THE STUDY OF HISTORY. THEORY FOR PRACTICE

Abstract

The article analyzes the concepts of "theory of history" and of "philosophy of history". The theory is not just an integral part of history but something allowing to accurately set the didactics of the subject of history, as well as to make a history the methodologically controlled way of presentation of the past. So theory exists to meet the needs of historical practice. In turn, the didactics of history is interpreted as a theory for practice, as a way leading from mediocre, bread-and-butter historical theories to the academic ones. There is then a further way from the understanding of the meaning of history to variety of its interpretation. A special role, according to the author, plays the shaping of the basic students’ skills of approaching towards historical sources. It can be represented for students as a form of presentation associated with the problem of the variability of interpretation of history. The author provides specific ways of restructuring of the school teaching of history based on these assumptions. In his opinion, the most important achievement of the modern theory is the rejection of «history objectively understood and taught» in favor of the theory of narrative history which finally promotes its deeper comprehension and awareness.