Presents an essay and several photographs describing the experiences of U.S. women in the 1940s. Suggests that wartime employment greatly impacted the role of women in society. Describes ways to help students learn how to interpret a photograph and provides questions for classroom discussions. (DB)

Provides information concerning the diversity of women's lifestyles who lived on the U.S. frontier during the 19th century. This excerpt contains a lesson plan and teaching strategies for the study of Black women who went West. The larger work is an attempt to focus upon neglected areas of women's frontier experiences and includes an extensive…

Discusses the state of Germany's armed forces in World War II. Describes Germany's progress from inferior weaponry and unprepared military at the beginning of the war to superior weapons and fighting. Stresses heavy German dependence on horse drawn supply. Credits Germany's defeat to human attrition accelerated by Hitler's operational leadership.…

Discusses historian Henry Adams' disillusionment with the educational system and with his own teaching. Suggests improving history instruction by involving students more actively in learning. Proposes incorporating interactive learning strategies including (1) interactive lectures; (2) questioning; (3) small groups; (4) critical thinking and…

The defeat of the United States in the Vietnam War affected the dearest notions held by Americans of the nature of the national existence. That defeat determined, in the words of John Hellman, "the disruption of our story, of our explanation of the past and vision of the future." This appears most poignantly, perhaps, in school history…

A specific dramatic episode in history that allows students to delve into the deeper meanings of selected landmark events and explore a wider context of historical narrative is represented within this supplementary teaching unit. This approach helps students materialize history as an ongoing, open-ended process that is based upon decisions made in…

This course, one of 16 sequential courses comprising phase one of a part-time Bachelor of Arts degree program in Australian Studies, uses Australian literary and documentary writings of the 19th century to examine the formation of the proposition that the Australian national character is based on rural life. The course is designed for independent…

Students explore concepts of Progressive Era education and learn how the philanthropic efforts of Pierre Samuel du Pont helped transform Delaware's education system for African American school children. It is based on the National Register of Historic Places registration file "Iron Hill School Number 112C," interviews with former pupils,…

This teaching unit represents a specific "dramatic moment" in history that can allow students to delve into the deeper meanings of selected landmark events and explore their wider context in the great historical narrative. Studying a crucial turning point in history helps students realize that history is an ongoing, open-ended process,…

This description of the plan of civic education in the Indianapolis elementary schools has been prepared because of a growing, general interest in the subject, and because of the numerous inquiries as to existing methods of organized elementary civic training. The Indianapolis teachers and school authorities would be the last to claim that they…

Traces the history of science in the United States through an extensive bibliography of sources useful to history teachers. Expounds on notable trends in the history of science, beginning with the revolutionary period up to the present. Focuses on the impact of social and cultural ideas on science in the United States. (RW)

Suggests teaching about the Chinese government's 1989 suppression of student protesters at Tiananmen Square. Argues that the lesson can aid students understanding of the role of student protest in shaping China's history and interactions with the rest of the world. Offers strategies and questions for student research including reasons for the…

Explores how the post-bellum U.S. code of contract denied married women the right to own their labor and their wages. Maps the legal symmetry between slavery and marriage, contradicting contemporary ideologies that placed the right to work for wages as a cardinal freedom. Discusses "earnings" laws passed by state legislatures that…

Popular music and films can become vehicles in the study of racial prejudices and stereotypes and provide a framework for understanding the popular opinions of a particular era. At the College of Staten Island, City University of New York, a course incorporates popular music and videos into the study of historical accounts of the 20th century…

This report is the result of three years of continuous inquiry by the Committee on Social Studies of the National Education Association's Commission on the Reorganization of Secondary Education. The committee as a whole met at various times in each of these years, subcommittees met on other occasions, and individual members designated by the…