In Search of America's Past: Learning to Read History in Elementary School

by Bruce Vansledright

Book Overview

Bruce VanSledright shows how young students can benefit from an investigative, inquiry-based approach to the study of history, as called for by the national standards. Addressing important questions about the teaching and learning of history in today's diverse classrooms, this volume:

Conveys the results of an innovative teacher-research project, using engaging stories of VanSledright's classroom experiences. Provides examples and guidelines,...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0807741922
• ISBN13: 9780807741924
• Release Date: April 2002
• Publisher: Teachers College Press
• Length: 208 Pages
• Weight: 0.70 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 6.3" x 9.0"

Customer Reviews

History Book

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In Search Of More Work Like This

Ask a classroom teacher what he or she thinks about educational research, and there's a fair chance you'll hear, "It's fine, but it does little to help me deal with real classroom instructional issues." In fact, that would've been my response until I read Bruce VanSledright's "In Search Of America's Past." Not only has this book challenged the way I look at research on teaching and learning, but also it has impacted how I see the discipline that I teach (history) and the ways that my students can conceptualize and work within that discipline.Through "In Search Of America's Past," VanSledright escorts the reader through his quest, as both classroom teacher and researcher, to change what a group of fifth-grade students think about history from "just a bunch of facts" to an investigative process by which interpretations are built on documentary evidence. After several chapters, it becomes obvious to the reader that the author is an experienced classroom teacher and researcher who effectively balances both roles and understands how to communicate his findings and ideas to educators at the K-12 and university levels. He empathizes with teachers who try to make their content meaningful to students in the face of watered-down, high-stakes tests. He offers suggestions for modeling and reinforcing good historical investigation strategies with students. And he is both realistic and responsible in discussing his expectations for deep analysis in the history classroom and the purposes of such analysis.Many middle- and high-school teachers will see the subtitle, "Learning To Read History In Elementary School," and consider passing up this volume. As an eleventh-grade history teacher, I can assure you that doing so would be a huge mistake. While VanSledright notes that his efforts with fifth-graders were "met with some conditional success" (p. 134), he establishes that elementary students are capable of demonstrating basic competencies in dealing with historical ambiguity and biased or conflicting evidence. Just think of what a high school student could do with proper instruction! As well, he discusses issues that are important to social studies teachers and scholars across the board, from critical evaluations of "typical" social studies textbooks to the struggles involved with trying to change student's perceptions of what history is and why they should learn it.Admittedly, VanSledright's teaching context is as unique as yours or mine, and therefore, his book should not be read as The Solution to all things ailing social studies teachers and teaching. But it is strong in documenting innovative methods and key questions about teaching and learning for social studies teachers to consider, and it provides a forum for bridging existing research on history teaching with classroom practice. Kids are thoughtful inquirers, not living encyclopedias, and Bruce VanSledright shows us that. Can our students construct their own informed interpretations of hist