Uvažování dějepisné

Abstract

Miloš Sovák’s remark, “If we read more we would not have to discover so much” is particularly resonant in the field of Czech special education. This is because we have lived to see a time when teachers are no longer subjected to doctrinaire supervision and the explicit purpose of history teaching is to convey not just the present state of knowledge in terms of information, but also a picture that is not ideologically distorted. At the core of the article is a description of the didactic principles considered important for the teaching of historical material at any level of the educational sys- tem. These are the principles outlined: 1. The interpretation of history must not rest on prefabricated laws of history. ; 2. Knowledge of history is acquired cumulatively.; 3. The interpretation of history is a subjective matter. ; 4. Care must be taken to avoid over-use of the concept of origins or beginnings.; 5. We understand events better if they are presented as stories.; 6. It is not possible to extrapolate historical trends to future events. ; 7. The idea of universal and irreversible social progress is an illusion. ; The fourth principle is analysed in more detail. As is demonstrated, beginnings and discoveries in history are often considered to be antecedent to some initial stage in some development as prefiguration and anticipation and sometimes even as a socalled prediscovery. A discovery can be forgotten and so we then speak of rediscovery. Or a discovery can be made simultaneously in several places. In conclusion the author cites the eloquent dictum of the American philosopher G. Santayana: “Those who forget the past are condemned to repeat it”. This dictum provides the starting-point for concluding thoughts on who to convince young people that history can also be their teacher in their present and future life.

Východiskem uvažování o dějepisném vyučování je teze připisovaná Miloši Sovákovi: „Kdybychom více četli, nemuseli bychom tolik objevovat.“ Platí to i pro každého učitele, ať vyučuje žáky, středoškoláky či vysokoškoláky. Pedagog, má-li znát, co má vyučovat, musí neustále usilovat, aby neztratil kontakt s úrovní vědění své doby. Dějepisné výklady občas jsou, jak uvedené příklady v článku ilustrují, opravami tradovaných omylů. Učitel by však nebyl pedagogem hodným toho jména, kdyby nevěděl, jak má vyučovat. Aby i v tomto směru nezaostával, je záhodno, aby si nej- dříve zhodnotil didaktická východiska a až potom uvažoval o metodě, kterou pro své lekce zvolí. Proto se tento text zaměřuje hlavně na didaktické zásady, které mají pro dějepisnou výuku zvláštní důležitost. Celá úvaha končí zamyšlením nad tím, jak mladým lidem objevit, že historie je i jejich učitelkou života.