As we all know, Monday is Dr. Martin Luther King Day. Like everyone else, I enjoy getting a day off, especially one that results in a three-day weekend. That being said, it struck me that having the day off of school or work is hardly honoring Dr. King’s memory. In fact, many times, Rosa Parks, the Montgomery bus boycott and of course, Dr. King’s famous “I Have a Dream” speech, are all students receive when it comes to cultral awareness and diversity.
I never learned about the “Trail of Tears” that Native Americans took west as they were forced off of their land. I never learned about Caesar Chavez and the important work he did on behalf of the migrant worker. I never learned anything about African-American history except what was contained in one to two pages in my history book. Most ironic, I never ever learned anything about Arab-Americans or the Muslim religion. I was a college student before I realized all of the things that had been left out of my education over the years. It made me wonder what other things had been left out of my studies and more importantly, why?
So for our first blog, in honor of Dr. King, my question to you is, "Do you think our educational system does a good job of educating students when it comes to cultural history? Why or why not?" Answers are due no later than Thursday, January 21st, 2010. Please make sure that you sign your name and designate your class to receive full credit!
I think our history books are written more to tell us how we became the United States of America and why the US is different versus how our culture has developed over its history. Yes, they include what they deem important, but maybe they exclude certain elements that could put the US in a negative light or just do not want us to know.
ReplyDelete~Kyndall
Good point about all the left out subjects/cultures in schools....schools in America definitely seem to be on a program of molding American students into the socially acceptable person in todays world(business minded, ego driven, never question what's presented as truth)....they leave out all the other realms of cultures that believe in a more "higher consciousness" level of existence, instead of the ego based existence. My question is how come so many leaders who stand for peace/true freedom are wiped out? What person wouldn't want these positive leaders to succeed...that is what makes me question who/what is really carrying out these assassination plots.
ReplyDelete-Grant Monson Friday 6pm Class
I think kyndall has a good point, but I also think that other cultures have helped for the United States too. I hear a lot of teachers say that things are left out because there isn't enough time to cover it. Or enough information for a lecture(which I don't think is true.) But again, with what kyndall said, I think they want to leave a positive look on the US for us instead of parts that may make us look worse. In school they teach us to love the united states and cherish it and I think that Dr. Martin Luther King, Rosa Parks, etc. really show us that and teach us well, but I do believe that we should be taught about other cultures in school.
ReplyDeletewoops, jessbeaklr4 is Jessie Buechler Friday night class
ReplyDeleteThe education children receive is not only based on the teacher, but also on the book they are using in class. When I was growing up, I was taught about the Trail of Tears, however no about Chavez or Muslims. I believe it is inevitable that some important events will be missed. However, the ones that have shaped our country and our culture are taught. To me, it is important that kids are taught diversity and cultural understanding through school. However, I feel that as time goes on, what these kids are being taught will change. I am sure that now kids are taught about terrorism and the world that is today. As our country and culture evolve, hopefully our education will too.
ReplyDeleteSarah Cason Friday 6pm.
From my own experience in school, we touched on a lot of topics that were showing the US in a negative light. Our teachers did this though so we could see our mistakes from the past and not remake them. I attended private catholic schools my entire life and so a lot of my teachers would involve learning about other middle eastern cultures as well as those here in the states. Our teachers were very involved in making sure we were informed that the religion that they were teaching us isn't the only "right" one out there. Also we talked a lot about the civil rights movement, in fact we actually had specific classes on the topic that we had to take to graduate. Im not sure if this is like that in all schools but it was at Roncalli High School.
ReplyDeleteIm curious as to what others learned about the topics if they attended public schools? or even another private school?
oops.. Tatjana McCart-Saturday Morning Class.
ReplyDeleteAnna Wilson
ReplyDeleteFriday evening
I feel that schools have began educating students a lot more on the issues than they used to. With this being a sensitive subject for some people, it makes it difficult to go too deep into this issue, much like religion. I feel that schools should still touch on the subject more and show the morals and values behind why the knowledge is important and the respect that all races should have towards one another.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteRico Morales
ReplyDeleteSaturday morning
Well I haven't had my nose in a history book since 1994. As far as what is in newer editions, of that I'm not sure, however what I do remember is the lack of honesty in history from my high school books. They told you the basics, but it was how they wanted to spin the facts and that was a little confusing. For me growing up in Texas our history books were based on Texas history, so a great example of misrepresentation was the battle at the Alamo.
The story they give us is that big bad Mexico came in the dead of the night and attacked the Alamo and made the Americans out to be the heros. Not completly true. The U.S. government actually went as far down as the outskirts of Mexico City in an effort to exert their dominance. The battle at the Alamo was actually a small part of a bigger military operation. Mexico was defending what was considered it's rightful land and the U.S. government sacrificed the American's at the Alamo as a diversionary tactic to keep Santa Anna's troops busy while they pushed further into Mexico's territory. That is what is not found in U.S. History books.
The U.S. government never involves itself in anything unless it somehow will benefit the U.S. government. So my answer is no, I don't think our educational system gives an accurate representation of our history.
In response to our first blog, it is my belief that no, our schools don't teach us enough about our own history let alone the history of other countries and cultures. I believe that our schools quickly cover the basics, such as our constitution and WW1 & WW2, but they don't even go into these subjects as much as they should, let alone other subjects that are just as important. If you think about it, when you went to take your SAT'S and ACT'S do you even remember questions based on our country's history and the cultures that surround us in our nation? I certainly don't. I believe are schools put so much emphasis on math, science, and english that there is no room to learn about history. Let's face it, is it more important to know why we are off from school on Dr. MLK JR day or what x= ? I'm sure that alot of people in other countries know more about our own history than the average American and this is because history gets put on the back burner compaired to other subjects. Also, the things that we do learn are probably forgotten because our country isn't talking about our history until we reach one of those holidays. You know, President's day, Dr. MLKJr. day, July 4th etc. I think it's sad how little Americans really do know about their own history.
ReplyDeleteCarolyn Carden Friday Night
Erica Williams
ReplyDeleteFriday 6pm
Honestly, I dont remember half the lesions tought in elementary or middle school. But Dr. MLK Jr., Thanksgiving, ect. Only because we got that Monday or Thurday and Friday off of schoo. Just like Carolyn said, kids dont learn the history till that holiday comes around. Most of what we learn from those holidays is not even in the history books. Come to think about it, I never touched a hostory book till sophomore year of high schoo. The closes thing that came to United States history was "Indiana History", and the only thing i remember about that is the first lesion, "Where did Hoosier get there name?" Witch is not much of a history lesion, but its someting that stuck with me.
WItch most of the history that is made is about pilitics and religon. I cam from a Lutheran private school, the closes thing to history is the bible, and everything else taught, is a no-no in the Lutheran school I went to. But later when i went to a puplis school, I learn much more about history and culture the three year I wnt to that puplic school, then from then ten years at the private school. SO, no I dont think that our educational system does a good job with education with the students when it comes to cultural events or history events. I think there are many tools out there , that teachers can use to help them learn and then re-teach it to their students. But it's the school corporations responsiblity to let those teacher teach about other historcal and cultural events that happen around the world.
Nicole Welty
ReplyDeleteFriday 6pm
I feel like a lot of the history I learned was about the creation of America, how we got to where we are today and why our government is the way it is as well as how it functions. A lot of focus was on wars and how we separated from England and became the United States of America. This information was constantly beat into my brain year after year of school but every year it would get just a tad more detailed because you were older and able to understand things better. I feel like I never really learned anything new, just learned fancier words and harder concepts about the things that I had already learned.
I am the type of person who will spend an entire day watching the history channel and national geographic and learn all these unique and interesting things that my history books never even began to touch on. There are so many things with not only American history but history of the world that schools leave out of their books. I actually recall one time a teacher pointing out false information in one of the books because it was so out of date.
Schools need to work on modernizing and widening the horizons in which they teach their students. I honestly feel a good few history channel specials would do a better job than books and most teachers - not to mention a lot less expensive.
I dont think that our school systems, nor our government make history a very important subject in high school. As it was stated in a response above having a day off was more important to me that any other subject. In my schools history classes i can remember only talking about MLK day very briefly in the month of Febuary and that was because the school made us learn something about black history month. Also the schools have deadlines and things that they have to meet because they are wanting to get money from there respective states and also the national government and all of the state tests are focusing on math and english. So the schools are not going to give a lot of money to that department. Which would mean no new books.
ReplyDeleteFrom: Kati Melcho
ReplyDeleteFriday Evening Class
I don't believe that our educational system does a very good job teaching cultural history. All of your elementary years, along with some junior high and high school, consists of basic historical knowledge that is repeated throughout the younger years of life. After that, History, unlike English, Math, and Science, have more required credits in high school. I honestly have not gained any historical knowledge since my freshman year of high school 5 years ago. What is even more upsetting is the truth in the statement that MLK day is just another day that people get off. Most people don't even learn or realize anything about MLK day other than the fact it is for Martin Luther King, Jr. To conclude, History should become more important in schools and, through this, could cause children, young adults, and adults to become more appreciative of History and celebratory dates, like MLK day.
Don't even get me started on what i think about how much American society teaches their students... when i moved to the states about 10 years ago i was shocked when kids at school asked me if France is where people drive on the left side of the road and do french people have computers and a whole bunch of nonsense. maybe that's a little extreme, but its very true that unless one seeks out for themselves to go and learn a culture, it is not taught to them. in Europe, it is not even a choice. everyone is automatically surrounded with several cultures because the countries are too close for everyone to be in their own country's bubble. now this certainly does not mean that people in France are more intelligent than Americans, by any means, I'm only saying that over there, it is natural for one to educated , whereas here, no one tells you anything unless you specifically study things out for yourself. American schools teach a lot of information to students with a history that is only 200 or 300 years old, imagine what a history class is like in France, a country that has history even during prehistoric times! but just because France has a long history does not mean that students are not taught about everything else going on in the world.(sorry i'm rambling)
ReplyDeleteI feel that the teachers I had taught what was advised by the school board. None of them ever veered to far from the curriculum. I feel I learned more in elementary about other cultures than in middle or high school. I know we expect schools to teach children but it is also up to the parents. Like someone above stated that schools are more into basically passing standardized test to get funding than being culturally diverse.
ReplyDeleteJennifer Friday nights
My experience in highschool was more of the process of how America came together. The teachers explained alot about the different parts of our government and how they work together. They didnt really get into the different cultures. They kept it pretty positive aside from the different disagreements and wars with some other countries and how our leaders dealt with specific issues.....never about other leaders unless they were the negative side of whatever issue they were dealing with at the time.
ReplyDeleteBut usually these other leaders were rebelling against the goverment in order to make the neccessary changes, and that put them in a negative light.
Michelle Sykes, Saturday Morning
I really forgot about the history of Dr.King. All i remember about Dr. King is how he helped black people have a voice in white America.There is still alot of racial tension in America. Even though we have a black President,we still have problems. America has came a long way from the Dr.King days, we still have a long way to go. Not just in America,but all across the world there is racism. People dont relize that we are all human. God put use on this beautiful world to love one another,not to hate. We all need to get along with each other. Why wait on a crisis to help one another,when we can do it all the time. SIGN GARRETT SHIPLEY.
ReplyDeleteAmerica is a stolen country. Yet, after hijacking a land at gunpoint from its original inhabitants, we still find a place in our hearts to compensate them with a network of casinos. What people may not think about is that if everybody was thoroughly educated on the true history of America, it would be pretty difficult to mold our youth into a group of blind patriots. The U.S. tends to give information on a need-to-know basis. I was never taught about the scrutiny Japanese-Americans went through during WWII. When I independently researched the history of Thanksgiving, I almost felt betrayed at how inaccurated the version I was fed turned out to be. In all fairness, I get the feeling that most other countries aren't glowing beacons of historical transparecy, but that doesn't give the U.S. an excuse. Even when discussing slavery, I recall a teacher of mine sugar coating the issue. "Yes, Thomas Jefferson owned slaves, but he was really a kind slave owner". As children, we're trained to think that there's a humane way to take a man's freedom. Our leaders tell us who we should kill, our media tells us how we should act, and our teachers tell us what we should know. What happened to independence?
ReplyDeleteNo I do not think the educational system does a good job in educating students in cultural history or cultural diversity. Where I went to high school I had maybe 50 to 60 kids that I graduated and 250 kids total in the whole school. We did not have any cultural diversity at all in our school we had one African American in the whole school. We talked about Martin Luther King Jr. in class for a short while but usually only talked about it around Martin King day. Also we didn’t ever get out of school for the Martin Luther King day. Witch in my opinion is horrible not because we didn't get out of school but for the fact that the school said (not quoting but many have mentioned) because we didn't have African Americans in the school. Witch is not the point of celebrating his holiday but celebrating because one man could change so much in the time he was in.I’m sure other schools are educated better in the culture I assume, I'm not sure.because of our school educational system I didn’t realize until I moved away and went to college and experienced first hand what kind of stuff I missed out on.
ReplyDeleteThe different and amazing cultures were only mentioned in the text book for a short time. The history I learned along the way and just in the short time I have been out of high school. That being said I know first hand on how the educational system does not properly educate their students in the cultural understanding and differences of this country.
Chris Zazzetti , Saturday class
I wasn't educated in American primary schools (elementary schools?) but I remember that in middleschool, I was learning about America as a whole- learning to speak English, learning about the culture and the customs, all that. I don't remember my in-class experience at all. Looking at the American education system and all the broadcast news coverage of it, there seems to be a trend towards a sort of 'built-for-purpose' style of education. Schools are teaching students to pass a test to raise the school's test scores to increase funding. Students are given 'just enough education to perform'. This is fine if the individual student has enough initiative to further their own education. Otherwise, students get a 'reader's digest' or 'cliffnotes' version of cultural history. It seems like this shortcoming is usually covered up by declaring that libraries exist...
ReplyDeleteI see education about cultural history as a series of footnotes with minor elaborations when necessary- usually if a standardized test will have questions about it later.
-Demian Stevens //Saturday AM class
I completely agree with you. I graduated from a terribly tiny high school in a very "country" part of the state. There were less than 70 students in my graduating class and we were not a very culturally diverse school, to say the absolute least.
ReplyDeleteHistory has never been my best subject, as I was always awful at remembering dates, etc. but I do remember enough from my high school years in the subject to recollect receiving little to no information about other cultures.
I'm sure that some educational systems do a fantastic job educating their students about other cultures. Mine, however, did not. It sounds silly to say, but my high school had 1.5 African-American students, that was it. Beyond that, everyone was white. I knew I was culturally sheltered, but never really thought too much of it. Most students didn't even think about school (much less history) enough to realize that they weren't being taught anything about any cultures other than their own.
I think I realize what I was missing out on now, more than I did at the time. Sure we talked a little bit about Dr. King and Rosa Parks, but I cannot remember learning about any other influential African-Americans besides those two. I remember a brief time of studying Native Americans, but we probably didn't spend longer than a week on the subject.
I agree with Jessie that I remember hearing a lot that we "didn't have the time" to cover certain topics. Our history books mainly contained information about the presidents, how we came to be the United States, the Constitution, etc. Looking back, our history books were not that large, and we didn't even cover half of the information that was contained inside of them.
It's really rather pathetic if you think about it. I mean..I learned about the constitution in elementary school. I feel like if we were being efficient with our time and learning that we probably should have moved on to a different topic by the time I was a junior in high school.
-Carina Street Friday Night Class
Rachel-Friday Night
ReplyDeleteNo I don't! At least as far as elementary and high school go. I have learned a lot in college when it comes to different cultures. Cultures other wise I would have never known to have existed. I think our education systems were built to shield us from things that they didn't want us to know about at one time or another. Like how in some countries some books or shows are band. I feel that when people were righting our history books and deciding what to put in them they purposely kept information out.
I agree with Rachel above, however we also, push the envelope when it comes to the theory of evolution and also, we fail to educate our childeren on different genocides that have happened throughout history and still are happening at this very moment. Such as in certain christians are killed because of their faith. Sure our kids get the basic education on what they may need for future success, but then again we also neglect to educate them on controversial aspects of every day events, that happen throughout the world. We sell the idea so often that we are an open minded loving society, yet we do not teach our childeren how to have an open mind in general. The media itself gives more education and predjudices then school itself. So in reponse to your question, I answer no.
ReplyDeleteBy Howard from Friday Class
Erica Williams
ReplyDeleteFriday Night
I don't really follow any politics nor do I watch the news, read the paper, or catch up on my daily politic issues. Even though I should, I get bored in the first ten seconds or there are other things that I need to get done. So on that note; I don't think me rating the Presidents first year in office is fare. But, because of this class, I'm going to watch a little bit of the news and read the paper, so I can respond to these blogs a little bit better.
A week short and a comment to post in regards to what you have asked. I personally feel that in public schools have to teach such a wide varity of information and a lot of "other" bits of history gets lost in the shuffle. Which kinda sucks. But which is kinda good also.
ReplyDeleteImagine all of the history our great nation has gone through and we are only in school for about 12 years, this would take a long time for every body to understand what has helped build the great country we live in. So we get the abridged version. Sort of watered down.
I dont think they do a good job because in the United States there is alot of diversity so therefor we should definately learn alot more then what they actually teach us but in a way I understant why it is the way it is and that is probably because they only teach us the main things that are that made history, I dont think we have enough time to learn about absolutely every culture but i guess we could use a little bit of information about others.
ReplyDeleteNo schools will never give out the true information about "history". Maybe when we have complete disclosure of all US secrets will we finally be completely educated.
ReplyDeleteAbout different cultures and learning about them. Personally I dont care about the middle easts history or their religon. Im not saying this to be mean or anything, im just saying that I want to learn the truth about my country more than what there history is.
Education on Cultural History...
ReplyDeleteMy thoughts on this topic are very back and forth. Growing up I went to both a public school and a catholic school. When I attended the public schools I felt that they lacked discussing the different cultural ethnicity's. Especially art, history, religion and background. In the catholic schools they enforced religion and the knowledge of different subcultures. I would have liked to have been taught more.
Taylor Northam
1-29-10
12:58 a.m.
erica mccoy #1_
ReplyDeleteYes and no, the school does teath about culturl histroy. I do have to say a lot of culutal history is touth through living life everyday. Most of cultral things are touth by being around people, places, and more. The school just teach about the history more than anything.
Aaron Ford, Saturday Morning
ReplyDeleteI totally would agree that we don't educate the kids properly. I never remember learning about any of those things. Social Studies in school always focused on Western culture and briefly did we discuss matters such as those. But even as adults, we as Americans don't usually pay much attention to foreign cultures or languages. It took until middle school to take a Spanish class when it would have been far more advantageous if they tought it in first grade. Of course, when I grew up, there was much less influences from minorities.I can't say firsthand how are school system is these days, but I bet it's not too different.
over
ReplyDeleteWhen I had my high school American History class, in 2006 the book did cover all the various things you mention; however I would be foolish to believe that all schools had the same texts as mine. It is likely that places where they have less income or the school board has different agendas that the books would be different and possible contain or omit different things. I do know that in California, United States history books are being changed to refer to the Founding Fathers as simply "The Farmers" because, as I was exlained, they believe that the title "The Founding Fathers" belittled women.
ReplyDeleteMichael Moore
Saturday Morning
I feel that our educational system could do a much better job than what they do to help us learn about historical facts and movements. Starting in elementary school we learn about Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and Rosa Parks just like you said. However, we learned about it every single year throughout school all together. Those are significant movements that happened. So I think that if I am being taught the same exact thing for at least 10 years, what am I really learning? I have gotten the same exact information every single time about Dr. King. Given that in high school we actually get to talk about it instead of just listening, but it's the same things being taught. The same applies to Rosa Parks, she did so much more than just sit in the front of the bus. But that's all we learned about in school. I'm not sure if it was my school system or if it was like that everywhere but it was not a learning experience when it came to important things like that.
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