The Basic Questions of History Teaching at Secondary Schools

The question of the function of history teaching at the secondary school has arisen in connection with the discussion on the curriculum and the organisational forms of this school. The article shows that in the future history cannot be assigned its educational function in the same complex extent as has been done so far, but it must be assigned such a function as results from the specificity of history as a subject of a distinctly political character. The author recommends accordingly that the secondary school should give a uniform interpretation of world history as a whole, the historical events being interconnected by one leading idea, the progressivity of historical development as a process governed by law. History teaching at the secondary school should stress, above all, its political aspect, with the objective of developing the political thinking of the pupils. The subject matter should further emphasize historical problems, i. e. historical events should be presented from the point of view of causes and effects, and finally scientific forms of historical research should be developed, such as solving historical problems, analysing historical documents and the like.