History Lessons Beyond the Classroom
The Bay-Weekly, May 19, 2022
by Susan Nolan
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An interested student is a passionate researcher. Devin Page, a social studies teacher at Northern Middle School in Owings, knows this. He has been preparing students to compete in National History Day for 19 years.
National History Day, a Maryland-based educational non-profit, is in the business of cultivating a passion for research. Annually, middle and high school students compete at the local level to win the chance to advance to state and national competitions. Building on a provided theme, students turn their research into films, websites, academic papers, exhibits or performances. Only two projects per category are chosen to advance to the national level.
The students choose the topics they work on. “The National History Day competition is not tethered to our curriculum,” says Page. “Students choose a topic based on their own personal interests and that interest compels them to dig deep into research.”