Think for yourself. That simple three word idea was the inspiration for the creation of this website. After years of breaking down what I wanted my students to be able to do at the end of each lesson, unit, and school year, I came to the realization that the most important skill that I wanted my students to have at the end of their time with me was for them to be able to think for themselves. Those daily, weekly, monthly, and yearly benchmarks are important markers for growth, and to ignore them would be irresponsible, but the wider goal to help students strengthen their ability to think for themselves should be the clear and constant centerpiece.
History is factual but the meaning and importance of history requires an individual to be able to “honestly” evaluate the past. The “honestly” piece is complicated by a myriad of factors not limited to an individual’s values and political beliefs. While I would not expect a liberal-leaning student to completely praise Reaganomics or a conservative-leaning student to champion the entirety of the Great Society, I absolutely would insist that both students are able to identify and evaluate the successes and shortcomings of both programs.
History is not one thing. An individual’s legacy can be both one of greatness and failure. The legacy of a piece of legislation or other historical document can be that it moved society forward while simultaneously holding society back. More completely, an event in history can impact people differently. In order to “honestly” evaluate an event, we must study how it impacted different groups of people.
After thoroughly evaluating an idea, event, piece of legislation, individual or other aspect of history, an “honest” student of history can argue that something was a positive and still acknowledge the negative. It is “dishonest” to approach history with the mindset that all events fit into some binary world of right or wrong.
Henry Ford was both a visionary entrepreneur and an anti-Semite. His successes at the Ford Motor Company do not mean we should ignore his abhorrent views about Jews and Judaism and his anti-Semitism does not make his business accomplishments disappear from the historical record. Ford is both things - a pioneering businessman and an anti-Semite. If students were investigating the legacy of Henry Ford, they should see the full picture. More to the point, they need to be presented with the full picture and then analyze what it means.
Ford's Anti-Semitism (from PBS: American Experience)
Ford's Assembly Line (from Ford Motor Company)
History is populated with stories just like Henry Ford's. Both great and terrible. To dismiss one for the sake of the other is intellectually “dishonest” and poor history. I do not claim nor do I aim to present the totality of history and I welcome visitors to identify ideas, readings, and other examples of history that would help paint a broader picture of the questions that I pose. What I endeavor to do here is to ask big questions that get students to think for themselves, because that is the most important skill I want students to have when they leave my class.
Moreover, many of the secondary texts and textbook offerings for high school history classes, to put it generously, leave a great deal to be desired. Events are presented without connection to anything else, significant events are glossed over or omitted entirely, and a very narrow picture of history is painted. Another reason for this undertaking was to create a more comprehensive yet focused text that incorporates the words of historians and historical figures. I wanted to create inquiry focused units divided into sections with clear focus questions that help students work towards a greater understanding of history and its impact. I hope that the results meet my goals and that this resource can benefit someone, somewhere.
The Aftermath of World War I page
The Aftermath of World War I Textbook
The Great Depression Textbook
Vietnam Textbook
Apartheid in South Africa page
Apartheid in South Africa Textbook