Black History Taught in Various Ways
article by Nancy Swanson | February 14, 2012
The month of February, designated as Black History Month, has many schools gearing up with various plans to help students learn about African American history and heritage. While many schools focus on the civil rights era and African Americans rising up from slavery, some are focusing on different aspects of Black history.
Schools around the country have many planned different events and lessons planned ranging from specific events with guest speakers to involving African American heritage in subjects other than history to expand on this rich part of American history.
Tara Bynum, an assistant professor of English at Towson University, explained that while civil rights and slavery are very important events in Black history, there are a wealth of events, literature and people that often get overlooked in schools.
In an article for The Root, Bynum explained:
“Resistance, survival, and complacency—limit black history and deny the varied way in which black people have contributed to this history. Instead of resistance, let's heed Ralph Ellison's charge to pursue that which he could only describe as the ‘something else’ of black life. Let's document not only the moments when we actively struggled but also those times when we lived everyday lives. It should be the living that we celebrate this month because it's through the living that we make and change history.”
One school out of Vacaville, Calif. is using music to look at these varying aspects of Black history along with the civil rights movements this month. Will C. Wood High School has designated a theme for each week in February to honor different eras in Black history.
Beginning with the 1920s and the cultural impact of jazz music, they are also examining the Harlem Renaissance, a literary movement in the 1920s as well. Other weeks will use music to focus on the 1950s and the beginnings of the Civil Rights Movement; the 1960s and the Civil Rights Movement; and the 1970s and the Black pride era.
For elementary schools in Huntsville, Ala. Teachers are focusing on putting a face on Black history, with the hopes that it will make a lasting impact on young students.
Some of the lessons that have been planned for students have included lessons on prominent African American historical figures George Washington Carver and Jackie Robinson, but also lesser known figures such as Sarah Boone (who invented the ironing board) and Garrett Morgan (who invented the traffic light).
“You need to put a face on it,” Jennifer Blevins, a second grade teacher at Monrovia Elementary said to The Huntsville Times. “(The students) have to be able to relate to it. It's not just the people you've heard of, but it's about what you see every day.”
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