The authors of this article are two teacher educators who worked collaboratively to co-teach an interdisciplinary English and US history class to eleventh-grade students in an urban high school. They wanted to ensure the methods they were teaching preservice teachers were current and effective. The article discusses the foundational beliefs that…

In this study, the researcher examined student conceptions of "Whiteness" as it relates to past and present U.S. history. Using Critical Race Theory as the lens, this study employed mixed methods, analyzing teacher observations, classroom artifacts/student work, survey, and interview data from White students and students of color at an…

This study examined whether students who graded and corrected their own test papers improved their learning and standardized test scores on the North Carolina end-of-course test in United States History. Four preexisting, intact classrooms of 11th grade United States History students in two different high schools formed the basis of this…

Basic reading comprehension and summary tend to be the focus in social studies and history classrooms, if reading and writing are included at all. But such a focus inhibits a conception of history as an interpretive discipline grounded in evidence that is analyzed, not simply accepted. Understanding the past is impossible without such historical…

This study examined an 11th grade high school class as they played the game Civilization III. Over nine class sessions students played the game in support of other activities related to several predetermined and emergent topics in U. S. history. Gameplay was whole-class oriented and involved students taking turns at the computer controlling…

Students and teachers in Pierce School District in Arbuckle, California, re-enacted an 1840s wagon train. Staff and students dressed authentically, turning thrift-store outfits into period garb. The 4-day simulation instilled knowledge in students and helped them think more critically. True instructional innovation comes from the bottom up. (MLH)

Presents a lesson which will help high school students identify the specific parts of the U.S. Constitution, recognize the way the Founding Fathers dealt with the problems of government, and evaluate how the document works 200 years later. Includes an in-depth worksheet for analyzing the document and two sets of constitutional problems to be used…

GRADES OR AGES: Senior high school (Grades 10-12). SUBJECT MATTER: The Negro in United States history. ORGANIZATION AND PHYSICAL APPEARANCE: The guide has 12 units: 1) African Background; 2) Exploration; 3) The Revolution; 4) The Constitution; 5) Westward Expansion; 6) Slavery; 7) Lincoln and Slavery; 8) The Civil War; 9) Reconstruction; 10)…

All North Carolina high school students must take United States History as one of their graduation requirements. Each student takes a state-prepared U.S. History test of 100 items; most of those taking the test are in the 11th grade. The test contains 60 core questions and one of the four different sets of 40 curriculum questions. This report…

Presents three lesson plans for an eleventh grade U.S. History course entitled: "Thomas Jefferson's Opinions of Negroes"; "Why Weren't Women Considered Part of the Body Politic?;" and "Blackstone's Understanding of King-in-Parliament as the Foundation of the British Constitution." Each lesson includes instructional…

An annotated list of readings is suggested for high school teachers of U.S. history and geography at grade 11 and for teachers of courses in the principles of democracy at grade 12. The list was designed for use in California where the 11th grade curriculum emphasizes 20th century U.S. history and the 12th grade concentrates on the institution of…

How much do 17-year olds know about U.S. history and literature? The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) has been gathering information about the educational attainment of American students in a variety of subject areas, but no study had focused solely on students' basic knowledge of American history and their familiarity with major…

The booklet contains samples from the Missouri social studies test for eleventh graders. The first sample asks students to use their own knowledge and the information gleaned from two illustrations that are focused on U.S. history. The second samples, based on a drawing of a map of 1914 East Asia, asks students to use their knowledge and the map…

Three favorable reactions to an 11th-grade textbook chapter dealing with the history surrounding the writing of the U.S. Constitution that was written by experts as an example of an ideal textbook are presented. The evaluators thought that the chapter is in many ways exemplary and is a good initial attempt at writing an ideal text. (RM)

In grade 11, students use the life and work of Cesar E. Chavez as a case study to trace the major historical eras and events of the 20th century. Students start by studying the Chavez family at the beginning of the 20th century, learning about them as they struggled to acquire a farm in Arizona and raise a family. They also learn how they faced…