An authority on the history of American children and families, Steven Mintz is a professor of history at Columbia University, where he also directs the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences Teaching Center. Previously, he was a fellow at the Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences at Stanford University and the Moores Professor of…

Since approximately 1970, many historians have been seeking a unifying theme for the American History Survey. Early in the twentieth century, Progressive historians identified class conflict as the main theme in American History, but during the 1950s and 1960s, this view was challenged by the Consensus Schools' assertion that Americans have always…

In 1955, journalist William Bradford Huie interviewed Emmett Till's killers and published their confession in "Look" magazine. Titled "The Shocking Story of Approved Murder in Mississippi," Huie's tale dominated the remembrance of Emmett Till for nearly fifty years. This essay argues that the power of the "Shocking…

Proposes a reinterpretation of historical periods in U.S. music history for the purpose of organizing research findings and for teaching music history. These suggested periods are: (1) the colonial period; (2) the introduction of music in the schools; (3) curricular development; (4) the expansion of music performance; and (5) aesthetic education.…

Examines the growth of the Columbus myth and how it resulted in the establishment of two cultural and political institutions: Columbus Day and the Pledge of Allegiance. Describes the "Columbusmania", which began with Washington Irving's Columbus biography in 1828 and peaked with the Columbian Exposition in 1892. (SV)

"Civil defence pedagogies" normalise continuous emergency through educational channels such as school, community and adult education. Using critical whiteness studies, and critiques of white supremacy from critical race theory, as a conceptual base, the protection of whiteness, and particularly the white middle-class family, is considered to be…

Major American historians used to lie about the past. Today, they try terribly hard to tell the truth. And though trying to tell the truth might seem a good thing in theory, it has been debilitating in practice. (RM)

A significant number of community service-learning projects in higher education involve the teaching or tutoring of immigrants in English. As in related service-learning scholarship, these projects are commonly informed by perspectives on cultural difference, social justice, and power relations in U.S. society. Yet while faculty pair their…

Literary accounts help society gain a better understanding of the Vietnam War by providing coverage missing from historical accounts of this period. Literature on the Vietnam War has focused on a number of issues: America's initial involvement in Southeast Asia, the American perspective on the war, the experience of the American soldier, and the…

Offers an introduction to children's history. The remaining articles are devoted to children's history. Provides general guidelines for teaching children about children's history and shows, in four photographs, American children from the 1800s with their tricycles, toy baby carriages, and dolls. (JDH)

A major purpose of the study of history is to give students a context beyond themselves and the times in which they live. This article describes how to use children's history to achieve this purpose, provides titles of numerous resources for teaching about children's history, and recommends a process of supplementing historical fiction to…

Provides a review of historical trends and recent experiences which shape the issues that dominate current immigration policy debates. Gives special attention to the employment status of illegal aliens and the impact this labor force may have on future legislation. (JDH)

Examines the diversity found in utopian views and social orders, focusing on the dichotomy between mechanistic and organic values found in current literature, philosophy, and sociology. Demonstrates the historical role of these values in the genesis of the United States. Argues for a dual American Dream, encompassing both arcadian and utopian…

Describes how the textile mills established in Lowell, Massachusetts, during the 1820s served as showplaces for American industrial progress and reformist social values. Their utopian purpose was to demonstrate that good working conditions could reinforce desirable moral values in the mill workers. (AM)

Textbooks treat Afro-American history with a general unevenness, with little attention to Afro-American thoughts and activities. A theme that runs consistently throughout American history is the exclusion of Afro-Americans from the concept of American "people." There should be a two-pronged approach to examining this theme in the classroom. (AM)