MODULE 15

IN

GEC 2
READINGS IN PHILIPPINE
HISTORY
(RPH)
CHAPTER 5: Critical Evaluation and Promotion of Local and Oral
History, Museums, Historical Shrines, Cultural Performances, Indigenous
Practices, Religious Rites and Rituals

Module 15 (1.5 hours)

Title: Local and Oral History as Fields of Study
Introduction:
History is the study of life in society in the past, in all its aspect, in relation to present
developments and future hopes. It is the story of man in time, an inquiry into the past based
on evidence. It is a field of study towards an inquiry into what happened in the past, when it
happened, and how it happened. It is an inquiry into the inevitable changes in human affairs
in the past and the ways these changes affect, influence or determine the patterns of life in the
society, hence, it is an attempt to re-think the past. Moreover, history thus helps us to
understand the present-day problems both at the national and international level accurately
and objectively.

Respectively, History consists of wide area of studies which includes World History,
Asian History, and the like on which it obviously taught in comprehensive manner which
mainly focuses on general and broad points of historical periods, landscapes and spaces,
patterns of human relationships and affairs, socio-cultural changes, political systems,
economic development, and the like. The “history of the (local) common people” is often, if
not always, neglected without knowing that their “history” is indispensable to fully and
holistically understand the history of the whole nation, hence, capsulizing “history of the
common people” of different localities is undeniably imperative towards coming up with a
bigger picture of national history. This paves the way to the conceptualization of local and
oral history as both field of study and a method of historical inquiry on which historians,
educators, and even the local government should emphasize its importance to help common
people understand their local community, developing sound judgment unto social and local
civic affairs, understanding the effect of social changes and influences that take place in their
locality to the patterns of relations in the general society, and ultimately, developing sense of
pride, identity, and national consciousness among the people themselves in the light of their
local cultural practices, traditions, indigenous knowledge systems, and their significant
contribution to the development of the country as a Filipino nation. It is interesting to note
that local and oral history works complementarily as they provide methods and processes to
further go beyond the sensible reality of lived experiences and histories of the people towards
discovering their meaning and significance and making it relevant to the lives of the people
and to the whole nation as well.
In this unit, we will look deeper into the facets of local and oral history in terms of
their nature, meaning, characteristics, and processes on how to employ such historical
methods in doing local historical studies.

Learning Outcomes:
1. To understand the meaning, nature, and methodology of Local and Oral history
2. To identify sources of Local and Oral history;
 3. To recognize the processes of doing Local and Oral history; and
4. To manifest interest in Local and Oral history;

A. PRE-Learning (Motivation/Mood Setting)

1. Activity: Look, Draw, and Relay Game (Bayan Ko, Guhit Ko!): The students will be
grouped according to their localities they come from. The students will identify known
products, fruits, or cultural crafts which made their locality famous and distinct from
other localities. They will be arranged forming a line, one after another, and will do the
Look, Draw, and Relay Activity. The student in the foremost front will do the drawing
first, then s/he will going to relay to his/her group mates until to the last member of the
group and then do the same. The last member of the group, placed at the back, will
present their drawing-output in front.

B. PROGRESSIVE Learning (Lesson Proper)

1. Presentation of the Lesson: Sharing of Insights about the Philosophy of Theodore

Roosevelt, “The more you know about the past, the better prepared you are for the
future”. The students are tasked to give their own interpretation and understanding
about the perspective of Theodore Roosevelt.

Essential Question/s after the Activity:

a. How do we know what happened in the past? Who writes history?
b. Where do you usually go if you want to learn something?
c. What could these “sources” be?

2. Development of the Lesson: Collaborative-Small Group Discussion. The students

will be grouped according to their first groupings and discuss the Meaning, Scope,
and Importance, and Sources of Local history. Tasks will be assigned to each group
for them to work on and presentation of outputs will come after.

Primary Reading Material:

SOURCES OF LOCAL HISTORY- Romeo V. Cruz, Ph.D., UP Press, Diliman, Quezon City.
(To be provided by the teacher. Portions of the material will be given to each group for their reference)

Group 1:Condition:

The students will watch a video clip entitled “Misconceptions about

Philippine History” by Dr. Leloy Claudio- Youtube, and share their
insights in class about the video clip. After the presentation, the teacher
will give a printed material about the nature and meaning of local and oral
history and let the students to discuss it in class using graphic organizer or
semantic map. They are required to provide concrete situations and
illustrations to justify their explanation.
Group 2: Condition:

The students will roam around the school campus and they shall
identify significant landmarks and structures that made the school known.
They must at least tell something e.g. the use, function, and significance
of the structure itself. They will take a photo of it for documentation and
presentation. After the presentation, the teacher will provide them a
printed material about the scope of local history and let them study its
content. They will discuss/report about the content of it in class. They are
required to give concrete examples that can be found in the school and in
the local community as well.

Group 3: Condition:

The students will visit the school library. Observe how it operates,
encountered and felt problems, and make some suggestions and
recommendations. Sharing of their observations will follow after. After
the presentation, the teacher will give the students a printed material about
the sources of local and oral history. The students will cite other sources
of local and oral history that can be found in the school and in the local
community as well.

Group 4: Condition:

Cite one “grey” superstitious belief known in school or in local

community that bothers some of the people therein. Example:
Mangkukulam, etc. Tell some details about it and why it brings worry to
the people therein. After the presentation, the teacher will give a printed
reading material to students about the importance of studying local and
oral history and their significance towards deepening local and indigenous
knowledge. The students will discuss its content in class and they are
required to give concrete example about it.

Group 5: Condition:

The students will read the problem-case “ The Murderer”. They

will brainstorm if who is the culprit in the case. They will share their
insights in class after brainstorming and come up in agreement in
identifying the culprit in the case. After the presentation and sharing of
insights in class, the teacher will give a printed reading material about the
methodology of local and oral history. The students will identify concrete
situation and determine what appropriate approach shall employ for each.
2.1 RY: Meaning, Scope, Importance, and Source

Local history is the study of people, places, factual events, cultural heritage, genealogy,
Mean and folklore, to name a few of local political units and particular geographical area.
ing

Landscape history: a single building (such as a castle, an archaeological site, a church and
graveyard, a monument – or your school), a street
Geo-political history: an area like a village or housing estate, a whole town.
Local culture, indigenous knowledge systems and practices of a particular group in a
Scope geographical area, folklore, myths, epic, and songs/music.
Family history, life of a particular individual, etc.

It gives us a holistic view about crucial and controversial events that took place (or are
taking place) in our local communities and its effect vis-à-vis to national affairs.
Impo It paves the way to clear understanding of historical patterns and their connections with
rtanc each other that procures vivid view of history in general.
e allows us to study national events within the context of local communities

local environments e.g. google maps, street signage, old post-boxes, signs, plaques, foot
scrapers and other forms of street furniture , building clues, monuments, landmarks,
drawings, paintings, photographs, house plans, building plans, documents from local
Sourc priests, land titles from LGU or Registry of Deeds, eyewitnesses, archaelogical crafts,
es school records, newspapers, journals, letters etc.

Meth Interview, content analysis for documents, archival research, archaeolgical excavations
odolo
gy
 2.2 ORAL HISTORY: Meaning, Scope, Importance, and Sources

Oral history is the systematic collection of living people’s testimony about their own
experiences. (Park, 2013)
Oral history can be defined as the recording, preservation and interpretation of historical
Meaning information, based on the personal experiences and opinions of the speaker. (Centre for
Urban History-University of Leicester )

Geo-political history: an area like a village or housing estate, a whole town.

Local culture, indigenous knowledge systems and practices of a particular group in a
geographical area, folklore, myths, music history, epic, etc.
Scope
Family history, life of a particular individual, etc

helps us understand how individuals and communities experienced the forces of history.
teaches us what has changed and what has stayed the same over time.
preserves for future generations a sound portrait of who we are in the present and what we
Importan remember about the past. (Baylor University Manual for Oral History)
ce

Eyewitnesses, priests, tribal elders, members of a particular group.

Sources

Methodol Oral interview, recording (audio-video) but needs informed consent, data transcription.
ogy and
Ethics
Generalization: Ask the following questions to the students:

1. How do local and oral history differ from other sub-disciplines of History?
2. How important is our knowledge of local and oral history as Filipino citizens,
and as a member of a particular ethnic group?
3. In what ways do local and oral history complement and strengthen each
other? Give concrete situations.

C. POST-Learning (Cognitive): Evaluation.

1. Supply the needed information for each sub-discipline of history.

Local History Oral History

Meaning

Scope

Sources

Methodology

Importance

D. PAUSE-Learning (Affective Part). Open-ended questions.

1. I learned that local and oral history is/are …

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2. Local and Oral history is/are important because …

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3. Explain: “…I am fearfully and wonderfully made…"- Psalms 139:14

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 PUSH-Learning. (Transfer of Knowledge)

1. Evaluate the given situation below and consider the tasks that follow:

3
Isabelo, a local resident of Bambang, wants to trace the origins, cultural
practices, and indigenous knowledge systems of the Iwak’s of Kayapa Nueva
Vizcaya. What sources (at least 5) and methodology (at least 5) must he consider
upon doing the activity? Justify your claim. Discuss why Isabelo must consider
such sources and methodology in doing his local history activity.

Suggested Readings:
Charlton, Thomas L., Lois E. Myers, and Rebecca Sharpless, eds. Handbook of Oral History.
AltaMira Press, 2006. Reprinted in two parts, History of Oral History (2007) and Thinking
about Oral History (2008).
New Hampshire Historical Society – [Link]
New Hampshire State Library - [Link]
References:
Candelaria, JL. &Alporha, VC, 2018. Readings in Philippine History, Rex Printing
Company, Inc., Quezon City.
Ligan, VO. [Link], 2018. Readings in Philippine History, MUTYA Publishing House, Inc..
Malabon City