# data[].attributes.body
The Civil Rights Movement: Why Now?

“When students learn about the movement, they learn what it means to be active American citizens. They learn how to recognize injustice. They learn about the transformative role played by thousands of ordinary individuals, as well as the importance of organization for collective change. They see that people can come together to stand against oppression.”

One of the main reasons students still need to learn about the Civil Rights movement and Slavery is because of what it can do for them!  Teaching is and always will be about those that are learning, our students.  This movement needs to change their lives forever!

“Students need to know that the movement was much bigger than its most notable leaders, and that millions of people mustered the courage to join the struggle, very often risking their lives in the process. They need to know that the dream to which Dr. King gave voice has not yet been fully realized, despite the election of an African-American president. They need to know that as long as race is a barrier to access and opportunity, and as long as poverty is commonplace for people of color, the dream has not been achieved.”

I believe that the first three words about sums this up, “students need to know”.  Students need to know and understand the “courage” and struggle of the millions that were involved in this movement and the continual involvement of millions more today.  This has been a never ending battle that continues in our neighborhoods, schools, and overall communities.  Students need to know this! (Erin Wirthlin)

# data[].attributes.body
Knowing History and Knowing Who We Are

“History isn’t just something that ought to be taught or ought to be read or ought to be encouraged because it’s going to make us a better citizen. It will make us a better citizen; or because it will make us a more thoughtful and understanding human being, which it will; or because it will cause us to behave better, which it will. It should be taught for pleasure: The pleasure of history, like art or music or literature, consists of an expansion of the experience of being alive, which is what education is largely about.”

This quote struck me right away.  History education shouldn’t just help with good citizenship, thoughtfulness, improved behavior, or an improved future.  History should be learned and taught for the pleasure of the experience!  The subject of Civil War and Civil Rights needs to be continually taught and understood for the excitement of learning and understanding more.

“How unpardonable it would be for us—with all that we have been given, all the advantages we have, all the continuing opportunities we have to enhance and increase our love of learning—to turn out blockheads or to raise blockheads. What we do in education, what these wonderful teachers and administrators and college presidents and college and university trustees do is the best, most important work there is.”

When we have an understanding of the Civil War and Civil Rights it becomes that much more important to be teaching this today.  The understanding that we have of these events and their connection to each other and to today are extremely important for the youth.  We need to help them see the great significance of these events and the impact that they have on their lives.  (Erin Wirthlin)

# data[].attributes.body
Why the Civil War Still Matters?

“How we remember the war is a marker for who we are as a nation.”

I believe that there are many events in history that could be defined in this way.  The Civil War and Civil Rights are historical and yet ever present.  The role of these two extremely important events in the lives of Americans is very significant.  Our nation is and will be greatly defined by our ability to remember who we are by remembering where we’ve come from.  This includes recalling the horrific past that the Civil War and slavery portray.

“The American Century, the Greatest Generation and all the rest are somehow born out of the sacrifice of those 750,000 men and boys. None of it has been perfect, but I wouldn’t want to be here without it.”

What a wonderful revelation!  The greatness of our nation truly has come from the many trials that we’ve passed through, one of the greatest trials by fire being that of the Civil War.  Thinking of the past of our country, I believe that helping our youth understand the Civil War and its impact on us today can help them solidify why it is so great to live here.  This country has been fighting for freedom since the beginning, especially for those who have historically had the least amount of liberty.  (Erin Wirthlin)

# data[].attributes.body
"In 1913, at the 50th anniversary of Gettysburg, thousands of black veterans were excluded from the ceremony, while white Union and Confederate veterans mingled in a show of regional reconciliation, made possible by a national consensus to ignore the plight of black Americans."

When I first read this I was a bit taken aback. To exclude black Americans to this event seems to me backwards and yet this is why we study the Civil War. To see this happen reminds me that as a nation we had not perfected our nation. We still haven't and we have a long way to go. Yet, to ignore the Civil War would be to ignore an important identity that exists in our people and our nation. So much of our current day issues and culture stems from this important time in our history.
-Amanda Rogers

# data[].attributes.body
"But the Civil War sealed us as a nation. The novelist Shelby Fiote said that before the war our representatives abroad referred to us as "These" United States, but after we became "The" United States. Somehow, as divided as we were, even as the war ended, we have become more than New Yorkers and Tennesseans, Texans and Californians."

I don't know if I have ever not seen us as a united people only separated geographically by state lines. The idea that we were once united yet separate is very eye opening to me and helps me see this from the perspective of my students. Why would our southern states succeed, could be confusing when you don't realize this division between states that existed before the civil war.
-Amanda Rogers

# data[].attributes.body
"We teach the civil rights movement to show that injustice can be overcome."

I think the most powerful idea a person can know is that the can create change. When we only study the hero we fail to see the ones standing right alongside them. True power comes from knowing that we can make the change. We can be the ones to stand up to injustices and can make a large impact. Change is what has created our country and will continue to define it in the future so long as we understand our ability to facilitate it when injustice needs to be overcome.
-Amanda Rogers

# data[].attributes.body
"Students need to know that the movement was much bigger than its most notable leaders and that millions of people mustered the courage to join the struggle, very often risking their lives in the process."

My biggest concern about how the civil rights movements has been taught in school is how the hero's were the ones who made the most change. Yet, in reality it was the thousands of people who stood by them and fought with them.
If there is one thing I would want my students to know is that they can make a difference even if they are only one person. This movement happened because individuals stood up for their rights and they have just as much of an influence on their world today.
-Amanda Rogers

# data[].attributes.body
"We should never look down on those people and say they should never have known better. What do you think they will be saying about us in the future? . . . All this second-guessing and the arrogance of it are unfortunate."

I had an experience in class that resonated with me after reading this quote. My class was simulating the second continental congress when they discussed the original section on slavery. I had a Black-American student in my class who I could tell was uncomfortable in his seat. As I reflected on this experience it occurred to me that this topic we discussed that happened a couple centuries ago still resonates strongly today. This narrative of our country is still very prevalent today and needs to be taught in our classes but to be carefully done in a way that respects our ancestors and doesn't blame.
-Amanda Rogers

# data[].attributes.body
"It is not in the still calm of life or the repose of a pacific station that great characters are formed . . . Great necessities call out great virtues"
This quote really stood out to me as I was reading this article. I can think of many examples of individuals during the Civil War to the Civil Rights movement who during times of difficulty embraced the rough waters and came on top after the storm. I think this is important for not only ourselves to know but our students as well. For them to realize that real growth comes from difficult moments and seeing that through the examples of individuals who struggled living in slavery or those who fought the Jim Crow Laws is empowering for them.
-Amanda Rogers

# data[].attributes.body
"But the Civil War sealed us as a nation. The novelist and historian Shelby Foote said that before the war our representatives abroad referred to us as “these” United States, but after we became “the” United States. Somehow, as divided as we were, even as the war ended, we have become more than New Yorkers and Tennesseans, Texans and Californians."

We are a people with different opinions.  We are a people with different beliefs.  When a crisis happens we as a people unite together and  help each other.  We see this after a terrorist attack, after a natural disaster, after a mass shooting, or when one of our children has been hurt. That doesn't mean that everyone individually is  liked that.  We as a people...we as a nation are like that.  This is our country that many lives have been lost and are still being lost to protect our freedoms and liberties.

Tanya Miner

# data[].attributes.body
"These are the times in which genius would wish to live. It is not in the still calm of life or the repose of a pacific station that great characters are formed. The habits of a vigorous mind are formed in contending with difficulties. Great necessities call out great virtues. When a mind is raised and animated by scenes that engage the heart, then those qualities which would otherwise lay dormant wake into life and form the character of the hero and the statesman."

I love these words written by John Quincy's mothers.  I try to teach my students as well as my own children that the greatest learning does not come when life is smooth and calm.  Our character is built and our greatest growth comes from our trials.

Tanya Miner

# data[].attributes.body
"They need to know that as long as race is a barrier to access and opportunity, and as long as poverty is commonplace for people of color, the dream has not been achieved."

I find this quote to be true on many different levels. It isn't just about 'color' people. It is about race as a whole and people's perception of that race. I think we as humans like to categorize groups. We want to put everybody and everything in a certain category. Sometimes we forget that our perception is just that ...our own.  We are so focused on categorizing that we take out the humanity of that race.  We as people are afraid of the "unknown."  We don't like what we don't understand and as a result of this fear we sometimes lash out.  Our fears and "misguidedness" trickles to other generations.

Tanya Miner

# data[].attributes.body
But the Civil War sealed us as a nation. The novelist and historian Shelby Foote said that before the war our representatives abroad referred to us as “these” United States, but after we became “the” United States. Somehow, as divided as we were, even as the war ended, we have become more than New Yorkers and Tennesseans, Texans and Californians.

We are Americans. And Americans fight for justice. That's who we are and we can never forget. Jill Johnson.

# data[].attributes.body
And Gettysburg itself still matters, for the same reason Abraham Lincoln noted so eloquently in his famous address at the site on Nov. 19, 1863. The battle consecrated the “unfinished work” to guarantee “that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom — and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.”

If we had let the Southern states secede, our nation would have surely perished. Jill Johnson

# data[].attributes.body
How can we not want to know about the people who have made it possible for us to live as we live, to have the freedoms we have, to be citizens of this greatest of countries in all time? It’s not just a birthright, it is something that others struggled for, strived for, often suffered for, often were defeated for and died for, for us, for the next generation.

We are the next generation. We have to be brave and smart like our Founding Fathers and the women behind them. We must stand up to injustice. We must protect the rights of all citizens. Jill Johnson.

# data[].attributes.body
Now those who wrote the Declaration of Independence in Philadelphia that fateful summer of 1776 were not superhuman by any means. Every single one had his flaws, his failings, his weaknesses. Some of them ardently disliked others of them. Every one of them did things in his life he regretted. But the fact that they could rise to the occasion as they did, these imperfect human beings, and do what they did is also, of course, a testimony to their humanity. We are not just known by our failings, by our weaknesses, by our sins. We are known by being capable of rising to the occasion and exhibiting not just a sense of direction, but strength.

I think all Americans hope to "Rise to the Occasion" and do the right thing when that thing presents itself. Jill Johnson

# data[].attributes.body
When students learn about the movement, they study more than a series of dates, names and actions. They learn about what it means to be American and come to appreciate the importance and difficulty of struggling against tyranny. We teach the civil rights movement to show that injustice can be overcome.

I like this quote because it reminds us that the Founding Fathers wanted to give us a tool to fight tyranny. Injustice can be overcome if enough Americans want to see fairness. Jill Johnson.

# data[].attributes.body
The civil rights movement is one of the defining events in American history, during which Americans fought to make real the ideals of justice and equality embedded in our founding documents.

I like this quote because it gives me hope. It makes me feel like the system still works. We just have to wait for Americans to ban together against injustice. For Civil Rights it has taken over 153 years and we're still working it out. Jill Johnson.

# data[].attributes.body
"First of all we have to get across the idea that we have to know who we were if we're to know who we are and where we're headed. This is essential. We have to value what our forebears - and not just in the 18th century, but our own parents and grandparents - did for us, or we're not going to take it very seriously, and it can slip away. If you don't care about it - if you've inherited some great work of art that is worth a fortune and you don't know that it's worth a fortune, you don't even know that it's a great work of art and you're not interested in it - you're going to lose it."

I like this quote because it reminds me how important it is to help students value the freedoms and opportunities they have. I often tell them that they need to know their rights in order to preserve them, and this quote validates that for me.
(Elaine Grant)

# data[].attributes.body
"Now those who wrote the Declaration of Independence in Philadelphia that fateful summer of 1776 were not superhuman by any means. Every single one of them did things in his life he regretted. But the fact that they could rise to the occasion as they did, these imperfect human beings, and do what they did is also, of course, a testimony to the humanity. We are not just known by our failings, by our weaknesses, by our sins. We are known by being capable of rising to the occasion and exhibiting not just a sense of direction, but strength."

This is meaningful to me because we sometimes forget that the Founders were human and had flaws and problems just like we do. It is inspiring to me to remember that they were able to accomplish so much despite their imperfections.
(Elaine Grant)

# data[].attributes.body
"We teach the civil rights movement to show that injustice can be overcome."

I love this quote because it sums up my feelings perfectly! It is important to know that change is possible!
(Elaine Grant)

# data[].attributes.body
"The United States has a civic and moral imperative to ensure that all children learn about the history of the civil rights movement.

I teach U.S. Government classes and the civil rights movement has been one of their favorite units. I think part of the reason is that they are very concerned with what is "fair" to them right now. They can relate to the Little Rock 9 because they were high school students too. They are always surprised at how different things were back then - particularly as they look around their classroom full of diverse ethnicity.
(Elaine Grant)

# data[].attributes.body
"Indeed, how we remember the war is a marker for who we are as a nation. In 1913, at the 50th anniversary of Gettysburg, thousands of black veterans were excluded from the ceremony, while white Union and Confederate veterans mingled in a show of regional reconciliation, made possible by a national consensus to ignore the plight of black Americans...In contrast, recent sesquicentennial events have taken pains to more accurately portray the contributions made by blacks to the war, while pro-Southern revisionists have been relegated to the dustbin of history - a reflection of the more inclusive society we have become."

I think this reflects the process of change that is so much a part of our society. As we work together as a society to right the wrongs and injustices, our social mores change - usually for the better.
(Elaine Grant)

# data[].attributes.body
"If the line to immigrate into this country is longer than those in every other country on earth, it is because of the Civil War."
I really like this reminder of the significance of the Civil War to us today because although we have a ways to go, we have come a long way as the land of hope and opportunity the Founders envisioned. The quest for justice and freedom is ongoing and has evolved through the years, and one of the great catalysts for change was the Civil War.
(Elaine Grant)

# data[].attributes.body
“…it’s what we have been given. The laws we live by, the freedoms we enjoy, the institutions that we take for granted—as we should never take for granted—are all the work of other people who went before us. And to be indifferent to that isn’t just to be ignorant, it’s to be rude. And ingratitude is a shabby failing. How can we not want to know about the people who have made it possible for us to live as we live, to have the freedoms we have, to be citizens of this greatest of countries in all time? It’s not just a birthright, it is something that others struggled for, strived for, often suffered for, often were defeated for and died for, for us..."

As a teacher, I am constantly reminding students that things have not always been this way, One of the examples I use in class is how wo

# data[].attributes.body
Why the Civil War Still Matters #2

“In that way, the Civil War is less important to the descendants of those who fought in it than it is to those whose ancestors were living halfway around the globe at the time. For if you have chosen to throw your lot in with this country, the American Civil War is at the foundation of your reasons to do so.”

The Civil War may be the beginning of the reason for immigration, but I feel as though the words of Abraham Lincoln outline the true dream of citizenship:

It is for us, the living, rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced...  That we here, highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain. That this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom”

It is that unfinished work that we are still struggling to complete. (Kristan Norton)

# data[].attributes.body
“What meaning does the war have in our multiethnic, multivalent society?

For one thing, it matters as a reflection of how much America has changed.”

I think we often forget as a society how far we have come. It often seams that we expect America to be complety over racial issues. Whe tend to forget the progress we truly have made. Yes, it would amazing if race was a nonissue. But we fail to remember the progress we have made in a relatively short time. (Mandee Webster)

# data[].attributes.body
“In contrast, recent sesquicentennial events have taken pains to more accurately portray the contributions made by blacks to the war, while pro-Southern revisionists have been relegated to the dustbin of history — a reflection of the more inclusive society we have become. As we examine what it means to be America, we can find no better historical register than the memory of the Civil War and how it has morphed over time.”

I have never really thought about events morphing over time.  To me, they were events, they happened, they are facts.  To say they “morphed” over time, would seem to imply that they are not facts, as facts are stationary, they are unchanged.  Yet, as I thought about this statement and reread it a few more times, I can see the wisdom in it.  The Civil War is a fact, it did not change, but our national view and in the words of the author “memory” has taken a dramatic turn.  The events of Charlottesville last summer and the removal of many of the Southern statues are concrete reflection this change. (Kristan Norton)

# data[].attributes.body
“True, we have not arrived at our final destination as either a nation or as a people. Yet we have much to commemorate.”

I could not agree with this more! I have a son who is half black. He has opened my eyes to the black community like I never thought was possible. Sadly, we have had some racial hardships towards him, yet he is only three. However, I can’t begin to imagain what his life would have been like even 30 or 40 years ago. (Mandee webster)

# data[].attributes.body
The Civil Rights Movement: Why Now? #2

“Teachers and textbooks routinely avoid conflict and controversial issues while creating what Terrie Epstein has called “sanitized versions” of important national events—slavery without enslavers, struggles for civil rights without racism and resistance—all culminating in a national triumph of good over evil. 7  “As a consequence of teaching a disingenuous national history,” writes Epstein, “millions of young people leave the public schools knowing a nationalistic perspective but not believing it, while those who accept it have no framework for understanding racism and other forms of inequality today.”

As part of human nature, we like our world to be “in place, balanced, fixed. “ We want to present our nation’s events as a matched set of Problems and their corresponding Solutions.  This really does create the “sanitized version”  as Terrie Epstein calls it. By presenting the Civil Rights Movement as a “national triumph of good over evil” we are only creating confusion for our students.  They can see that this issue is not solved.  We need to help them see that in our nation, just as in our own lives, some problems require extensive work, and solutions are usually not found instantaneously.  (Kristan Norton)

# data[].attributes.body
“They (students) see that people can come together to stand against oppression.”

It is no question that America is struggling right now. It is also obvious that my students also feel and exposed to this divide. I like the idea of pulling The Civil Rights Movement into my teaching as a way to show that’s when we stand up for what’s right, even when it is hard, we have the power to make a difference. (Mandee Webster)

# data[].attributes.body
“Students need to know that the movement was much bigger than its most notable leaders, and that millions of people mustered the courage to join the struggle, very often risking their lives in the process. They need to know that the dream to which Dr. King gave voice has not yet been fully realized, despite the election of an African-American president. They need to know that as long as race is a barrier to access and opportunity, and as long as poverty is commonplace for people of color, the dream has not been achieved.”

This passage from the selection was meaningful to me because so many in our country are angry over current events.  Unfortunately, and all too frequently, I hear mainstream citizens complain that those who are expressing their dissatisfaction are being ungrateful, disrespectful or un-American.  Struggle of any kind is usually not clean and tidy.  It is muddy, it goes outside the accepted social boundaries, and it frequently raises eyebrows of the onlookers.  In order to get the attention that is required for change, it must be this way.  (Kristan Norton)

# data[].attributes.headline
Knowing History and Knowing Who We Are #3:

# data[].attributes.subject
Knowing History and Knowing Who We Are #3:

# data[].attributes.body
“We should never look down on those people and say that they should have known better. What do you think they’re going to be saying about us in the future? They’re going to be saying we should have known better. Why did we do that? What were we thinking of? All this second-guessing and the arrogance of it are unfortunate.”

Truth bomb: This is me.  I have always felt so uncomfortable about the social injustices suffered by our residents of color that have taken place from before this country was founded up to the present day.  How could people be so cruel?  How could they be so ignorant?  ‘They should have known better!’ And then I read this article and realized that most of the time people really do try to do their best. We are all flawed.  We do better when we know better.  My thoughts were so judgmental and I need to research deeper into history to find the reasons that led to so many of these events and see how these same cultural patterns and beliefs are being repeated. As I grow and change, I can better lead my students to better pathways. (Kristan Norton)

# data[].attributes.body
“They (students) need to know that as long as race is a barrier to access and opportunity, and as long as poverty is commonplace for people of color, the dream has not been achieved.”

I find this quote interesting because four or four five years ago, I would have disagreed with this. I used to believe that blacks were doing it to themselves; that’s they choose to continue to live in poverty and need to stop dwelling in the past. Four years ago I was dating a black man who is a university basketball coach at Alcorn State, a historical black university in Mississippi. He has shared his player’s hardship stories and their struggle to overcome poverty. He has helped me see that for many black (and other minorities) that poverty in conjunction to race is a big can’t, not won’t. (Mandee Webster)

# data[].attributes.headline
Knowing History and Knowing Who We Are #2: 

# data[].attributes.subject
Knowing History and Knowing Who We Are #2: 

# data[].attributes.body
“That calls for empathy on the part of the teller of the story and of the reader or listener to the story. And we ought to be growing, encouraging, developing historians who have heart and empathy to put students in that place of those people before us who were just as human, just as real—and maybe in some ways more real than we are. We’ve got to teach history and nurture history and encourage history because it’s an antidote to the hubris of the present—the idea that everything we have and everything we do and everything we think is the ultimate, the best.”

As I read this quote, the word “empathy” jumped out at me.  I have long felt that the lack of civility we see in Washington DC, the civil unrest that is being highlighted in our nation’s largest cities, and even the discord felt in our homes were all symptoms of a society that was lacking in empathy.  I had just never thought that providing a stronger educational foundation in history was the antidote.  When our students are given the opportunity to hear these “stories” and feel the emotions of those who lived these events, we will help them have a new-found understanding of why the events unfolded as they did and a deeper empathy for present situations that mirror the past. (Kristan Norton)

# data[].attributes.headline
Knowing History and Knowing Who We Are #1:

# data[].attributes.subject
Knowing History and Knowing Who We Are #1:

# data[].attributes.body
“History isn’t just something that ought to be taught or ought to be read or ought to be encouraged because it’s going to make us a better citizen. It will make us a better citizen; or because it will make us a more thoughtful and understanding human being, which it will; or because it will cause us to behave better, which it will. It should be taught for pleasure: The pleasure of history, like art or music or literature, consists of an expansion of the experience of being alive, which is what education is largely about.”

I have never thought of education as an expansion of the experience of being alive, but each new bit of knowledge we gain, does exactly that.  It gives our world another dimension, it adds a new lens for our vision, or expands our heart with new feelings.  Learning of the past, and especially OUR past, brings the experience to a whole new personal level. (Kristan Norton)

# data[].attributes.body
“They were, as we would say, winging it. And they were idealistic and they were young. We see their faces in the old paintings done later in their lives or looking at us from the money in our wallets, and we see the awkward teeth and the powdered hair, and we think of them as elder statesmen. But George Washington, when he took command of the continental army at Cambridge in 1775, was 43 years old, and he was the oldest of them. Jefferson was 33 when he wrote the Declaration of Independence. John Adams was 40. Benjamin Rush—one of the most interesting of them all and one of the founders of the antislavery movement in Philadelphia—was 30 years old when he signed the Declaration. They were young people.”

I never thought of our founding fathers beginning so young. I recently had my 29th birthday and I cannot fanthom  being in the position our founding fathers were when they signed Declaration of Independence. Their
age really struck me because we often hear talk about millennial’s/snowflakes and what they’re ‘doing’ to our county. But reading the ages of our founding fathers resonated with me that they aren’t too far off the high end of what we consider millennials. (Mandee Webster

# data[].attributes.body
“The laws we live by, the freedoms we enjoy, the institutions that we take for granted—as we should never take for granted—are all the work of other people who went before us.”

This quote stood out to me because we often do take our lives for granted. We get so caught up on ‘our rights’ that we often fail to look back on how those rights and freedoms came to be. We fail to remember what the people before us went through that has made it so that we can enjoy those freedoms. (Mandee Webster)

# data[].attributes.body
But today, how many boys anywhere wax nostalgic about the Civil War?

I grew up all over the country and in some areas there were many white boys waxing nostalgic about the War of Northern Aggression. The good days when the South was strong. It’s been awhile, I’m curious how much it has really changed.

Truth be told, I really enjoyed the other two articles. This one, not as much. Perhaps if I had read this article in 2013 when it was written, I would have had a different reaction. However, 2018 is a whole different deal which will make our studies much more interesting to say the least. By the by, Robert Hicks has an adorable dog as seen on his website’s bio page.

(Logan V)

# data[].attributes.body
An old friend, the late Daniel Boorstin, who was a very good historian and Librarian of Congress, said that trying to plan for the future without a sense of the past is like trying to plant cut flowers. We’re raising a lot of cut flowers and trying to plant them, and that’s much of what I want to talk about tonight.

I find so much truth in this statement.

The teaching of history, the emphasis on the importance of history, the enjoyment of history, should begin at home.

Whilst history and debate were important aspects of my cultural experience growing up, I’ve found it happens rarely for my students in their homes. Teachers alone cannot raise and plant uncut flower students.
(Logan V)

# data[].attributes.body
We are also concerned about the historical narrative promoted by some pundits and political figures who would deny the nation’s legacy of institutionalized oppression. There is tremendous pressure from the political right to teach a wholly false history that ignores the nation’s blemishes and misrepresents struggles for social justice.

I find this deeply disturbing. Perhaps not as severe as my 7th grade textbook which explained in detail how happy and content slaves were with the institution of slavery, but I’ve been told not to teach some facts about American History. The reason being it’s too disturbing for students to know that our country has ever done anything wrong. I taught it anyway. Other than some rebellious teachers, what else can be done to combat this continuing trend?

(Logan V)

# data[].attributes.body
When students learn about the movement, they learn what it means to be active American citizens. They learn how to recognize injustice.

The student population I work with currently easily recognizes injustice because they live it daily. They find a strong connection to the Civil Rights Movement and are able to apply strategies they learn to their own lives. Many years ago, I taught science to a more privileged/able population who struggled tremendously to recognize injustice. Their history teacher tended to gloss over the Civil Rights Movement and all other topics which were more uncomfortable (for the teacher). Hmm.

(Logan V)

# data[].attributes.body
"Also if the teachers know what they are teaching, they are much less dependent on textbooks. And I don’t know when the last time you picked up a textbook in American history might have been. And there are, to be sure, some very good ones still in print. But most of them, it appears to me, have been published in order to kill any interest that anyone might have in history."

Yes, yes, and yes! I cannot agree any more with this statement. American history textbooks will most definitely kill the interest on any topic. We have so many other resources available to us in this day and age. When I think of my own history education in elementary, jr. high, and especially high school, all I can remember are textbooks and worksheets to go with those textbooks. I know this is why history was my least favorite subject. I don't want to disservice my students by learning history only through a textbook. (Lisa Lystrup)

# data[].attributes.body
If the teacher has an attitude of enthusiasm for the subject, the student catches that whether the student is in second grade or is in graduate school. She said that if you show them what you love, they’ll get it and they’ll want to get it.

I know this to be true. I had some amazing math teachers in 7th, 10th, 11th and 12th grade. They LOVED math and they were excited to teach it everyday. I honestly believe my love for math stems from them. They had an attitude of enthusiasm that I caught; and I hope I now instill that same enthusiasm into my students not only for math but also for every subject. (Lisa Lystrup)

# data[].attributes.body
“They lived in the present just as we do. The difference was it was their present, not ours. And just as we don’t know how things are going to turn out for us, they didn’t either. It’s very easy to stand on the mountaintop as an historian or biographer and find fault with people for why they did this or didn’t do that, because we’re not involved in it, we’re not inside it, we’re not confronting what we don’t know—as everyone who preceded us always was.”

Makes me think of the saying hindsight is 20-20. It’s easy to look in the past and critique others’ actions. It’s easy to scratch your head and think, why would they have done this? But we have an advantage-we see the big picture as they do not. I often think about who I would be had I lived during the civil rights movement. Would I have been standing aside those fighting for their rights, or on the opposite side oppressing people’s rights? One would only hope that we would be standing with MLK and Rosa Parks, but we have the big picture right now, whereas if we lived back then, maybe we would have been persuaded by social norms and desensitized to racism. (Lisa Lystrup)

# data[].attributes.body
"Students deserve to learn that individuals, acting collectively, can make powerful institutions change."

This can be so empowering for students to know. I think many of us think, I'm just one person, what difference does it make? But change has to start somewhere. As Bud Caldwell would say (in the book Bud, Not Buddy-reading this right now with my class :) so it's on my mind), it starts out as a seed and turns into a mighty maple tree. Working together we can turn our seed into a mighty maple. (Lisa Lystrup)

# data[].attributes.body
"But the Civil War sealed us as a nation. The novelist and historian Shelby Foote said that before the war our representatives abroad referred to us as “these” United States, but after we became “the” United States. Somehow, as divided as we were, even as the war ended, we have become more than New Yorkers and Tennesseans, Texans and Californians."

More often than not, good things come out of hardships/tragedies. Take 9/11 for example. Our nation stood together and we became one instead of just New Yorkers or Utahns. We do this during hurricanes as well. We come together to help all citizens of the United States, not just our neighbors in the same state. (Lisa Lystrup)

# data[].attributes.body
"True, we have not arrived at our final destination as either a nation or as a people....None of it has been perfect, but I wouldn't want to be here without it"

This makes me think of the saying "NO pain, NO gain." We have to go through hard times to perfect our nation. People tend to come together and become stronger when faced with trials/difficult situations. It's not the prettiest path to take, but at least we're moving forward. (Lisa Lystrup)

# data[].attributes.body
"Teachers and textbooks routinely avoid conflict and controversial issues while creating what Terrie Epstein has called "sanitized versions" of important national events- slavery without enslavers, struggles or civil rights without racism and resistance."

Our history is sometimes hard to teach because I think I do sometimes want to sugarcoat or "sanitize" certain topics. It's made me think about why I do this. Maybe it's because I am embarrassed about some of our nation's mistakes? Or maybe it's because I worry about upsetting parents in what I say or creating an awkward environment for certain students. To be frank, I've had African-American students squirm in their seat as I talk about slavery while Caucasian students take quick glances at them and that makes me uncomfortable too. (Lisa Lystrup)

# data[].attributes.headline
Why the Civil War Still Matters "If you have chosen to throw your lot in with this country, the American Civil War is at the foundation of your reasons to do so."

# data[].attributes.subject
Why the Civil War Still Matters "If you have chosen to throw your lot in with this country, the American Civil War is at the foundation of your reasons to do so."

# data[].attributes.body
I think it's important to remember that history still impacts our lives today. Not only is our country fundamentally different because of the abolition of slavery, but the war changed us as a nation, laying the groundwork for the US to become the (relatively) welcoming nation of diversity that it is today.

# data[].attributes.body
We ask teachers to do so much more today than we did when I started. To get a job you need to be able to teach a variety of subjects (the Composite). Theschool districts want someone thay can fit into any class. We do not hire someone who knows just US History. We have to hire someone who teaches Psych, World, US, Sociology, and anything else we want to float. That is why the passion is being lost by teachers.
Rique Ochoa

# data[].attributes.headline
Knowing History and Knowing Who We Are "We have to do a far better job of teaching our teachers. We have too many teachers who are graduating with degrees in education. They go to schools of education or they major in education, and they graduate knowing something called education, but they don’t know a subject."

# data[].attributes.subject
Knowing History and Knowing Who We Are "We have to do a far better job of teaching our teachers. We have too many teachers who are graduating with degrees in education. They go to schools of education or they major in education, and they graduate knowing something called education, but they don’t know a subject."

# data[].attributes.body
As an elementary school teacher I really related to this quote. We take all sorts of classes to be a "jack of all trades," but we don't specialize in any of them. As a 5th grade teacher I am supposed to be their first introduction to US history, but I wasn't given any undergraduate coursework in history. I've had to search out information for myself, and I always feel like there's so much I still need to learn.

# data[].attributes.headline
The Civil Rights Movement: Why Now? "They need to know that the dream to which Dr. King gave voice has not yet been fully realized, despite the election of an African-American president. They need to know that as long as race is a barrier to access and opportunity, and as long as poverty is commonplace for people of color, the dream has not been achieved." 

# data[].attributes.subject
The Civil Rights Movement: Why Now? "They need to know that the dream to which Dr. King gave voice has not yet been fully realized, despite the election of an African-American president. They need to know that as long as race is a barrier to access and opportunity, and as long as poverty is commonplace for people of color, the dream has not been achieved." 

# data[].attributes.body
I think sometimes a teachers (who are predominately white) it's so easy for us to say "but things are so much better now," as a way to placate ourselves and our students. Students need to be aware that there is still much to be done, as well as how to use their own voices to help achieve the dream.

# data[].attributes.headline
The Civil Rights Movement: Why Now? - "Popular narratives create the impression that a small group of charismatic leaders, particularly Rosa Parks and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., were primarily responsible for civil rights gains. Parks is justly venerated for her activism in triggering the Montgomery Bus Boycott. Yet too many depictions of her portray a lone woman who was simply tired and did not want to give up her seat on a bus to a white person. In reality, she was a trained participant in a well-organized social movement."

# data[].attributes.subject
The Civil Rights Movement: Why Now? - "Popular narratives create the impression that a small group of charismatic leaders, particularly Rosa Parks and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., were primarily responsible for civil rights gains. Parks is justly venerated for her activism in triggering the Montgomery Bus Boycott. Yet too many depictions of her portray a lone woman who was simply tired and did not want to give up her seat on a bus to a white person. In reality, she was a trained participant in a well-organized social movement."

# data[].attributes.body
I think it is so easy to take figureheads, such as Parks and King, and mold them into a simplistic caricature that denies them real personalities. Real humans are complex beings, and that can make them too messy for idols. I think we see it so often today, when celebrities, athletes,  and even politicians that we hold up to be some sort of godlike beings show themselves to be just like us regular folk. But, by doing that to our historical figures, we lose the power of their messages and of their fights, because the WERE just regular folks, and yet, they were able to accomplish such amazing things. It is easier for us to put them in a niche in the wall where we can praise them, yet only see one part of them. It is less threatening to us, who are not out there fighting all the fights that need fighting in our society today.
(Ann Zito)

# data[].attributes.headline
The Civil Rights Movement: Why Now? - "They learn about what it means to be American and come to appreciate the importance and difficulty of struggling against tyranny. We teach the civil rights movement to show that injustice can be overcome."

# data[].attributes.subject
The Civil Rights Movement: Why Now? - "They learn about what it means to be American and come to appreciate the importance and difficulty of struggling against tyranny. We teach the civil rights movement to show that injustice can be overcome."

# data[].attributes.body
Having just finished up my unit on the American Revolution, and looking to the creation of the Constitution, this idea of a fight against tyranny stands out to me. Those are the words that our Founding Fathers used to denounce Britain and advocate for a revolution. I am interested in studying how the Civil Rights Movement can be connected to that idea, and the idea that it was a revolution against the same kinds of mistreatments that our original colonists fought against (voting!).
(Ann Zito)

# data[].attributes.headline
Why the Civil War Still Matters - But the Civil War sealed us as a nation. The novelist and historian Shelby Foote said that before the war our representatives abroad referred to us as “these” United States, but after we became “the” United States. Somehow, as divided as we were, even as the war ended, we have become more than New Yorkers and Tennesseans, Texans and Californians.

# data[].attributes.subject
Why the Civil War Still Matters - But the Civil War sealed us as a nation. The novelist and historian Shelby Foote said that before the war our representatives abroad referred to us as “these” United States, but after we became “the” United States. Somehow, as divided as we were, even as the war ended, we have become more than New Yorkers and Tennesseans, Texans and Californians.

# data[].attributes.body
What a thought - that out of adversity, we could actually come together stronger as a nation? Common tragedy will do that, if we allow it to. It certainly seemed to do that, at least for a time, after 9/11. Too bad that it takes a tragedy.
(Ann Zito)

# data[].attributes.headline
Why the Civil War Still Matters - All of that is now gone, replaced by a society that is more tolerant, more integrated, more varied in its demographics and culture. The memory of the war, at least as it was commemorated in the early 1960s, would seem to have no place.

# data[].attributes.subject
Why the Civil War Still Matters - All of that is now gone, replaced by a society that is more tolerant, more integrated, more varied in its demographics and culture. The memory of the war, at least as it was commemorated in the early 1960s, would seem to have no place.

# data[].attributes.body
I think this quote is interesting, because I feel like the Civil War, and the decades that followed it where Blacks were still treated systematically inferior to Whites, is even more important as our demographics and cultures have become more varied. We have more religions and languages and cultures that we are confronted with on a daily basis, and we need to keep in mind the lessons we learned through the Civil Rights movement about respect for those people, who are indeed people like us, not "others."
(Ann Zito)

# data[].attributes.headline
Knowing History and Knowing Who We Are - "They risked his life for that—for his education. We have no idea what people were willing to do for education in times past. It’s the one sustaining theme through our whole country—that the next generation will be better educated than we are."

# data[].attributes.subject
Knowing History and Knowing Who We Are - "They risked his life for that—for his education. We have no idea what people were willing to do for education in times past. It’s the one sustaining theme through our whole country—that the next generation will be better educated than we are."

# data[].attributes.body
I think so many people take their education for granted. School is just something they have to do, have to get through. That is such a travesty! I love to learn, and the most interesting people I know all love to learn. It makes me think of the idea that what we get too easily, we value the least. Education in the past was something that people FOUGHT for, it wasn't just something that children had forced on them. How do we get students to value their education more?
(Ann Zito)

# data[].attributes.headline
Knowing History and Knowing Who We Are -"First of all we have to get across the idea that we have to know who we were if we’re to know who we are and where we’re headed."

# data[].attributes.subject
Knowing History and Knowing Who We Are -"First of all we have to get across the idea that we have to know who we were if we’re to know who we are and where we’re headed."

# data[].attributes.body
I think that this is one of the most important lessons that we can learn from history - that we are not individuals who sprung from nothing, but we are the result of many people, many events, and lots of hard work. This, too me, is the exciting part of history! I love learning how the life I live was made possible, and looking forward to how I might change it for those who come after me.
(Ann Zito)

# data[].attributes.headline
The Civil Rights Movement:Why Now? "Today's students need to actively learn what older generations either lived through or experienced as a strong part of their cultural surroundings: Even basic knowledge of the civil rights movement cannot be taken for granted among today's children."

# data[].attributes.subject
The Civil Rights Movement:Why Now? "Today's students need to actively learn what older generations either lived through or experienced as a strong part of their cultural surroundings: Even basic knowledge of the civil rights movement cannot be taken for granted among today's children."

# data[].attributes.body
Looking at the civil rights movement as part of our cultural history and surroundings can help us have a better appreciation for those that struggled. Hearing their stories and how the movement directly and indirectly affected their lives would benefit every generation. (Marrianne Asay)

# data[].attributes.headline
The Civil Rights Movement:Why Now? "Students need to know that the movement was much bigger than its most notable leaders, and that missions of people mustered the courage to join the struggle, very often risking their lives in the process."

# data[].attributes.subject
The Civil Rights Movement:Why Now? "Students need to know that the movement was much bigger than its most notable leaders, and that missions of people mustered the courage to join the struggle, very often risking their lives in the process."

# data[].attributes.body
Having grown up thousands of miles away from the center of the Civil Rights Movement, my education on the subject centered mostly around the quotes and isolated events of a few key players. Learning more about the unsung heros and the extent of the movement has changed my perspective and feelings on the immensity and importance of the movement. (Marrianne Asay)

# data[].attributes.headline
Why the Civil War Still Matters "As we examine what it means to be America, we can find no better historical register than the memory of the Civil War and how it has morphed over time."

# data[].attributes.subject
Why the Civil War Still Matters "As we examine what it means to be America, we can find no better historical register than the memory of the Civil War and how it has morphed over time."

# data[].attributes.body
I have researched several of my ancestor's roles in the civil war. Many of them were Quakers from Ohio, who felt passionately enough about abolishing slavery that they turned their backs on the anti-war tenants of the their religion, and also risked helping on the underground railroad. Learning about their lives has changed my perspective. The collective memory of the Civil War that our country holds has also changed over time as we have acknowledged lives and stories that have been ignored, and sought to identify the true history. (Marrianne Asay)

# data[].attributes.headline
Why the Civil War Still Matters  "Indeed, how we remember the war is a marker for who we are as a nation."

# data[].attributes.subject
Why the Civil War Still Matters  "Indeed, how we remember the war is a marker for who we are as a nation."

# data[].attributes.body
My perspective on the Civil War has changed as I have read the histories of different segments of the population involved and affected by the conflict.  If only one side of the story is heard and commemorated, a large group will be neglected.  We need to make sure we recognize and remember all sides.
(Marrianne Asay)

# data[].attributes.headline
Knowing History and Knowing Who We Are "Tell Stories.  That's what history is: a story."

# data[].attributes.subject
Knowing History and Knowing Who We Are "Tell Stories.  That's what history is: a story."

# data[].attributes.body
Telling history from the perspective of someone who lived through the events is one of the best ways to learn about the intimate details of an event or time period.  It is also how we gain perspective and learn empathy for what others suffered.  As we get to know someone's story we are changed.
(Marrianne Asay)

# data[].attributes.headline
Knowing History and Knowing Who We Are "First of all we have to get across the idea that we have to know who we were if we're to know who we are and where we're headed. This is essential.  We have to value our forebears..."

# data[].attributes.subject
Knowing History and Knowing Who We Are "First of all we have to get across the idea that we have to know who we were if we're to know who we are and where we're headed. This is essential.  We have to value our forebears..."

# data[].attributes.body
Understanding history requires us to understand the people that lived it.  Knowing their stories, listening to more than just isolated facts, will help us to better understand the events and people that shaped the world we currently live in.
(Marrianne Asay)

# data[].attributes.headline
Knowing History and Knowing Who We Are              "They lived in the present just as we do. The difference was it was their present, not ours. And just as we don’t know how things are going to turn out for us, they didn’t either. It’s very easy to stand on the mountaintop as an historian or biographer and find fault with people for why they did this or didn’t do that, because we’re not involved in it, we’re not inside it, we’re not confronting what we don’t know—as everyone who preceded us always was."

# data[].attributes.subject
Knowing History and Knowing Who We Are              "They lived in the present just as we do. The difference was it was their present, not ours. And just as we don’t know how things are going to turn out for us, they didn’t either. It’s very easy to stand on the mountaintop as an historian or biographer and find fault with people for why they did this or didn’t do that, because we’re not involved in it, we’re not inside it, we’re not confronting what we don’t know—as everyone who preceded us always was."

# data[].attributes.body
This goes along with my previous quote, but I also loved this reminder that we don't and won't entirely understand history and events that take place or ideas that flourish because it isn't our "present." For this purpose it is imperative that we do our best to better understand "their present" and once again learn from it.

# data[].attributes.headline
Knowing History and Knowing Who We Are               "And it seems to me that one of the truths about history that needs to be portrayed—needs to be made clear to a student or to a reader—is that nothing ever had to happen the way it happened. History could have gone off in any number of different directions in any number of different ways at any point along the way, just as your own life can. You never know. One thing leads to another. Nothing happens in a vacuum. Actions have consequences. These all sound self-evident. But they’re not self-evident—particularly to a young person trying to understand life."

# data[].attributes.subject
Knowing History and Knowing Who We Are               "And it seems to me that one of the truths about history that needs to be portrayed—needs to be made clear to a student or to a reader—is that nothing ever had to happen the way it happened. History could have gone off in any number of different directions in any number of different ways at any point along the way, just as your own life can. You never know. One thing leads to another. Nothing happens in a vacuum. Actions have consequences. These all sound self-evident. But they’re not self-evident—particularly to a young person trying to understand life."

# data[].attributes.body
This is my favorite part of teaching and I feel like its one of the most important part of teaching in social studies or even more specifically history. I love discussing the "What Ifs" of history. Its a great reminder to our students that our choices and decisions matter, which is why we study history - to learn from it and make even better choices moving forward. I love this idea of realizing and recognizing the "ripple effects" that make up our history. (Kim Gerun

# data[].attributes.body
If the line to immigrate into this country is longer than those in every other country on earth, it is because of the Civil War.
This is a statement that is true in every sense. The Civil War changed so much and has had such a large impact on our Nation.
Shelby Foote said that before the war our representatives abroad referred to us as “these” United States, but after we became “the” United States.
It allowed for everyone to know that we would stand United as a country. It was a turning point for our nation that I am excited to explore in depth! (Daniel Morris)

# data[].attributes.body
Students need to know that the movement was much bigger than its most notable leaders, and that millions of people mustered the courage to join the struggle, very often risking their lives in the process.
While I wish this wasn't true, it absolutely is. I feel like there is such a rush to get through so much material that I tend to focus on the "big rocks" and usually that is the heroes of the movement. I do agree that it is important to take time to help students understand just how big of an impact the Civil Rights Movement had on our society and continues to have to this day.
We know that even the most experienced teachers of U.S. history tend to rush to the finish line once their courses pass World War II.
One year is just too little time to dive into the depths of US History! While it would be ideal to have in depth conversations about each unit, it is just impossible. How do you choose which topics are the most important ones to spend time on? I feel like the civil rights movement is so relevant to today that it is one that needs to be talked about in depth. (Daniel Morris)

# data[].attributes.body
It’s very easy to stand on the mountaintop as an historian or biographer and find fault with people for why they did this or didn’t do that, because we’re not involved in it, we’re not inside it, we’re not confronting what we don’t know—as everyone who preceded us always was.

One of the main things I try and help my students gain in my classroom is the ability for them to understand the context of the historical events that they are learning about. When they compare the historical event that they are learning about to the world as they now know it, it is extremely confusing. I like the quote above because there are so many relevant events that are going on right now that we can look at historically and wonder why they did things the way they did. Students enjoy talking about the Black Lives Matter Movement, and often times wonder why the slaves didn't just rebel. Without being involved and understanding what it was like during that time period, it really makes no sense.
We are known by being capable of rising to the occasion and exhibiting not just a sense of direction, but strength.
This quote is what I believe to be true of our wonderful nation. While we do not do everything right, there have been so many amazing moments throughout history that have shaped us in to the nation that we are today, and it is our job as educators to light that fire in our students to understand what it took to get us where we are today.
(Daniel Morris)

# data[].attributes.body
learning about the Civil War. I am so excited to teach them about one of the greatest events in history and the impact it has had and continues to have on all of us. We have stood up to the ultimate test, and WE ARE STILL HERE!! (Audra Call)


Add comment
Attitudes aren't taught, they're caught.

Anonymous
17d
Attitudes aren't taught, they're caught.
"That attitudes aren't taught, they're  caught. If the teacher has an attitude of enthusiasm for the subject, the student catches that whether the student is in  second grade or is in graduate school.... that if you show them what you love, they'll get it and they'll want to get it."
-David McCullough paraphrasing Margret McFarland
Is there a better quote for a teacher, my 8th graders offten say this is boring but when I'm exsited they are excited (or they think in odd)
(Cody Owen)
favorite
1
1 comment

Anonymous 15d
I completely agree, when I can add my own personal experience about a topic my students sit up and listen a little more asking questions. (Cherise Bateman)


Add comment
The task of teaching

Anonymous
18d
The task of teaching
"The task of teaching ... history is infinitely complex.... History could have gone off in any number of different directions in any number of different ways at any point along the way, just as you own life can.... One thing leads to another, Nothing happens in a vacuum. Actions have consequences. These all sound self-evident. But they're not self evident-- particularly to a young person trying to understand life." (David McCullough Know History
This may be a long quote but to me as a middle school teacher it refocuses me to teach sequences of events that could apply to my students lives.
(Cody Owen)
favorite
2
2 comments

Anonymous 4d
Yes, I agree! Especially the "actions have consequences" part that often is hard for kids to understand even in their own lives.

Anonymous 4d
Ooops, forgot to add my name to my comment. (Deanna Herrmann)


Add comment
History for Pleasure

Cindy Ness
18d
History for Pleasure
"It (History) should be taught for pleasure: The pleasure of history, like art or music or literature, consists of an expansion of the experience of being alive, which is what education is largely about."  McCullough

I'm always shocked when I hear adults say they hate history, I think to myself, 'What is your soul dead?!' History is more fascinating than any one book or movie, as the story of us, it is full of love, hate, passion, sorrow, joy. History is our collective scripture, it's where we can go to learn life lessons, that make our life's more meaningful and rich. 
(Cindy Ness)
favorite_border
0
4 comments

Anonymous 18d
I couldn't agree more, it is odd how as our passion is despised, but as I meet parents that hated history in school, they now love it and wished they had payed attention in school (or did more than book work while the coach talked sports with the jocks)-- Cody Owen

Anonymous 16d
I have always loved history (as I'm sure most who are part of this group have), so I, too, am baffled by this attitude. As teachers of history, I think our best shot is connecting history whenever possible to their own lives and their current reality- to show them why it still matters. (Shannon Herbert)

Anonymous 15d
History is full of the best stories with all the emotions. I had a US History professor in college and I remember wishing that I could just sit in his class everyday and listen to him tell the most fascinating stories with his sound effects and voices. Amazing! (Cherise Bateman)

Anonymous 3h
I did not fall in love with history until later in life. To be honest, my teachers in high school and college were boring - mostly facts, dates, and memorization. I started out as a Language Arts teacher, and now all the Language Arts classes at my school are integrated with history. I'd never go back. The two pair so well, and I think my students like history a great deal more than I did when I was in middle school - at least I hope so! :) (Kim Perry)


Add comment
 add

# data[].attributes.body
But there is an even more important reason the war matters. If the line to immigrate into this country is longer than those in every other country on earth, it is because of the Civil War.
I really like this quote because it illustrates the importance of the Civil War in shaping what America has become. When I read this, I'm convinced this is the essence of why every American needs to learn about the Civil War. It is the answer to the question "Does the Civil War still matter?"

# data[].attributes.body
As we examine what it means to be America, we can find no better historical register than the memory of the Civil War and how it has morphed over time.
I had never really thought of the memory of the Civil War being tied to what it means to be American. This line really intrigues me. Does our perception of the events of the Civil War really have an impact on our national identity? I'm not sure, and I'm not sure if that question gets entirely answered by the end of the article.

# data[].attributes.body
Even as we face these pitfalls, we must do the best we can to teach the civil rights movement just as we teach other parts of American history.
I feel like this comment sums up the entire article. I do think the author makes a good point about no enough being taught about Civil Rights. However, I think Civil Rights is hardly alone when it comes to curriculum not getting enough attention. I think they're are many history subjects where we only get to scratch the surface. How do we decide which topics are the most important? If we go more in depth on one topic, then we have to scale back on another. I'm glad this is left up to those who decide what curriculum we are to focus on...

# data[].attributes.body
We are concerned that the movement, when it is given classroom time, is reduced to lessons about a handful of heroic figures and the four words “I have a dream.”
This statement rang true for me. I do think that too often in the classroom I simplify parts of history too much. With the Civil Rights Movement I tend to stay close to the keys figures and events and don't often dive deeper. I'm now trying to figure out if this is because of my own lack of content knowledge, or because of time limitations (curriculum planning, pacing, etc.).

# data[].attributes.body
And think of this: almost no nations in the world know when they were born. We know exactly when we began and why we began and who did it.
I really like this line from the article because I had never thought about this before. The history of our nation is unique in this way. This is why I am so excited about this opportunity to go on this trip. I have a feeling it will make me think differently about many aspects of history that I felt sure of.

# data[].attributes.body
...as we should never take for granted—are all the work of other people who went before us. And to be indifferent to that isn’t just to be ignorant, it’s to be rude.
The Civil War, and the Civil Rights Movement are eras in history that have shaped our country in very profound ways. I like this quote, because it puts the onus on us (American citizens) to understand how we got to where we are today. I agree with what he says. For us not to recognize the impact of the actions of those who went before us is rude.

# data[].attributes.body
Understanding the movement is essential to understanding American history. When students learn about the movement, they study more than a series of dates, names and actions. They learn about what it means to be American and come to appreciate the importance and difficulty of struggling against tyranny. We teach the civil rights movement to show that injustice can be overcome.
Students must understand how hard people had to work to overcome tyranny and social injustice. However, this is not over. They will see it evident in the world today, and need to be able to reflect upon what they have learned from the past to buoy themselves up, and others, knowing they can make a difference.

# data[].attributes.body
There is tremendous pressure from the political right to teach a wholly false history that ignores the nation’s blemishes and misrepresents struggles for social justice

Teachers and textbooks routinely avoid conflict and controversial issues while creating what Terrie Epstein has called “sanitized versions” of important national events—slavery without enslavers, struggles for civil rights without racism and resistance—all culminating in a national triumph of good over evil.
This is actually two quotes, but they're closely related. Teachers cannot teach Lies. When one teaches faults history, you are teaching a lie. Students believe what you say and will act upon those things that you have taught them. It is so important to be honest and how we teach history.

# data[].attributes.body
When students learn about the movement, they learn what it means to be active American citizens

I agree with the author, in that learning about the movement is not just about learning dates and important people. Sometimes learning about the movement or things in history is very hard and sobering, but it is essential. We cannot sugarcoat history. Otherwise, our students are getting the wrong impression about how hard things really were and are.

# data[].attributes.body
the next generation will be better educated than we are
I wish this was priority like it use to be. Educated in perseverance, and problem-solving, and so much more than just being book smart. In realizing one's potential, and that everyone fails, but that everyone can rise up to meet their challenges.

# data[].attributes.body
And we need not leave the whole job of teaching history to the teachers. If I could have you come away from what I have to say tonight remembering one thing, it would be this: The teaching of history, the emphasis on the importance of history, the enjoyment of history, should begin at home. We who are parents or grandparents should be taking our children to historic sites. We should be talking about those books in biography or history that we have particularly enjoyed, or that character or those characters in history that have meant something to us. We should be talking about what it was like when we were growing up in the olden days. Children, particularly little children, love this. And in my view, the real focus should be at the grade school level.

Parents, grandparents, neighbors, relatives, all need to be teaching history. I love that the author brought up taking children to historical sites. This is so important. And has played a huge role in my life. Also, David McCullough brings up the fact that we should be teaching this at grade school level. I'm afraid that it often gets overlooked in grade school. It must start then.

# data[].attributes.body
“We are concerned that the movement, when it is given classroom time, is reduced to lessons about a handful of heroic figures and the four words “I have a dream.” Students need to know that the movement was much bigger than its most notable leaders, and that millions of people mustered the courage to join the struggle, very often risking their lives in the process.”

The most valuable class I took while receiving my history endorsement was my “Civil Rights Movement” class. The Civil Rights movement has always been of interest to me, but my eyes were opened to so many men and women who sacrificed and set the stage for any change that would take place. I had never heard the name, Claudette Colvin, who had been arrested for refusing to give up her seat on a bus. This was 9 months before Rosa Parks. Names like JoAnne Robinson, Virginia Durr (white woman), E.D. Nixon, and the women of the bus boycott are mostly unknown. None of this was an overnight idea, but something that had been in the planning stages for years. Racism was rampant in the south, and many in the black community had been working toward desegregating schools, and changing Jim Crow laws. It definitely was not a King and Parks movement.

“We know that textbooks and core materials too often strip out context and richness to present a limited account of the movement.  We know that no comprehensive content standards exist for teaching about the movement. We know that even the most experienced teachers of U.S. history tend to rush to the finish line once their courses pass World War II..”

Here’s another great reminder to chuck the textbook. Referring back to the McCullough article, literature and history go hand in hand. I always teach a Civil Rights unit at the end of the year and it’s my favorite. I pair it with Mississippi Trial (the story of Emmitt Till) and Warriors Don’t Cry (the story of the Little Rock 9) It’s a real eye opener for my students.  (Kim Perry)

# data[].attributes.body
It’s very easy to stand on the mountaintop as an historian or biographer and find fault with people for why they did this or didn’t do that, because we’re not involved in it, we’re not inside it, we’re not confronting what we don’t know—as everyone who preceded us always was.
Helping students to not be judgemental when analyzing figures in history is essential. Helping them understand how things were different from today, instead of passing judgement of how people made decisions without knowing all the facts or the person's background or knowledge or experience.

# data[].attributes.body
And Gettysburg itself still matters, for the same reason Abraham Lincoln noted so eloquently in his famous address at the site on Nov. 19, 1863. The battle consecrated the “unfinished work” to guarantee “that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom — and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.”

I love that the author points out the "unfinished work" quote in the Gettysburg Address. I agree with Lincoln, and the author, that there is an unfinished work. We, as educators, have a responsibility to our students to help them understand how they can help Society, because the work is not finished.

# data[].attributes.body
“Keep in mind that when we were founded by those people in the late 18th century, none of them had had any prior experience in either revolutions or nation-making. They were, as we would say, winging it. And they were idealistic and they were young. We see their faces in the old paintings done later in their lives or looking at us from the money in our wallets, and we see the awkward teeth and the powdered hair, and we think of them as elder statesmen.”

One of my students recently began a DBQ essay on the Constitution by referencing those involved as “the pasty-faced guys who wore tights.” I love this reminder from McCullough that these men were idealistic and young; not the elder statesmen with powdered hair. Helping our students to see the founders as young passionate men of character who made mistakes and had flaws makes them more relatable. This reminded me of walking through Signers Hall at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia. You walk among 42 life-sized statues of the signers of the Constitution. My reaction was similar to the way McCullough describes “John Trumbull’s great painting, ‘The Declaration of Independence, Fourth of July, 1776’…But what is accurate about it are the faces. Every single one of the 47 men in that painting is an identifiable, and thus accountable, individual.”
Getting my students to see the founders as real people wanting to make a significant difference is a challenge, but essential to help them appreciate who they were.
(Kim Perry)

# data[].attributes.body
"Nor is there any such creature as a self-made man or woman. We love that expression, we Americans. But every one who’s ever lived has been affected, changed, shaped, helped, hindered by other people. "

"you can’t love what you don’t know. And the great teachers—the teachers who influence you, who change your lives—almost always, I’m sure, are the teachers that love what they are teaching. It is that wonderful teacher who says ”Come over here and look in this microscope."

I love it when students say "it's their life and they can do whatever they want because it doesn't affect anyone else."  Well- this simply isn't true- just like the first quote, we are all impacted by someone and it can be for the better or the worse.  We are all connected in one way or another.

I also totally agree with this statement.  We have all had a teacher that maybe hated their job or wasn't passionate about their subject and what were the end results for us in that particular class? Passion breeds excitement and the wanting to know and do more.  It is contagious.
(Becky Rees)

# data[].attributes.body
“For one thing, it matters as a reflection of how much America has changed. Robert Penn Warren called the war the “American oracle,” meaning that it told us who we are — and, by corollary, reflected the changing nature of America.”

“In contrast, recent sesquicentennial events have taken pains to more accurately portray the contributions made by blacks to the war, while pro-Southern revisionists have been relegated to the dustbin of history — a reflection of the more inclusive society we have become.”

To me, it’s very important to constantly remind my students that it has been a long process to get to the point we are at currently, in terms of unity and racial divide. We are far from perfect, but America has changed and become more inclusive.

“But the Civil War sealed us as a nation. The novelist and historian Shelby Foote said that before the war our representatives abroad referred to us as “these” United States, but after we became “the” United States.”

I found this quote interesting. I hadn’t thought about the singular or plural version of “these” or “the” United States. I like the idea of being a unified, singular country, though it doesn’t always seem that way.
(Kim Perry)

# data[].attributes.body
I very much enjoyed reading David McCullough's "Knowing History and Knowing Who We Are." I teach both history and language arts- we pair all ELA and history courses together into a  block at my middle school, so we teach the same kids for two periods, both subjects. Now that I've been teaching them together for five years, I don't think I could separate them again. McCullough says, "There is literature in history. Let's begin with Longfellow, for example. Let's begin with Lincoln's Second Inaugural Address, for example. These are literature. They can read that too." The writings of Americans like Thoreau, Douglass, Alcott, Twain, Sinclair, and so many others give us such a personal understanding of the past that simply doesn't come across in a U.S. History textbook. "The textbooks are dreary, they're done by committee, they're often hilariously politically correct and they're not doing any good. Students should not have to read anything that we, you and I, wouldn't want to read ourselves."  How true this is! Textbooks also seem to focus on the "King-and-Parks-centered narrative[s]" criticized in the piece by the SPLC. When teachers love what they're teaching and can supplement inadequate textbooks with good speeches, poems, and other works of literature, it can transform a student's attitude toward history. It can "engage the heart," as Abigail Adams so eloquently put it, "then those qualities which would otherwise lay dormant wake into life and form the character of the hero and the statesman."
(Shannon Herbert)

# data[].attributes.body
"The American Century, the Greatest Generation and all the rest are somehow born out of the sacrifice of those 750,000 men and boys. None of it has been perfect, but I wouldn’t want to be here without it."
I love this quote because we are truly indebted to those who sacrificed their lives during the Civil War.  As Abraham Lincoln said in his Gettysburg Address, "The brave men, living and dead, who struggled here, have consecrated it, far above our poor power to add or detract. The world will little note, nor long remember what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here. It is for us the living, rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced. It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us -- that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion -- that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain -- that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom -- and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth."
We cannot forget, and for this reason the Civil War will always be remembered and MATTER!!
(Audra Call)

# data[].attributes.body
"But the Civil War sealed us as a nation. The novelist and historian Shelby Foote said that before the war our representatives abroad referred to us as “these” United States, but after we became “the” United States."
I love teaching and learning about the Civil War. The Civil War changed the course of the United States in many important ways. It transformed our nation and brought us together as one nation under God! As we face important issues in our country today, we should remember the difficult lessons learned during that war. We must understand what has shaped our country in the past in order to carefully discern our path to the future.
(Audra Call

# data[].attributes.headline
Why the Civil War Still Matters                                       "The battle consecrated the 'unfinished work' to guarantee 'that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom — and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.' ... If the line to immigrate into this country is longer than those in every other country on earth, it is because of the Civil War."

# data[].attributes.subject
Why the Civil War Still Matters                                       "The battle consecrated the 'unfinished work' to guarantee 'that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom — and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.' ... If the line to immigrate into this country is longer than those in every other country on earth, it is because of the Civil War."

# data[].attributes.body
This was a great reminder to me that the Civil War represents much more than a dispute or division within our nation. It truly was a "birth of freedom" It represents hope for equality and what we want our nation to be about- which is why others are drawn to the United States, the promise the Civil War represented.
(Kim Gerun)

# data[].attributes.headline
Why the Civil War Still Matters                                        "What meaning does the war have in our multiethnic, multivalent society?For one thing, it matters as a reflection of how much America has changed. "

# data[].attributes.subject
Why the Civil War Still Matters                                        "What meaning does the war have in our multiethnic, multivalent society?For one thing, it matters as a reflection of how much America has changed. "

# data[].attributes.body
I have had this very thought at times. Mostly with my foreign exchange students from Jordan, Poland, Slovakia, etc. I teach them about the Civil War and think what does this matter to them? This was a reminder to me that seeing how much and even maybe how little we've changed since the Civil War helps even those students to understand the US just a little bit more, but even more helps us to recognize where we have room to further improve.
(Kim Gerun)

# data[].attributes.headline
The Civil Rights Movement: Why Now?                                    "Teaching the civil rights movement is essential to ensuring that American history is relevant to students in an increasingly diverse nation."

# data[].attributes.subject
The Civil Rights Movement: Why Now?                                    "Teaching the civil rights movement is essential to ensuring that American history is relevant to students in an increasingly diverse nation."

# data[].attributes.body
Recently I had the opportunity to attend a professional development training called REACH that specifically deals with better incorporating cultures into our classrooms and better reach all of the cultures of our students to help them feel more apart of the class but also relevant. Over the last 12 years I have watched my classroom increase in cultural diversity and have felt more and more the need and desire to have each of my students feel that US history does apply to them and needs them and their story whatever it may be.
(Kim Gerun)

# data[].attributes.headline
The Civil Rights Movement: Why Now? "When students learn about the movement, they learn what it means to be active American citizens. They learn how to recognize injustice. They learn about the transformative role played by thousands of ordinary individuals, as well as the importance of organization for collective change. They see that people can come together to stand against oppression."

# data[].attributes.subject
The Civil Rights Movement: Why Now? "When students learn about the movement, they learn what it means to be active American citizens. They learn how to recognize injustice. They learn about the transformative role played by thousands of ordinary individuals, as well as the importance of organization for collective change. They see that people can come together to stand against oppression."

# data[].attributes.body
I have students that at 16 and 17 years old have already decided they don't care to be very involved as citizens. They express "what's the point?" often. Then in the next breath complain about the status and situation of our nation. I loved this quote as a reminder why I wanted to be an educator and why I work hard to reach my students and help them relate history to their own lives. They and we have an obligation to be  educated and involved citizens.
(Kim Gerun)

# data[].attributes.body
We are concerned that the movement, when it is given classroom time, is reduced to lessons about a handful of heroic figures and the four words “I have a dream.” Students need to know that the movement was much bigger than its most notable leaders, and that millions of people mustered the courage to join the struggle, very often risking their lives in the process. They need to know that the dream to which Dr. King gave voice has not yet been fully realized, despite the election of an African-American president. They need to know that as long as race is a barrier to access and opportunity, and as long as poverty is commonplace for people of color, the dream has not been achieved.

I reflect on this statement and am saddened to admit that in the past I have not given the time and energy on this unit. There are so many people, along with Dr. King, that did so much for the Civil Rights movement. I feel that as we embark on this journey of our own that we can see the vision of "the Dream" statement and can return with added vigor and purpose to explain the events and people that made such a difference in the lives of millions of Americans, of African American descent and those of other ethnicities and those who are caucasian. This will benefit all. (Dave Ringle)

# data[].attributes.headline
"Knowing History and Knowing Who We Are"

# data[].attributes.subject
"Knowing History and Knowing Who We Are"

# data[].attributes.body
Nor is there any such creature as a self-made man or woman. We love that expression, we Americans. But every one who’s ever lived has been affected, changed, shaped, helped, hindered by other people.

I really liked this statement. As I look back at my life, there really was not anything that I did to emulate (I had lots of sports heroes and other people I admired) that has made me who I am. I also might be by name the epitome of this quote as I am named after my father and my eldest son named after me. Nothing original there. Many things that I do in my life, my teaching career have been already done by others (many of which have done it much better). As a teacher, I reflect back to my school days and see the many great things that my teachers said and did that molded me into who I am. It is my hope that as we progress through this class/trip/opportunity that we will be further changed and molded into what our students will see afterwards and be able to change and mold them as well.

(Dave Ringle

# data[].attributes.body
"The King-and Parks-centered narrative limits what we teach students about the range of possible political action. Students deserve to learn that individuals acting collectively, can make powerful institutions change."

What a great message! I think we live in a time when more and more people strive to work independently. Something that I have come across in my classroom is the difficulty that some students have in working with groups or sharing with the class. They too, would rather work be independent. Examples such as the Civil Rights Movement, however, set a good example of the strength we can have as we work together. Whether it be in departments, communities, families, or whatever, we can protect our own rights and correct injustices in societies when we support one another.

" This report continues our call for change. The United States has a civic and moral imperative to ensure that all children learn about the history of the civil rights movment."

As a first year teacher, this quote really stood out to me. I really love learning about the Civil Rights Movement and it has always been one of my favorite topics. I'm really excited to learn more about it as we study these materials together. I'm excited to bring more to my classroom and help students develop a deeper understanding and appreciation for the rights that we have.

(Mary Christensen)