Search

The article presents a situation in initial teacher education/training with an emphasis on helping students with poor levels of literacy within a mainstream history class. Topics discussed include a lesson plan for Year 9 students, the department head's critique of the lesson plan for Year 9 students, and some strategies to wean students off the use of writing frames.

The author introduces an alternative to the Point, Example, Explanation, Link (PEE/L) model in teaching essay writing to students. Topics discussed include the history essay and the use of acronyms as scaffolding, the constraints imposed by the PEE/L framework, and the development of an analytical mnemonic for sizing up the essay question.

The article focuses on the Harkness method, a teaching and learning method that involves students seated in a large, oval shape in order to discuss ideas in an encouraging, open-minded environment with minimal teacher intervention. Topics discussed include the use of the method with history students at the Manchester Grammar School in Manchester, England, helping students formulate their own academic arguments, and the integration of the students' arguments into their essays.

The article discusses various strategies used by history teachers to help students write history essays. Topics covered include teaching students to visualise relationships between causes, the use of sorting to teach students find an argument structure, and teaching students how to use the same factual material to respond to differing questions.