[Ansteorra] World History in High School

Fri Jul 18 17:06:28 PDT 2008

Well, the dates are a small part of the TEKS (our state curriculum), and many of them don't even show up on the TAKS (our state assessment).  I think picking on the dates specified doesn't give you the whole story on what the curriculum is trying to accomplish.

Someone asked why the printing press and Martin Luther weren't included in the dates.  These events are in other parts of the TEKS, but without specifying the date in the curriculum.  We still have to teach them, and believe me, I teach them with dates, because I want my students to have an idea of the flow of history and how innovations affected events.  But the emphasis is on the bigger picture.

As for those specific dates... my theory is that dates like 1066 and 1492 are "famous numbers" and a reasonably well-educated person should just kinda know what they are.  Some like 1215, 1776, 1789 are dates that will play an important part in the development of American government.

When you take the whole picture and you teach it as a whole concept, I find that it makes sense.  Teaching world history and geography is fun for that reason... you can make all kinds of cool connections about how different people lived at different times and different places, and figure out why.

And as for the TAKS, there is a limited amount of historical memorization... but a lot of it is about skills like reading maps and graphs, making comparisons, understanding sources, and the like.  If teachers only teach the test, they are missing a whole lotta stuff, I'll give you that.  But a reasonably good teacher doesn't miss it, and in fact uses the wealth of material to teach those skills on the test.

Hopefully that clarifies things a bit.  Not all of Texas is as backwards as the list seems be implying of late... and me, I'm from Chicago!

Breila
(aka Rebecca Lyman, Social Studies Department Chair and curriculum writer for 10th and 11th grade social studies)

--- On Fri, 7/18/08, HerrDetlef <herrdetlef at gmail.com> wrote:

From: HerrDetlef <herrdetlef at gmail.com>
Subject: Re: [Ansteorra] World History in High School
To: "Kingdom of Ansteorra - SCA, Inc." <ansteorra at lists.ansteorra.org>
Date: Friday, July 18, 2008, 12:54 PM

The teaching of history seems to concern itself with little more than wars
and political events.

Which might explain why 1517 is not included in the list of important dates.

P&B,
DT+LF

On 7/18/08, Sandra Geil <alexsandraeryn at yahoo.com> wrote:
>
> The state of Texas at least does put emphasis on a few things about World
> History in the course (usually taught to sophomores).
>
> for example there is a list of dates (to know for the experiment in state
> sponsored torture -- of the teachers, not the students)
>
> 1066
> 1215
> 1492 - though why this one and not 1517 boggles the mind
> 1789
> 1914-1918
> 1939-1945
>
> There is a similar list for 8th grade (U.S. History up to 1877)
> 1607
> 1776
> 1787
> 1803
> 1861-1865
>
> and also for 10th grade (U. S. History 1877 - present)
> 1898
> 1914-1918
> 1929
> 1941-1945
> 1957
>
> How would you do on that part of the TAKS?
>
> al AERYN
>
> spoiler
> - you knew I had to give the answers so you would not set something
> terrible on my trail
>
> §113.24. Social Studies, Grade 8.
>
> 1607,       The English establish a colony at Jamestown
> 1776,       Signing of the Declaration of Independence
> 1787,       Constitutional Convention convenes in Philadelphia 1803,
> Louisiana Purchase
> 1861-1865.   War Between the States (American Civil War)
>
> §113.32. United States History Studies Since Reconstruction
>
> 1898,       Spanish American War (Remember the Maine!)
> 1914-1918,   World War I
> 1929,       Black Tuesday – the stock market crash
> 1941-1945,   World War II
> 1957        The launch of Sputnik
>
> §113.33. World History Studies
>
> 1066,       Battle of Hastings (Norman Conquest)
> 1215,       King John is forced to sign the Magna Carta
> 1492,       Christopher Columbus
> 1789,       French Revolution
> 1914-1918,   World War I
> 1939-1945.   World War II
>
> *1517         Martin Luther (95 Theses)
>
>
>
>
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Hwæt! We Gardena         in geardagum,
þeodcyninga,         þrym gefrunon,
hu ða æþelingas         ellen fremedon.
Oft Scyld Scefing         sceaþena þreatum,
monegum mægþum,         meodosetla ofteah,
egsode eorlas.         Syððan ærest wearð
feasceaft funden,         he þæs frofre gebad,
weox under wolcnum,         weorðmyndum þah,
oðþæt him æghwylc         þara ymbsittendra
ofer hronrade         hyran scolde,
gomban gyldan.         þæt wæs god cyning!

Beowulf, 1-11
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