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the scope of this research was limited to a selection of two textbooks, one from each of the two nations.
The limited knowledge and language ability of the author of this study yields some limitations to the findings of this study, as would be the case for any researcher using this method. The unique insights into the narratives of the ROC and USA, although valuable, are not the only interpretations of the values implicit within them. Another author using the same method and the same framework may come to somewhat different conclusions.
However, in an attempt to mitigate bias and limited cultural knowledge, the services of an experienced interpreter were enlisted. Tzu Hsuan-huang was an invaluable contributor to the insights interpreted from the ROC narrative. Further research from additional authors in future has the potential to corroborate or add to these findings.
The national origin narratives of only two countries are examined in this study, and within them, only one textbook was examined, each. This does limit the wider implications that can be gleaned from this research. However, the ROC and USA were specifically chosen was because they have very different historical and cultural backgrounds, meaning similarities found in their respective national origin narratives are significant and compelling. Also, the textbooks used in this study are both widely used in their respective country. More time and resources could be devoted to applying the monomyth to more wide comparisons.
5.2 Recommendations
The findings of this study contain implications for educators of national history, textbook producers, and research in the field of national history education. In terms of teaching national history, this study provides justification for integration and cross-curricular
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collaboration between history and language arts classes. Narrative frameworks such as Campbell’s (2004) monomyth are useful tools to analyze national origin narratives. This is important for national history educators to consider for reasons discussed throughout this thesis, including that: (1) national origin narratives present only a portion of the perspectives, characters, and events that took place in the past, therefore marginalizing those which are not considered; (2) national origin narratives promote a particular set of values and personal characteristics, while devaluing others; and (3) national origin narratives contain a compelling reflection of the contemporary state of the nation that they belong to, thus providing an opportunity for young people to reflect critically on the state and character of their nation.
National history educators would also address these challenges through the use of multiple sources in addition to the standard textbook. Class assignments and projects which compare the narratives of multiple sources on the same subject would benefit the students’
learning in several ways, including: (1) it would demonstrate the value of different perspectives on controversial events in history; (2) it would encourage students to empathize with perspectives that differ from their own: (3) it would provide opportunities to include underrepresented groups into narratives which typically exclude their perspectives.
This study suggests two key recommendations for textbook producers. First, the construction of totally unbiased and inclusive national origin narratives should be acknowledged as an infeasible goal. This acknowledgement suggests that the writers of national origin narratives should not occupy themselves with this futile task, but that textbooks and other sources of national origin narratives that are used in classrooms should
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include or be comprised of several separate narratives which converge on key events. This strategy would preserve the integrity of the narratives, while also providing several perspectives on the same critical events in national history. The second recommendation for national history textbook producers is to build in the opportunities for cross-curricular activities with language arts curriculum. There is ample research highlighting the value of cross-curricular teaching and learning, (Savage, 2011) but this research suggests that a specific benefit of collaboration between national history and language arts curriculum is the insight gained through analysis of national history through narrative frameworks.
In terms of further research, the findings of this study suggest that analysis of national origin narratives through narrative frameworks such as the monomyth reveal intrinsic values presented to the consumers of those narratives. Further use of narrative frameworks, especially the monomyth, to analyze the national origin narratives in other textbooks, other sources, and other countries, could yield important findings. Further investigation of the connection between narrative, myth, and history could be an important topic for research in future.
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