Welsh Journals

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THE TEACHING OF LOCAL HISTORY by A. H. WILLIAMS, M.A., H.M.I. THE invitation from the editors to write a short article on the teaching of local history in this, the first, number of Morgannwg reflects their desire that the journal shall be of interest to the teachers of Glamorgan. One hopes and believes that the teachers, for their part, will respond by joining the Society, by making use of the facilities it offers, and by contrib- uting articles of historical and pedagogic interest from time to time. Hitherto, they have lacked a forum in which to interchange views and experiences; Morgannwg may well meet their needs as historians and as teachers. It is at all times difficult to discuss the teaching of one aspect of history in isolation from all others; the writer may so easily and so unwittingly place the subject out of focus, and any advocate of local history who treats his subject in this way invites the charge of parochialism-just as the protagonist of world history lends himself open to the accusation of propagating a shallow and sentimental internationalism. The critics in both cases would be wide of the mark, for any sound scheme of history teaching, especially in the secondary schools, should include the study of the locality, of the nation, and, in an ever-shrinking world, of some world history. This is not the place for a discussion of these different aspects, or of the principles of history teaching in general; rather, in view of the nature of Morgannwg and of the editors' request, one must consider, local history only and in almost complete isolation from all else. Nor is a full and philosophical justification of the teaching of local history called for. Three things, however, can and should be said. In the first place, education should help a child to grow, and to grow as a member of his community. It should make him feel at home in his community, not a stranger to it, for no one is more to be pitied than he who is deracine, who lacks roots, who does not 'belong'. And a child's roots are in his home and in the immediate locality in which he lives; that is where he belongs, and his affection for the locality is the foundation of his affection for the wider community of the nation and for an under- standing of, or sympathy with, other communities he may later develop. For no one can visualise the whole of Wales, small though it is, still less the whole of Britain or the British Common- wealth. Many scenes come to mind when one thinks of one's native land: scenes of the place in which one was born, scenes of childhood memories, of the places one has visited on holiday, and the like. But they are all isolated scenes, a mosaic rather than a panorama, though it is safe to say that one part of the pattern will stand out far more clearly than all the others. "When