Texas History Chapter 1.1: Studying History

I. Studying History Historian: study’s the lives of people in different times and places collect evidence to interpret events Asks questions, finds and analyzes sources and draws conclusions based on evidence.

Key Historical Terms: primary source = firsthand information about people or events ex. diaries, letters, eyewitness, laws, court decisions, speeches, autobiographies secondary source = account provided after the fact by people who did not directly witness or participate in the event ex. textbooks, encyclopedias, articles, books, biographies authenticity = is the source / artifact authentic (real / true)? ex. false story, forged documents

artifact = objects made by humans ex. stone tools, weapons, baskets, carvings archeology = study of evidence left by early people in order to find out about their way of life (culture) chronology (chronologic) = the order events take place ex. timeline, placing events in order

Other key terms Take these notes on the back of your sheet…

Cultural customs, and social behavior of a society

Society an organized group of persons associated together for religious, cultural, scientific, political, patriotic, or other purposes.

Economic the science that deals with the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services, or the material welfare of humankind.

Political Dealing with government or public affairs

Demographic statistic of a human population, as the  number of births or deaths.

Using Graphs, Charts, & Tables Texas History Chapter 1.1: Using Graphs, Charts, & Tables

Houston: 1.95 million Dallas: 1.18 million San Antonio: 1.14 million Austin: .0657 million

Four Largest Texas Cities, 2000

Why are we studying this? Lists of names, facts, and statistics are often clearest when presented visually. Understanding charts and graphs is an essential skill.

Statistics—information in the form of numbers Using Graphs Statistics—information in the form of numbers Houston: 1.95 million Dallas: 1.18 million San Antonio: 1.14 million Austin: .0657 million

Using Graphs Bar graph—uses bars of different lengths to represent numbers or percentages for comparing information about different places or time periods

Using Graphs Horizontal Axis—the line across the bottom of the graph Vertical Axis—is the line along the side

Using Graphs Vertical Axis Horizontal Axis

Using Graphs Line Graph—graph that indicates a trend or pattern over time, such as whether something is increasing, decreasing, or staying the same

Pie chart—chart showing how parts of a whole are divided Using Charts & Tables Pie chart—chart showing how parts of a whole are divided

Tables help organize and categorize information Using Charts & Tables County Pop. + Harris 20.7% Dallas 19.8% Bexar 17.5% Tarrant 23.6% Travis 40.9% Collin 86.2% Tables help organize and categorize information Population Growth 1990-2000

Timeline—chart showing a sequence of events Using Charts & Tables Timeline—chart showing a sequence of events

Using Charts & Graphs Flow Chart—Chart using boxes, arrows, or images to show a series of activities or steps Causation Chart—Chart that uses pictures, diagrams or arrows to show causes and effects of events

Item Usefulness or purpose Bar Graph Line Graph Pie Chart Table Time Line Flow Chart Causation Chart

Item Usefulness or purpose Bar Graph Line Graph Pie Chart Table to compare data about different places or time periods Line Graph to show a trend or pattern Pie Chart to show how the parts of a whole are divided Table to organize and categorize descriptive and/or statistical information Time Line to show the sequence of a series of events Flow Chart to show steps or a series of activities Causation Chart To show the cause and effect of an event or situation

Primary & Secondary Sourcess Texas History Chapter 1.1: Primary & Secondary Sourcess

Primary Sources and Secondary Sources Which one is better to use for research?

What is a Primary Source?

Primary sources are informational sources from the time of the event.

Examples of primary sources: Autobiographies Newspaper articles Diaries Novels Documents Objects from the time Eyewitness accounts Oral histories Film footage Photographs Laws Poems, art, music Letters Speeches

What’s a secondary source? Secondary sources are informational sources that analyze the event. These sources often use several primary sources and compile the information.

Secondary Sources are found in: Biographies Encyclopedias History books Textbooks

Ask Important Questions When studying and learning, we must always be questioning the quality of our sources. Who wrote this? How do they know the information they are telling me? When did they write it? Why did they write it? Who did they write it for?

Author’s Bias We should never believe everything we read; you should question everything. It is nearly impossible for an author to leave out some sort of bias, and it is your responsibility to determine their bias and to reflect on how it affected their work.

Things to Consider For every source you use, you will need to evaluate it in order to determine which category they fit into - primary or secondary - and how much you can trust those materials.

So which source should I use? Both primary sources and secondary sources of information are important Use as many authentic primary sources as possible Go to reliable secondary sources as needed and make sure to evaluate these sources for accuracy

Side by Side Comparison Primary: Secondary: Personal experience Others experiences Eyewitness account Interpreted Historical evidence Based on evidence One sided Author’s biases Historical biases Current biases Original document Copy of original First hand experience Second hand account