Chinese history lessons in school must inspire curiosity to be effective

No doubt the topic is important and young people should learn about it, but what needs to be debated is whether studying it as a school subject is the best way to go about it.

At this critical moment of curriculum change, we should ask the fundamental question: how can we make Chinese history stimulating and inspiring enough so that students enjoy the learning process?

What are the alternatives to textbooks and rote learning, that are all oriented towards exams?

To get the ball rolling, may I suggest using a series of well-produced and well-designed history documentaries, combined with different activities.

For example, to make sure that something is retained, students could be quizzed at the end of the session – but this should have no bearing on their grades. Or, there could be group discussions afterwards. Students could also perform historical plays, write essays based on library and online research, create history-themed art objects, even blogs and video games, and so on. Encouragement could come in the way of prizes within the school; there could also be interschool competitions to motivate students.