Please note: this article pre-dates the 2014 National Curriculum and some content may be outdated.

Editorial comment: When teaching local history we all have an idea of what it is: both as a body of knowledge - information, dates, facts and substantive concepts - and as what that knowledge is based on: the skills, processes, procedures, protocols and syntactic concepts involved in ‘Doing History'.

Our teaching of local history is based upon our existing beliefs and understanding of what ‘doing' it involves. How can we deepen our knowledge of this? W.G. Hoskins, our greatest local historian, can help. His book, Fieldwork in Local History (1967) contains an essay that vividly illuminates what ‘Doing Local History' means. Hoskins' essay ‘Farewell to Fieldwork' tells the story of a Fenland village Maxey - see... He introduces us to the local historian as detective and problem solver; the framer of questions to drive on an enquiry; the hunter out of clues; the field worker; the hypothesiser and speculator; and the user of a vivid, creative historical imagination to answer questions and prove/disprove hypotheses, understand the past and to bring its people and communities to life.

It might be useful to relate Hoskins' view of history to the seven Nuffield Primary History principles, a Dutch Model of Historical Thinking and the English National Curriculum for History. And, while you are reading the essay, what light does he throw upon the British History and Identity debate, i.e. what is he claiming about British identity in the light of what he discovered about Maxey? Clue: Are we Celts or Germans? Look at when he was writing!