CBSE Syllabus for Class 12 History

CBSE Syllabus for Class 12 History

Course Structure for Class XII History (2017-18)

Units	Topic	Marks
Units 1 – 4	Themes in Indian History Part – I	25
Units 5 – 9	Themes in Indian History Part – II	25
Units 10 – 15	Themes in Indian History Part – III	25
Unit 16	Map Work	5
	Project work	20
	Total	100

Themes in Indian History

Themes

Objectives

Part I The Story of the First Cities: Harappan Archaeology. Broad overview: Early urban centres. Story of discovery: Harappan civilization. Excerpt: Archaeological report on a major site. Discussion: How it has been utilized by archaeologists/historians. Political and Economic History: How Inscriptions tell a story. Broad overview: Political and economic history from the Mauryan to the Gupta period. Story of discovery: Inscriptions and the decipherment of the script. Shifts in the understanding of political and economic history. Excerpt: Asokan inscription and Gupta period land grant. Discussion: Interpretation of inscriptions by historians. Social Histories: Using the Mahabharata Broad overview: Issues in social history, including caste, class, kinship and gender. Story of discovery: Transmission and publications of the Mahabharata. Excerpt: from the Mahabharata, illustrating how it has been used by historians. Discussion: Other sources for reconstructing social history. A History of Buddhism: Sanchi Stupa Broad overview: (a) A brief review of religious histories of Vedic religion, Jainism, Vaisnavism, Saivism. (b) Focus on Buddhism. Story of discovery: Sanchi stupa Excerpt: Reproduction of sculptures from Sanchi. Discussion: Ways in which sculpture has been interpreted by historians, other sources for reconstructing the history of Buddhism. Part II Agrarian Relations: The Am-i- Akbari Broad overview: (a) Structure of agrarian relations in the 16th and 17th centuries. (b) Patterns of change over the period. Story of Discovery: Account of the compilation and translation of Ain-i-Akbari. Excerpt: from the Ain-i-Akbari Discussion: Ways in which historians have used the text to reconstruct history. The Mughal Court: Reconstructing Histories through Chronicles Broad overview: (a) Outline of political history 15th-17th centuries. (b) Discussion of the Mughal court and politics. Story of Discovery: Account of the production of court chronicles, and their subsequent translation and transmission. Excerpts: from the Akbarnama and Padshahnama. Discussion: Ways in which historians have used the texts to reconstruct political histories. New Architecture: Hampi Broad overview: (a) Outline of new buildings during Vijayanagar period-temples, forts, irrigation facilities. (b) Relationship between architecture and the political system. Story of Discovery: Account of how Hampi was found. Excerpt: Visuals of buildings at Hampi. Discussion: Ways in which historians have analyzed and interpreted these structures. Religious Histories: The Bhakti-Sufi Tradition Broad overview: (a) Outline of religious developments during this period. (b) Ideas and practices of the Bhakti-Sufi saints. Story of Transmission: How Bhakti-Sufi compositions have been preserved. Excerpt: Extracts from selected Bhakti-Sufi works. Discussion: Ways in which these have been interpreted by historians. Medieval Society through Travelers’ Accounts Broad overview: Outline of social and cultural life as they appear in travelers’ accounts. Story of their writings: A discussion of where they travelled, why they travelled, what they wrote, and for whom they wrote. Excerpts: from Alberuni, lbn Batuta, Bernier. Discussion: What these travel accounts can tell us and how they have been interpreted by historians. PART – III Colonialism and Rural Society: Evidence from Official Reports Broad overview: (a) Life of zamindars, peasants and artisans in the late 18th century (b) East India Company, revenue settlements and surveys. (c) Changes over the nineteenth century. Story of official records: An account of why official investigations into rural societies were undertaken and the types of records and reports produced. Excerpts: From Firminger’s Fifth Report, Accounts of Frances Buchanan-Hamilton, and Deccan Riots Report. Discussion: What the official records tell and do not tell, and how they have been used by historians. Representations of 1857 Broad overview: (a) The events of 1857-58. (b) How these events were recorded and narrated. Focus: Lucknow. Excerpts: Pictures of 1857. Extracts from contemporary accounts. Discussion: How the pictures of 1857 shaped British opinion of what had happened. Colonialism and Indian Towns: Town Plans and Municipal Reports Broad overview: The growth of Mumbai, Chennai, hilt stations and cantonments in the 18th and 19th centuries. Excerpts: Photographs and paintings. Plans of cities. Extract from town plan reports. Focus on Kolkata town planning. Discussion: How the above sources can be used to reconstruct the history of towns. What these sources do not reveal. Mahatma Gandhi through Contemporary Eyes Broad overview: (a) The Nationalist Movement 1918 – 48. (b) The nature of Gandhian politics and leadership. Focus: Mahatma Gandhi in 1931. Excerpts: Reports from English and Indian language newspapers and other contemporary writings. Discussion: How newspapers can be a source of history. Partition through Oral Sources Broad overview: (a) The history of the 1940s. (b) Nationalism, Communalism and Partition. Focus: Punjab and Bengal. Excerpts: Oral testimonies of those who experienced partition. Discussion: Ways in which these have been analyzed to reconstruct the history of the event. The Making of the Constitution Broad overview: (a) Independence and the new nation state. (b) The making of the Constitution. Focus: The Constitutional Assembly debates. Excerpts: from the debates. Discussion: What such debates reveal and how they can be analyzed. Map Work on Units 1-15

Familiarize the learner with early urban centres as economic and social institutions. Introduce the ways in which new data can lead to a revision of existing notions of history. Illustrate how archaeological reports. Familiarize the learner with major trends in the political and economic history of the subcontinent. Introduce inscriptional analysis and the ways in which these have shaped the understanding of political and economic processes. Familiarize the (earner with issues in social history. Introduce strategies of textual analysis and their use in reconstructing social history. Discuss the major religious developments in early India. Introduce strategies of visual analysis and their use in reconstructing histories of religion. Discuss developments in agrarian relations. Discuss how to supplement official documents with other sources. Familiarize the (earner with the major landmarks in political history. Show how chronicles and other sources are used to reconstruct the histories of political institutions. Familiarize the learner with the new buildings that were built during the time. Discuss the ways in which architecture can be analyzed to reconstruct history. Familiarize the learner with religious developments. Discuss ways of analyzing devotional literature as sources of history. Familiarize the learner with the salient features of social histories described by the travelers. Discuss how travelers accounts can be used as sources of social history. Discuss how colonialism affected zamindars, peasants and artisans. Understand the problems and limits of using official sources for understanding the lives of people. Discuss how the events of 1857 are being reinterpreted. Discuss how visual material can be used by historians. Familiarize the (earner with the history of modern urban centres. Discuss how urban histories can be written by drawing on different types of sources. Familiarize the (earner with significant elements of the Nationalist Movement and the nature of Gandhian leadership. Discuss how Gandhi was perceived by different groups. Discuss how historians need to read and interpret newspapers, diaries and letters as historical source. Discuss the last decade of the national movement, the growth of communalism and the story of partition. Understand the events through the experience of those who lived through these years of communal violence. Show the possibilities and limits of oral sources. Familiarize students with the history of the early years after independence. Discuss how the founding ideals of the new nation state were debated and formulated. Understand how such debates and discussions can be read by historians.

17. Project Work

Please refer Circular for project work guidelines.
Project work will help students:

• To develop skill to gather data from a variety of sources, investigate diverse viewpoints and arrive at logical deductions.
• To develop skill to comprehend, analyze, interpret, evaluate historical evidence and understand the limitation of historical evidence.
• To develop 21st century managerial skills of co-ordination, self-direction and time management.
• To (earn to work on diverse cultures, races, religions and lifestyles.
• To learn through constructivism-a theory based on observation and scientific study.
• To inculcate a spirit of inquiry and research.
• To communicate data in the most appropriate form using a variety of techniques.
• To provide greater opportunity for interaction and exploration.
• To understand contemporary issues in context to our past.
• To develop a global perspective and an international outlook.
• To grow into caring, sensitive individuals capable of making informed, intelligent and independent choices.
• To develop lasting interest in history discipline.

NCERT Solutions