Episode 93 - Teaching History: Learning, Unlearning, and Building Context in the Classroom

Education Headline Roundup

• The United States’ Office of Educational Technology has released a new policy report entitled Artificial Intelligence and the Future of Teaching and Learning: Insights and Recommendations. The report offers high-level definitions and recommendations aimed at educators and administrators.
• Florida’s public university system has approved the use of a new and controversial college entrance exam known as the Classic Learning Test (CLT).

Teaching History: Learning, Unlearning, and Building Context in the Classroom

The study of the past is an essential component of a well-rounded education and a gateway to meaningful civic participation. Why, then, do 85% of eighth-graders score below proficient in U.S. history? Amid shifting sentiments on research, misinformation, and the impact of mass media on the historical record, we’re tackling the subject of how history is taught at both the K-12 and postsecondary levels. We discuss the role that textbooks play in the modern history classroom and the difficulties that come with developing age-appropriate curricula covering difficult or sensitive subject matters. Bonus content: we review a few of the lessons we were taught as kids that haven’t stood the test of time, featuring George Washington’s teeth, indisputable rules of grammar, and the Industrial Revolution.

Sources & Resources:

Eleven Warriors: “BIG Ten Officials Tell Ryan Day…”

YouTube – H.E. Keiko Nagaoka from Arctic Circle

Office of Education Technology – Artificial Intelligence and the Future of Teaching and Learning

MEXT – Chronology of the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology(MEXT)

The New York Times – Florida Expected to Approve Classical Exam as a Competitor to the SAT by Dana Goldstein

CLT Tests – Mission

NPR – What to know about Florida’s ‘classic’ alternative to the SAT by Juliana Kim

EducationWeek – Sure, We Teach History. But Do We Know Why It’s Important? by Andrew Ujifusa

Forbes – Why We Need To Start Teaching History In Kindergarten by Natalie Wexler

Perspectives on History – Teaching Content, Teaching Skills by Katharina Matro

Libro.fm – Meet You in Hell by Les Standiford

Smithsonian Magazine – Even Though He Is Revered Today, MLK Was Widely Disliked by the American Public When He Was Killed by James C. Cobb

Library of Congress – Abraham Lincoln papers: Series 2. General Correspondence. 1858-1864: Abraham Lincoln to Horace Greeley, Friday, August 22, 1862 (Clipping from Aug. 23, 1862 Daily National Intelligencer, Washington, D.C.)