Historical Justice and History Education: The Promises and Pitfalls of Redress and Reconciliation in the Classroom

• In Event: Teaching, Interrogating, and Dismantling Historical Injustices

Abstract

This paper explores the intersections and tensions between history education and historical justice. It argues that history education is significant and contested for both proponents and opponents of historical justice. The paper explores how history education oriented towards historical justice in liberal democracies is a relatively new phenomenon; one that deserves more attention from researchers. This shift forces us to think about why and how educators are engaging with historical injustice, what they hope their students will learn, and how those learners are thinking about their responsibilities. This paper will explore substantive questions generated by the growing relationship between education and historical justice and it will engage the limits and possibilities for teaching history for redress, reparations and reconciliation.

Author

• James Miles, University of Alberta