Episode 24: Historical fiction in the classroom

Andreas Holtberget is joined by Dominic Studer to talk about global history and why we should teach it. Dominic has over the last few years been working on a project titled Globalgeschichtliche Perspektiven im Schweizer Geschichtsunterricht (Global perspectives in Swiss History Education) and he shares some of the findings and results of this project. How did the Swiss teachers involved "globalise" the topics they teach and what did their students make of it all?

In this episode, we speak with Melanie Rowntree from the Pitt Rivers Museum in Oxford (UK) about the challenges of properly contextualising a museum collection with a strong colonial legacy. What to do with contested or questionable labels or object descriptions? How to involve affected communities whose objects are exhibited?

We are joined by the head of the Historiana Content Team ⁠Dr. Robert Stradling⁠ to talk about his new project on migration history. The topic is highly present in contemporary political discourse and therefore, Bob argues, crucial to teach in order to make history feel relevant for today's students. Bob has a long track record with EuroClio and has also worked extensively in the past with the Council of Europe on history education and we also discuss with him how he sees the developments in history education in the last decades and where we are today.

What is going on in Russian (history) education? Your podcast hosts speak with Valentina Papeikienė and Larisa Leganger Bronder, both from the European Wergeland Centre, a resource centre on education for intercultural understanding, human rights and democratic citizenship in Oslo. The EWC recently published their report 'Education in the Service of Ideology and Political Gain: The Case of Russia' and their findings form the basis of our conversation.

While in Vilnius for EuroClio's Annual Conference in 2023, I had the chance to sit down with Tommaso Piccinno and Michele Masini, researchers on board games in education at the University of Genoa. We talk about the use of board games in history education - with teacher Marco Tibaldini joining us briefly. Audio warning: Vilnius was also host to some very opinionated and chirpy birds...

We visit the University of Utrecth and speak wth Dr. Bjorn Wansink from TerInfo. TerInfo is a project group that does research on how terrorism and war is taught and tackled in schools. In addition to research, they also create teacher guides and learning scenarios to help teachers deal with these difficult topics.

EuroClio recently had the pleasure to host students from two schools who joined us in The Hague for our Seeking Justice: From Nuremberg to The Hague workshop. We chat with Ailia Criddle and Julia Karam from the American International School in Cyprus about their experience coming to learn about various aspects of international justice, including those related to genocide and crimes against humanity, as well as their own views on international law and justice. Seeking Justice offers workshops for both teachers and students alike - have a look at euroclio.eu for upcoming opportunities!

We visit HU University of Applied Sciences Utrecht and speak with Pim Renou and Pieter Mannak about artificial intelligence and ChatGPT. How can we make best use of this new technology for teaching history? What challenges does it pose to us as educators and how do we best respond?

Maayke and Andreas speak with Professor Joseph Kahne (from the Civic Engagement Research Group at the University of California, Riverside) about digital citizenship in education. We discuss the spread of misinformation, but also how digital citizenship can lead to greater participation in public life. With the fast-paced digitisation and automation underway, what can teachers and educators do to navigate new technologies and realities? More on how teachers can do to support students in developing media literacy? Have a look at Prof. Kahne's publication 'Misinformation in the Information Age' Discover more useful resources for teachers with EuroClio's project Watching Videos Like an Historian

We speak with South African broadcaster and author Joanne Joseph about her novel Children of Sugarcane, set mostly in 19th century colonial India and South Africa and telling the story of a female indentured Indian labourer migrating to work at a plantation in the Colony of Natal. We speak about Joanne's own family history and how it inspired her to dig deeper into what has been a largely neglected story of shared Indian, South-African and British history. We also discuss the merits of teaching history through fiction and the wider role of education both in her book and in society at large. More on historical fiction in the classroom? Sign up for EuroClio's webinar with history teacher Sally Burham on 11 July!