History Teaching in England and the English National History Curriculum, 3-11: Past, Present Into the Future

Christianity: Oppressor and Liberator? Reflections on Black Theology and the Religious Experiences of U.K. African-Caribbean Elders

“…It is the potential of history as a powerful cultural medium to transmit ideas, ideologies, values and beliefs for moulding identity, collectively and individually, which influences the reason for its study via the national curriculum (Nichol and Harnett 2011a;Seixas 2007;Barton and Levstik 2004;Marwick 1989).What it means to think historically is a central theme to an ongoing debate (Harris and Reynolds 2014) in education which has in opposition professional and public discourses, both concerned with teaching history in the primary school (Harris 2013;Osler 2009). The professional discourse is a position that considers national history as a construct (Lee 1992) and is critical of the way in which a positivistic version of the past has been put together, arguing that historical inquiry should demonstrate multiple perspectives to allow for broader analysis and critical evaluation in deconstruction of the content under scrutiny (Price 1968).…”

“…With primary school classroom practice, it appears that influence of the public discourse position has been prioritised where teaching for learning English history being framed by what has been described as a 'master narrative' (Nichol and Harnett 2011a, 106). The 'master narrative' concept stems originally from a 17 th century Whig interpretation of national history (Evans 2011;Nichol and Harnett 2011a;Butterfield 1931) transmitted in primary school classrooms through textbooks via the work of Unstead (1962) and through the writing of Marshall (2005) first published in 1905. Marshall's (2005) narrative presents a series of stories considered central to the myth and legend of English history (Nichol and Harnett 2011a).…”

“…The 'master narrative' concept stems originally from a 17 th century Whig interpretation of national history (Evans 2011;Nichol and Harnett 2011a;Butterfield 1931) transmitted in primary school classrooms through textbooks via the work of Unstead (1962) and through the writing of Marshall (2005) first published in 1905. Marshall's (2005) narrative presents a series of stories considered central to the myth and legend of English history (Nichol and Harnett 2011a). This was approved by the British government's Board of Education in 1904 as a 'master narrative' of the nation's history.…”

“…Despite the above endorsements and celebratory perspective placed upon Marshall's (2005) narrative of English history, it has also been interpreted as depicting a narrow account of English history (Nichol and Harnett 2011a) which operates educationally to inculcate children with a collective sense of national identity that is based upon a pride rooted in the past. It does this through stories of invasions and settlement by Anglo-Saxons; Viking raids; Christian crusades and the noble deeds of English heroes.…”

“…It does this through stories of invasions and settlement by Anglo-Saxons; Viking raids; Christian crusades and the noble deeds of English heroes. The Nichol and Harnett (2011a) perspective can be developed further in application of Post Colonial Theory (PCT) and Critical Race Theory (CRT) as frameworks for critical analysis. The former, PCT is based upon a broad set of perspectives which are juxtaposed against one another and involves a range of issues that are often the preoccupation of other disciplines such as of social justice and of history (Young 2003).…”