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February 20, 2008

Race: A History Beyond Black and White - McREL Standards

No greater challenge exists for people today than combating racism, yet nothing is more challenging to teach. Sibert Award winner Marc Aronson wrote Race and is providing this study guide with historic source materials so that teachers and students may examine the history of race and racism in an educationally sound but sensitive manner. Because school system guidelines along with the comfort level of teachers and students vary tremendously, the historic sources are wide-ranging and the accompanying lessons are filled with options and choices. The lessons are an invitation to learn about a complex, often controversial issue, but one whose consequences are too far-reaching to ignore.

Synopsis

People have always been aware of differences in physical appearance, religion, and language. However, the idea that human beings belong to biologically distinct races emerged quite recently in world history, in the 1700s. This lesson is intended to help students begin to think about how we categorize and organize people in the world around us. Students will focus on the familiar, schools and textbooks, as they learn about Jane Elliott’s “blue eyes-brown eyes” experiment and survey their own textbooks. The lesson is designed for grades 9-12, although it may be readily adapted by middle school teams, grades 6-8.

Posted by marc at February 20, 2008 09:55 PM