Page 140 - Balancing between the present and the past

Chapter 6
Moreover, we asked two expert history teacher educators and two educational measurement experts to review the deleted items and the final version of the pre-test and the post-test to ensure face and content validity. The experts found no threats in deleting the 10 items and noted that the final pre- and post-tests measure the students’ ability to perform historical contextualization and that the tests do not differ significantly in time needed to be completed by the students. The instruments’ items were also piloted in four different history classes to test them for practical use. The four teachers who conducted the tests did not have any specific comments about the content or length of the items. Appendix E presents examples of the pre- and post- test items.
6.4.4 The historical contextualization pedagogy
To develop the pedagogy, we followed the guidelines of McKenney and Reeves (2012) for educational design research. We first explored, using focus group methodology, how history teachers might promote historical contextualization in classrooms without specific training or support. To develop an effective pedagogy, we were interested in what teachers might or might not do. Next, based on the exploration and pedagogical design principles of historical contextualization, we constructed the lesson activities from the historical contextualization pedagogy. Using focus group methodology, the pedagogy was reviewed and adjusted for practical use before being tested in a quasi-experimental design.
6.4.4.1 Exploring the teaching of historical contextualization
We used focus group methodology (Vaughn, Schumm, & Sinagub, 1996) to explore how history teachers might promote historical contextualization without specific training or support. The focus group consisted of 16 history teachers (ranging in work experience as history teachers from 1 to 42 years), and all teachers participated voluntarily. To structure the discussion, we first explained the four teachers’ strategies of Huijgen, Van de Grift, et al. (2017) and asked which strategies the teachers employ in their lessons and how the strategies are implemented. Most attention was paid to the reconstruction of the historical context, and the least attention was paid to increase awareness among students of their possible present-oriented perspectives. Next, we provided the Framework for Analyzing the Teaching of Historical Contextualization (FAT-HC) of Huijgen, Van de Grift, et al. (2017) and a short explanation of the items and asked which indicators they frequently used in their lessons. The least attention was paid to items that focus on engaging students in historical contextualization
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