It is the desire of the History Department to see every history student succeed. To get to this point, history teachers provide students with "welcoming" classrooms, opportunities for success and a demonstrable love of history. The attempt to make learning "fun & successful", to utilize a wide variety of activities to encompass all learning styles (i.e.: simulation games, drama, visuals & art, group & individual work, etc).
It is only when we come to understand not only how people thought and acted but why the did so that we can begin to apply the more sophisticated tools of historical analysis to events. Learning history requires students to become familiar with the interrelationships among political, social, economic, and cultural forces in a wide variety of places and time periods. It's difficult to look at the past with out taking our contemporary ideas with us, and people tend to examine past events, people, and ideas with the benefits of hindsight rather then the perspective of the people living in that point in time. Only when we come to understand not only how people thought and acted but why the did so that we can begin to apply the more sophisticated tools of historical analysis to events. This is what history classes teach us, by helping us understand the people and civilizations that lived before us, and to clearly see how the way things are today.
The Individual and the community
The theme examines the relationship between rights of the individual and the demands and powers of the state. We will consider such topics as political and philosophies, human rights, and dissent and revolution.
Humanity and Nature
This Theme considers not only the interrelationship between humankind and the global environment, but the changing attitudes toward the world as reflected in art, music, science, and society.
Economy and Technology
Human values and beliefs are critical to understanding past events. Why what happen? Some of the values questions we will consider include: the Industrial revolution, international trade and trading blocs, economic theories, and post-industrial technological change.
Values
Human values and beliefs are critical to understand past events. Why did certain events happen? How have the experiences of the past shaped the contemporary ethical values of Western civilizations? These are some of the values questions we will consider.
The Arts and Society
Visual arts, music, drama, architecture, and literature show a reflection of social values an a sharper of social trends of those specific times. Artistic movements took place all though history, and helped mold, the society of the times though new ways of thinking.
"Twentieth Century Canada"
"Society: Challenge & Change"
"Civilizations in History"
"American History"
"Economics"
"Modern Western Civilization"