Raamiz Shuttari of Troy displays his History exhibit on “The Reign of Abubakr”.
Photo by Rick Garcia
By Rick Garcia
Many people are familiar with academic school competitions like the Science Olympiad, First in Michigan Robotics and Quizbowl, which all have wonderful merits on student achievement. What people may not know is another competition that any student can participate which merit key skills like research, public speaking, creative and organizational development.
Throughout the school year, over 4,000 elementary, middle and high school students will compete at the Michigan History Day competition.
Michigan History Day (National History Day in Michigan) is an educational program of the Historical Society of Michigan and offers a fascinating opportunity to move social science beyond routine learning. Students perform research on an individually chosen topic and present their work through the disciplines of writing, art, literature, music, drama and/or visual communications.
“We are expecting a lot of great entries this year,” said Tamara Barnes, Michigan History Day state coordinator. “The students applied this year’s theme—Rights and Responsibilities in History—to create a variety of performances, exhibits, papers, websites and documentaries. We’re excited to see what topics in history come out of this year’s competition.”
Recently at the regional competition hosted by the Detroit Historical Society, example entries include an exhibit on the life of Rosa Parks, equality & rights for Gay & Lesbian citizens, a website on the Trojan War, and a rap performance on “Rights & Responsibilities.”
Each competition are divided into three age divisions: Youth (grades 4-5); Junior (grades 6-8); and Senior (grades 9-12). Top Youth entries advance to the State final event held April 26th in Saline, where junior and senior entries may advance as high as the National History Day Competition held in Washington, D.C.
The state is divided into 11 districts, each with its own coordinator and volunteer judges, educators and retirees. Teachers are encouraged to utilize the Michigan History Day website where they can find teacher and student handbooks, information on the annual theme (Rights & Responsibilities), grading rubrics, and help with local resources for research. With the exception of the paper category, students can work on entries in teams or as individuals. Teachers can set parameters for the topics to coincide with subjects taught in class.
Throughout the series of competitions, the entries are judged on historical quality, presentation, and their connection to an annual theme determined by National History Day.
Volunteer Judges are essential to the competition at both regional and State level. Many have continued to serve since its inception. There is always a need for Judges, who can be any adult with a passion for history and education, by committing a Saturday in most competitions. The Historical Society of Michigan also relies on the District coordinators and site hosts from local historical museums, Michigan Universities and colleges, and school districts.
Michigan History Day directly addresses Common Core State Standards and the new C3 Framework for Social Studies content. It also aligns with many grade level and high school content expectations for social studies and English language arts. Studies show that History Day participants significantly outperform non-participants on state standardized tests in reading, science, math, as well as social studies.
Michigan History Day is run by the Historical Society of Michigan and sponsored by the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, Meijer, the Richard and Helen DeVos Foundation, and Amway’s One by One Campaign for Children.
If you would like to become a judge or would like to engage your student for future competitions, contact your teacher at your local school district, or call the Historical Society of Michigan (517) 324-1828. For more information, visit www.hsmichigan.org.
This was printed in the March 23- April 5, 2014 edition.
