Youth Sections
"The Braves Arise " |
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istory in its simplest definition is the study of past events. Everything that has ever happened is part of history. There is a history for anything that is, or has ever been. History is reliving the past through the records kept by those who lived through it. And as we relive the past, we discover new things about those we are learning about, as well as ourselves and how we have progressed and become who we are.
We all have a history and it is specific to each person and his/her family. It is our history that in fact sets us apart as individuals and makes us who we are. If we all didn’t know anything of our history, discovering our identity would be nearly impossible, and we would all interpret events the same, in turn destroying distinctiveness. History is also important because it teaches us ways to improve on our lives, by not repeating the same mistakes. It is not obsolete, but rather gives us valuable insight on what could have been done to prevent or stop events from occurring. If we do not acknowledge the mistakes that we made in our past, then the experiences will have been totally useless. Rather than helping us to succeed in life, history will just cause pain and suffering, with no positive outcome or lesson. In addition to this, history helps bind us together, with shared experiences, cultural backgrounds, etc. It is these things that we have in common that help us determine who we associate with, how we associate with them and how we think about different people. By knowing others’ background, we can tell what kind of person they are and potentially relate to them in different ways. Knowing others’ history not only promotes friendship, but also tolerance and understanding of the hardships that some people have encountered. Such understanding can potentially lead to a better and healthier environment for interactions. History also helps with improving on certain skills. It can help with the ability to assess certain evidence and using that evidence, come up with certain conclusions. History requires us to take multiple records such as speeches, accounts, numerical data, etc. and to culminate that into an eventual answer and that skill can be useful in everyday life. Another skill that history helps with is to see the other side of a certain topic, though you may not completely agree with it. For example, when studying the Revolutionary War, we tend to lean our support towards the patriots, since we ourselves live in America. But in History we learn to see the perspective of the British Colonials as well, without bias, thus furthering what we actually learn out of the lesson. No other subject does this and this skill is useful when debating or trying to strike a compromise, as well as when you are trying to understand someone better. These skills help with everyday life and make us better as students, historians, citizens, and people. My personal reason that history is important is that it helps me in learning about the great leaders and visionaries of the past. We learn a little bit about our own morals. We are then able to compare ourselves to these great people, and see how we compare to the geniuses and the people who changed the world. Learning about history in school is very important. It gives us an important understanding on why the world is what it is today. History is the study of cause and effect. The past is the cause, and we are living in the effect. Learning about history in school also helps us share a common sense of pride about our country and knowing the hardships that those in our past had to go through so that we can live the life we are living now. It is this common sense of pride that binds us together and makes us better citizens. It is this beginning interest in the past and of history that will inspire the children of today to do something tomorrow and be a part of history. History is very important in rounding off a well-balanced academic curriculum, and will help everyone in multiple ways, who seeks the knowledge of the past. In conclusion, history is very useful and should not be forgotten, because if we forget history, we forget the reasons we have become who we are and lose our identity in the process. |
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*Arman Koul is a 13 years old, 8th grade student from Andover, MA. He enjoys reading, music and sports, not necessarily in that order. |
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