Overview

“We justify our actions in the present through our understanding of the past. But we in the time when politicians lie brazenly about historical facts and meddle with the content of history books, wild media differ wildly in their reporting of the same event. Frequently, new discoveries force us to reevaluate everything we thought we knew about the past.” Lynn Hunt

It is from such observation by Lynn Hunt that makes the study of History an indispensable endeavour. Our Bachelor of Arts and Master of Arts/Master of Philosophy degrees in History have been designed to provide our students the opportunity to pursue in-depth and critical study of the past. We strive to ensure that our students acquire the skills necessary for an honest presentation of evidence, and a critical appraisal of present-day concerns informed by their understanding of the past. Our courses are also designed to create awareness and a better understanding of other people’s culture and foster a critical attitude towards chauvinism. Our courses are so structured to enable students to combine content knowledge with professional skills to perform responsibilities including the teaching of history and managing challenges in the education sector as well as industry. Apart from General Survey courses that are designed to prepare our students to teach at all levels of our school system, we also offer specialist courses that are grouped under three thematic strands viz:  Labour and Economic History, Gender History and Conflict and Diplomacy History.

Brief History

The Department of History Education was formed via a split of theDepartment of Social Science Education in the 2013/2014 academic year.The Department of History Education has since its creationintroduced several innovative interventions to encourage and sustain an interest in the study of history. This includesthe Ghana National History Day celebration (GNHD) and the Community History Writing Project (CHWP). The Department has also established partnership with the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), Norway. The Department has also commenced a one-year M.A History Education programme since the 2017/2018 academic year and we hope to start an M.Phil. programme soon.

The Department is currently located at the North Campus within the Faculty Block of the ��ɫ��Ƶ.

The objectives of the programme are to:

1. Provide relevant, meaningful and interesting courses in History;
2. Equip students with pedagogical skills and dispositions to teach History in pre-tertiary and higher level institutions.
3. Engage students with the theoretical principles and practices that underlie the construction and study of History
4. Expose students to the methods of historical research in order to develop their analytical abilities in resolving social problems

• Goal:Our goal is to become an internationally reputableSchool of History with several departments committed to reading, researching, writing and publishing world class historical works.
• Mission: The mission of the Department of History is to prepare history teachers who demonstrate excellence and leadership in the classroom and beyond.

Vision statement: To assist in ��ɫ��Ƶbeing an internationally reputable institution for teacher education, the Department of History Education is taking steps to establish itself as an innovator in the global settings. As a Department, our vision is that history as a discipline must contribute critically to national development. Thus the Department seeks to promote History as a discipline concerned with examining realities in a critical way. We seek to produce graduates who will be in a position to be active participants in the writing of history rather than passive participants. The Department of History Education intends to be a globally recognized Department which will become a model for similar Departments in other institutions in Ghana and beyond.

Achievements:

The Department of History Education since its establishment in 2013 has had a couple notable activities as follows:

• Ghana National History Day Workshops
•  Ghana National History Day Celebrations
• Community History Writing Projects
• Exchange programme between Freire University of Berlin, Germany and the Department of History Education.
• NTNU NORPART Exchange Programmewhere two M.A History Education Students who were stepped up to MPhil (History Education) visited the Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Norway for a six months course work as part of the Partnership agreement. Also three Professors and thirteen students from NTNU visited the Department in June 13, 2019 for the sandwich programme.
• The Department in collaboration with NTNU, UCC and UG organized a one-day 2019 NORPART INTERCULTURAL HISTORICAL STUDIES WORKSHOP in June, 2019.
• Hon. Kow Anyanful’s Award for Best Long Essay Student

Policies/Handbook. Manuals/Guidelines:

• Undergraduate Students’ Handbook & Department of History Education format Guide for Long Essays/Research Reports

Research & Collaborations, Projects and Exhibitions:

• Ghana National History Day Celebration & Community History Writing Project

Resources / Facilities (e.g. Library, lab, Gym):

• Department of History Education library