Exploring Teachers’ Current Practices of Using Local History Projects to Develop Learner’s Historical Skill

Abstract

The study aimed to explore teachers' current practices of using local history projects to develop learners' historical skills. The teaching of local history projects has the potential to develop learners' historical skills, as it forces one to compare perspectives, reflect and re-conceptualise the past people and events and locate their places in the present. The study uses critical pedagogy as a conceptual framework, coaching the study with an interpretive paradigm to guide the qualitative approach. The study purposefully sampled five participants from five different schools. Semi-structured interviews and document analysis were employed to collect data. Thematic analysis was used to make sense of the data. The findings show that Social Science teachers who participated in this study create adequate opportunities while teaching local history to develop learners' historical skills even though they limit learners to their school and family histories. There is a need for teachers to be more explicit on the skills that need to be displayed by the learners. Furthermore, alternative ways of finding information, such as ICT, should also be explored.