Historic Headlines Collaboration

A true winner for Social Studies teachers in all grade levels is the recently announced collaboration between the New York Times Learning Network and finding Dulcinea in creating an interactive ‘Today in History’ site.

While the Times has had an excellent "Today in History" site - my browser goes to their page when I open my Internet Explorer - they have been working on revising the site.

The NY Times Learning Network stated, concerning an effort to make the NY Times Today In History more interesting and relevant to students, that:

So, to make each day in history a bigger part of the blog, and to help students see how events in the past still resonate today, we’re creating a new daily post that explores a famous event and connects it to something in the news now.

How will this work? The Times article stated that:

staff members from findingDulcinea will write a short daily account of what led up each historical event, what happened that day, and what has happened since. They will then provide a brief “Connect to Today” section that looks at parallels of some kind in current news.

This should provide informative, interactive, and relevant historical information to any teacher who wants to work in the ‘Today in History’ concept in their classroom.

Meanwhile, there is one more site that might be of interest to you for current events, Today in History, type of information that I just discovered - Sweet Search 2 Day. Check it out.

Try it… and see if you like it. All it takes to participate is to create a bookmark, then to visit it regularly!

Podcasts: Historical information on the iPod and the Web

Sigh. Second year in a row - no posts in August. The good news is I've stockpiled some information to turn into blog posts. Here's the first.

I have to admit that I have discovered podcasts. Below are four that I now use, along with their website - just in case you don't have an iPod.

There are many advantages to listening to podcasts - especially well done ones - in our ever-busy world. You can listen to them while you exercise, take walks, drive to work, lunchbreaks, etc. Books are great, and I would never give up on them, but podcasts are usually one-topic, and the ones I've listed run between 13 and 20 minutes.

While this is a very brief list, try them. Post others history related/Social Studies related podcasts if you have some favorites.

The four I'm currently listening to, both American history and World history, are:

Colonial Williamsburg podcasts (American colonial history). Want to know about the importance of fifes in the 18th century military world?

History Network Military History podcasts (Military History, world history). I now know more about howitzers than ever before.

Things You Missed In History Class podcast, by How Stuff Works (Two hosts present world history topics). Tidbits on the fourth crusade that I never realized.

A History of the World in 100 Objects podcast by the British Museum and the BBC. (Unique view of history through 100 different objects and their effect and influence on history).

I realize there are many more out there - and gradually more will be added to this list. Try one, and enjoy!

Photo:

Library of Congress

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History Lesson

The Wednesday, April 8th, 2009 BBC News had an interesting article titled History Lessons Stymied in Lebanon.

Modern history is no longer a part of the curriculum in Lebanon's educational system. As the articles stated:

"Lebanon has a long and varied history, but schools steer clear of teaching about the country's recent past..."

It turns out that the kids aren't taught modern history because the adults can't agree on it. And the division does not stop with just modern history. From the article:

"Even the country's ancient history is a thorny issue here. There are dozens of the government-approved history textbooks that offer different takes on the past. Depending on their religious affiliation, schools can choose books that describe the French as colonialists or liberators and portray the Ottomans as conquerors or as administrators."

This issue was caused by the diversity of beliefs in Lebanon and was a direct result of a bitter civil war that ravaged the country for over a decade. Deep sectarian divisions still exist in the country, as well as religious and political hatred. Because of this, there has been no agreement on a common textbook with a common history.

As Ohaness Goktchian, professor of political science at the American University in Beirut says in the article:

"We are raising another generation of children who identify themselves with their communities and not their nation. History is what unites people. Without history we can't have unity."

Goktchian concludes:

"In Lebanon we don't share values and traditions. And we have an education system which contributes to the divisions among us."

As we start to prepare for adopting new teaching materials in a few years - once the state legislature decides on the year - let us be grateful we don't face the problems Lebanon does in the area of history.

Or do we?

Essential question: What determines the content of a history book sold nationwide?"

Photo: from article listed above.

Why history?

I don’t see too many students questioning why they should study Psychology, or Sociology, or even Economics and Government. However, a constant question that seems to arise is “why do I have to take history” – or as history teacher Mr. Ryan said to Bill and Ted in “Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure”, “All you boys seemed to have learned is that Caesar is a ‘salad dressing dude’", and “What you're telling me, essentially, is that Napoleon was a short, dead dude?”

Maybe it’s time to look for an answer.

The AHA (American Historical Association) states: “History should be studied because it is essential to individuals and to society, and because it harbors beauty. There are many ways to discuss the real functions of the subject—as there are many different historical talents and many different paths to historical meaning. All definitions of history's utility, however, rely on two fundamental facts.” Those two facts are: History Helps Us Understand People and Societies and History Helps Us Understand Change and How the Society We Live in Came to Be. For the complete essay, click here.

The History Guide: A Student’s Guide To The Study of History tells us: Well first off, by studying history you can study anything for the simple reason that everything has a history: ideas, wars, numbers, races, windsurfing, coal miners, pencils, motherhood and yes, even toilet-training. I first began to appreciate the study of history as an undergraduate studying political philosophy at Boston University. I was pretty keen on Plato, Aquinas, Dante, Hobbes, Locke, Godwin, Marx, Mill and a host of other "greats." But what I soon discovered was that my lack of understanding of history, i.e. the actual historical context in which these writers conceived and executed their theoretical work, made my understanding of their philosophy one-sided. Sure, I knew what they had to say about liberty, or the proletariat, or monarchy or the franchise. But what was the historical environment that gave rise to their ideas? Ideas are not akin to balloons hanging from the ceiling of Clio's den, waiting to be retrieved by a Marx, a Mill or a Plato. Ideas have a history. They undergo a process of development. They change, are modified, are distributed or are forgotten only to reappear years, decades or perhaps even centuries later. For the complete essay, click here.

Radford University claims “the study of the past helps lead to greater personal insight and comprehension of each person’s place in the grand sweep of the human story.”

Perhaps the most multimedia of answers is found on TeacherTube – a show well worth showing at the start of the semester. For the video, click here.

There are, of course, many other reasons – building concerned and involved citizens, knowing the past leads to not repeating the same mistakes in the future, the law says we have to. Each of those reading this could probably add to the list.

Perhaps it shouldn’t be so much ‘why’ study history but ‘how do’ we study history?

Of course, as Ted said in : “Thanks to great leaders, such as Genghis Khan, Joan of Arc, and Socratic method . . . the world is full of history.”

Essential Question: How do we express to students the significance of history?

A date which will live in infamy…

“Yesterday, Dec. 7, 1941 - a date which will live in infamy - the United States of America was suddenly and deliberately attacked by naval and air forces of the Empire of Japan.”

With these heart-rending words, Franklin D. Roosevelt led our nation into a conflict that would change the world. It was a war that would last – for the United States – almost 4 long and bloody years. It was a war that capped the traditional isolationist attitude of the nation (at least isolationist toward affairs outside of the American continents); and would propel the United Stated, and the world, into the atomic age. It was a war fought by the ‘greatest generation’, and perhaps the only war the United States has ever been involved in where the clear, overwhelming, and distinct majority of the population supported the war. It was a war that ended our Great Depression and – combined with that economic era – lead to a greater government role and power in the lives of Americans.

It was such a significant event that we, as a nation, remember it well. Right?

Unfortunately, as I walked through the checkout stand at Sweetbay, I asked the cashier if she know what happened on Dec. 7, 1941. She didn’t. I also was at WalMart… same response. I became a little irritated, so I just conducted an informal poll. My discovery: those over 50 – knew. Those under 25… a few knew, but basically no concept. One of my ‘favorite’ comments: “That was the day Kennedy was shot!” Another favorite comment: “I don’t like history!”

The in-between ages, mostly knew. While I had a small sampling, and this is in no way a bona-fide survey, the results are still distressing. I can’t help but wondering how much the passage of 67 years has softened the blow, and weakened the lessons learned from the attack on Pearl Harbor about what happens when a nation is unprepared and/or unwilling to deal with an enemy that seeks its destruction.

For a transcript and audio of the entire 'day of infamy' speech as well as a slideshow of the Pearl Harbor attack, click here.

"If we don't know our history, we're history "

This article was written by a fellow Social Studies Supervisor, Jason Caros, of Volusia County. It makes interesting reading.

November 09, 2008
Daytona Beach News-Journal

If we don't know our history, we're history
By JASON CAROS COMMUNITY VOICE

Survey after survey, national test after national test indicate a striking ignorance of history by our younger generations. This is due, in part, to a trend in education during the 20th century that has disparaged and diminished the importance of academic "knowledge" in schools in favor of "process" oriented learning. Additionally, the nationwide assessment of certain skills and subjects in school such as reading, writing, math and, lately, science has further relegated the other core subject area of social studies to a secondary status, especially in the elementary grades (social studies in Florida includes civics, economics, geography and the mother subject, history). Every American should be concerned about this lack of historical knowledge as history is one of the main agents that binds our nation together and teaches us essential life lessons.
What is history? Too many people think of history as merely a story -- and it is often taught and received as a boring one at that. But history is so much more than a story and should be appreciated and learned by everyone. The French natural law philosopher Etienne Gilson said the following about the subject: "History is the only laboratory we have in which to test the consequences of thought."

This is an interesting way to speak about history, isn't it? A couple of words in the quote really stand out and appear more likely to be used in another setting, science. For instance, Gilson said history is a laboratory. Laboratories are places where experiments are held and where people with white lab coats and safety goggles work, right?

In science laboratories, items are tested, but in the history lab the focus of the test is ideas or thoughts, and the consequences of those ideas are the important discoveries. We should all be concerned with the consequences of thought because as one saying goes: "Thoughts become words, words become actions, actions become habits, habits become character, and character becomes destiny."

Every time I ask people, including teachers, about the original meaning of the word history they typically say "history means 'his' story," or they will say it simply means "story." But if you look at the Greek root meaning of the word history, you might be surprised to learn it means "inquiry" or "investigation" and "knowledge." Did you know the Latin word for science also means investigation and knowledge? History and science are synonymous, at least in the original context of the words. Having this in mind, Gilson's quote makes more sense. History should not be boring or passive but instead an active exercise involving investigation and, ultimately, the acquisition of important knowledge that benefits individual lives and civilizations.

Generally speaking, history is one of the greatest teachers we have, but there are three specific points I would like to emphasize about its importance to us as a people. First, in Western societies, history has always been a main topic of study and has provided a springboard to the study of other subjects such as literature; it has also been a source for work on skills such as reading and writing. In terms of successful literacy development, history provides students with a wealth of conceptual knowledge that enables them to become good readers, and because reading is essential to overall academic success, history instruction should be at the top of educational priorities.

Reading requires knowledge of "words and the world" to borrow a phrase from educational researcher E.D. Hirsch, and there is no subject that does a better job of providing this type of knowledge than history. In our nation, we have major problems with literacy at the middle- and high-school levels, and this is due, in large part, to students' lack of knowledge, not the lack of reading skills. We do a very good job of teaching students how to learn to read in the early grades, but fall short in providing them with the important academic knowledge that enables them to read to learn later on. In order to read to learn, you need to have a rich vocabulary. For example, reading experts estimate that in order to understand what you are reading, you need to know approximately 90 percent of the words and concepts in a passage so you can figure out the other 10 percent you do not know. Subjects such as history help provide students with the vocabulary and contextual knowledge they need to become advanced readers.

A second benefit of the study of history lies in the connection between history and good character. The Roman historian Tacitus wrote: "The task of history is to hold out for condemnation every evil word and deed, and to hold out for praise every great and noble word and deed." Examples of strong character may or may not exist in a child's immediate environment or even in the memories of a parent but they do live on in the annals of history as suggested by Tacitus. In the history of our nation, we can see examples of virtue in the courage and sacrifice of the founders of this nation during the Revolutionary era, in the moral fortitude of the reformers of the Second Great Awakening, in the creativity and perseverance of the inventors, writers and scientists who helped make this nation great, and so on. Students can learn from and become motivated by great ideas and great actions and find in the heroic men and women of the past important role models.

One of the recent trends in education has been the rise of character education programs or courses in values, whatever values means. Supporters of these types of programs point to increasing incidents of violence in schools, a general lack of civility and a lack of civic participation by our youth. I submit we do not need classes in values but, instead, need good courses in history and literature (another excellent source of historical knowledge and lessons in human nature).

A final point about the importance of history pertains to our heritage -- history is the key transmitter of it. Our American heritage, and the inheritance of Western Civilization, is not passed on to us genetically. It must be learned and earned by each generation. Some of this passing on is done in the home, in churches and other institutions, but the main source for our historic memory comes from a formal study of history.

Alexander Solzhenitsyn, the famous Russian philosopher and dissident during the Communist era of the Soviet Union, once warned, "If you wish to destroy a people, you must first sever them from their roots." In order to preserve the good and true elements of our culture, we must have a historic memory, we must work in earnest to safeguard our historic roots.

Caros is a K-12 social studies curriculum specialist for Volusia County Public Schools.

The Historical Thanksgiving

The First Thanksgiving (1914) by Jennie Augusta Brownscombe [1850-1936]

What does Thanksgiving mean to you? It might a chance to travel, meet family and friends; a day off work; a wide array of food that might not ordinarily grace your table; a legitimate reason for an afternoon nap; a day out of school. After all, this is a day proclaimed by Lincoln, adjusted (or an attempted adjustment) by Franklin Roosevelt, the recipient of Presidential Proclamations, and is now an established part of the American culture.

Considering all of the misconceptions on Thanksgiving history, we need to look back through history at the origins of Thanksgiving in the English American colonies. The Pilgrims, an English religious group of dissenters known as the Separatists who had fled to Holland, opted to leave their exile in Holland and to sail to the new lands in America. The reason for the move, as explained in my 1899 US History book (The Greater Republic: A History of the United States by Charles Morris), was that they “decided to make their homes in the New World, where they could worship God as their consciences dictated.” From this group came the Mayflower Compact, the first settlements in what became New England, and an event that we eventually called Thanksgiving.

The Events (the short version):

The Pilgrims arrived in the New World in December 1620. Times were difficult. A bitter cold winter descended on the small band before the settlement homes could be completed. During that first winter of 1620 – 1621, almost half of the settlers died, with many others being sick and weakened by fever and dysentery. Emerging from that grueling winter, the Pilgrims were surprised when an Indian named Samoset approached them and greeted them in their own language, explaining to them that he had learned English from fishermen and traders. A week later, Samoset returned with a friend named Squanto, who had a better command of the English language, having been captured and sold to the Spanish as a young man, then escaped to England, finally returning to his homeland on an English vessel. Squanto would live with the Pilgrims and accept their Christian faith. He taught the Pilgrims much about how to live in the New World, and he and Samoset helped forge a long-lasting peace treaty between the Pilgrims and the Wampanoag Indians. Pilgrim Governor William Bradford described Squanto as “a special instrument sent of God for [our] good . . . and never left [us] till he died.”

Historian David Barton writes: “That summer, the Pilgrims, still persevering in prayer and assisted by helpful Indians, reaped a bountiful harvest. As Pilgrim Edward Winslow (later to become the Governor) affirmed, “God be praised, we had a good increase of corn”; “by the goodness of God, we are far from want.” The grateful Pilgrims therefore declared a three-day feast in December 1621 to thank God and to celebrate with their Indian friends. Ninety Wampanoag Indians joined the fifty Pilgrims for three days of feasting (which included shellfish, lobsters, turkey, corn bread, berries, deer, and other foods), of play (the young Pilgrim and Wampanoag men engaged in races, wrestling matches, and athletic events), and of prayer. This celebration and its accompanying activities were the origin of the holiday that Americans now celebrate each November.”

There are only two primary resource accounts of this first Thanksgiving festival:

Edward Winslow, Mourt's Relation : (In the original 17th century spelling)

"our harvest being gotten in, our governour sent foure men on fowling, that
so we might after a speciall manner rejoyce together, after we had gathered the
fruits of our labours ; they foure in one day killed as much fowle, as with a
little helpe beside, served the Company almost a weeke, at which time amongst
other Recreations, we exercised our Armes, many of the Indians coming amongst
us, and amongst the rest their greatest king Massasoyt, with some ninetie men,
whom for three dayes we entertained and feasted, and they went out and killed
five Deere, which they brought to the Plantation and bestowed on our Governour,
and upon the Captaine and others. And although it be not always so
plentifull, as it was at this time with us, yet by the goodness of God, we are
so farre from want, that we often wish you partakers of our
plentie."

William Bradford, Of Plimoth Plantation: (In the original 17th century spelling)

"They begane now to gather in ye small harvest they had, and to fitte up
their houses and dwellings against winter, being all well recovered in health
& strenght, and had all things in good plenty; fFor as some were thus
imployed in affairs abroad, others were excersised in fishing, aboute codd,
& bass, & other fish, of which yey tooke good store, of which every
family had their portion. All ye somer ther was no want. And now begane to
come in store of foule, as winter approached, of which this place did abound
when they came first (but afterward decreased by degrees). And besids
water foule, ther was great store of wild Turkies, of which they tooke many,
besids venison, &c. Besids, they had about a peck a meale a weeke to a
person, or now since harvest, Indean corn to yt proportion. Which made
many afterwards write so largly of their plenty hear to their freinds in
England, which were not fained, but true reports."

The Rest of the Story (from historian David Barton):

“However, while the Pilgrims enjoyed times of prosperity for which they thanked God, they also suffered extreme hardships. In fact, in 1623 they experienced an extended and prolonged drought. Knowing that without a change in the weather there would be no harvest and the winter would be filled with death and starvation, Governor Bradford called the Pilgrims to a time of prayer and fasting to seek God’s direct intervention. Significantly, shortly after that time of prayer – and to the great amazement of the Indian who witnessed the scene – clouds appeared in the sky and a gentle and steady rain began to fall. As Governor Bradford explained:

It came without either wind or thunder or any violence, and by degrees in
abundance, as that ye earth was thoroughly wet and soaked therewith, which did
so apparently revive and quicken ye decayed corn and other fruits as was
wonderful to see, and made ye Indians astonished to behold; and afterwards the
Lord sent them such seasonable showers, with interchange of fair warm weather
as, through His blessing, caused a fruitful and liberal harvest, to their no
small comfort and rejoicing.

The drought had been broken; the fall therefore produced an abundant harvest; there was cause for another thanksgiving. The Pilgrim practice of designating an official time of Thanksgiving spread into neighboring colonies and became an annual tradition.”

Essential questions: What do today’s history books use as the historic interpretation of Thanksgiving? Is the religious heritage of the Pilgrims mentioned, or is it just a ‘thank you’ feast for friendly Indians? How do we, as teaching historians, insure that historical accuracy is being maintained in our classrooms?