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Revista Cátedra, 8(2), pp. 137-152, July - December 2025. e-ISSN: 2631-2875
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Development of historical thinking in the first
year of high school: analysis of the activities in
the History textbook
Desarrollo del pensamiento histórico en el primero de
bachillerato: análisis de las actividades del libro de texto
de Historia
Erika Nasimba-Mera
Universidad Nacional de Educación, Azogues, Ecuador
Programa de Maestría en Investigación en Educación
efnasimba@unae.edu.ec
https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2328-8935
Odalys Fraga-Luque
Universidad Nacional de Educación, Azogues, Ecuador
Grupo de Investigación Pensamiento Educativo Ecuatoriano (PEE)
odalys.fraga@unae.edu.ec
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4657-8276
(Received on: 21/02/2025; Accepted on: 25/04/2025; Final Version received on: 20/07/2025)
Suggested citation: Nasimba-Mera, E. & Fraga-Luque, O. (2025). Development of historical
thinking in the first year of high school: analysis of the activities of the History textbook.
Revista Cátedra, 8(2), 137-152.
Abstract
The limited development of historical thinking among students represents a central
problem in the teaching of history, as it restricts their ability to critically interpret the past
and move beyond the mere accumulation of information. Given this situation, the present
study aims to analyze the extent to which the activities in the first-year high school history
textbook contribute to the development of historical thinking among students. To this end,
the 121 activities in the textbook were examined according to the type of historical concept,
cognitive demand, and type of activity. A mixed approach and content analysis technique
were used, employing a code book and analysis sheet as instruments. The information was
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processed using frequency tables, contingency tables, and a word cloud, with the SPSS and
MAXQDA programs. The results highlight that activities related to first-order concepts and
with low and intermediate cognitive demands predominate, which highlights the need to
diversify the activities in textbooks, incorporating approaches that encourage critical
analysis, interpretation, and the reflective use of historical knowledge.
Keywords
Didactics, history, textbooks, first year of high school, historical thought.
Resumen
El escaso desarrollo del pensamiento histórico en el estudiantado representa una
problemática central en la enseñanza de la Historia, dado que restringe su capacidad para
interpretar críticamente el pasado y superar la mera acumulación de información. Ante esta
situación, el presente estudio tiene por objetivo analizar en qué medida contribuyen las
actividades del libro de texto de Historia del primer año de Bachillerato al desarrollo del
pensamiento histórico en el estudiantado. Para ello, se examinaron las 121 actividades de
dicho manual de acuerdo con el tipo de concepto histórico, exigencia cognitiva y tipo de
actividad. Se empleó un enfoque mixto y la técnica de análisis de contenido, utilizando como
instrumentos un libro de códigos y una ficha de análisis. El tratamiento de la información,
que incluyó el uso de tablas de frecuencias, tablas de contingencia y una nube de palabras,
se realizó con los programas SPSS y MAXQDA. De los resultados se destaca que predominan
actividades relacionadas con conceptos de primer orden y con una exigencia cognitiva baja
e intermedia, lo que pone de manifiesto la necesidad de diversificar las actividades en los
libros de texto, incorporando enfoques que fomenten el análisis crítico, la interpretación y
el uso reflexivo del conocimiento histórico.
Palabras clave
Didáctica, historia, libros de texto, primero de bachillerato, pensamiento histórico.
1. Introduction
Over the last decade, the development of historical thinking has become established as a
primary goal of history teaching and learning. This approach allows us to move from models
focused on the mere transmission of content to pedagogical models focused on reflection,
criticism, and construction (Ibagón and Minte, 2022, p. 121). In this way, students are given
an active and leading role in the discipline of history, in line with the demands of the 21st
century.
Leading researchers in history teaching, such as Domínguez and Santisteban, agree that the
teaching and learning of history should not be limited to the transmission and repetition of
facts, dates, and figures, but should focus on the development of historical thinking
(Domínguez, 2015, p. 8; and Santisteban, 2010, p. 35). This allows students to acquire the
skills and abilities essential for actively and independently constructing knowledge,
considering that history is not a finished fact but a construction that is constantly being
revised and interpreted.
Therefore, with the aim of contributing to the development of historical thinking in high
school students, this study analyzes one of the most widely used teaching materials in the
teaching and learning of history: the textbook. According to Saíz and Colomer, this resource,
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“like other resources used in the subject of history, should aim to promote adequate
historical education” (p. 3); that is, to encourage the development of historical thinking.
“Textbooks have traditionally been one of the central resources in education systems,
especially in Ecuador” (Sánchez, 2021, p. 41). Their relevance lies not only in the historical
narrative they contain, but also in the activities that guide the teaching and learning process.
Hence, their analysis provides insight into how the teaching and learning of history is
structured in the classroom.
Previous studies in Spain have revealed that the activities in secondary school textbooks
present challenges for the development of historical thinking. Research carried out by
Ferreras et al., Gómez et al., and Simón shows a predominance of activities focused on
memorizing factual content, to the detriment of those that foster historical thinking
(Ferreras et al., 2020, p. 171; Gómez et al., 2020, p. 1; and Simón, 2023, p. 1). This situation
highlights the need to balance the use of first- and second-order concepts to strengthen this
competence in high school.
In this context, the present study seeks to answer the following research question: to what
extent do the activities proposed in the history textbook for the first year of high school in
Ecuador contribute to the development of historical thinking? This question is justified by
the need to critically analyze the textbook, one of the most widely used teaching materials
in the teaching and learning of history. This resource plays a key role in pedagogical
mediation and in the formation of specific cognitive skills, such as the aforementioned
capacity for historical thinking.
In terms of the organization of the article, the second section presents the theoretical
foundations of historical thinking. The third describes the methodology used for the
analysis of the activities, while the fourth presents the main findings. Finally, the fifth
section discusses the results and conclusions. The purpose is to contribute to the reflection
on the teaching and learning of history and to highlight the need to design teaching
strategies that effectively promote the development of historical thinking in the classroom.
2. Theoretical reference
Historical thinking has been extensively studied by various authors. Among them, Wineburg
(2001) defines it as a “set of skills specific to historical work that enable students to
construct knowledge autonomously” (n.p.). This type of thinking encompasses various
cognitive skills that enable students to interpret, understand, and reflect on the past.
This type of thinking “is not intuitive and natural knowledge, but requires a gradual learning
process” (Saíz and López, 2015, p. 89). Therefore, certain elements must be considered
during the teaching and learning process of history in order to develop it. First, Domínguez
(2015) points out that “it is necessary to work with first-order or substantive concepts and
second-order or methodological concepts” (p. 46); the latter are the ones that should
predominate in the formation of historical thinking.
First-order concepts are those related to specific dates, figures, and events, with a more
conceptual nature. For example, knowing the date of the Battle of Pichincha or who the main
figures of the Liberal Revolution were. These are classified as:
Chronological: Knowledge of the dates on which a particular event occurred or their
order.
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Factual: Knowledge of specific concepts, theories, or facts from the past (Gómez and
Miralles, 2015, p. 59)
On the other hand, second-order or methodological concepts are those that are more
strategic and focus on understanding history. Within the second-order concepts, Seixas and
Morton (2013) present six key concepts:
Historical relevance: Ability to establish the relevance of specific events
or individuals based on one's own criteria. Historical sources: Critical
analysis of primary and secondary sources for subsequent
interpretation. Change and continuity: Identification of continuities and
changes over time. Causes and consequences: Evaluating the multiple
causes and consequences of historical events. Historical perspective:
Understanding the perspectives of people in the past based on historical
context. Ethical dimension: Generating ethical judgments and
assessments of past actions based on context (p. 4).
First-order and second-order concepts complement each other and are interdependent.
However, in order to learn to think historically, it is crucial to place greater emphasis on
second-order concepts, as these enable us to understand and make sense of first-order
concepts. Thus, it is essential to teach not only ‘knowing’ (content), but also ‘doing’
(applying), using second-order concepts, which require a higher level of cognitive
complexity (Moreno et al., 2023, p. 91).
According to Martínez et al., historical thinking requires more complex skills than simple
memorization and repetition of content (Martínez et al., 2022, p. 1), which implies a higher
level of cognitive processing. Marzano and Kendall's taxonomy (2007) structures the
cognitive system into four levels: “retrieval, comprehension, analysis, and application” (p.
13). In this sense, to foster historical thinking, it is necessary to transcend the level of
retrieval and propose activities that promote comprehension, analysis, and application of
historical knowledge.
For the development of historical thinking, it is essential to propose activities that give
students an active role, in line with a constructivist pedagogical model. The focus should be
on strategies based on research, inquiry, and problem solving, as these favor the
development of complex cognitive skills and, consequently, the construction of historical
thinking (VanSledright, 2011, n/p). In contrast, mechanical activities and short-answer
questions distance themselves from this approach by limiting analysis and critical reflection
on historical events.
3. Methodology
3.1 Data collection technique and instruments
This study uses a mixed-methods approach and uses content analysis as its primary
technique, which allows for the interpretation of documentary sources through the
application of both quantitative and qualitative procedures (Guix, 2008, p. 27). To collect
and analyze the activities proposed in the first-year high school history textbook, two Excel-
based instruments were designed: a codebook and an analysis sheet.
For the analysis process, activities were specifically selected from the first-year high school
textbook, issued by the Ministry of Education in 2020 and published digitally and free of
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charge on the "Recursos Educativos 2" website. A total of 121 activities were analyzed,
distributed across the six units comprising the textbook. Data collection was carried out
using an analysis sheet (Table 1), in which the 121 activities were recorded, along with the
unit to which they belong, the name of the unit, the thematic content, and the page on which
they are located. In addition, three additional columns were included to classify each activity
according to the type of historical concept, the level of cognitive demand and the type of
activity.
Unit of
analysis
Unit of analysis
Categoríes
Activities
N°
Unit
Unit
Name
Thematic
content
Páge
Type of
historical
concept
Cognitive
demand
Type of
activity
Activity 1
Activity 2
Activity…
Table 1. Analysis Sheet
In addition to the analysis sheet, a codebook was designed based on criteria previously
defined in studies on historical thought. This instrument allowed us to define each category
and subcategory for the classification of the 121 activities according to the type of historical
concept, cognitive demand, and type of activity. To define the type of historical concept
(Table 2), the studies by Gómez and Miralles (2015) and Seixas and Morton (2013) were
considered. The cognitive demand (Table 3) was defined based on the taxonomy of Marzano
and Kendall (2007), while the classification of the type of activities (Table 4) was based on
the work of Gómez et al. (2019).
Types of Historical Concepts
Example
Conceptos de
primer orden
Chronological Knowledge
Knowledge of the dates on which a
particular event occurred or their
order.
What event occurred in the year 1492?
Factual Knowledge
Knowledge of concepts, theories, or
events from the past.
What are the differences between history
and historiography?
Conceptos de
segundo orden
Historical relevance
Establishes the importance of
certain events or figures.
Explain the importance of Moses to Israel.
Historical Sources
Examine historical sources
(primary or secondary) for further
interpretation..
Examine the Greek sculpture below and
detail what information it provides.
Change and Continuity
Recognizes those aspects that
change over time and those that
remain constant.
How does ancient Roman law differ from
the current Ecuadorian legal system?
Causes and Consequences
Outline the causes and consequences of
the Jewish diasporas.
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Analyzes the multiple causes and
repercussions of a historical
phenomenon or event.
Historical perspective
Determines the perspective of
people in the past according to the
historical context. Understands the
attitudes and actions of the past.
Imagine you are a citizen of Athens and
you are writing a letter to your sister who
lives in another city. In your letter, explain
your situation as a citizen in Athens.
Ethical dimension
Generates ethical judgments and
evaluations of past actions based on
context. Evaluates crimes,
injustices, benefits.
Do you agree with the establishment of
castes in Ancient India? Justify your
answer.
Table 2. Types of Historical Concepts. Adapted from: Gómez and Miralles (2015) and Seixas and Morton
(2013)
Cognitive Demand
Examples
Remediation
To complete the activity, students must recognize or recall the
knowledge in the same way it is presented in the text. Verbs such as
select, identify, determine, name, describe, locate, list are often used; or
questions such as: What? Who? Where? When?
What physical
changes did
hominids
undergo?
Comprehension
To complete the activity, students are required to integrate or
symbolize the acquired knowledge. Actions such as describe how or
why, describe the effects of, describe the relationship between, explain
how, make connections between, represent, draw are often used. At
this level, work tends to be done on developing graphic organizers or
interpreting tables, images, or maps.
Draw a
comparison
chart
between the
Paleolithic
and Neolithic
periods.
Analysis
To complete the activity, students are required to identify similarities
or differences, classify knowledge into categories, analyze errors, make
generalizations, or develop specifications, which implies generating
new knowledge that they did not previously possess. Verbs such as
differentiate, identify problems, identify drawbacks, judge, and evaluate
are often used. concludes, infers, deduces, defends, predicts.
Discuss the
differences
between the
original,
romantic, and
current
meanings of
the term
culture.
Aplication
To complete the activity, students are required to identify similarities
or differences, classify knowledge into categories, analyze errors, make
generalizations, or develop specifications, which implies generating
new knowledge that they did not previously possess. Verbs such as
differentiate, identify problems, identify drawbacks, judge, and evaluate
are often used. concludes, infers, deduces, defends, predicts.
Research and
write a micro-
essay on the
origin of
Israel.
Table 3. Levels of cognitive demand. Adapted from: (Marzano and Kendall, 2007)
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Type of activity
Example
Short Question
Students are asked to answer short questions
based on the textbook.
What does the term culture mean?
Objective Test
Students are asked to: fill in the blanks, order
events, choose the correct option, match columns,
or complete statements.
Relate each event to the historical
period.
Text Commentary
Students are asked to analyze texts presented in
the textbook. This includes identifying main ideas,
opinions, syntheses, and interpretations.
What message does Gombrich's
text want to convey?
With Images and Figures
The activity involves the use of images and/or
figures found in the textbook
Observe the drawing of
Mesopotamian civilization and
answer: What advantages can be
gained by being located near a
river?
With Maps
The activity involves the use of maps provided in
the textbook.
Look at the map and answer:
Which territories were conquered
by Alexander the Great?
Graphic Organizers
Students must create diagrams, mind maps,
concept maps, or comparison charts.
Draw a comparative table of
historiographical currents.
Creation
Students must produce something new, fostering
creativity and innovation. This includes creating
poems, journals, and songs.
Imagine you are a citizen of
Ancient Athens. Write a letter to a
family member telling them the
most interesting aspects of the
polis.
Information Search
This involves students gathering information from
different media (beyond the textbook)
Research the events that occurred
after the fall of the Berlin Wall.
Were there further military
interventions by the United States?
Collaborative
It involves not only intellectual exercises but also
teamwork. It includes debates, roundtable
discussions, and role-playing.
Hold a debate based on the
following question: What is
culture? Who can be considered a
cultured person?
Table 4. Type of activities. Adapted from: (Gómez et al., 2019)
3.2 Data analysis
For data analysis, SPSS and MAXQDA were used, combining quantitative and qualitative
techniques. First, a descriptive statistical analysis was performed in SPSS for each category:
historical concepts, levels of cognitive demand, and types of activities. Frequency and
percentage tables were generated, as well as contingency tables between categories.
Subsequently, the textual content of the 121 textbook activities was imported into MAXQDA
to identify patterns and trends in their formulation. A word cloud was generated to visualize
the most frequently used terms and analyze their relationship to the development of
historical thought.
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4 Results
Regarding the type of historical concept, a predominance of first-order concepts was found
over second-order concepts, as shown in Table 5. The majority of activities (58.7%) focused
on factual knowledge, that is, specific information about historical concepts, theories,
figures, or events. This is evident in questions such as: What Germanic kingdoms existed at
the end of the 5th century? Where was the term culture first used? These questions can be
quickly and explicitly answered in the textbook.
In contrast, second-order concepts, fundamental to the development of historical thought,
are found in a lower percentage, with a total of 38.9%. Within this category, causes and
consequences are the most common, at 11.6%; while ethical dimension, change and
continuity, and historical sources register percentages lower than 6%. Which shows a
scarce presence of activities in which students generate ethical judgments, recognize the
aspects that are transformed and maintained over time, and make use of historical sources
for their respective interpretation.
Type of historical concepts
Frequency
Percentage
First-order
concepts
Factual Knowledge
71
58.7
Chronological Knowledge
3
2.5
Second-order
concepts
Historical Relevance
10
8.3
Historical Sources
6
5.0
Change and Continuity
5
4.1
Causes and Consequences
14
11.6
Historical Perspective
7
5.8
Ethical Dimension
5
4.1
Total
121
100.0
Table 5. Frequencies and percentages of the type of historical concept
Regarding cognitive demands, the most common cognitive demand was comprehension
(45.5%), followed by retrieval (27.3%), and analysis (25.6%), as detailed in Table 6. This
shows that most activities focus on the first three levels of Marzano and Kendall's (2007)
taxonomy, prioritizing recognition, recall, integration, symbolization, classification,
association, generalization, and specification of historical knowledge.
However, a limited presence of activities was also observed at the application level, which
is key to fostering skills such as problem-solving, researching diverse sources, decision-
making, and experimentation. Of the 121 activities analyzed, only two fall within this level,
highlighting the need to incorporate teaching approaches that promote more active and
meaningful learning.
Cognitive Demand
Frequency
Percentage
Recovery
33
27.3
Comprehension
55
45.5
Analysis
31
25.6
Application
2
1.7
Total
121
100.0
Table 6. Frequencies and percentages of the level of cognitive demand
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Regarding the type of activities, short questions are the most frequent, accounting for 62%.
Examples of these questions include: What is work? What was the economic basis of the
Mesopotamian empires? Activities with graphic organizers are a considerable distance
behind (13.2%). The remaining activities, related to images and figures, text commentary,
collaborative activities, maps, and objective tests, account for less than 10%. This highlights
the need to propose a greater diversity of activities that allow students to take an active role
in constructing historical knowledge.
It is important to note that, of the 121 activities analyzed, only one creative activity and two
information-searching activities were found, reflecting the limited presence of activities
that encourage students to produce something new and research diverse sources that
involve going beyond the textbook. Table 7 details the data obtained.
Type of activity
Frequency
Percentage
Short Question
75
62.0
Objective Test
3
2.5
Text Commentary
7
5.8
With Images and Figures
9
7.4
With Maps
4
3.3
Graphic Organizers
16
13.2
Creation
1
0.8
Information Search
2
1.7
Collaborative
4
3.3
Total
121
100.0
Table 7. Frequencies and percentages of the type of activity
The analysis of the relationship between the type of historical concept and cognitive
demand, based on the Chi-square test (Table 8) shows a highly significant association. First-
order concepts (chronological and factual) are related to the first two levels of cognitive
demand: recovery and comprehension, while second-order concepts have a greater
relationship with the level of comprehension and analysis (Table 9). Evidence that working
with second-order concepts, fundamental for the development of historical thinking, also
implies greater cognitive demands, as pointed out by Martínez and Gómez (2018).
Value
Gl
Asymptotic
significance
(bilateral)
Pearson's Chi-square
56. 268a
21
<.001
Likelihood ratio
61.052
21
<.001
N of valid cases
121
Table 8. Chi Square test between type of historical concept and cognitive demand
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Cognitive demand
Total
Recovery
Comprehension
Analysis
Aplication
Type of
historical
concept
Factual
Knowledge
30
28
11
2
71
Chronological
Knowledge
2
1
0
0
3
Historical
Relevance
0
7
3
0
10
Historical
Sources
0
3
3
0
6
Change and
Continuity
0
1
4
0
5
Causes and
Consequences
1
12
1
0
14
Ethical
Dimension
0
0
5
0
5
Historical
Perspective
0
3
4
0
7
Total
33
55
31
2
121
Table 9. Contingency table between historical concept and cognitive requirement
The analysis of the relationship between concept type and activity type, based on the Chi-
square test (Table 10), also reveals a highly significant association between both categories.
The majority of short-question activities are linked to first-order knowledge, while the
remaining activity types are distributed to a lesser extent among the different types of
historical concepts, as seen in Table 11.
It is noteworthy that text commentary activities and image and figure activities are related
to historical sources (second-order concepts). These types of activities could be used as a
starting point to encourage the use of primary and secondary sources for the construction
of historical knowledge. These findings in themselves reveal the need to diversify activities
to foster historical thinking, rather than relying solely on short questions.
Value
Gl
Asymptotic
significance
(bilateral)
Pearson's Chi-square
98. 199ª
56
<.001
Likelihood ratio
66.166
56
.166
N of valid cases
121
Table 10. Chi Square test between type of historical concept and type of activity
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Type of activity
Total
Short question
Objective Test
Text comment
With images and
figures
With maps
Graphic
organizers
Creation
Search for
information
Collaborative
Type of
historical
concept
Factual
knowledge
47
1
2
3
4
9
0
2
3
71
Chronologi
cal
knowledge
1
1
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
3
Historical
relevance
6
0
0
1
0
3
0
0
0
10
Historical
sources
0
0
2
4
0
0
0
0
0
6
Change and
continuity
4
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
5
Causes and
consequen
ces
11
1
0
0
0
1
0
0
1
14
Historical
perspective
3
0
2
1
0
0
1
0
0
7
Ethical
dimension
3
0
1
0
0
1
0
0
0
5
Total
75
3
7
9
4
16
1
2
4
121
Table 11. Contingency table between historical concept and cognitive requirement
Finally, after generating the word cloud in MaxQda, it was evident that the most frequent
terms are closely related to specific historical facts, such as the names of empires, figures,
and events, reflecting a focus on factual knowledge, as shown in Figure 1.
The most frequent word is "what?", followed by words such as "answers," "comparative,"
"elaborates," "relationship," "believe," "observes," and "explains." This reveals a
predominance of factual knowledge, but also highlights the presence of activities that
encourage an active role for students in learning, through observation, reflection,
comparison, and explanation. There are activities that promote the development of
historical thinking, although to a lesser extent.
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Figure 1. Word cloud of textbook activities
It is also important to note that the most frequently used words in the activities are:
"culture," "Roman," "Greek," "empire," "Sparta," "Athens," "civilizations," "women,"
"Neolithic," and "hominids," which reveal an emphasis on topics related to ancient
civilizations, especially Greece and Rome. This approach suggests the need for a more
appropriate balance in the selection of activities for each of the topics covered in the
textbook.
5 Discussion and conclusions
The results obtained show a clear prevalence of first-order concepts over second-order
concepts in the activities analyzed. This finding is consistent with previous studies
conducted in other contexts, such as Spain, where a similar trend has been identified in
history textbooks (Simón, 2023, p. 1). The activities present a predominantly factual and
conceptual focus, rather than a critical understanding and interpretation of history. This
coincidence with international research reinforces the need to rethink the design of
activities, incorporating second-order concepts more frequently.
Of the six second-order concepts, the concept of ethical dimension, along with the concepts
of change and continuity and historical perspective, are among the least present in the
activities analyzed. As evidenced in the Spanish textbooks, "the concepts of historical
relevance and historical consciousness or the ethical dimension of history have a lesser
presence" (Martínez and Gómez, 2018, p. 160). For this reason, it is imperative to rethink
the balanced inclusion of first- and second-order concepts in History textbook activities to
foster the development of historical thinking.
The cognitive demands of the activities proposed in the History textbook focus primarily on
the first three levels of Marzano and Kendall's (2007) taxonomy. Consequently, it is
important to design educational activities that mobilize complex cognitive capacities and
thinking skills specific to the historical discipline (Gómez, 2014, p. 14), thus allowing us to
woman history time Middle Ages elaborates Rome Roman
outline Israel main evolution India exists Athens
explain work Neolithic difference you believe historical polis types
empire beginning society civilizations today system
text culture table what origin does it have answer historiography
hominids east answer where
period Greek country comparative observe Sparta animals
relationship city
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transcend the mere repetition and memorization of content. Students must be able to
research, make decisions, solve problems, and argue to actively construct their knowledge.
There are few activities that invite students to produce something new, research diverse
sources, or work collaboratively, which reinforces the need to incorporate these types of
proposals more frequently in textbooks. In line with these findings, it is important to note
that, according to Carretero and Gartner, fostering the development of historical thinking
requires creating spaces for dialogue, debate, and discussion, in which students can
question assumptions, evaluate sources, and recognize the complexity of historical events
(Carretero and Gartner, 2024, p. 84).
There is a significant association between the type of historical concept and cognitive
demand. Second-order concepts allow students to develop and integrate complex skills
(Martínez and Gómez, 2018, p. 149). Therefore, by working with the six second-order
concepts—historical relevance, historical sources, change and continuity, causes and
consequences, historical perspective, and ethical dimension—it is also possible to foster
complex cognitive skills in which students take on a leading role.
Thus, it is concluded that the activities proposed in the first-year high school history
textbook in Ecuador offer limited contributions to the development of historical thinking.
This highlights the need to review and enrich the didactic design of these materials,
incorporating proposals that promote more active, reflective, and contextualized learning,
in line with current approaches to the teaching and learning of history.
To foster the development of historical thinking in high school students, it is necessary to
design activities that address first- and second-order concepts in a balanced manner, with
special emphasis on the latter. These activities should pose diverse cognitive demands,
transcending the remedial level to promote comprehension, analysis, and application.
Likewise, it is crucial to propose a variety of activity types that give students an active role
in the teaching and learning of history at this level of education.
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Authors
ERIKA NASIMBA-MERA earned a Master's degree in Educational Research from the
National University of Education in 2024. She earned a Specialist in Educational Quality
Management and a Master's degree in Educational Innovation from the Simón Bolívar
Andean University in 2022. She earned a Bachelor's degree in Educational Sciences with a
major in Social Sciences from the Faculty of Philosophy, Letters, and Educational Sciences
of the Central University of Ecuador in 2019.
She has taught at the State Polytechnic University of Carchi in the Faculty of Health Sciences
and Educational Sciences. She has also held positions as an Educational Institution
Management Analyst and Research Analyst in Educational Evaluation at the National
Institute of Educational Evaluation (Ecuador). She has teaching experience in the area of
Social Sciences at various educational levels. She has participated in various research
projects focused on educational evaluation and management. Her main lines of research
include History Didactics and Assessment in Education.
ODALYS FRAGA-LUQUE earned her PhD in Pedagogical Sciences from the National
Commission of Scientific Degrees in Havana, Cuba, at the Félix Varela Morales University of
Pedagogical Sciences (2005). She earned a Master's degree in Pedagogical Sciences from the
Félix Varela Morales University of Pedagogical Sciences, Villa Clara, Cuba (1989). She earned
a Bachelor's degree in Education: Specialty in Primary Education from the Faculty of Early
Childhood Education at the Félix Varela Morales University (1987).
She is currently a full professor at the National University of Education in the Basic
Education program. She directs the Educational Thought Research Group, whose main lines
of research include the study of Ecuadorian educational thought in the UNAE curriculum
and the life stories of teachers in the training of teacher researchers. She is the author of
books and articles published in journals indexed in Latindex and Scielo, among which stand
out: Revista Scientific, Cumbres, Identidad Bolivariana, and Mamakuna, the latter belonging
to the same university.
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Declaration of authorship-CRediT
ERIKA NASIMBA-MERA: conceptualization, methodology, software, validation, data
analysis, writing - first draft, writing - review and editing, final writing and editing.
ODALYS FRAGA-LUQUE: conceptualization, methodology, validation, writing - original
draft, writing - review and editing.
