Cindy Hartzler-Miller conducted a study for the Nebraska Partnership for American History Education in 2001 titled "Making Sense of the Best Practice of Teaching History." Hartzler-Miller's study used one teacher as a representative of her study. This participant, referred to by the pseudonym "David," concluded that focusing his lesson plans to a smaller range of connected ideas suited the dynamic of his class. Harzler-Miller's study concluded that a teacher must "observe and listen carefully" to a class to discover the best learning model. Bruce A. VanSledright conducted a similar study for the University of Nebraska on two teachers in Maryland in 1997. One of VanSledright's instructors used a linear method of teaching American history, relying heavily on the textbook and study guides. The other instructor focused on the thematic elements of the 13 colonies. The second instructor's method used fewer ideas in hopes of achieving more depth in the subject. VanSledright found that pros and cons existed in both methods.
Inquiry Learning is a method that took root in university education programs during the late 1960s. The method was introduced by Edwin Fenton, a renowned historian holding both a master's and doctorate degree from Harvard. The method encourages a student to reach beyond the facts he is given in class and construct his own notions about historical events. It is through this type of historical inquiry that a student will become engaged. A personal relationship will development between the student and the information.
Chronological teaching utilizes a series of events along a time line. A teacher chooses a span of time and simply moves down the time line illustrating how one event led to the next. The scope of chronological teaching is dependent upon the subject. For example a teacher of world history may create a time line for one particular country, while using a chronological approach to the history of the entire world is impossible. Chronological teaching methods, like all teaching methods, are often combined with different models according the class structure, age and type of history.
Thematic teaching uses a theme to clump a group of events into a lesson. Thematic teaching is effective specific types of history, such as art or music history. For example the history of art can be divided into topics such as representation, abstraction or Picasso's contribution. Thematic teaching is useful for building discussions among students. Presenting a group of facts in relationship with each other leads to questions about how, why and what else? Chronological and thematic teaching are often combined by grouping a collection of events from a specific time period within a theme.