Big History Project
Encyclopedia
The Big History Project was started by Bill Gates
and David Christian
to enable the global teaching of big history
. Big history “is the attempt to understand, in a unified way, the history of Cosmos, Earth, Life and Humanity.”. It is a course that covers history from the big bang through to the present in an interdisciplinary way. The Big History Project “is dedicated to fostering a greater love and capacity for learning among high school students”.
After Gates and Christian met to discuss the lectures, the genesis of the Big History Project occurred. They founded the project, and developed a team to achieve their stated goal, “to get big history taught to as many students around the world as possible”.
To achieve that goal Big History Project was launched at the 2011 TED
conference at Long Beach, California on 2 March 2011. David Christian presented an 18-minute lecture outlining big history and the intention of creating a global online delivery of a classroom-tested course aimed at 9th grade students. His presentation was part of the Bill Gates-curated “Knowledge Revolution” section of the conference. Christian's TED talk has been posted, and the link can be found below. The Big History Project website has also made available pdf versions of some of the timelines that support Christian's TED presentation. That link can also be found below.
(Pro-Vice Chancellor, Monash University
, Melbourne); Tracy Sullivan (Director of the Australian History Museum at Macquarie University
, Sydney), and Sal Khan (founder and Executive Director of the Khan Academcy).
The Seattle-based consultancy team Intentional Futures works directly with the Project's founders on strategy, course content, software design, marketing and school implementation. The International Big History Association is also listed as a partner in the project. The University of MIchigan Big History Project team includes Research Associate, Dr. Tammy Shreiner, Project Manager, Jennifer Speyer, Docotoral Candidate in Astrophysics, Cameron Gibelyou, Educational Studies Graduate Students, Jessica Wood and Christopher Lee, and Undergraduate Research Assistants Molly Taylor and Rachel Rickles.
In 2011 the Big History Project team held conferences in Sydney and Seattle with the teachers from the schools. These conferences established a framework for developing a school-based curriculum for big history, and outlined a structure for planning specific lessons to be trialled in classrooms in 2011/12. Teachers are developing lessons for their specific schools, and these lessons will be pooled as part of a developing resource base to facilitate the teaching of the course internationally.
Bill Gates
William Henry "Bill" Gates III is an American business magnate, investor, philanthropist, and author. Gates is the former CEO and current chairman of Microsoft, the software company he founded with Paul Allen...
and David Christian
David Christian (historian)
Dr. David Gilbert Christian is an Anglo-American historian.Christian was born in Brooklyn, New York, to British and American parents. He grew up in Africa and in England, where he earned his B.A. and Ph.D. at Oxford University....
to enable the global teaching of big history
Big History
Big History is a field of historical study that examines history on large scales across long time frames through a multidisciplinary approach, focusing on both the history of the non-human world and on major adaptations and alterations in the human experience...
. Big history “is the attempt to understand, in a unified way, the history of Cosmos, Earth, Life and Humanity.”. It is a course that covers history from the big bang through to the present in an interdisciplinary way. The Big History Project “is dedicated to fostering a greater love and capacity for learning among high school students”.
Description
Bill Gates became interested in big history when he heard a series of lectures by Christian. For Gates, “he really blew me away. Here’s a guy who’s read across the sciences, humanities, and social sciences and brought it together in a single framework. It made me wish that I could have taken big history when I was young, because it would have given me a way to think about all of the school work and reading that followed. In particular, it really put the sciences in an interesting historical context and explained how they apply to a lot of contemporary concerns”.After Gates and Christian met to discuss the lectures, the genesis of the Big History Project occurred. They founded the project, and developed a team to achieve their stated goal, “to get big history taught to as many students around the world as possible”.
To achieve that goal Big History Project was launched at the 2011 TED
TED (conference)
TED is a global set of conferences owned by the private non-profit Sapling Foundation, formed to disseminate "ideas worth spreading"....
conference at Long Beach, California on 2 March 2011. David Christian presented an 18-minute lecture outlining big history and the intention of creating a global online delivery of a classroom-tested course aimed at 9th grade students. His presentation was part of the Bill Gates-curated “Knowledge Revolution” section of the conference. Christian's TED talk has been posted, and the link can be found below. The Big History Project website has also made available pdf versions of some of the timelines that support Christian's TED presentation. That link can also be found below.
Project Team
The academic advisers are Bob Bain, Associate Professor of Education at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor; Marnie Hughes-WarringtonMarnie Hughes-Warrington
Marnie T. E. Hughes-Warrington is the Pro-Vice Chancellor at Monash University. At Monash, Professor Hughes-Warrington is responsible for leading:* curriculum reform and renewal...
(Pro-Vice Chancellor, Monash University
Monash University
Monash University is a public university based in Melbourne, Victoria. It was founded in 1958 and is the second oldest university in the state. Monash is a member of Australia's Group of Eight and the ASAIHL....
, Melbourne); Tracy Sullivan (Director of the Australian History Museum at Macquarie University
Macquarie University
Macquarie University is an Australian public teaching and research university located in Sydney, with its main campus situated in Macquarie Park. Founded in 1964 by the New South Wales Government, it was the third university to be established in the metropolitan area of Sydney...
, Sydney), and Sal Khan (founder and Executive Director of the Khan Academcy).
The Seattle-based consultancy team Intentional Futures works directly with the Project's founders on strategy, course content, software design, marketing and school implementation. The International Big History Association is also listed as a partner in the project. The University of MIchigan Big History Project team includes Research Associate, Dr. Tammy Shreiner, Project Manager, Jennifer Speyer, Docotoral Candidate in Astrophysics, Cameron Gibelyou, Educational Studies Graduate Students, Jessica Wood and Christopher Lee, and Undergraduate Research Assistants Molly Taylor and Rachel Rickles.
Initial Pilot Program
Seven schools have been selected for the initial classroom pilot phase of the project. In the United States, San Diego High School of International Studies (California); The Rivers School (Massachusetts); Northville High School (Michigan); Greenhills High School (Michigan) and Lakeside School (Washington) will teach Big History in the 2011/12 school year. In Australia, Narara Valley High School in New South Wales and Nossal High School in Victoria will teach the course in their 2012 school year.In 2011 the Big History Project team held conferences in Sydney and Seattle with the teachers from the schools. These conferences established a framework for developing a school-based curriculum for big history, and outlined a structure for planning specific lessons to be trialled in classrooms in 2011/12. Teachers are developing lessons for their specific schools, and these lessons will be pooled as part of a developing resource base to facilitate the teaching of the course internationally.