Teaching history should be pretty straightforward but it actually has a lot of nuance. For example it is a fact that Christopher Columbus was an Italian who talked the Spanish Monarchy to fund his expedition to find an alternate route to the east Asia. This was an investment designed to compete with the Portuguese who had the profitable spice trade via the Horn of Africa route.
It was a for profit expedition that failed in its original purpose but did, by accident, discover a continent, that had been visited by Vikings but not colonized.
What happened next is that the Europeans finding a weaker foe (weaker in weapons) they exploited them and this led to the enslavement and killing of millions.
So was Columbus a hero or a villain? Probably neither, but he was somewhat ruthless as the Captain of a ship with obligations to the Monarchs of Spain.
For many years he was celebrated as a hero and recently he is being villainized by many. The fact that our ancestors lived in a time when you either oppressed others or were oppressed is simply a fact.
It may not have actually changed much although certain behaviors have.
Historical facts are real, if verified. Our interpretation of them changes. Teach the facts and discuss the interpretations. If you leave out some facts you aren't teaching history, you are teaching propaganda.
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