New Directions in Active History and the consulting historian
- Follow this link to read a post by Pete Anderson, PhD candidate in Geography at Queen’s University, Kingston, detailing his reflections on key themes from the conference.
Putting the Past to Use: The First World War, active/ist history and political partnership
* (Be sure to scroll all the way down to page 41 to read Jon Weier and Chris Shultz’s Active History contribution to the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives magazine Monitor!)
- Abstract: History is a political act. This is something historians in Canada have known for a long time. But they are perhaps taking it more seriously today as their venerable practice is repeatedly disparaged and devalued through draconian budget cuts, a focus on STEM disciplines (science, technology, engineering and mathematics), and the priority on revenue generation among university administrations. Like in other academic disciplines, history’s desire to reinvigorate itself, to make itself relevant again, has become a central preoccupation of the practice. We can see one avenue for this reinvigoration in the modest proliferation of “public history” programs—a term that speaks volumes about the degree to which history has retreat- ed from public discourse. These programs tend to be practical and job-oriented, focused on curating, museology, digital history and the like. A parallel movement in the discipline has seen emerging scholars using history as a means of shaping and providing deeper meaning to today’s politics.”
Reports from New Directions in Active History: Art + History = In-site-full Collaborations
- In this post, PhD Andrea Terry, Instructor in the Department of Visual Arts at Lakehead University, discusses the interplay of art and history at public history sites and museums.
Reports from New Directions in Active History: Community-based Research and Student Learning
- In this post, student Megan Hertner and Professors Dr. Amy Bell and Dr. Nina Reid-Maroney from Huron University College share their experiences in two community-based learning projects.
Reports from New Directions in Active History: Memory, Museums, and the Politics of the Past
- In this post, Jodi Giesbrecht, acting manager of research at the Canadian Museum for Human Rights, explores the possibility for museums to connect the past with contemporary social justice issues.
- In this post, Neil Orford, history teacher at Centre Dufferin District High School in Shelburne, Ontario, shares his thoughts about the current history curriculum taught in public schools and shares details about an innovative “History/Math ‘hybrid’ program” that he designed.
- In this post, Jay Young and Krista McCracken explore the idea of active archives and the power of outreach activities. They discuss how public outreach events open up archives to new kinds of users and help raise awareness of the wide range of services provided by archives.
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