More than 300 middle and high school students from central Iowa will compete at the regional History Day competition held April 2 at Central College.
Either individually or as a group, participating students create a documentary, exhibit, paper, performance or website about a historical event, person, issue or idea related to an annual theme. The 2014 theme is “Rights and Responsibilities in History.”
Entries are divided into junior and senior divisions and are judged by Central faculty, staff, current history students, alumni and retired educators. The top entries in each category will advance to the state competition held for the senior and junior division at the State Historical Society of Iowa in Des Moines.
“History Day promotes the development of academic skills and qualities that every college loves to see in its incoming class of students—reading, writing, critical thinking, communication, curiosity, researching and the ability to make connections,” said Lori Witt, associate professor of history. “Therefore, Central College is happy to support the National History Day program by hosting this district contest.”
National History Day is a nationwide scholastic competition in which students grades 6-12 are encouraged to research a historical topic in order to refine research, critical thinking and problem-solving abilities as well as other academic skills. Top finishers from each state competition advance to the Kenneth E. Behring National History Day contest at the University of Maryland.
This year marks the tenth consecutive year Central has hosted a History Day event. For more information, contact Lori Witt at 641-628-5212 or wittl@central.edu.
