Chapter 2: Notes Toward A Historiography of the Social Studies: Recent Scholarship and Future Directions

The history of the social studies is a critical yet underrealized branch of educational research, and it is a relatively recent line of inquiry among social studies scholars. Examining the history of a curriculum field is central to understanding that area, however, as it informs policy, practice, and curriculum development. Most historians of the social studies suggest ahistoricism can and should be avoided, as historical antecedents “illuminate critically important subtleties of context and relationship that are crucial to policy and practices” (Davis, 1981, p. 26). Furthermore, researchers can benefit from having some sense of the historical context within which the field developed, as well as from knowing the various interpretive frameworks that historians of the social studies bring to the narrative, so that they can develop a more critical eye.