Teaching history is a loaded weapon: the influence that the teacher can give on the social and political development of students could be the beginning of a revolution or the civil path of social development.
Knowing the past, without judging it with today’s canons, and framing it well in its time and environmental situation, serves to understand the current geopolitics; perhaps many students will never delve into the meaning of geopolitics, but everyone will be able to have a clearer thought about modern events… this, too often, scares politicians and the industrial world itself.
One thing we know for sure is the influence that the ideas pre-chewed by politics have on the sheep people or on the ignorant people (ignorance, indifference and servility are not always present simultaneously).
First of all, it is necessary to know the historical facts well, then they must be framed in their context and, subsequently, get an idea of them. The teacher must not indulge in biased comments influenced by his own political ideas or religion, but can bring life experiences and testimonies drawn from writings, making sure to refer to documentation from heterogeneous sources, without creating a single account of the facts. and their historical consequences. Therefore, a difficult task and subject to partisan criticism and varied interests.
The celebration of heroes is always readable in two senses: the same character can be a hero or delinquent from different points of view … it is very likely that historical impartiality becomes impossible, after all we are not talking about physics or mathematics, but It is important to offer correct and neutral teaching and to leave the related celebrations to politics and memory.
The historian investigates the past without prosecution! The fallout of history and future projections of facts and events are the tasks of geopolitics, while the instrumental use of history is the habit of politics.
Some fools have already thought of thinking about teaching history as a useless exercise …. this way of thinking is not just a loaded weapon, but a fatal blow to the civil development of a country.
By Romano Pisciotti