For immediate release: October 26, 1998
Contact:
Teresa S. Thomas
(412) 268-3580
Carnegie Mellon Hosts Conference on New Goals for History Education
PITTSBURGH-- Carnegie Mellon University and The American Historical Association's Teaching Division will host a conference on Nov. 6-8 about new approaches for teaching history in secondary schools and colleges.
The goal of the conference, held at Carnegie Mellon, will be to set an agenda for the nation's ongoing history education efforts.
The event is coordinated by noted social historian and author Peter N. Stearns, dean of Carnegie Mellon's College of Humanities and Social Sciences.
Stearns says this conference is a significant first for U.S. teachers and researchers. Among the topics the groups will discuss is the example set by the International Society for History Didactics, which provides a forum for diverse groups concerned with history education in Europe. This conference will bring about an exchange of information and ideas about history education in the U.S.
Stearns says the group hopes to set in motion a series of activities that will give history education "a new prominence on the American educational scene."
Some 25 scholars from diverse intellectual communities in North America and Europe, including historians, secondary school teachers, cognitive psychologists, philosophers and educational researchers, will be making presentations.
The conference is partially funded by the Spencer Foundation.
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