Understanding Perspective and Bias in History

What does it mean when we say someone has a "perspective"?

• They are a historian.

• They have their own point of view about something.

• They know everything about history.

• They can’t have opinions.

What is bias, and how is it different from perspective?

• Bias is when someone tells a story without opinions.

• Bias is a person's point of view about an event.

• Bias is when someone favors one side over another unfairly.

• Bias means everyone agrees on what happened.

Why might two people tell different stories about the same event?

• Because people make up events all the time.

• Because their perspectives or experiences are different.

• Because only one person was at the event.

• Because history is fake.

Why is it important to know who wrote a historical document or account?

• To learn their perspective and understand potential bias.

• To know what kind of handwriting they have.

• To find out if they’re famous.

• To decide whether their story is fun to read.

How can we tell if a source might be biased? What are some clues to look for?

• The source gives detailed and fair accounts of all sides.

• The source only supports one side and leaves out other perspectives.

• The source uses maps and illustrations.

• The source has a lot of quotes.

If a textbook only tells the story of one side of a conflict, how might that create bias?

• The textbook could make students work harder.

• The textbook would encourage students to think independently.

• The textbook would leave out other important perspectives.

• The textbook would be more exciting to read.

Imagine a historical event from your life (like a school competition). How might your perspective on what happened differ from someone else’s?

• Everyone would agree about what happened.

• People on different teams might describe the event differently.

• Only the teachers would know the truth.

• Students wouldn’t remember much about it.

If history is written by the "winners," how could that affect what we learn?

• The winners might exaggerate or leave out other viewpoints.

• The winners always tell the full truth.

• History would focus only on the losers.

• History wouldn’t need sources anymore.

Can historical bias still affect how we think about history today? How?

Why is it important to learn about history from multiple perspectives?

• To better understand the full story of events.

• To make history class longer.

• To simplify what happened in the past.

• To ignore the details of historical events.