Is History Actually Taught Anymore or Just DEI?

Just DEI. The schools are indoctrination camps at this point.

I'm a teacher and I don't feel the schools in my area are indoctrination camps. In fact, my colleagues and I strive to lay out facts and invite students to use critical thinking examine how the facts affects their lives. I stress everyone's unique lived experience gives them a lens in which to interpret the effects the facts have on how they are living and what might lay ahead. As a teacher it's my job to encourage critical analysis and common sense. I also make it clear, facts are real. There are no "alternative" facts but there can be more information uncovered that will add to one's critical analysis. We must all live our own lives.

^^

I guess the argument will always be “how to teach history”. I’m always fascinated when I watch a movie from the 90’s called “School Ties” that takes place in the 1950’s at prestigious Ivy League prep school. There’s a scene where the history teacher is unmercifully cold calling on students to remember dates and events.

Memorization of facts seems to have given way to critical thinking. I was taught the old school way - but perhaps the new way is better. However, it seems if modern day students are not aware of the realities of WW II and Robert Oppenheimer then pedagogical methods should be reevaluated. I’m just afraid CRT is now more important than facts and dates

^ Without some memorization of facts, there is no critical thinking, history is always written after it's happened, so there needs to be some knowledge of the events that have taken place, as well as the chronological order in which they occurred, for critical thinking to have any logical lessons, we need information, about what led up to an event before we can either replicate or prevent a similar event.
We also need exposure to alternative thought processes to accurately understand and evaluate events, using your example of Oppenheimer, it's critically important to understand what was occurring in the world before judging or even understanding the man and his motivations.

“lay out facts and invite students to use critical thinking examine how the facts affects their lives.”

I hate to break it you, but that’s not critical thinking. You don’t “ lay out the facts”. You invite criticism of the facts. Do a little reading on the Socratic method, or the Scientific method, or Epistemology.

Telling students that the US is founded on 1619 slavery, then asking them how that affects them, is neither critical thinking nor history.

Some people, both left and right, seem to believe that the teaching of history they don't like is "indoctrination."

I don’t know, it seems like there are a lot of people wanting to change history lately. Getting rid of confederate statues, villifying the past, etc. IMO, they should be left as reminders how things have changed over the years so current generations can feel grateful instead of angry, but that’s the victim culture festering from todays lame stream media.

Education, like Hollywood, is overrun with and controlled by woke leftists who put their agenda before the well- being of their customers.

Example: the Teachers Unions should be working with lawmakers and taxpayers to ensure that schools are proudly funded for faculty, tools (textbooks, lab supplies, art supplies, etc), and physical plant. Instead, they are fighting to teach 1619, CRT, zoom classes, subvert the role of parents, and criminalize taxpayers who push back.

In most school districts, history is being taught through the distorting prism of DEI and to the detriment of American society.

Removing statues of slavers isn't an attempt to change history, it's simply declining to celebrate those slavers. If you didn't complain when the statues of Saddam Hussein and Lenin were removed, you probably shouldn't be upset when statues of American slavers are removed. It's not "vilifying history", it's just not honoring the horrible aspects.

What is considered important information for…

American History
https://apcentral.collegeboard.org/media…

World History
https://apcentral.collegeboard.org/media…

And educators take those topics seriously because it affects their students testing scores.

Not every student is going to be in an AP class. But what topics are covered won’t be too far off.

I would encourage everyone to skim thru the American History AP link nicespice provided - and then comment on whether students are being steered towards a specific agenda.

I read thru the WW2 section. No mention of Robert Oppenheimer or the Manhattan Project. Students were only encouraged to write about the morality of using the atomic bomb - without any facts leading up to the decision.

Topics for study included The Tuskegee Airmen, Japanese Internment Camps, Navajo Code-talkers. Many mentions of the military industrial complex, racial segregation, and Rosie the Riveter. An African American doctor who worked on a blood bank was mentioned - but not one mention of Oppenheimer, Patton , Halsey, Montgomery, Bradley or Rommel.

I’m not suggesting topics such as the Tuskegee Airmen not be discussed - but it seems the curriculum left out important historical events, dates and people solely to promote an agenda of the mistreatment of women and POC.

It’s no wonder anyone under 40 going to watch “Oppenheimer” might think this is just another MCU film

DEI... unless you live in DeSantis world. Heck even my employer cares more about DEI that the actual work we theoretically get paid for.

I don't remember the exact quote but... failure to be good students of history doom you to repeat history.

Boomers and late Gen X'ers......laying their opinions on what they "should know" to the two generations below/above us.

Lemme guess, they should know the names of all the presidents in chronological order, and know the exact dates of events that you and I deem important.

Although I value historical context (and the thread seems to be splintering into whose context is used) of atomic weapons being used on humans, a moral decision can be made without it (no, I'm not advocating that the history of American atomic weapons should not be convered). Example: listening to my grandfathers perspective of the use of a nuclear weapon on the Japanese as a veteran is totally different than my perspective.....and different from my kids. Ask an 90 year old Japanese vet what he thinks, you'll get yet another historical perspective.

So, do I think all textbooks have to pick and choose which perspective they're going to share? Yes. Newsmax, Fox, CNN, MSNBC etc. don't know shit about the day to day interactions that teachers are having with their students on these topics. They simply key in on a couple of fringe stories on extreme teachers not doing their job right......and suddenly we should be home schooling.

Jaybud999

“Lemme guess, they should know the names of all the presidents in chronological order“

Lol. Apparently my college history professor thought so. He warned us the day before the final exam that one of the questions will be to list the presidents in order. I had a knack for memorization so I spent a little time go into. Got an A in the course. And it’s been more useful than knowing who Charles Drew was

White cis heterosexual male boomer here.

The taking down of slaver statues is and was the right thing to do.

Highlighting the systemic racism inherent in zoning laws is the right thing to do.

Criticizing the way African Americans and Native Peoples have been, and still are, treated is the right thing to do.

Calling out bad behavior of men towards women is the right thing to do.

LGBTQ people are people and have the same rights as everyone else, and making sure those rights are respected is the right thing to do.

If you disagree with any of those, you're just fucking wrong. And yeah, I mean it.

"I stress everyone's unique lived experience gives them a lens in which to interpret the effects the facts have on how they are living..."

Leftist language. One's "unique lived experience" as a lens in which to interpret facts is deconstructionist and simply a way to encourage subversion. Facts are facts. This is just coded language that has been used by leftist agitators for decades.

It really means "letting BLM and other Marxist groups deconstruct American history however they want so they can get away with whatever they want."

The US is divided between people who are proud of their nation and those who consider it racist and evil. That’s the bottom line. That’s at the heart of most of the conflict and division in our country.

The “America is Evil” perspective started in colleges decades ago, by Communist and Marxist professors. It has spread like a cancer.

Georgemicrodog: “ I am morally superior. Anyone who disagrees with my view of the world, or my definition of virtue, is not only stupid but evil. I also have the ability to identify these evil people based on their age, gender, and ethnicity. I don’t need to know anything their individual character. Guilt by association is best”.

^ No that’s just the way you’d like to spin it, the problem here is a failure to communicate and it’s really hard to understand the perspective of someone who doesn’t, acknowledge the validity of anyone who doesn’t agree with those opinions you have.
I don’t hear anyone saying America is evil, what I hear is let’s make it better, your spin isn’t much help.

Some see that no nation is perfect and want to get better. The ability to look at the good and bad in multiple civilizations including your own can lead to a better future.

It’s important to know history and be able to relate it to current events.

“ The US is divided between people who are proud of their nation and those who consider it racist and evil.”

That’s the problem right there. The MAGAts see everyone not like them as hating this country. Most everyone loves this country. We just have different ideas about how to make it better. For fucks sake “make America great again” is a complaint, like there’s something wrong with this country. The whole maga slogan is that the country needs to get better. That essentially is what the left wants also. They are just different visions. That should be ok, but instead it’s “division” and the other side’s opinion shall not be tolerated.

@mark94, I stated no superiority on my part. I stated facts, no different in principle than "the sun will rise in the east tomorrow." If you disagree with those facts, you are factually incorrect, i.e. wrong.

Racists are just angry their white propagandist history isn’t being taught anymore.

US history usually focuses on the colonial era up to the revolution and the civil war. WWII is often kind of rushed.

The actual Manhattan project might be mentioned but it's not going to be covered for a full week or two.

Yeah, I was never taught about Oppenheimer or the Manhattan project in school. Only learned about it from reading after I got out of college.

The make America great again slogan has gained traction because there IS something wrong with this country. This country was at it's best when blacks weren't encouraged to not follow police orders and millions of diseased, dangerous central Americans weren't leeching in record numbers.

The root of the problems lie with the white traitors who turned on their own and supported black, career criminals and those who threw rocks at the police, started supporting sick, transgender deviants and said "no human is illegal." It's like these traitors couldn't wait to tear down all that did make America great in the first place.

Just look at where we're at now. This country will only get more third world. Is there something wrong with this country? Just look out the window.

@georgmicrodong no tou state your moral values as independent facts. They are separate things. The sun rising is factual. Treatment of others is a moral judgment. I may agree with you, but others will not. It is the confusion of the two that bothers me. Facts are verifiable and stand independent of anyone's opinion. Gravity exists whether I like it or not. My morals are mine and not necessarily shared with others and there is no independent way of verification. Perhaps Chinese morality is "right" and we should be ethnically cleansing minogroups. The leadership of the CCP assures everyone those are "facts". Feel free to argue your moral vision is better, but don't claim it is objectively true unless you are cool with the same from the most homophobic, racist bigit you've ever met. Otherwise you are just playing rhetorical games.

When I was in school, I specifically remember it being written in the course catalog that transfer credits to be counted for economics class would only be accepted if their class curriculum had an emphasis on the free market. I remember during my high school graduation from a *public* school, we had to do a prayer during our ceremony.

But now that I think about it, I don’t remember anything about Oppenheimer in my history class. But I do remember a brief mention during physics class.( along with Heisenberg and Einstein and Planck) Which honestly, I have no problem with that. That class is the better place to briefly describe what those men were actually doing. Just imo

@mickey48066

I can take your last comment in one of two ways: 1) you're just trolling around, or 2) your world view is fucked up and you're weird for it.

Either way, I think you're weird.....and we've never met. I think.

Progressives are simply people with American citizenship, not Americans. As seniors in high school our last year was all electives. WW1 was a semester and so was WW2. Kind of sad to realize how different it is in illegal alien America.

What's DEI?

What I find more disturbing is more people are interested in the barbie movie.

What is DEI? DEI is the latest veiled attempt to strip away the basic American premise of individual exceptionalism. In short, DEI determines your value and worth based not upon your character and performance, but based upon your perceived identity (race, preferred gender identity, described ethnicity): https://www.newsweek.com/how-dei-ideolog…

Some fools want to take it global and wreck economies everywhere: https://hbr.org/2022/01/dei-gets-real

The race-baiters and America-haters have turned it into revenue stream, much like they did with BLM: https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archiv…

what do you mean by the "basic American premise of individual exceptionalism"?

“What I find more disturbing is more people are interested in the barbie movie.”

—

Winner winner! A friend went to see Mission Impossible over the weekend and “Barbie” was playing at the same multiplex. She said there was a huge line - mostly all older women (read again, “old”) dressed in pink.

I’m a boomer but that’s weird. But I wasn’t a boomer girl.

I saw a review of Barbie. Apparently, it’s a “ men are evil” themed movie with great set design and Margo Robbie.

^ That's what I heard about "Barbie". Instead of a satire with female empowerment or gender equality themes, it's a DEI shill that blames men and the (imaginary) patriarchy for all the ebooks on the world. It's preposterously claims that all the world's problems would not exist if women did everything. Hah. Imagine a world where everyone was as catty as 25IQ. I would make modern Ukraine look like a vacation.

It is impossible to understand history without context. Context is what causes one generation’s heros to be the next generation’s villains. Good decisions made in the context of 75, or 150 years ago, often look like very bad decisions today. But the benefit of 20/20 hindsight and the lack of proper historical context should not be justification for wanting to re-write or sanitize history or pretend like it never happened.

And I still think @Nicespice is the smartest person on this forum.