SkillBuilder discussion Continuity and change 1. Consider the area of medicine. Look at the images in SOURCE4 . What are the main changes in medicine? 2. What, despite the passage of time, remains the same?
1.2.7 Causes and consequences Once historical events have been placed into chronological order, investigating how one event has caused another event and how events are connected becomes easier. We can also look at the developments that have happened in both the short term and over a longer period of time. In history, events do not simply occur without reason. Every event will have a cause and is likely to result in several effects or consequences. Being able to identify patterns of cause and effect is an essential skill for historians that allows them to explain how and why things happened in the past. Causes may include people, societies, politics, beliefs, economics or any other historical factor. Likewise, effects can include impacts on people, societies, politics, beliefs, economics or any other historical factor. It is important to understand that not all causes leading to a specific event are equally significant — some causes may have more influence than others. Some causes occur immediately before an event begins, while others may have existed for several years, decades or centuries before the event. Some effects occur immediately after an event or action, while others may occur years, decades or centuries following the event or action. 1.2.8 Historical significance Historical significance relates to the importance of particular aspects of the past such as events, individuals or groups, developments, ideas or movements and historical sites. We need to make judgements about what is important and what is less important. When we try to establish the significance of an aspect of the past, we must consider a number of questions. For example: • To what extent was it relevant to individuals living during that period? • What was the number of people impacted by it? • In what ways did it alter individuals’ lives? SkillBuilder discussion Historical significance 1. List some of the things happening in the world today. These might be political, economic or geographical events. 2. Do you think that the things on your list will be significant 10, 20, 30 or 50 years from now? Communicating As a result of our investigations, we should be able to apply our newly learnt knowledge of a historical period and communicate this, using facts and evidence. We can present our interpretations of the past in a variety of ways, including written and multimodal presentations, oral presentations and other methods. It is important to use an appropriate and clear format to communicate our historical findings, including the use of subheadings, guiding questions and formal language. 1.2.9 • For what duration of time were individuals’ lives affected? • How significant and enduring were the consequences? • How relevant is it to the contemporary world?
TOPIC1 Historical concepts and skills 9
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