Philosophy of Historiography and the Potential of History Education

Abstract

Philosophers of historiography are constantly trying to answer the question about the nature of historical practice. However, various philosophical conceptions are often sought out by theoreticians of history education who require answering the very same question to utilise history's potential in achieving didactic goals. This paper seeks to explore three different philosophical conceptions of historiography and their potential for passing on crucial skills of critical thinking and media literacy. It will be shown that despite the competitive nature of vastly different philosophical schools of thought, they all can offer valuable incentives for history educators if they are willing to abandon some dogmas that have originated in the philosophy of historiography itself.