History education in Nova Scotia : purpose and practice

The purpose of this thesis is to examine the state of history education in south-western Nova Scotia. The perceived purpose of history education and how purpose is manifested in classroom practice is examined from the perspectives of educational officials, history teachers, and history students through interviews. Purpose is also examined from the point of view of educational theorists and historians. The purpose of history education according to the province is also addressed through a study of curriculum documents. It is concluded that while educational officials and the provincial curricula are very clear about the purpose of teaching history, teachers and in turn, students, are not. Also, teachers do not seem to fully understand the new learning-outcomes based curricula. These factors lead to a devaluation of history education. It is suggested that an enhanced professional development program could improve understanding of the new curricula and history education in general.