One of the single most important things all human beings must do is figure out who they are, what they want from life and how to get it. As human beings, people need to know what came before them. The study of history teaches all of us where humanity has been and where it might head. In a world in which rapid change is a given, now more than ever before, the study of the past must take center stage. Students need the right tools to understand what has happened in the world they are about to inherit. History provides them not only with the ability to see the past. It also gives students the opportunity to learn from prior mistakes and create a far better future for everyone.

A Complicated World

The world is an intensely complicated place. What worked in any given year may not work the next. Change is more constant than ever before. One of the many things that the study of history teaches students is how to think about things in new ways. When the first airplane took off at the turn of the century, within two decades, pilots were routinely taking off from the skies and landing successfully. What had once seemed like a mere dream rapidly became the chance for people to head off to distant parts of the world faster than ever before. As students study history, they learn that such changes are part of the process of human history. Embracing change is a necessity in life. Students need to make the transition from babies to functional adults. Studying history illustrates exactly how humans have coped well with such changes for as long as recorded human history.

Reading Carefully

Reading is an important skill in the modern world. All students need to learn to read. Part of the process of learning to read is reading from comprehension. Students must ne able to translate a given text into a form they can understand fully. The study of history involves the use of primary documents. These are materials that were written by people at the time. Many such documents use language that may be unfamiliar to contemporary students. As such, when students read such documents, they get a chance to improve their vocabulary and see how language has changed over time. They also have a chance to gain a greater comprehension of all they read from other sources. That helps them improve their reading skills. These are extremely useful skills that students can apply to many other subjects including English, foreign language and writing classes.

Many Points of View

Many issues in the modern world are deeply complex. Students need to make sense of varied points of view as they enter adulthood. Studying history means studying varied positions that people have taken throughout the years. For example, students who study the American Civil War learn about what lead to the war and why one side believed as it did while other side did not disagree. Students get a chance to see multiple positions are possible on a specific subject. History helps them understand concepts such as nuance, subtlety and how different people may read the same set of facts and come away with differing and yet equally valid conclusions. That process allows students to get a feel for their own beliefs. It also helps them understand why they believe certain things. A student also gets the ability to challenge their innate perceptions and the tools they need to understand why they're doing so.

Model Citizens

Citizenship is something that all Americans have in life. As citizens, they have certain rights. They also have certain responsibilities. History teaches students how the American government works. Concepts such as the separation of powers and the ability to keep the church away from the state illustrate to students the inner working of the American government. Such concepts also allow them to be full participants in the working of the government. When students reach eighteen, they are expected to register to vote. They will need to choose a candidate to represent them in their local, state and national governments. They also need to know how long such representatives serve as well as what kinds of laws they can pass. Studying history gives students such information. In the process, it helps them become part of the hugely important process of governing the United States more efficiently.

A New Future

All people today have a say in the kind of future humanity is going to have. Learning from the past means learning in part how and why mistakes were made. For example, during the 1918 influenza epidemic, certain cities were able to ward off more infections. As COVID-19 spread through the United States in 2020, health officials were able to have a closer look at the efforts they undertook to prevent the spread of a dangerous disease in the past. Officials learned a lot from the study of past historical efforts. They learned that certain measures were likely to flatten the curve and reduce infection were others were not as useful. As they examined the past, they were able to find insights that allowed them to come up with potential solutions for the future. That kind of lesson is the kind of lesson that students can learn over and over again when they study history right now.

History is one subject that has so much to offer so many students. The study of history teaches people about who they are and what they might be if only they dare to dream big enough. That is why we need more historical study.