History as Constructive Narrative
History is shaped by factual events, empirical evidence, personal experience, stories, and interpretations among a diverse group of peoples within the United States and the world.
Research and Investigation
Students will use both quantitative and qualitative elements to analyze and explore topics within HSS. Academic resources will be comprised of studies within published academic journals, peer reviewed journals, expert opinions, literature reviews, historical documents, and first-person narratives in the process of analyzing, exploring, and interpreting history. Both the American Psychological Association (APA) and Modern Language Association (MLA) can be used to standardize the citation and formatting for academic writing.
Themes
Information gathered during historical, investigations and discussions can be organized into major themes or concepts for understanding. Some of the common themes used in HSS seek to organize information within overarching ideas that include cultural, economic, political, philosophical, religious, and social theories.
Perspective
Historical interpretation should include the direct experiences and narratives (oral or written) of a diverse group of peoples impacted by previous programs, practices, and policies made. Empirical evidence of examined events is valued to provide validity and coherence to conclusions made and to prevent biased or exclusionary narratives from being the dominant stories.
Geographic Location
The physical geography of the world beyond national borders must be included in the study of HSS to gain a broader sense of the location of events, people, and reasons behind movements.