For a Definition of Public History of Education between Shared Authority and Memories: Re-Thinking the History of School

Abstract

Clarifying the public history of education and determining whether it is possible to provide a precise definition requires considering two interconnected conceptual planes relating to public history as an approach and a way of making history and a currently underway valorisation of historical-educational heritage. Education museums are seen as a privileged place in which to meet the past, in which shared authority can be realized brought to fruition in a historical-educational context, and a research space whose doors are open to the community and its contributions, research which makes use of the narrative dimension present in the sources displayed. Rethinking school history involves combining school memories and narratives in a shared authority context based on historical rigour.