DOING HISTORY: USING IMAGE ANALYSISMimi Lee

Iowa State University

How do we engage students in “doing history”?

FROM IOWA CORE CURRICULUM

History is the study and analysis of the past. Built upon a foundation of historical knowledge, history seeks to analyze the past in order to describe the relationship between historical facts, concepts, and generalizations. History draws upon cause and effect relationships within multiple social narratives to help explain complex human interactions. Understanding the past provides context for the present and implications for the future (Iowa Department of Education, 2008).

FROM IOWA CORE CURRICULUM

History is the study and analysis of the past. Built upon a

foundation of historical knowledge, history seeks to analyze the

past in order to describe the relationship between historical

facts, concepts, and generalizations. History draws upon cause and effect relationships within multiple social narratives to

help explain complex human interactions. Understanding the past provides context for the present and implications for the future (Iowa Department of Education, 2008).

RESEARCH AND REFORMS IN HISTORY EDUCATION

Committee of Ten on Secondary School Studies, 1893

Committee of Seven, 1899 The Bradley Commission, 1988 The National Standards, 1994 Levstik & Barton, 2001

HISTORICAL EMPATHY

Historians contextualize by situating events and sources in time and place and they also use historical empathy to relive the thoughts, emotions, and actions of people in the past—that is, to try to understand the past on its own terms (Collingwood, 1948; Davis Jr., 2001; Yeager & Doppen, 2001).

PEOPLE/SPACE/TIME

PEOPLE/OBJECT/ACTIVITY

Was this person living east or west of the Appalachian Mountains?

Speculate three present-day cities where this person may have lived.

Was this portrait painted before or after the Civil War?

Speculate a century and a decade when the portrait was made.

Write down five adjectives to describe this person and/or this person’s way of living.

Speculate as to the motives of the creator of this portrait.

What title would you give this portrait? (Drake & Nelson, 2005)

List three adjectives that describe the individuals/objects/activity in this photograph.

What does this photograph tell you about these people’s lives?

When do you think this photograph was taken?

Why do you think this photograph was taken?

What title would you give this photograph? (Drake & Nelson, 2005)

See the photo analysis worksheet developed by National Archives and Records Administration.

SIMILARITIES AND DIFFERENCES

Dave Martin/Associated Press

“A young man walks through chest deep

flood water after looting a grocery store”.

Chris Graythen/Agence France-Presse

“Two residents wade through chestdeep

water after finding bread and soda from a local grocery store”.

INTERACTIVE SLIDE STRATEGY

VISUAL DISCOVERY

Using visuals during a “lecture” can capture student interest and allow them to interact with the content.

It is important to create a “question script” of carefully sequenced questions to use with the visuals.

2

12

110

9

14

87

5

6 4 3

1311

15

HEMISPHERIC(QUADRANT) ANALYSIS

Where was this photograph taken? When was this photograph taken? What does this photograph tell us about

people’s lives? What were the motivations of the

photographer? How does this photograph relate to what we

have been discussing in class? (Drake & Nelson, 2005)

SOURCING AND CORROBORATION

SOURCING

Sourcing is the action looking for the document's attribution, constructing hypotheses about the author's probity and rhetorical intent before proceeding to the body of the document (Wineburg, 1991).

Who took this photograph? When was it taken? What are the motives of the photographer? In what context was this used?

CORROBORATION

Corroboration is comparing one document with another before taking it as trustworthy or probable (Wineburg, 1991).

How does this compare to other documents/photographs?

Does this support, contrast, and/or expand what I already know about ____?

REFERENCES Collingwood, R. G. (1948). The idea of history. Oxford: Clarendon Press. Davis Jr., O. L. (2001). In pursuit of historical empathy. In O. L. Davis Jr, E. A.

Yeager & S. J. Foster (Eds.), Historical empathy and perspective taking in the social studies (pp. 1-12). Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, INC.

Drake, F., & Nelson, L. (2005). Engagement in teaching history: Theory and practices for middle and secondary teachers. Columbus, OH: Pearson.

Iowa Department of Education (2008), Iowa Core Curriculum. Wineburg, S. S. (1991). Historical problem solving: A study of the cognitive

processes used in the evaluation of documentary and pictorial evidence. Journal of Educational Psychology, 83(1), 73-87.

Yeager, E. A., & Foster, S. J. (2001). The roles of empathy in the development of historical understanding. In O. L. Davis Jr, E. A. Yeager & S. J. Foster (Eds.), Historical empathy and perspective taking in the social studies (pp. 13-20). Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, INC.