teaching history

New York's Education Wars a Century Ago Show how Content Restrictions Can Backfire

by Bill Greer

Laws enforcing ideological positions in education can gain popularity when they focus on unpopular ideas. But when they take effect to punish popular teachers, the public gets second thoughts. 

Texas's History is Under Ideological Attack—from the Right

by John R. Lundberg

A retired oil billionaire is trying to wrest control of the Texas State Historical Association from professional historians because they no longer support a vision of the state's history that gives white Anglo settlers pride of place in a diverse state. 

PEN Condemns Censorship in Removal of Coates's Memoir from AP Course

Several students reported their teacher using terms that mirrored the language of the state law—claiming the lesson "made them ashamed to be Caucasian"—resulting in the school board's decision to remove the book from an Advanced Placement Language course. 

Teaching Hard Histories Through Juneteenth

A celebration of freedom should put the work of the people who fought and struggled to achieve it at the center; thinking of freedom as something achieved instead of something granted. 

Can We Solve the Civics Education Crisis?

by Glenn C. Altschuler and David Wippman

Universal schooling created the potential for a unifying civic curriculum that, paradoxically, has been the subject of perpetual disagreement regarding its contents. A recent bipartisan roadmap for civics education that makes those disagreements central to the subject matter may be the only way to move forward. 

The Other Mothers Fighting the School Wars

Although Moms For Liberty was the early entrant into the current battles over curriculum, race and LGBTQ policies in schools, other groups have mobilized their identities as mothers to fight the right's efforts. Historians Adam Laats and Stacie Taranto note that school politics have often hinged on who could leverage motherhood as a political force. 

Scholars Stage Teach-in on Racism in DeSantis's Back Yard

Yohuru Williams and the Institute for Common Power, directed by Terry Anne Scott, convened a 24-hour teach-in in St. Petersburg to draw attention to the connections between inclusive history lessons and functioning democracy. 

American Students Deserve Better than the AP System

Annie Abrams: "If we want to expand access to college, why aren’t we doing that by employing Ph.D.s? If we want to support high school teachers and strengthen curriculum, why aren’t we fostering collaboration? Instead, we’re outsourcing that work."

Historian Don Yacovone: Florida's Restrictions Echo the Demands to Teach Pro-Slavery Argument

Jamelle Bouie's newsletter puts the current Florida controversy in light of a previous era's political demands about the teaching of history to justify one group's domination of another. 

"Return to Rigor" Isn't the Answer to Restoring Student Engagement

by Kevin Gannon

A post-COVID reaction to the improvisations made on grades, schedules and deadlines supposes that students are suffering from too much flexibility, but a singular focus on rigor won't address the causes of disengagment. 

Forget "Finding Forrester"—Our Best Teaching Can Be Ordinary

by Elizabeth Stice

Hollywood loves to tell the stories of singularly brilliant students pushed to greatness by similarly singular mentors with unconventional methods and unaccommodating personalities. This ideal won't help anyone teach the real students in their classrooms. 

I'm Headed to Florida to Teach-In Against DeSantis's Education Policies

by Kellie Carter Jackson

This May 17 saw a 24-hour teach-in by historians in St. Petersburg, Florida, to protest the restrictions on curriculum, books and ideas pushed by Governor Ron DeSantis and his allies. As a historian of abolition, the author stresses that denying people the pen may influence them to pick up the sword. 

Florida Just Banned Everything I Teach

by William Horne

Black historians during the Jim Crow era observed that the history taught in schools justified slavery, segregation, and lynching. A professor thinks that's where Ron DeSantis's vision of history is headed. Some politicians may think curriculum is a winning issue, but students and society will lose. 

NAACP Legal Defense Fund Opposes Texas Legislation

"Truthful and inclusive discussions about United States and Texas history and their connection to present-day inequalities are essential to accurate and quality academic instruction."

In Texas, Those Who Don't Know History... Want to Control the State's Narrative of the Past

The growing effort to diminish the power of academic historians on the Texas State Historical Association is being driven by many of the people involved in the "1836 Project" effort to distribute literature praising the white settlers of Texas as mythic heroes. 

North Carolina Introduces its own History Bill; Historians Call Foul

State legislators say they are ensuring that students at North Carolina colleges are taught core concepts in American history. Historians Jay Smith and William Sturkey argue that, since the legislature would determine the content of a mandatory course it amounts to indoctrination and token coverage of Black history. 

Wealthy Texas Activist Sues President of State's Historical Association

The suit by J.P. Bryan, a retired oilman and the executive director of the private Texas State Historical Association, which produces many important educational materials, claims that the board has too many academics and is too critical of the Anglo settlers of the state. Historian Nancy Baker Jones, the TSHA President, is the principal target. 

North Carolina Legislature Insults State's Students and Teachers with "Heritage Act"

by Kathleen DuVal

A new bill claims to fix a void in college students' understanding of America's "constitutional heritage." But if the state is enforcing its K-12 standards, there should be no problem to fix. A professor of early American history wonders what else is driving the legislature. 

8th Grade History Scores Have Plunged

Are partisan efforts to restrict the content of history instruction to blame? A shift of resources to STEM and reading? 

1776 vs. 1619: Hillsdale College Enters the History Wars

by Adam Hochshild

If conservatives are against "woke" history education, what, exactly, are they for? There's much to be learned from the curriculum created by the Michigan christian college, which presents a jarring contrast with the themes presented in the new Hulu documentary series based on Nikole Hannah-Jones's 1619 Project.