History Teaching again

Tristram Hunt's article in the Guardian today makes sensible reading. Back in January I wrote how a head of History in one of the comprehensives in my constituency had told me how hard it was to recruit history teachers able to teach anything other than the Nazis.

Hunt is also right to warn against teaching a narrow narrative of history. I said in a different post in January that while history should be taught to the age of 16, what the Tories had in mind was of course too narrow. Tristram Hunt sticks up for what he calls 'a critical pluralism'. He concludes:

'None of which is to suggest our system is perfect. We stop teaching history at too young an age (14 rather than 16) and the 1980s trend for multiculturalism downplayed many elements of British history that are only now being reversed, while the quest for balanced interpretations can perhaps go too far when pupils are asked to note down "five good things the Nazis did".'

Amen to that.