In 1971, the state of Texas enacted a legislative requirement that students at public institutions complete two courses in American history. With that mandate in mind, the Texas Association of Scholars and the National Association of Scholars' Center for the Study of the Curriculum proposed to determine how students today meet the requirement, and…

Howard Zinn's "A People's History of the United States" is the nation's best-known work of American history. It is also the nation's best-selling survey of American history, having sold two million copies since its publication in 1980 and still selling about 125,000 paperback copies yearly. The fifth and current edition covers America up…

The politicians and pastors who revised the Texas social studies standards made national and international headlines. However, much of that coverage was sensational and squeezed the process into a narrow "culture war" storyline. Politics and the History Curriculum sets the debate over the Texas standards within a broader context by…

In this article, the authors describe three specific activities in which they have integrated mini-camcorders in their units on the American Revolution, Civil War, and Post-Reconstruction and Progressive eras that they believe provide outlets for creative middle school students and engage students in authentic intellectual work. The three…

This dissertation critically investigates how Advanced Placement (AP) U.S. History textbooks portray key events in Latino/a history. The investigation is made in light of claims made by the College Board, the ACLU, scholars, and federal and state governments that the Advanced Placement program is the path to educational equity for Latino/a…

The author went to a talk, part of a lecture series on abolitionism, by scholar Eric Foner. Foner's thesis was that the abolition movement was the foundation of virtually all social justice movements in the United States. Foner's talk about the significance of the abolition movement inspired the author to rethink how he had been approaching the…

In this piece, we share a story about the power of historical investigation as a means of developing critical literacy in young children. Drawing on the work of VanSledright (Social Educ 68:230, 2004), we outline four aspects of historical thinking as they relate to the development of critically minded citizens. We then turn to a discussion of a…

The author begins this article by suggesting that in the United States late 20th century immigration patterns have been perceived by some who consider themselves American natives because they were born in the country (even though their ancestors are of European stock) as threatening to soften the glue that preserves their vision of the right and…

Intermediate and junior high school students learn about the social history of Vermont by studying events and trends during a 30-year period of the life of a famous Vermont native, Calvin Coolidge. Although designed for students in Vermont, materials can easily be adapted for use in other states, particularly those in the New England area. In…

Designed for teachers and researchers, this comprehensive outline of the history of North Carolina traces the state's history from its earliest Indian occupants to political events occurring during the 1960's. Over 40 chapters are included in the outline. In general, topics deal with expansion and settlement, agriculture and industry,…

Presents a lesson plan that invites students to view 19th-century Hawaii through the eyes of Isabella Bird. Bird left Victorian England hoping that traveling would improve her ill health. In the process she became a celebrated writer and explorer. Includes excerpts from her letters and books. (MJP)

In this article, the author contends that the vast majority of American historians no longer regard American culture--whether high culture or mainstream popular culture--as an essential area of study. The much-vaunted culture turn in the humanities has run its course in one of the first disciplines it influenced. Indeed, most of the books today…

Analyzes the findings of a study conducted to: (1) identify the type of history courses offered by community colleges; (2) compare the relative strength of history enrollments in relation to total humanities and total college enrollments; and (3) identify, on the basis of enrollments, the most popular history courses. (JP)

Reviews the legal history of including religion in the curriculum and maintains that religion may have been the most important determinant of human behavior throughout history. Outlines an instructional model based on California and Illinois state histories and includes four themes that structure the model. (CFR)

The document contains the narrative portion of a multimedia project tracing the history of Jews in Michigan from the mid 17th to the mid 20th century. The developers intended that the materials be used as the basis of a one-month course of study. Overall objectives of the project were to increase understanding among students from junior high…