History Didactics in the Post Cold War World: Central Asia, the Middle East, and China

Abstract

Listen

Translate article

DURING THE LAST DECADE of the twentieth century the world has witnessed a series of political, economic and social transformations that have left many of us, particularly those who make it their business to examine the past, pondering the significance of these changes and wondering how to best address them when we enter the classroom. The end of the Cold War and the subsequent dissolution of the Soviet Union marked the beginning of a new era in history, one that appeared, at first glance, to have given rise to a less precarious world, and one that most observers hoped would see a reduction in the threat of nuclear annihilation that had overshadowed human history since 1945. The changes that occurred in 1989 had wide ranging repercussions, affecting the political, economic and social systems of countries throughout the world. The events of 1989, and those that have followed, left many historians not only pondering the causes of these monumental changes but also questioning the direction of historical development.