It’s well worth reading a piece by Amanda Craig in the Sunday Times in which she criticises the disjointed teaching of history that is now typical of our schools, public and private. Children are taught a bit about the life of the medieval peasant, before skipping to a module on Hitler’s Germany or life in the trenches in World War One, but not presented with the continuous story of the emergence of their country from the earliest times.
History should be taught as an effort to encourage patriotism – not turning a blind eye to our faults as a people or past events that were seen as mistakes at the time or look like mistakes now – but offering a complete narrative of how the struggle for liberty took place in this land. It is an inspiring tale that will encourage love of country and a greater willingness to serve the common good and provide mutual support for one another when it is needed.