Why So Uninformed?

In preparation for the 2020-2021 school year and whatever it brings, we’re trying to plan for every possible instructional method. Just the number of possibilities is exhausting. We’re still about three weeks away from when our students are scheduled to return to school. We have a rough idea of what to expect, but we know that is very likely to change several times. So we’ve spent our summer reading and learning. We’ve tried to correct the misinformation we have learned over our lifetimes, look closely at the current events and make connections to historical situations, and build a path that will allow our students to start the year asking the difficult questions. 

We know that the first few days will be critical, perhaps more than ever. We have to set the tone of a safe space from day one. We have to ask the hard questions on day one. 

In this process of reading, I (Terri) am amazing at the amount of misinformation, usually by omission that occurs in our textbooks. I’ve always taught using primary sources, media, current events, but have found that my students like a textbook. It makes them feel comfortable with the content, but history textbooks are riddled with errors, implications, and just plain failure to address the issues directly. As I’ve looked more closely at history from a variety of sources I see it more clearly, and I see that it leads to a large amount of history that is being misunderstood at best by our students. 

So from day one this year we will be looking at history more directly, settling in with the uncomfortable. This year our first week of school lines up with the 100th anniversary of the ratification of the 19th amendment to the US Constitution. It seems to be a natural place to begin tying past to present. We will look at the process of women’s suffrage, the protests, the hesitation, and the inspiration for the women’s movement. We’ll use this topic to springboard to present day to identify groups still unequal. Yes, we’re going to talk politics - then and now. I will admit, political discussions make me uncomfortable, but in this election year combine with this anniversary and current state of the country - I will do my best to remain non partisan as a teacher, to encourage students to think critically about a multitude of issues, to let them lead discussions, and to learn with them.