Sweden Compulsory School Year 9 Syllabus - History

History

Humanity's understanding of the past is intertwined with beliefs about the present and perspectives on the future. In this way, the past influences both our lives today and our choices for the future. Women and men throughout the ages have created historical narratives to interpret reality and influence their surroundings. A historical perspective provides us with tools to understand and shape the present we live in.

Purpose

The purpose of history education is to develop students' historical consciousness and historical literacy. This is made possible by students developing knowledge about historical conditions and historical concepts, gaining insights into how history is created through interpretations of sources, and developing an understanding of how history can be used in different contexts. In this way, students gain an understanding of how the past has shaped the present and thus influences our expectations of the future.

The education should provide students with the preconditions to acquire a historical frame of reference and a chronological overview of how women and men throughout the ages have created and changed societies and cultures. Through this, students should gain an understanding of different cultural contexts and ways of life throughout history and of historical events that have influenced the present. The education should also contribute to students' understanding that people of every age must be judged based on the conditions and values of their time. By providing perspectives on long historical lines relevant to the present, such as living conditions, migration, and power, the education should give students a deeper understanding of how historical development is characterized by both continuity and change.

The education should contribute to students developing knowledge about how we can know something about the past through historical source material. Students should also be given the preconditions to develop the ability to ask questions about and evaluate sources that form the basis of historical knowledge. Working with sources should also give students the preconditions to empathize with the past.

Furthermore, the education should contribute to students developing an understanding of how history is used in society and in everyday life. Through this, students should gain different perspectives on how the use of historical narratives and references can influence people's identities, values, and perceptions.

The education in history should give students the preconditions to develop:

• knowledge of events, actors, and processes of change during different time periods, as well as historical concepts and long historical lines,
• the ability to ask questions about historical sources and to interpret, critically examine, and evaluate them, and
• the ability to reflect on how history can be used in different contexts and for different purposes.

Central Content

Years 7-9

Social Transformations: The Rise of Civilizations and Industrial Society

• The emergence of advanced cultures in different parts of the world, for example, in Africa, America, and Asia.
• Antiquity, its distinctive features as an epoch and its significance for our own time.
• European colonization and the slave trade. The consequences of this for people and cultures and for the increased global trade between Europe, Asia, Africa, and America.
• Industrialization in Europe and Sweden. Different causes of industrialization and its consequences for people and the environment.
• Revolutions and the emergence of new ideas, social classes, and political ideologies.
• Interpretation of historical sources from a given time period and examination based on source-critical criteria.
• Evaluation of the relevance of sources based on historical questions.
• Analysis of the use of history related to a given time period, for example, how different actors use history to create or strengthen national identities.

Imperialism and World Wars, approximately 1850-1950

• European nationalism, imperialism, and the emergence of different forms of democracy and dictatorship.
• The two world wars, their causes and consequences. Oppression, displacement of people, and genocide. The Holocaust and the Gulag. People's resistance to oppression.
• Interpretation of historical sources from the time period and examination based on source-critical criteria.
• Evaluation of the relevance of sources based on historical questions.
• Analysis of the use of history related to the time period, for example, how different actors use history to create public opinion or legitimize power.

Democratization and Increased Globalization, approximately 1900 to the present

• Democratization in Sweden and the emergence of the welfare state. The formation of political parties, new social movements, such as the women's movement, and the struggle for universal suffrage for women and men. Continuity and change in views on gender, equality, and sexuality.
• Cold War conflicts, as well as new power relations and challenges in the world after the end of the Cold War.
• Continuity and change based on long historical lines concerning living conditions, migration, and power.
• Interpretation of historical sources from the time period and examination based on source-critical criteria.
• Evaluation of the relevance of sources based on historical questions.
• Analysis of the use of history related to the time period, for example, how individuals and groups use history to criticize contemporary phenomena and influence our perceptions of the future.