ul in ellec ual ools. We may need bo h o ma ch such ideas wi h g ea e p ecision in ou eaching objec i es, and o inc ease ou awa eness o assump ions which hold some child en back.” (p.19) Fo his o occu a his o y ex book should c ea e a class oom en i onmen which o e s an ac i e lea ning si ua ion o he pupil, a he han one which p esen s he ex book as he gi e o in o ma ion. I we limi his o y o me ely handing o e one ac a e he o he , we would be missing he key objec i e o no jus his o y eaching bu o his o y i sel . Ki son Cla k (1967) says ha good his o y p oduces people ha hink abou a he han me ely accep in o ma ion: “Wha is you au ho i y o saying his? And, as a pa icula ques ion: How do you know ha his happened? They a e ques ions which bo h his o ians, and men and women who a e no his o ians, ough o lea n o ask much mo e o en han hey do.”(p.55) The e o e i is impo an o each in his o y no jus he ac ual knowledge, bu wha B une (1966) calls he ‘s uc u e’ o he subjec . His o ical me hod in ol es his o ical hinking and i is he analyses o sou ces in pa icula , ha p o ide he p ac ice o a mode o hinking simila o wha he his o ian goes h ough. This app oach in his o y ex book w i ing is in ac based on cons uc i is eaching me hods. Vygo sky (1978) emphasises he ole o he eache as acili a o and his ex book emula es his ole. Abso bing skills and concep s on you own is a slow p ocess howe e unde s uc u ed guidance a highe a ainmen le el is eached. I is hoped ha he key ques ions ound in he ac i i ies o his book s uden s’ hinking will be suppo ed and his o y skills and concep s in he lea ne s s a o eme ge. u n:nbn:de:0220-2010-00524 Vella – An Inno a i e Mal ese His o y Tex book 4 E idence and Sou ces P ima y sou ces p o ide e idence om he pas , bu sou ces and e idence a e no one and he same, Hin on (1990) explains he di e ence be ween hem in he ollowing way: "The dis inc ion be ween e idence and sou ces is an impo an one because sou ces a e me ely he aw ma e ial o an his o ian; only when hey a e app op ia ely in e oga ed will hey yield e idence" (p.7) The chap e s in his ex book s a wi h a b ie backg ound summa y o each opic bu hen his is ollowed by wide ange o his o y sou ce wo k on he pa icula hemes. This ex book a ge s h ee ypes o p ima y sou ces; w i en sou ces, pic o ial sou ces and o al sou ces. W i en E idence W i en sou ces a e wha academic his o ians mos ly wo ked on and in his ex book such hings as documen s, manusc ip s, le e s, ly ics, s a is ical da a, newspape documen s and books we e used. W i en sou ces a e gene ally ecognised as impo an o iginal sou ces which canno be dismissed and igno ed. As Fines & Nichol (1997) say "Th ough eading documen s and wo king upon hem, child en come ace o ace wi h people om he pas in hei own wo ds. A documen o ces he pupil o pa icipa e a i s -hand in a dialogue wi h he pas " (p.81). Jamieson (1971) quo es he au ho s o A chi es and Educa ion (HMSO, 1968) who desc ibe he exci emen and ele ance o w i en documen s: ‘ he o iginal le e o documen is cha ged wi h an emo ion, an u gency and an immediacy, o which he la e p in ed eco d can ne e p e end. Fo a child o ead o he o u e o Guido Fawkes is one hing; i is ano he o see he i m signa u e o his examina ion o No embe 8 h and he al e ing hal - comple ed e o o No embe 10 h, w i en a e he execu ion o he king’s wa an , o use ' he gen le o u e i s , e sic pe g adus ad ima endi u .' Tha Nelson eally did lose an a m a San a C uz becomes empha ically clea when we see his igh - and le -handed le e s. A leas o some – and p obably o mo e han is gene ally imagined- he o iginal documen , le e o jou nal is he bes doo in o he pas ". (p.28) Simila ly he ac i i ies in ol ing w i en sou ces in his ex book ied o cap u e his ‘doo o he pas ’. The ollowing a e jus h ee examples o w i en sou ce asks aken om he ex book F om he Coming o he Knigh s o EU Membe ship: u n:nbn:de:0220-2010-00524 Vella – An Inno a i e Mal ese His o y Tex book 5 Example 1 : S a is ical da a 1914 Example 2: Newspape a icles ea ly 1960s u n:nbn:de:0220-2010-00524 Vella – An Inno a i e Mal ese His o y Tex book 6 Example 3: Ea ly wen ie h cen u y song ly ics Pic o ial E idence Pic u es as his o ical isual e idence can be any hing ha shows an image om he pas in some o ma . They a e use ul o depic ing an image o a pa icula momen in ime and pic u es ha e long been used by eache s o each a ious subjec s no jus his o y, howe e , pedagogically hei impo ance in his o y ex books goes way beyond me ely showing some hing o child en in an in e es ing and mo i a ing way. In his o y ex books, pic u es can be used no me ely as illus a ions bu as sou ces in hei own igh . Pic u es appeal much mo e han ex o ou isual pe cep ion because less men al ene gy is needed and he way a pe son in e p e s pic u es depends e y much on his o he pas expe ience, mood and in e es . (Pe e sson, 1989) They can be e y exci ing sou ces o use, o example wi h ega ds o po ai s, Mo is (1989) calls hem " he gossip columns, news lashes, pa y poli ical b oadcas s and amily albums o he pas " and says: “Po ai s a e he e o e a bubbling mass o pen up emo ions, e en s, commen s and pe sonali ies" (p.3). In he case o his o ical poli ical ca oons Ha ison (1981) says ha " he ca oon may help o secu e a en ion because i is no el, because i p omises un". (p.110) This ex book used po ai s, pain ings, maps, pho os, pos e s and poli ical ca oons o c ea e ac i i ies and asks whe e pupils can analyse p ima y sou ces. The ollowing a e a ew examples o illus a e how p ima y isual sou ces we e used in F om he Coming o he Knigh s o EU Membe ship: u n:nbn:de:0220-2010-00524 Vella – An Inno a i e Mal ese His o y Tex book 7 Example 4: Six een h Cen u y Maps u n:nbn:de:0220-2010-00524 Vella – An Inno a i e Mal ese His o y Tex book 8 Example 5 : Eigh een h cen u y po ai s u n:nbn:de:0220-2010-00524