Aims in teaching history and their epistemic correlates: A study of history teachers in ten countries

Abstract

In spite of the importance of the topic, there are few comparative studies of the aims of history teaching, even in Europe. Domain- specific epistemic beliefs are relevant for understanding the teach- ing and learning of history and the development of deliberative thought. We studied epistemic beliefs in the context of the gen- eral aims of history teaching. The respondents were 633 history teachers from ten countries (Austria, Belarus, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Israel, the Netherlands and Serbia) who rated the importance of 12 specified teaching aims and responded to four claims regarding epistemic beliefs. Three meaningful clus- ters of teaching aims were identified: critical thinking and devel- opment; moral virtues and patriotism; and historical consciousness. History teachers in ten countries were classified within these clusters. There were significant differences among the clusters in terms of the three epistemic beliefs. The results are discussed in the contexts of the countries studied.