About the Author: Russel Tarr

Russel Tarr - History Teacher, International School of ToulouseThis site is the work of Russel. Tarr. I graduated from Oxford University with degree in Modern History in 1993, completed a PGCE at Birmingham University in 1995 and I have been teaching History full-time to the 11-18 age range since 1997 - currently at the International School of Toulouse.

What is the background to the development of the website?

The activities made available on the site were developed in my own time to supplement my history teaching and are continually evolving in response to feedback from my students and other teachers. I first used the internet in my second year of history teaching (1998), and quickly became aware of the potential it offered not only for research but also for interactive learning. Within a few months I had a basic website up and running, and since then I have focused on creating online games, activities and worksheets for history teachers and students. These can be used to 'spice up' traditional schemes of work or used as stand-alone units.

What resources are offered by this website for teachers and students?

The crucial thing about this website is that it is a practical, continually evolving resource produced by a full-time history teacher for his students and his colleagues. All of the activities have been produced with the classroom in mind, and are continually amended after being tried out in class by myself and other visitors.
The activities I have produced to date include such things as

1. Virtual "Head2Head" Interviews (free sample: available here)
These activities allow students to get instant feedback on questions submitted to historical characters such as Adolf Hitler, Henry VIII and Martin Luther King Jr; Stalin is the next character to be developed for the site (expected launch - Christmas 2004). Each character is provided with an extensive database of questions and answers, and worksheets and lesson plans are provided. Two of the characters are also equipped with cutting edge text-to-speech software which have added yet another dimension to the activities.
These activities allow students to decide for themselves what they want to find out about a particular character rather than be restricted by their textbooks and teachers, and they can then feedback with their findings in groups and as a whole class. This innovative project was awarded first prize in the BECTA / Guardian Educational Website Awards in 2002, beating off competition from over 320 other sites and described as a "brilliant concept" that won "hands down". The site author was presented with an award at a ceremony at BAFTA in London. The promotional film which accompanied the ceremony can be seen here.

2. Decision-making games (free sample: available here)
These activities - which follow the format of a "choose your own adventure" game - students converse with historical characters, trade objects, decide how to react to circumstances and complete a worksheet as they go along. These activities engage students with the historical process by:
(a) appreciating at 'first hand' the difficulty of making tough decisions in difficult circumstances and
(b) choosing for themselves which areas of the topic they wish to 'visit'.

There are three main types of these games which I have developed:
Chronological: Students take on the role of a historical character
(e.g. Year 7: King Harold: Battle of Hastings game, Year 8: Charles I: Don't Lose your Head, Year 9: The Home Front in World War Two, GCSE: Civil Servant: Running the League of Nations, GCSE: Weimar Politician: Steering the Republic, GCSE: Can you survive the Wall Street Crash?)
Thematic: Students are asked key questions about their beliefs
(e.g. Year 8: Are You a Lutheran, a Catholic or a Radical?, Year 9: Would you make a good entrepreneur?, What are your political beliefs?; What electoral system should we have?)
Geographical: Students journey around a historical landscape
(e.g. Year 7: Time Machine Journey to the Middle Ages, GCSE: Undercover in Nazi Germany, GCSE: Life in the Trenches in World War One,  GCSE: Surviving the Vietnam War, A-Level: Walking the Mid-Tudor Tightrope, A-Level: Adventure in the Ottoman Empire)

3. Sourcework exercises, in which students are helped to:
● Evaluate reliability by inserting / deleting bias (Year 7: The Murder of Becket),
● Compare and analyse sources by cutting and pasting information into appropriate categories (Year 9: Death on the Railways)
● Make inferences from a source rather than merely describe them (Year 8: The Tudor Portrait Mystery, What is the Message of 'The Ambassadors'?) or
● Develop skills of sourcework analysis (GCSE: Sourcework Tips - Flash Animation, GCSE: How to do structured questions)

4. Interactive quizzes,
Students are given feedback on their answers by the computer. These games are available for topics covering every year group in the 11-18 age range.
Historical Wordshoot - A "Space invaders" game in which the 'invaders' are the answers to historical quiz questions;
Manic Miner - An adaptation of a classic platform game;
Play your Dates Right - Helps to develop chronological awareness;
The Dating Game - The quicker you guess the date of a key event, the better the quality of your "date" for the evening!
These activities allow students to get instant feedback on their factual recall and learn about topics in an entertaining and light-hearted way.

5. In-depth investigations (free sample: Year 9: The Coalbrookdale Interactive Database)
Students analyse various interpretations of a key event to come up with a full interpretation
(e.g. Year 9: The Coalbrookdale Interactive Database, GCSE: What Caused the Bolshevik Revolution? GCSE: What was life like in the trenches during World War One?; GCSE: What Caused World War Two?, A-Level: The Field of the Cloth of Gold, A-Level: What is History all about?)

What are the plans for the site in 2007?

I find that I produce the best activities whilst teaching the subject, so the site builds up on an ad-hoc basis. I have a backlog of ideas on the drawing board, and get as many done as time will allow! In 2007, I am keen to update some of the more established games on the site and to develop new decision-making exercises on subjects including Stalin's Russia and the Cold War. Beyond that, I have a whole list of interactive games on the drawing board which I am slowly working through. The best way of getting a feel of what the site is all about is to keep an eye on the "What's New?" page on the site, which is updated every few days.

How else do you promote the use of ICT in history?

I am very eager to encourage more teachers to use ICT. I strongly feel that although there are a few teachers who are determined never to use ICT, and a few who are passionately committed to it, quite a lot simply can't see the point.
I write a regular column in History Review Magazine designed to demystify ICT and show how it can be used to improve our teaching and learning of history; I have also written several academic articles for the magazine. I have also written for the Guardian and the TES. I have been a speaker at SFE conferences in Bradford and London, have provided courses for Mill Wharf, and offer INSET courses. I am also keen eager to build up links with other teachers both in the UK and abroad to share ideas and good practice.
I would very much welcome any suggestions for improvements to the site and would be happy to answer any of your ICT queries - mail me using the Feedback Form.
 

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