Running head: USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING
How Can Music Be Used As A Tool For Teaching History In A More Engaging Manner And More Adequately Cover Common Core State Standards Related To Analysis Of Primary Source Materials, As Well As Issues Of Social Justice?
Teresa L. Gerent
California State University, San Marcos
Fall 2012 USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 1
Project Abstract
Finding a way to make social studies content more engaging and relevant for high school students today is a challenge. Adding to this challenge has been an erosion of social studies coverage during the elementary and middle years over the past decade due to educational and economic crises. The arts programs have been impacted as well, despite research, which indicates a correlation between music exposure and reading and mathematical readiness, as well as language acquisition. Using music as the vehicle with which to teach history, as noted by an elective called, “A Socio-Political History of Rock and Roll”, promises to engage students in their learning by making content relevant to their lives. This elective course serves as a companion to a required U.S. History class in that it examines the social and political upheavals that took place between 1950-2000 as seen through the lens of the musicians of the time. This course also focuses heavily on the various civil rights movements during the 1950’s-1970’s and issues of social justice, and highlights the significance of oral history. In addition to addressing Common Core State Standards for History and Social Studies in the areas of reading and writing literacy, this course is also aligned with Social Justice and Equity Standards that were written specifically for this class. This course illustrates the ease with which music can be added to make history more engaging to students.
Keywords: arts, common core standards, English language development differentiation, high school, multiple intelligence, music, rock and roll, social studies, understanding by design, United States history
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 2
Table of Contents How Can Music Be Used As A Tool For Teaching History In A More Engaging Manner And More Adequately Cover Common Core State Standards Related To Analysis Of Primary Source Materials, As Well As Issues Of Social Justice? ...... 0 Project Abstract ...... 1 Table of Contents ...... 2 Chapter 1: Definition of Problem ...... 4 Purpose of Project ...... 8 Definitions ...... 10 Preview of Literature ...... 11 Methodology...... 14 Significance of Project ...... 16 Limitations of Project...... 17 Summary ...... 19 Chapter 2: Literature Review ...... 22 Impacts of No Child Left Behind (NCLB) ...... 22 Music, the Brain, and Multiple Intelligences ...... 26 The Benefits of Adding Music to Social Studies and History Lesson Planning ...... 33 Civil Disobedience and Music as an Agent of Change ...... 37 Conclusion ...... 39 Chapter Three – Methodology ...... 42 Design ...... 43 Setting...... 45 Instrument ...... 45 Social Justice and Equity Standards ...... 46 Procedures ...... 53 Evaluation of Process ...... 54 Summary ...... 56 Chapter 4: Curriculum Project...... 58 A Socio‐Political History of Rock ‘n Roll ...... 58 Curriculum Overview ...... 58 References ...... 95 Chapter Five: Project Recommendations ...... 96 Lessons Learned ...... 98
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 3
Project Implementation Plans ...... 99 Educational Implications ...... 100 Adding Music to Teaching...... 101 Differentiating Strategies ...... 101 Understanding by Design (Ubd) ...... 102 Make Social Studies and History a Focus in Schools ...... 102 Limitations of Project...... 102 Future Research and Project Suggestions ...... 104 Conclusion ...... 104 References ...... 107 Appendix A ...... 112
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 4
Chapter 1: Definition of Problem
What do torture methods used on prisoners at Guantanamo Bay (Richardson,
2012), an autistic child’s connection to the world (Donald, 2012), and The Freedom
Singers (Goodman, 2009) all have in common? Answer: they are all examples of how
music has the power to effect change. Music can be used to secure information, unlock
a brilliant mind, and even end segregation.
I personally became aware of the power of music when my children were
preschool age in the late 1980’s. I was driving home after a long day of work with my
three and four-year olds in their respective car seats behind me, who were arguing, as
they did on most trips back home. Thinking quickly, I turned up the volume on the car
radio and asked them what instruments they heard in the song. They immediately
stopped arguing and started listening for instruments. “I hear drums!” said my son,
Scott. “I hear a guitar!” answered Kati. I thought to myself, “really… they stopped
fighting that quickly?” The “game” graduated to more challenging questions like, “who
can find the beat?.....who is playing guitar?” I went from dreading that daily drive home
to looking forward to it because it became our first music-bonding experience together.
I believed that I had truly gifted children, and that their mother was a genius!
Many of the first songs taught to preschoolers include the “ABC Song,” Raffi songs (Devine, 2005) and Schoolhouse Rock (Dorough, 1998). Children learn about our ocean friends such as “Baby Beluga” from Raffi, “How a Bill Becomes a Law” and
“The Preamble” by Schoolhouse Rock. And yet, if you Google the words “arts in education” (which encompass music, visual arts, dancing, and drama), you will see newspaper headings with the following stories: “Art and Music Budgets may be the
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 5
First Cut in Florida”, “Deep Cuts for 2012: Arts, Music, Language Instruction Axed”,
“Elimination of Music and Art”, “Toledo Schools: 10% Pay cuts and Elimination of Arts”,
“Is it Curtains for Arts in California Education?”, and “LAUSD Considering Total
Elimination of Arts Funding”. Since music plays such an important role in a child’s early
learning years it seems counterintuitive to eliminate it once a child starts school.
Another casualty in the educational arena has been the siphoning of minutes
previously dedicated to the social studies and history content areas during the
elementary and middle school years. In the introduction of his book, The Majic Bus: An
American Odyssey, Douglas Brinkley (1992) shares with the reader his frustration over
the lack of historic background and understanding exhibited by the students in his
undergraduate history course. He laments over what he refers to as an educational
crisis: of the 30 undergraduate students in his class, none knew who Andrew Jackson
was, nor could they name one city in Kansas – not even Kansas City. The Majic Bus
chronicles the 1992 spring semester odyssey taken by Brinkley and 17 of his students
in an effort to learn about history through music, literature, and hands-on fieldwork
(Brinkley, 1992).
Chapter 6 is just one example of this odyssey; “Into the Mississippi Delta”
describes the trip to Oxford for a lecture on James Meredith and the 1962 integration of
the 82-year old Ole Miss, as well as a hike to Rowan Oak, home to William Faulkner,
while reading Faulkner’s prose. The book includes travels to all corners of the country
including the heartland that lies in between (Brinkley, 1992).
Brinkley illustrates how combining music, literature and hands-on fieldwork is an
effective method for teaching history in a relevant and engaging manner. Taking a
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 6
class on a six-week trek across the country is not likely to be logistically feasible for a
college professor, let alone a high school history teacher, (especially given the current
era of heightened standardized testing), but surely modifications can be made to the
classroom to make history more meaningful for students. Incorporating music and
literature into lesson planning can bring history alive. In the 15 years I have been
teaching, I have found that history and music are not mutually exclusive from one another; in fact, they can be used quite effectively together.
This is an interesting concept and in the 1990s, project based learning gained popularity and credibility as educators looked for more engaging ways to teach curricula.
My first teaching job was as a social studies / history teacher at a charter school in 1998.
We were given no resources, only the standards we needed to address. We had to write interdisciplinary units with the other three core subjects, and they had to be project based – even the honors courses. This task would have been challenging for someone with teaching experience, but for a new teacher it was overwhelming – and probably the best opportunity for learning how to write meaningful unit and lesson plans I could have ever been given.
The difference in the engagement of students that I taught 15 years ago compared with today is staggering. As teenagers, the students are not different, but what we have done to them with standardized testing has changed them. This year’s seniors are the first group to have been impacted fully during their educational experience by the federally mandated No Child Left Behind (NCLB), which went into effect in 2001. Since the implementation of NCLB, which focuses solely on mathematics and language arts, there is little room or time for teaching through project
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 7
based curricula, or through the fieldwork outlined and chronicled by Brinkley. The
momentum made in the 1990s to teach to the different intelligences as identified and
outlined by Howard Gardner in 1983 was equally weakened.
To reiterate, it seems counterintuitive to remove the arts from education when
research tells us the value of the arts, not just for general engagement and those who
are artistically inclined, but also for the brain activity that is stimulated by music and art.
Research supports the connection between music and brain activity, and consistently,
students who are musically trained out-perform those who are not (Cole, 2011). There is also empirical evidence to support the fact that brain activity is transferred into intellectual, social and personal development of children when they are exposed to music (Hallam, 2010). This begs the question: why have the arts programs in school districts across the country been eliminated over the past decade?
A transcription of KPBS.org on the impacts to education with the passage of
Proposition 13 (Prop 13), passed by California voters in 1978, answers that very question. Prop 13 capped property taxes at 1% of the purchase price of a home and limited yearly increases to 2% (Cavanaugh & Walsh, 2010). Additionally, it required a
2/3 majority, or 67% vote on any future tax or bond issue brought to the California voters. It isn’t difficult to see that a significant reduction in tax revenue would negatively impact the public sector, particularly in the areas of government at the local and state levels, and education.
David Savage’s 1982 article in Educational Leadership, “The Unanticipated
Impact of Proposition 13” examined the effects of Prop 13 on schools within the Los
Angeles Unified School District after four years, and found that the impacts had more to
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 8 do with the state “usurping control” over local school districts than they did decreasing funding. While the jury was still out on how much tax revenue schools lost following the passage of Prop 13, Savage found that students from other states outperformed
California students on S.A.T. scores. As a way of dealing with a drop in revenue, state mandates removed a sixth period for juniors and seniors in California high schools, thereby reducing the number of electives, as well as core classes from class schedules
(Savage, 1982).
Compounding the financial challenges and reduced high school graduation requirements, the problem has been exacerbated by the leap toward standardized testing, particularly since implementation of NCLB in 2001. In what began as a move to close the academic achievement gap, the emphasis of NCLB on language arts and mathematics has siphoned time away from social studies and science classrooms
(Causey-Bush, 2005).
Purpose of Project
When considering how I wanted to go about confronting the challenge of making history relevant and engaging for students by using music, I had to look at the following questions: What factors led to the loss of classroom time originally dedicated to social studies and history at the elementary and middle school levels, and what could be done to reverse that trend? Were there economic factors to consider for this loss of time?
Did the 2001 implementation of No Child Left Behind (NCLB) play a role, and if so, what was it? Was there evidence to support music’s impact on learning? What have we learned about music’s role in effecting social change? And lastly, what could teachers do to modify their lesson planning to make history more meaningful to students?
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 9
Restoring music and art, as well as early social studies and history curricula to
the levels witnessed before 2000 will not happen overnight, however, modifying lesson planning to include the arts and emphasizing social studies can promote student engagement. This project offers insight into how such efforts can be realized by using strategies and activities included in the high school elective course called, “A Socio-
Political History of Rock and Roll.” This course examines the social and political upheavals that took place in the United States between 1950-2000, as seen through the lens of the musicians of the time. Additionally, the course highlights the presidential
administrations from Eisenhower to Clinton, and spotlights the many civil rights movements from those time periods as well as social justice themes by using music as
the vehicle through which content is delivered.
Students are taught not only about content overlooked during their 11th grade required U.S. History course, but are encouraged to participate in the debate that implicit lyrics present to the listener. Further, the course offers students the opportunity to examine struggles made for equality by society’s marginalized groups. While the course is aligned to 25 California State Standards, it is also aligned to all of the
Common Core State Standards (CCSS) for the 11th and 12th grade History/Social
Studies that focus on analyzing primary and secondary source documents, and literacy.
While state standards for history and social studies (as referred to in the “History-
Social Science Content Standards for California Public Schools in Kindergarten through
Twelfth Grades,” framework established in 1998) focus on specific content areas such
as the Cuban Missile Crisis, McCarthyism, and the Vietnam, War (CA State Board of
Education, 1998), standards for the Common Core tend to be broader and more
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 10 focused on literacy in the areas of reading and writing. For example, Standard No. 3 for the CCSS Reading Standards states, “Evaluate various explanations for actions or events and determine which explanation best accords with textual evidence, acknowledge where the text leaves matter uncertain”, and can apply to the Cuban
Missile Crisis, McCarthyism, and the Vietnam War. The standards outlined in Common
Core apply the skills such as evaluating, analyzing and determining to events in history.
(National Governor’s Assn. Center for Best Practices, 2010).
With a loss of revenue for education in California, less control at the local level over what classes can be taught, and federal mandates that have placed an emphasis on mathematics and language arts at the expense of social studies and history, how can we ensure that students will learn the lessons of the past so that the same mistakes are not repeated in the future?
Definitions
One of the references that will be made at different points in this proposal includes the term, “NCLB,” which is the legislation known as “No Child Left Behind.”
This legislation won bipartisan congressional support and was passed in 2001, and went into effect later that year. According to Education Week, this legislation was the reauthorization of Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) first implemented in 1965 under the Johnson Administration to provide aid for disadvantaged students.
NCLB was designed to improve on the ESEA by closing the achievement gap and making public schools more accountable for student success (Education Week, 2011).
This mandate required school districts across the country to achieve100% “proficient”
(80% success rates for every student) outcomes in the areas of mathematics and
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 11
English Language Arts on standardized tests by 2014. Schools failing to reach annual benchmarks of proficient percentages faced disciplinary action in the form of a “PI” label, or “program improvement” school, which then necessitated corrective action at the county level. This corrective action has resulted in the loss of time from arts, social studies, and science coverage to allow for remedial interventions for students. (Dufour and Marzano, 2011).
Another term that will be used in this proposal is “UbD”, or “Understanding by
Design.” This is an emerging idea in the world of education with regard to lesson planning that uses what is referred to as a “backwards approach.” It is “predicated on the idea that long-term achievement gains are more likely when teachers teach for understanding of transferable concepts” (Wiggins, McTighe, 2011, p. 4). With this approach, teachers come up with a “big idea”, “enduring understandings”, and
“essential questions” to foster long-term understanding of concepts by their students.
Units are planned with a specific understanding in mind that a teacher wants his or her students to remember ten years later. Standards are identified, followed by assessments, and then strategies and activities are designed to meet the standards.
Preview of Literature
Addressing this project is impossible without first considering what contributed to the problem, and that centers on the unintended impacts of standardized testing over the past decade, as well as an economic downturn, and decision and policy making at the local, state and federal levels. Legislation such as Prop 13 passed by Californians in 1978 established a new tax table for collecting property taxes which not only reduced the amount of money available to schools, it also gave more state control over school
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 12
districts in how that money could be spent (Savage 1982). As the recession blanketed
the country in the early 1990s, cuts to education were seen primarily in the arts. At the
beginning of the George W. Bush Administration, however, the high stakes for
mathematics and language arts associated with NCLB resulted in school districts
making the decision to pare down blocks of time from social studies at the elementary
and middle school levels to allow more time for the subjects (language arts and
mathematics) that fall under the mandated testing (Causey-Bush, 2005). While NCLB has affected schools across the country, most of the research for the study of this project focuses on the State of California, and more specifically, the Vista Unified
School District.
Hit hardest by this mandate has been social studies. Veteran language arts and social studies middle school teacher, Roxane Rollins, candidly reveals the changes in her classroom made since the NCLB mandate. “It was made very clear to us during our
AB 466 training that students were to have more instruction in Language Arts than
History because Language Arts counted” (Rollins, 2012, p. 1). While social studies has taken a back seat in terms of importance among the four core subjects, the arts, including music, have been removed, in some cases, completely, to make more time available for subjects like language arts that students will be tested on. But is there research to support a connection between music and learning?
Data has been gathered by the experts on the cognitive benefits music has on the brain, and some of those studies indicate that early and sustained exposure to music and musicianship can lead to logical and spatial readiness in areas of arithmetic and geometry, as well as reading readiness and language acquisition skills, particularly
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 13
if introduced before age nine (Snyder, 1997). Further, research compiled by
neuroscientists on how music enhances learning is undeniable, and overwhelmingly
supports the fact that music not only has a positive impact on learning, but also attests
to the fact that students who are musical outperform those who are not (Cole, 2011).
One of the more impressive testaments to the powerful impact of music that I
have observed in my classroom is its effect on autistic children in unlocking what is
considered their social complexity and awkwardness. Donald (a pseudonym), a former
student of mine was a completely different student in my Government/Economics class
than he was in my “Socio-Political History of Rock and Roll” elective class. In the elective class, he was confident and interactive, and participatory, unlike his behavior in the class without music (Donald, 2012). Donald is what Howard Gardner would refer to as a “musically intelligent” student (Gardner, 2011).
Gardner’s unprecedented work on multiple intelligences, surfacing first in 1983, informed the teaching world that there were more approaches to learning than the linguistic and logical-mathematical styles traditionally used (Gardner, 2011). Further,
research conducted in the areas of brain activity support the fact the there is a direct
connection between hearing music and the synapses, or nerve cells which
communicate with one and fire up the brain. Music also plays an important role on the
brain in terms of auditory processing and helps with language structure (Edelman,
2005).
Bringing music into a social studies or history class not only adds an engaging
layer, but it enhances content being taught. In the 20th century, particularly the second half, it is not difficult to find that a great deal of the music written has been a reflection of
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 14
the times, especially when one considers the Vietnam War era. Much of what we learn
about this era is through the lens of the musicians such as Crosby, Stills and Nash, and
Bob Dylan in songs like “Find the Cost of Freedom” and “Blowin’ in the Wind”,
respectively. But when it comes to the civil rights movement in the early and mid-1960’s
there is likely no better example of the power of music in effecting social change than
the progress made by the group, The Freedom Singers. This group has been credited
not just for writing and performing songs, but in fostering social change by attending
meetings and rallies to distribute valuable information, and organizing people (Denselow,
1990).
Methodology
Writing the curriculum for “A Socio-Political History of Rock and Roll” has been a labor of love, which began the first year I started teaching. My first teaching assignment included both U.S. History and English 11, which I taught as one interdisciplinary class.
As we covered the 20th century, I considered how music would enhance the learning experience for my students. As we studied about the “Roaring Twenties” I assigned a project that applied jazz and art to the book we were reading, The Great Gatsby, and
the social and political highlights of the 1920’s we were studying. This was called, “The
C.R.E.A.M. (‘Cash Rules Everything Around Me’) Project.” The name of the project was
taken from a 1993 song by the hip-hop group, Wu Tang Clan, with whom the students
were familiar. I noticed buy-in from students who, before this assignment, had been apathetic about what they were learning.
In the first several years of teaching I also noticed that there existed a group who were disengaged, but capable students, who were barely passing. When looking at
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 15
their personal cumulative files I noticed that each had been successful through middle
school, but their grades had begun to plummet after freshman year in high school.
These students all had strong pulls to music.
The longer I taught, the more apparent it was to me that music could be easily
imbedded into the U.S. History curriculum. Around this same time, NCLB was
mandated and in the process of being implemented in my district. This federal mandate
led to an erosion of social studies and history coverage in my district at the elementary
and middle school levels. By my seventh year of teaching I found that the students I’d
taught in my first few years had a much better understanding of historic background
than the students I was now teaching, and that engagement had faded. The art
programs had been the first casualty of cuts, and now district mandates left little time for
social studies content.
Overall, this mandate impacted students in a negative way, but those I’d noticed
early in my career who had been educationally thriving through middle school and close
to failing by 11th grade were hit hardest. The national average of high school drop out
hovered around 30% (and in some areas, as high as 50%), and while the drop out rate
was lower in my district, I could see that the costs of economic and educational crises
had taken their toll on those capable, but disengaged students.
I put my passion into action and wrote the scope and sequence for “A Socio-
Political History of Rock and Roll.” I was determined to write a course that emphasized
the areas being minimized in the U.S. History classes: the civil rights movements and
social justice. I also wanted to bring attention to the foreign policies of the presidential administrations between Eisenhower and Clinton, which were difficult to cover in a
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 16
traditional California U.S. History class, but essential for understanding our position in
the world’s current political arena. Finally, I wanted to emphasize the importance of oral history. My desire to promote oral history was two fold: I wanted students to learn the value of the first hand experience in spoken language, and I wanted to get them talking to their parents and grandparents.
The class I designed is broken into sixteen units, each covering the musical genres that evolved from the blues, and highlighting the social and political upheavals that took place between 1950-2000. Each unit focuses on players significant to the era, be their contribution in the social, political, or musical domain. In addition to the lyrics being analyzed, excerpts from inaugural speeches are included, as well as diary entries and letters such as Rev. King’s “I Have a Dream” speech.
Units and lessons are designed using the strategies of UbD, which include enduring understandings and essential questions, as well as activities and formative and summative assessments. This approach allows me to present material in a way that promotes a lasting understanding of social and political events for students. The projects assigned in the class are open-ended and reflect the importance of differentiated modes of teaching as outlined by Gardner’s multiple intelligences.
Significance of Project
Education has improved dramatically since the days that I was a student – back in the 1960’s and 1970’s. There was no technology to speak of, unless you consider electric typewriters “high tech.” Any “video” that was shown in a social studies class was outdated and usually had an obvious bias, and the quality was often terrible. There was little engagement, and even less of an enduring understanding of content.
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 17
In the 21st century we find ourselves with a veritable plethora of engaging tools at
our fingertips. While it is more challenging in some respects to find activities and
strategies to keep our ever-technically-evolving and savvy students intrigued,
technology and creative lesson planning offer us the opportunity to become better
teachers, I believe. The significance of this project is that it will offer something to
students that is new and fresh and more importantly, something that is relevant to their
lives. For the musically intelligent student, we as educators do a disservice by only
offering strategies that are designed for the linguistic and/or logical-spatial learner..
Limitations of Project
The most obvious limitation to the project is money. The more money a school district has the more likely it is to offer great elective courses from which to choose. A high school that uses a 4x4 (one year course in a semester) has the luxury of offering more electives than high schools with the traditional yearlong course schedule.
However, schools on a 4x4 schedule require more funding than traditional schools because they have to offer eight classes per year per student, as opposed to six classes per year per student with a traditional schedule. By the time a student has completed his or her junior year, s/he has met the credit requirements for graduation with the exception of Government/Economics and 12th grade English, thereby allowing
them to complete high school in the first semester of senior year, or in some cases by
the end of their junior year. This can lead to an additional loss of funding for the school
district because the school will no longer collect the ADA for students who complete
high school early.
While this project presents teachers with ideas and strategies of how to
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 18
incorporate music into their lesson planning, having the ability to teach the course in its
entirety is the optimum idea. Resistance on the part of the teacher(s), the administration,
or even the district from allowing time to include music into lesson planning would have
to be included as a limitation as well. Requirements associated with today’s
standardized testing has taken away time from a student’s schedule for more creative
courses, but does teaching to the test ensure a student is truly learning the standards?
Another limitation includes standardized testing, and how the emphasis for this
trend has monopolized time away from more authentic ways of teaching, such as a
project-based, holistic approach. Earlier in this chapter I referenced my first teaching
job and how project-based, interdisciplinary unit and lesson plans were designed. I
would like to share an example of one of those units to illustrate the difference in
authentic teaching compared with teaching to a standardized test.
While teaching my unit on World War II, I had students compare and contrast
concentration camps in the United States and Europe. Students read two primary
sources (Farewell to Manzanar by Jeanne Watasuki and Night by Eli Wiesel). In
addition to reading primary source documents, students took lecture notes and watched
video clips from Manzanar and Auschwitz concentration camps. Fieldwork was
included in the unit; students camped at Diaz Lake and took a three-hour tour of
Manzanar, as well as a three-hour tour of the Museum of Tolerance. The culminating project and summative assessment was a compare and contrast essay, which was guided by an essential question and enduring understandings.
This is one example of the authentic work and assessment designed for student understanding. Students were able to participate in this type of study until the passage
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 19
and implementation of NCLB and other standardized tests at the California state level.
To duplicate this unit in 2009 required a four month long battle with my District, up until the day we were leaving for the camping trip to Diaz Lake. The trip was scheduled for the last weekend of April to coincide with the annual Manzanar Pilgrimage so that students could meet former Manzanar Internees and hear their stories first hand, but the
District felt it was a waste of time, and that students would be better served if they were home studying and preparing for their upcoming Standardized Testing and Reporting
(STAR) test. I would argue that denying more authentic ways of content delivery in favor of standardized test preparation is also a significant limitation.
Summary
In the field of teaching, the feature that can be counted on to remain in a constant state of flux is that of change; there will always be factors that will swing the pendulum back and forth that alter the direction, assessment, pedagogy, and emphasis of curricula delivery. We currently find ourselves in the middle of one of those movements, and after a decade of NCLB my hope is that the pendulum will swing toward a return to engaging and relevant pedagogical approaches, which includes the arts.
Another factor equally as certain is the fact that the songs learned as preschoolers stay with us for a lifetime. It is the connection to brain activity that stimulates those parts of our brain that allow us to remember.
The educational focus for the past decade has been on standardized testing, particularly in the areas of mathematics and language arts (at the expense of science and social studies/history). In a time when history has come under fire, and is considered the least important of the four core disciplines, finding a way to deliver
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 20
content in a more relevant and engaging manner is more important than ever. How will
our students ever fully understand the issues of social justice if precious time is
deducted from instruction. As our schools continue the trend toward a diverse and
multicultural population, it is imperative that our students understand the struggles and
sacrifices made for equality.
The educational crisis we have witnessed over the past decade is currently in the
process of moving in a new direction, which is the CCSS. The initiative to create the
CCSS was an effort by states to correct the problems that surfaced from the
weaknesses in NCLB, by establishing rigorous and consistent standards across the
country. Currently, 48 states, two territories, and Washington D.C. have shared goals
for the same learning outcomes (National Governors Association for Best Practices,
Council of Chief State School Officers, 2010). To every teacher I have discussed this with, these standards are being embraced with open arms. The hope is that teachers will at last have the luxury of instructing in a meaningful manner. This class, “A Socio-
Political History of Rock and Roll” will be a natural fit for these upcoming CCSS’s and offer a way of teaching history in a way that easily connects to student engagement.
Think of all the hate there is in Red China
Then take a look around to Selma, Alabama.
You may leave here for 4 days in space
but when you return, it’s the same old place.
The poundin’ of the drums, the pride and disgrace
you can bury your dead, but don’t leave a trace.
Hate your next-door neighbor, but don’t forget to say grace.
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 21
And… tell me over and over and over and over again, my friend
You don’t believe we’re on the eve of destruction. (P.F. Sloan, 1965)
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 22
Chapter 2: Literature Review
One of the challenges facing high school teachers today is engaging students in their learning, particularly in core subjects such as history, science, mathematics, and language arts. Teams of researchers from organizations such as the Academy for
Educational Development (AED) and the University of San Diego’s Center for Research and Educational Equity, Assessment, and Teaching Excellence (CREATE) have been exploring alternative pedagogical approaches that will motivate and engage students.
In a time of increased attention and focus on standardized testing at the national, state and local levels, essential class time for content instruction has been lost, and distractions such as iPhones, iPads, and Facebook outside of school make the challenge of motivating students to learn, or perform well on high stakes tests
increasingly problematic (Yonezawa, Jones, & Joselowsky, 2009).
In identifying explanations as to why students have become disengaged and how
to go about reversing this alarming trend, the emergence of standardized testing and its
unintended impacts will be examined, as well as research that supports the cognitive
benefits of music on brain development. Additionally, the value of Gardner’s
groundbreaking findings on multiple intelligences will shed light on the importance of
differentiating modalities of content delivery. To round out the analysis, a look at
incorporating music into social studies and history lesson planning will be reviewed,
along with an assessment of the powerful effects of music on social change.
Impacts of No Child Left Behind (NCLB)
In what was hoped to remedy the disparity in student academic achievement, the
2001 passage and implementation of No Child Left Behind (NCLB) became the
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 23
panacea to increase accountability and achievement. The focus of NCLB on
mathematics and language arts, however, has had a negative unintended impact on the
core subjects of science and social studies.
While Dufour and Marzano (2011) make the argument that American schools
have improved between 1960-2000 in the following ways: high school diplomas have
more than doubled, more students are taking rigorous honors courses, and the average
SAT score has climbed in each of the six subgroups, there are also some alarming
findings. Among these are the fact that 30% of today’s high school students will not
graduate, that in 2006 the United States slipped to 18th out of 26th industrialized countries, that we have the second highest college dropout rate among these same industrialized countries, and that students from the United States do not fare as well on international exams as students in other industrialized countries.
The idea of improving schools in this country is not a new one, and the call to increase high school graduation to 90% was delivered by President George H. W. Bush in 1989 at a national summit on education with state Governors. Included in the goals was a decentralizing of authority and decision-making at the state and local levels. This attempt also failed to effect change, and when George W. Bush became president in
2001, he opted for an ambitious federal initiative that we know today as NLCB (Dufour &
Marzano, 2011).
In examining impacts of NCLB, we look at a study by Tonia Causey-Bush (2005) a few years following implementation of NCLB, as well as observations made by Dufour and Marzano in their 2011 book, Leaders Learning: How District, School, and
Classroom Leaders Improve Student Achievement. Beginning with Causey-Bush
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 24
(2005), whose study focused on Texas and California we see that these two states were selected for the study because they are the most populous states in the Union, and schools in both have struggled with the achievement gap.
The political rationale for NCLB was that it set standards for student achievement across the country, was relatively less expensive than bond issues, easier to measure the results, and could provide immediate feedback to the voters as to how well students in each district across the country were doing, comparatively. Passage of this legislation required districts to purchase new textbooks that were aligned to the standards established in the new tests, with the belief that if teachers were using the appropriate textbooks and teaching to the test, students should perform well, and that by 2014 all schools would be able to meet the requirement of 100% proficiency by all students taking the tests (Causey-Bush, 2005).
In analyzing statewide standardized tests that predate NCLB, (California –
California Standards Tests, or “CSTs”, and Texas – Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills, or “TAKS”), 2003 test results found that California fell behind Texas in both language arts (by one-third) and mathematics (by over half). The difference in competence is not limited to Caucasian students; across the board in every category from African American, to Latino, to socioeconomically disadvantaged, to English language learners, to students with disabilities consistently performed higher in Texas than in California (Causey-Bush, 2005, p. 339). Two possible explanations were offered for this trend: either (a) students in Texas demonstrated a greater understanding of state curricula, or (b) the state standardized tests in Texas were less rigorous. Early
NCLB results mirrored the outcomes in California and Texas, with the exception that
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 25
Texas students performed lower on their mathematical testing on the NCLB test
(Causey-Bush, 2005).
One of the complaints about the new testing requirements for NCLB has been
the rote memorization and “drill and kill” techniques that make learning less engaging
for students. Further, in the effort to boost test scores, teachers are “sacrificing
culturally responsive and relevant practices used in the classroom that may have
actually helped students” (Causey-Bush, 2005, p. 334).
According to Dufour and Marzano (2011), after ten years in practice it was determined that NCLB had “not only failed to improve schools but had damaged them”
(p. 12). According to Diane Ravitch, originally an advocate of NCLB and quoted in
Dufour and Marzano’s book:
The great legacy of No Child Left Behind is that it has left us with
a system of institutionalized fraud. And the institutionalized fraud
is that No Child Left Behind has mandated that every child is going
to be proficient by the year 2014….And the states are told, “if you
don’t reach that bar, you’re going to be punished. Schools will be
closed. (p. 13)
What can be gathered from Dufour and Marzano’s work (2011) is that public education has been fighting a losing battle for the past decade in its attempt to become
NCLB-compliant, and in the process has lost valuable time in elementary, middle, and high school social studies and history classrooms to make more time available for mathematics and language arts because these are the only two subjects on which students are tested.
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 26
The drive by school districts to show proficiency in the areas of language arts
and mathematics to ensure NCLB-compliance (100% proficiency by the year 2014) and
avoid punishment, has resulted in a cut of time from social studies instruction by as
much as 75% percent in some districts, such as Vista Unified School District. Other
cuts, and in some cases elimination of the arts, have been made to make more time
available for study skills classes. Elective courses such as music and art have
traditionally served as companion classes for social studies because the content
covered closely parallels social studies, and helps to fill in the blanks.
In my district, time set aside for social studies has been reduced by 50% to allow
more time for language arts and reading; what was once dedicated to 45 minutes per
day is now limited to 45 minutes per week in middle schools in the Vista Unified School
District (Rollins, 2012). If the trend is now to cut back social studies content delivery in
the elementary and middle schools, it is likely that students entering high school will
have an incomplete understanding of history.
Music, the Brain, and Multiple Intelligences
When considering what factors motivate the brain of the young adolescent the
obvious answer would include technology such as Facebook, iTunes and the iPad. It is
just as likely that such motivation would not include activities centered on academic
rigor. For teachers, the challenge is to introduce academic opportunities that stimulate
the brain of the adolescent that fosters engagement while demonstrating a level of
understanding on standardized tests. The ultimate goal is to create a learning
environment that meets the holistic needs of each student – socially, emotionally, civically and cognitively (Yonezawa, Jones, & Joselowsky, 2009).
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 27
In her study on music’s impact on brain development, Susan Hallam (2010)
explains that while our understanding of how the brain works is still in its infancy,
substantial findings indicate that there is active engagement when music is involved,
and that music influences other brain development as well.
Much of Hallam’s article (2010) describes what happens to our brains when we
listen to, or perform music, such as the billions of neurons that are simultaneously
activated. These same neurons connect with other neurons, and change the growth
and shape of our axons and dendrites. What this means in laymen’s terms, is that the
neurons in our brains are stimulated and fired up by music, and enhance learning,
particularly in the areas of reading comprehension, language acquisition, and
mathematical applications. These benefits are particularly acute in children exposed to
music before the age of nine.
Hallam’s (2010) study reveals that measurable differences were found in children
four to six years of age who were given musical training 25 minutes per day for seven
months. She adds that playing a musical instrument triggers changes in the brainstem,
and that the earlier children are exposed to musical training the more fluidly language and literacy are developed. Further, students aged six to eight who were previously labeled as “slow learners” exhibited significant increases in their reading scores and continued their improvement a full year later. And finally, in a study of two groups of first graders, one composed of the experimental group receiving music lessons, and the other a control group not receiving musical lessons, found that the experimental group out performed the control group in areas of sequencing and spatial tasks (Hallam, 2010).
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 28
The following studies were written in support of music education in the schools,
and while each boasts of the benefits of adding music as a basis for learning purposes,
one article admits that the results are inconclusive. Each article serves as an advocate
of music for learning purposes, and each set of authors question why the arts programs
in school districts are the first to go on the “chopping block” during budget crises when
there is research to support the positive effects of music on brain development, which is
transferred to learning preparedness.
In her 2011 review of research studies, Professional Notes: Brain-Based
Research Music Advocacy, Cole criticizes the fact that school districts pay for wireless
Internet service while eliminating arts programs, and questions why these same districts
are ignoring the science behind music and the brain. Cole points to the cognitive
benefits of the arts outlined at the “Learning, Arts, and the Brain Summit,” sponsored by
John Hopkins University and the Dana Foundation in May 2009, at which
neuroscientists from Harvard, Stanford, and the University of Oregon submitted their
findings. At the summit, Michael Posner from the University of Oregon found that there
is a relationship to and correlations between music and generating motivation, and even
paying attention with a high level of concentration.
Further findings in Cole’s (2011) study of music’s positive effects on the brain in
terms of learning come from a study conducted by Harvard’s Elizabeth Spelke which reveals that there are clear connections between music studied in elementary, middle and high school to geometric literacy. The areas of the brain that are responsible for geometry skills are the same areas strengthened by music. This controlled study found that IQ, academic achievement, and socioeconomic factors had no bearing on success,
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 29
adding more weight in favor of the benefits of music and learning. Spelke emphasized
the point that the musical students who outperformed their counterparts were those who
had prolonged and ongoing musical training, as opposed to a student who took music
lessons for a brief period of time. In addition to mathematical benefits, Spelke’s study
also found that there is a relationship between reading fluency and the amount of music
training a child has (Spelke in Cole, 2011).
On the other hand in an issue of General Music Today on the topic of “Best
Practices for Young Children’s Music Education,” John Flohr points to the fact that while there is some evidence of the educational and learning benefits of music on the brain, much of the research that has been gathered has been “skewed” and is “biased”, and therefore, unreliable, and an oversimplification at times as to how the brain processes music. Still, in the area of structural changes and plasticity of the brain, he concurs with
Cole in that exposure to music at an early age changes the structure of the brain.
Involvement in music can in fact keep the brain more fluid if continued, citing research done in 1994 on brain injuries done by Cain and Cain (Cain and Cain in Flohr, 2010).
While Flohr points to evidence that gains in general intelligence were measurable, these
same gains could also be attributed to physical education (Flohr, 2010).
Perhaps the strongest advocate for including music in education comes from a
study conducted by Susan Snyder (1997). Snyder’s assertion is that music has benefits
not only on mathematical and reading development, but even more importantly, the part of the brain identified as the middle layer of the triune brain, which is responsible for emotions and
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 30
keeps the gate open for messages to be received by the higher
levels of the brain…and increases the capacity of the frontal lobes
of the brain, which is the area that deals with altruism, empathy,
pattern recognition, global understanding, simultaneous processing
and inner speech (1997, p. 165)
Snyder’s observations come from schools districts in which music was cut,
including a system in New York City that eliminated its the arts programs nearly 20
years ago. The study followed the resulting adult population and found that not only
was there lower scoring on standardized tests, a higher drop out rate, and a lost sense
of community among these former students than the national average (1997).
Snyder asks the very important question: “what is the purpose of education?”
Perhaps the most important reason for why we educate is to impart understanding,
Snyder quotes from Howard Gardner “the ability to apply knowledge learned to new situation or problems” (Gardner in Snyder, 1997, p. 165).
In 1979, Harvard University researcher Howard Gardner along with a team of international colleagues set out to identify differences in how our brains are wired, in terms of how we receive and make sense of information. The team received a grant from the van Leer Foundation, and was tasked with creating an extensive research program that would examine the nature of the “human potential”, and understand how it could be best realized. Gardner and his colleagues poured through literature on brain studies, genetics, and other relevant fields such as anthropology and psychology, in an effort to understand the taxonomy of intellectual capacities (Gardner, 2011, p. x-xi).
Data collecting included cross disciplines and cultures, and the results identified seven
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 31 distinct kinds of intelligences, including: musical, visual/spatial, bodily/kinesthetic, linguistic, logical/mathematical, interpersonal, and intrapersonal. According to the research that Gardner and his team conducted, it is essential to include all of the intelligences in order to have a complete education.
Gardner identifies “intelligence” as the “areas of the brain that correspond to certain forms of cognition” (Gardner, 2011, p. 3). The two intelligences which dominated teaching styles before Gardner’s work were linguistic and logical/mathematical. While linguistic centers around students who are sensitive to the meaning, order, rhythm, and inflection of the spoken language, the logical/mathematical intelligent student responds to order, reordering, and sequencing of objects. The five additional intelligences identified by Gardner are as follows: (a) bodily/kinesthetic, in which students benefit more from activities having to do with motion; (b) and (c) the two
“personal” intelligences, inter and intra, address learners whose understanding of content is drawn by codes, labels and emotions for intrapersonal, and distinctions from the moods, intentions and motivations of other for the intrapersonal learner; (d) the visual-spatially intelligent learner acquires knowledge using patterns and mental rotations; and (e) the musically intelligent learner, who Gardner refers to as the
“composer.” These learners benefit from activities that include pitch, rhythmic organization and auditory stimulus (Gardner, 2011).
According to Gardner, research indicates that using only the “linguistic” and
“logical/spatial” pedagogical approaches leaves five different learning styles without meaningful instruction. For those students with “musical intelligence”, integrating music
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 32 into curriculum, and in this case, social studies curriculum, can offer powerful learning and a genuine love for learning (Gardner, 2011).
Despite the fact that Gardner’s research was hailed as a breakthrough in delivering content in relevant ways, and was incorporated into classrooms across the country in the 1980s and 1990’s, what has been witnessed by teachers and is sated earlier in this study, is that the 2001 federal mandate of NCLB has forced a return to the linguistic and logical approaches over the differentiated approaches outlined in
Gardner’s Multiple Intelligences.
While traditional school districts have been hamstrung by the federal mandates of NCLB, charter schools have enjoyed more flexibility in how programs are set up, and have been effective in tailoring curriculum to meet the different intelligences. Such schools include those in New York City that have been established as “community music” schools, which have been established to assist a diverse population facing challenges in life not found in the more conventional swath of society. The unconditional love, support offered and reinforcement for self-expression in music have proven powerful modes for learning (Silverman, 2009).
Silverman’s methodology used investigative techniques that combined several research strategies including case study methodology, narrative inquiry, historical research and philosophical inquiry. She visited two sites, Turtle Bay Music School, and the 30th Street Men’s Shelter, to observe and record her findings. For the purpose of my project, only the findings for the Turtle Bay Music School will be included as the 30th
Street Men’s Shelter is for mentally ill homeless men, and not relevant to my scope.
The goal for Silverman’s study was to make observations of the phenomena of a
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 33
community music center, in a real life setting, to see if a sense of social justice could be
achieved through applications of playing music. The “students” at the Turtle Bay Music
School ranged in age from 18 months old to 90 years of age, and attended workshops
on Saturdays. Silverman found that students developed close relationships with one
another and that the centers fostered a sense of “family” that spilled out into the
community. She added that while teachers could certainly apply music into their
classrooms as a way of achieving social justice, their hands are often tied by the
mandates and requirements handed down from the district level (2009).
The Benefits of Adding Music to Social Studies and History Lesson Planning
Any 11th grade social studies teacher will tell you that teaching a U.S. History course is a lesson in frustration because of the requirement to get through the Reagan
Administration and the 1980s in one school year, while effectively meeting required state standards (California State Board of Education, 1998). It is nearly impossible to get through the 1980s in today’s U.S. History classes, and we are now living decades past that time. Considering that the U.S. History class begins the school year with
Christopher Columbus’s “discovery” of America in 1492, it is clear that some content must be glossed over, or worse, left out.
The content that is most often abbreviated or omitted in the U.S. History curriculum includes the civil rights movements of African Americans, Latinos, women,
American Indians, and the gay community – those groups most often marginalized by the dominant culture of society. As a result, valuable contributions made to the fabric of this country fall by the way side and continue to be overlooked. The inability to achieve social justice in this country is perpetuated by not including these contributions in an
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 34
overall examination of U.S. History. How can we celebrate and embrace diversity if we
are not adequately covering it in our schools?
While some things have not changed in the history classroom, other significant
changes have been noted in classrooms of the 21st century, such as the growing
diversity and need for teaching to all students, regardless of race, gender, religion or
class. In their book, Making Choices for Multicultural Education: Five Approaches to
Race, Class, and Gender, Sleeter and Grant caution against becoming too complacent
with the emergence of female and African American mayors, feeling that we have
become a tolerant society. There is still much work that needs to be done, and it begins
with the classroom and teaching to all students (Sleeter & Grant, 1994). Finding opportunities to make content relevant to all students is part of the challenge, but teachers also need to find a way for content to resonate with students so that it leaves them with an enduring understanding as framed in the lesson planning strategies such as “Understanding by Design” (Ubd) (Wiggins & McTighe, 2011).
In assessing the effectiveness of successful social studies “delivery” in his book,
Historical Thinking and other Unnatural Acts: Charting the Future of Teaching the Past,
Sam Wineburg found that the same results have been cited for nearly 100 years: “Kids
don’t know history” (Wineburg, 2011, p. viii). Wineburg’s assertion about students not
knowing U.S. History underscores the findings stated earlier in Chapter 1 of this study in
David Brinkley’s book, The Majic Bus: An American Odyssey (Brinkley, 1992).
Wineburg argues that as a society we have been focused on testing what students do
not know, rather than trying to find out what they do know. This begs the question,
what is it we are hoping for our students to take away with them after they leave our
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 35 social studies classrooms? What are the essential questions and enduring understandings we want them to keep, and how do we go about delivering those?
Wineburg challenges us to ask the questions on social studies tests that today’s students are not being asked, such “what do you know about history?” and how do you know you know? (Wineburg, 2011). In looking at methods for making content more meaningful, and therefore, memorable, a look at incorporating music into lesson planning is examined.
In the research study, “Why Can’t We Be Friends? Using Music to Teach Social
Studies”, a solution to the challenge of making social studies more engaging is offered, which effectively incorporates music as an innovative teaching tool to “challenge students to critically analyze and deconstruct lyrics both within a historical context and as applied to current social problems” (Levy & Byrd, 2011, p. 64). The study examines examples of incorporating music into lesson planning at the elementary, middle, high school, and higher educational levels, in a variety of disciplines. Regardless of educational level or discipline, lyrics that contain messages of social justice can be used for exposing students to diverse cultures, as well as for shaping values, actions and worldview. Further, using music can foster evaluative and critical thinking skills in students (Levy & Byrd, 2011). Levy and Byrd are not alone in their proposal for adding music as a teaching tool for social studies and history classrooms.
In his 2005 article for the Ohio Conference for Social Studies Review, “Keep on
Rockin in a Free World”, Lane uses the Neil Young song, written as a “wake up call” to the United States on issues like homelessness, as a metaphor for social studies teachers and challenges them to make content delivery more relevant for students by
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 36
using more resources than a textbook. Using President Clinton as the example of how
even a president makes sense of rock and roll music, Lane invites social studies
teachers to use music to find historic themes. A listing of songs and accompanying
topics is provided for the teacher to use for historic themes (Lane, 1997). This article is
more of a “how to” than an actual study with results, and while it is useful as another
example of adding music to social studies and history classrooms, it cannot be used as
a source from which to make a tested argument.
Graduate work done by Sean Kelsey (2011) examines the questions; How would
students benefit from expanded social studies curriculum to include history electives?
and What kinds of courses would generate increased interest among high school
students? While Kelsey’s research does not explicitly address NCLB’s unintended
impacts on history noted above, his research does reveal that social studies teachers
have become too reliant on textbooks, rather than cultivating an authentic
understanding of and passion for American history. Additionally, his findings point to
the fact that required history courses are “often too broad”, adding to the
disengagement by students. One of the arguments cited by Kelsey speaks to the work
done by Howard Gardner in the area of multiple intelligences (Kelsey, 2011). Kelsey’s
work is valuable to my study because I have done exactly what he is arguing for – designing an elective history class that uses a hook to engage students. The hook I’ve incorporated is rock and roll music.
The class I’ve written, “A Socio-Political History of Rock and Roll”, examines the social and political upheavals that took place in America between 1950-2000 as seen through the eyes of the musicians of the time. Focus is placed on the various civil rights
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 37
movements that took place between the 1950’s-1970’s, as well as social justice and oral history. Music has played a pivotal and integral role in movements that have slowly brought these marginalized groups into “mainstream” society, whether it is Helen
Reddy’s assertion of women’s rights in “I am Woman,” or Bob Dylan’s social commentary on the murder of Medgar Evers in “Just a Pawn in their Game.” Much of what led to my writing this elective class was studying the powerful impacts of music in effecting social change, particularly in the 1960’s.
Civil Disobedience and Music as an Agent of Change
You couldn’t call black people together in any committed way
without a ritual that involved an enormous amount of singing.
The singing was used to create the climate, to get people ready
to address the issues. So any statement from lawyers, or a
testimony from someone who’d been arrested, was always
presented on a bed of song. And the song-leaders were absolutely
essential. (Denselow, 1990, p. 35)
One of the most effective “tools” used by African Americans to integrate public facilities during the early years of the 1960s was that of civil disobedience. Non-violent marches and bus boycotts led by Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr., beginning with the
Montgomery Bus Boycott, illustrated the power of civil disobedience and possibility of change to the country in the areas of segregation and equality.
In its 1954 precedent-setting decision, Brown v. Board of Education, the U.S.
Supreme Court required states to integrate public schools with all “deliberate speed”
(Ducat, 1996). One year later Rosa Parks made history by refusing to give up her seat
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 38
on a public bus, which led to the Montgomery Bus Boycott of 1955-56, and the
emergence of prominent civil rights leader, Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. What followed
were other examples of non-violent acts of civil disobedience such as freedom rides, sit- ins, and marches.
It was common knowledge that exercising civil disobedience would guarantee a spot in jail and Rev. King led by example by spending a great deal of time incarcerated for his actions. Music played an integral role in the “movement.” Encouraged by groups such as the Freedom Singers, the music served not only as an impetus to participate in the fight against segregation, but as a method of enduring incarceration (Denselow,
1990).
Civil rights heroes such as Shelley “Playboy” Stewart played as crucial a role as
Reverends King and Revell in alerting the country’s attention to the inhumanity associated with segregation. In an attempt to challenge newly inaugurated Gov.
Wallace’s call for a segregated Alabama in January 1963, Rev. King led others in civil disobedience as a reaction to this call and was subsequently jailed. Upon his release from jail, Rev. King pleaded with African American community members to follow his lead, but none would participate for fear of losing their job. It would be the high school middle school, and even elementary school age children that would answer the call.
Instrumental in the effort to organize the children was local WENN disk jockey, Shelley
Stewart, who used the microphone and the music to guide students to what would be one of the most effective examples of civil disobedience this country has seen to date
(Stewart, 1992). So effective was the Children’s March, that Birmingham was desegregated, Bull Conor resigned, and President Kennedy moved to call on Congress
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 39
to pass civil rights legislation ending segregation. Passage of the Civil Rights Act of
1964 would come at a high price in the turbulent year that preceded: the murder of
NAACP President, Medgar Evers, the death of four African American girls at the 16th
Street Baptist Church, and the murder of President Kennedy, himself (Houston, 2004).
Conclusion
In the past decade, social studies teachers have found the value of what they teach sidelined. Reasons for a decreased emphasis in these areas emerged from a desire to close the achievement gap, which led to mandated standardized testing, and from economic crises that led to cuts in education funding. While the first cuts were seen in the arts programs (Silverman, 2009), the cuts in classroom time delivery have expanded into the realm of social studies. As a result, students are graduating high school with limited knowledge of history, and while strides were made in the 1980s and
1990s for differentiating methods, the educational pendulum has swung back to the time period before 1980.
Traditional pedagogical approaches to teaching targeted only two of the learning
“intelligences”: linguistic and logical-mathematical, overlooking at least five other types of intelligences as specified in Gardner’s groundbreaking 1983 research of “multiple intelligences” (Gardner, 2011). Before this research, students having one of the other
five identified intelligences (musical, visual/spatial, bodily/kinesthetic, interpersonal, and
intrapersonal did not benefit from the method of instruction. Progress, however, had
been made in educational institutions across the country during the 1990’s in
implementing teaching techniques that address each of these intelligences (Gardner,
2011).
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 40
With the passage of “No Child Left Behind,” however, the educational
community reverted back to its two-conventional methods of teaching at the near- exclusion of the other five. Not only has this been a disservice to those students who fall within the other five intelligences, the situation has been aggravated by high stakes standardized testing in the areas of mathematics and language arts, thieving precious time from social studies classrooms, as well as art and music programs.
Research on the positive effects that music has on learning, particularly for those children who have had sustained, ongoing music lessons cannot be ignored. Benefits include geometric literacy, second language acquisition, better memorization, and reading comprehension. Despite the fact that research points to these benefits, school districts across the nation remove arts programs first when economic and educational crises hit, followed next by the erosion of social studies and history.
The content most often omitted from social studies content includes the civil rights movements, which, it can be argued, is essential for understanding how to avoid making the mistakes of the past. As U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor warned at a National Council for the Social Studies convention in 2007, “We do not learn civics through osmosis; it must be taught” (O’Connor).
I see no changes. Wake up in the morning and I ask myself,
Is life worth living? Should I blast myself?"
I'm tired of bein' poor and even worse I'm black.
My stomach hurts, so I'm lookin' for a purse to snatch.
Cops give a damn about a negro? Pull the trigger, kill a nigga, he's a hero.
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 41
Give the crack to the kids who the hell cares? One less hungry mouth on
the welfare. (Tupac Shakur, 1992)
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 42
Chapter Three – Methodology The rationale for writing this curriculum was initially born out of the desire to give a certain high school population a reason for wanting to come to school. After teaching
U.S. History for five years I noticed that this capable, but disengaged population of students seemed to fly “under the radar.” With little exception, they had been successful through middle school, but once in high school had lost interest, and by junior year were barely passing. The other common feature among these students was their love for and connection to rock and roll music.
While the class, “A Socio-Political History of Rock and Roll”, highlighted the social and political upheavals that took place between 1950-2000 as seen through the lens of the musicians of the time, there was also an emphasis on foreign policy and oral history that I hoped to convey. It had come to my attention that students were woefully out of touch with our country’s role in the world, and with the value of the human story in first person.
During the time I was writing the scope and sequence for the class the emergence of No Child Left Behind in 2001 reared its head, and the reality of the detrimental impacts of this legislation, particularly on social studies/history, were being felt. I believed that offering this class during junior and senior year would help “fill in the blanks” that were abbreviated or altogether omitted from U.S. History.
After the third year of teaching the class, it had evolved into an examination of the many civil rights movements in our country’s history, primarily between 1950-1975, through many perspectives. This class offered a seat at the table to all students in a classroom, not just those from the dominant culture. It was inclusive, informative, engaging, and aligned not only to the California State Standards for History and Social
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 43
Studies, but also to the Common Core State Standards, which invites students to
evaluate and analyze primary and secondary source documents from differing
perspectives.
When confronting the challenge of how to make history relevant and engaging for students by using music, I had to consider the following questions: What factors led to the loss of classroom time originally dedicated to social studies and history at the elementary and middle school levels, and what could be done to reverse that trend?
Were there economic factors responsible for this loss of time? Did the 2001 implementation of No Child Left Behind (NCLB) play a role, and if so, what was it? Was
there evidence that music had an impact on learning, on effecting social change? And
lastly, what could teachers do to modify their lesson planning to make history more
meaningful to students?
Design
The project consists of a working manual I created based on the scope and
sequence of the class, “A Socio-Political History of Rock and Roll.” As noted in Chapter
4, a typical unit will consist of activities, primary source document analysis linked to
social and political events, examination of precedent-setting Supreme Court case
decisions, song lyrics that connect to content, video clips, and formative and summative
assessments. For example, Unit I, which introduces the course by establishing the
blues as the roots from which all future musical genres will spring, explores the blues,
civil rights, and the Eisenhower administration. “Blues, Rock ‘n Roll, and Racism”
highlights events such as Rosa Park’s refusal to give up her seat on the bus, which led
to the Montgomery Bus Boycott and an end to segregation of public transportation. The
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 44
study of Brown v. Board of Education (1954) explains the process of overturning former
Supreme Court case decisions. The decision in Brown v. Board of Ed, which overturned Plessy v. Ferguson (1896) in the area of education, tested state law and led to a showdown between state’s rights and federal law, as witnessed by the “Little Rock
9” students who desegregated Arkansas’s Central High School in 1957. Such content is directly aligned to 11 and 12th CA State Standards on civil rights and Supreme Court
cases, as well as Common Core State Standards for literacy in the areas of reading and
writing.
Included in the manual was a complete breakdown for each of the 16 units presented in the yearlong course, and encompassed the following information:
1. California Content Standards
2. Common Core State Standards
3. Essential Questions
4. Enduring Understandings
5. Differentiated Strategies and Sheltered Instruction Observation Protocol (SIOP)
Content and Language Objectives (CO and LO)
6. Activities and Performance Tasks
7. Assessment Evidence
8. Resources
9. Musical Artists Featured
A listing of all resources for each unit was provided, as well as all activities, themes, and assessments (formative and summative). Compact Discs were also made available which contained the songs and speech excerpts for each unit.
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 45
Setting
Students participating in his project included those registered at Rancho Buena
Vista High School (RBV) who were enrolled in the “Socio-Political History of Rock and
Roll” elective class for the 2012-13 school year. As an elective class, students enrolled voluntarily. It was presumed that a high interest in music was the motivating factor for enrollment. Students were required to be upperclassmen (11th and 12th grade), and the overall racial/ethnic/ gender/ orientation composition of the class was reflective of the
RBV student-body.
At the beginning of the 2012-13 school year, the ethnic breakdown at RBV was approximately 46% Latino and 45% Caucasian, with the remaining 9% comprised mostly from the African American, Asian, and Pacific Islander communities (VUSD
Accountability Report Card, 2010-11). The English learner students (EL) were primarily identified as “3’s” and “4’s,” which was an indication that students were at a level ready to understand most of the readings and lecture, but who would still benefit from differentiated learning strategies. There were students in honors and college prep
(“non-honors”) classes, as well as special needs students in this class. Unlike RBV’s gender composition, there were more males than females in this class by a nearly 2-1 margin. Students in this class self-identified as straight, gay, and/or bisexual.
Instrument
The standards for this curriculum included California State Standards, Common
Core State Standards (CCSS), California English Language Development (ELD)
Standards, and Social Justice and Equity Standards focusing on Multicultural Equality.
To prepare for the Common Core State Standards, expectations for utilizing primary
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 46 and secondary source material to connect insights, identify central ideas and themes, and evaluate contrasting explanations were added. Further, English Language
Development or ELD Standards centering on text analysis through oral identification of simple excerpts, as well as comparing and contrasting themes were covered throughout each unit.
Social Justice and Equity Standards
Unlike the standards for the State of California, Common Core, and English
Language Development, standards for Social Justice and Equity, emphasizing multicultural equality, did not exist. Therefore, I developed standards that are specific to each lesson within the unit covering the different stages of the evolution of women’s rights (Appendix “A”). These Social Justice and Equity Standards include:
1. Describe the factors leading up to the Revolutionary War.
2. Evaluate letters between John Adams and Abigail Adams.
3. Examine content of “Declaration of Independence” and
“Constitution” for language pertaining specifically to women.
4. Describe the factors leading up to the Seneca Falls
Convention.
5. Evaluate the lyrics to songs protesting WWI.
6. Analyze the significance of the passage of the Nineteenth
Amendment.
7. Identify the role women played during WWII.
8. Evaluate the lyrics to songs portraying women’s role in WWII.
9. Describe the importance of the role of the birth control pill in
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 47
offering women the opportunity to pursue college and a
career, and in effect establish gender equality.
10. Account for the factors that led to Betty Friedan’s book, The
Feminine Mystique.
11. Evaluate the efforts made by the National Organization of
Women (NOW) and to what extent those efforts were
realized in proposed legislation such as the Equal Rights
Amendment (ERA) proposed in 1972.
12. Identify women (by image and description) who have been
instrumental in the fight for equality over the years.
13. Articulate a woman who has been inspiration and create a
product and essay.
Objectives for teaching this curriculum included fostering a genuine
appreciation for and understanding of the events that took place, as well as the
sacrifices that were made (outlined in the standards above). A series of
classroom activities were used to enhance learning and comprehension. Included
were cooperative learning groups, coffee klatch, sentence frames, and think-pair-share
activities. Improving listening and reading skills were targeted as well by incorporating
lyric analysis, presenting modified primary source material, and using secondary text
excerpts from books like Joy Hakim’s A History of Us. This book series was written at the 5th grade level and included short stories of those within marginalized groups who
have been blatantly omitted from the more commonly approved textbooks within my
District. The contributions made by the historically “disenfranchised” were highlighted in
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 48
Joy Hakim’s book series, giving all students a sense of relevance and pride; a veritable
“seat” at the American table.
The strategies designed for this curriculum focused on developing critical thinking skills. One of the strategies was called “implicit/explicit.” The idea for this came to me the second year I was teaching when I was looking at a standardized test question, which asked, “what is being implied by the following passage?” I wondered to myself if students knew what the word “implied” meant. The explanation for implicit/explicit is outlined in the Materials section of this curriculum, and the activity was designed to teach students how to discern the difference between content that is open to interpretation and vague or ambiguous, and content that is straight forward, or direct.
This strategy has other applications as well, such as in an American Government class in which students are asked to decipher between implied and expressed powers of
Congress.
Another strategy used in applying music as the “hook” was “theme music.” This activity was also designed to teach students higher level thinking skills. By the time I got these students in my class they knew how to define events and people, which usually meant that they Googled the “term”, looked it up in the textbook glossary, or when all else failed, they looked up the paragraph in the textbook and wrote the 5 w’s: who, what, when, where and why. I took them from definition to significance and theme.
Again, this strategy is explained in more detail in the Materials section.
Other strategies and activities came from the book, 99 Ideas and Activities for
Teaching English Learners with the SIOP® Model (Vogt & Echevarria, 2008), which was designed to offer differentiated styles. These included prompts that addressed different
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 49
levels of language acquisition, anticipation and reaction guided statements, progressive
maps, T-chart organizers, “stop and think” activities, and adapted Venn diagrams. Also included were note-taking and lecture to frontload information for students, but also to prepare them for what to expect in college. Many students began the year knowing how
to write Cornell notes, but it was also a skill that is taught in this class. Coffee klatch served two purposes: it was a way to review concepts for assessments but it also gave
EL students the opportunity to practice their English orally in a non-threatening way because the activity was one on one.
There was also a focus on thematic content. As a history teacher, my goal was to get students to understand the significance of key events and then to take that information and apply it to a larger scale, or thematic view. Because music resonates with most people, and in particular the population of students taking this class, content was likely to be more engaging using this strategy.
Analyzing lyrics for implicit, explicit, and thematic content was more palatable for students, regardless of academic ability, because much of it was open to interpretation and getting inside the head of the artist. This made it less threatening for students because there was no “wrong” answer, and students felt more comfortable participating in class. Frontloading information with books that were written at a 5th grade level served as a scaffolding technique for lower achieving students to make lyric analysis and critical thinking more attainable. As mentioned earlier, the reading excerpts from A
History of Us offered a refreshing departure from the traditional history textbooks used in the past. Chapters were chunked in manageable three-five page sections,
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 50 highlighting contributions made by an array of diverse individuals who made up the textured fabric of this country.
Examples of Activities and Materials include:
Activities:
- Race as a Social Construction / White Privilege activity (“Unpacking the
Invisible Knapsack” by Peggy McIntosh)
- Evolution of Women’s Role in the Home through tv: From “Leave it to
Beaver” to “Brady Bunch” to “Roseanne”
- Assimilation v. Separation: Compare/Contrast Booker T. Washington,
W.E.B DuBois, Marcus Garvey, Malcolm X, and MLK, Jr.
- Writing protest songs
- Compare/Contrast “Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee” with “Incident at
Oglala”
- Reflective Essay on the 4 C’s of the 1950s: Consumerism, Conformity,
Communism, and Conventionalism.
- Examining Free-Enterprise v. Socialism (unions, management) through
Pink Floyd’s “Animals”
Primary Source Document / Lyric Analysis:
- Eisenhower’s Farewell Speech
- JFK’s Inaugural Speech
- Gov. Wallace’s Gubernatorial Inaugural speech
- MLK’s “Letter from a Birmingham Jail”
- Remarks by LBJ upon signing the Civil Rights Act of 1964
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 51
- Letters and Telegrams to Pres. Kennedy during Children’s March of 1963
- Life Magazine articles 1960-1968
- Lyric Analysis, such as:
Dylan: “The Ballad of Emmett Till”; “Only a Pawn in their Game”
Marvin Gay: “What’s Goin’ On”
Barry McGuire: “Eve of Destruction”
Helen Reddy: “I am Woman”
Rolling Stones: “Under my Thumb”
Joni Mitchell: “Yellow Taxi”
Rage Against the Machine: “Freedom” (Leonard Peltier)
- US Supreme Court decisions: Plessy v. Ferguson; Brown v. Board of Ed.;
Tinker v. Des Moines; UC Regents v. Bakke
Projects:
- Story-Telling the Civil Rights Movement between 1960-1963 through Art
and Words in a Mind Map
- Photograph Analysis – Pictures and Analysis of examples of Social
Justice / Social Injustice
- Band Choice – Project on band including relevant Social and Political
upheavals
- 1970s Project: Open-ended project focusing on one of the following:
- Evolution of Women’s Rights (Equal Rights Amendment, 1972);
- Fight in the Fields (United Farm Workers & César Chávez)
- Incident at Oglala (American Indian Movement & Leonard Peltier)
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 52
- Gay Rights Movement (Harvey Milk)
- Environmental Movement (Rachel Carlson; Earth Day)
- Oral History Project consisting of an in-depth interview and culminating
multi-media project
Assessments have been identified by students demonstrating competency and
understanding through a variety of informal, formative, and summative assessments,
including, but not limited to journal checks (lyric analysis, quick writes, and note-taking), graphic organizers, sentence frames, observations, thumbs up-thumbs down, discussions, tests, group presentations, and a cumulative project in which each student selects the woman who has been most inspirational to them personally, and conveys that story through a tribute of their choice. Projects offer the flexibility for the different intelligences outlined and articulated by Howard Gardner’s theory of multiple intelligences, specifically logical-mathematical, bodily-kinesthetic, spatial, linguistic, musical, interpersonal, intrapersonal, and naturalistic. Because this class is primarily comprised of students who are motivated by music, identified by Gardner as “musically intelligent” (Gardner, 2011), it is presumed that many of these projects contain an element of music to them. To allow for individual strengths, project requirements were open-ended and could be as simple as a poster or as complex as an iMovie. They could include musical performances, poems, paintings, or other art pieces.
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 53
Procedures
Using the assortment of strategies, activities, and assessments listed above, a pre test was given the second week of school to identify the level of historical literacy.
The same test, a post-test, was administered at the 12-week progress report to evaluate the level of improvement / understanding achieved after using music in conjunction with content. This test is a compilation of multiple choice, fill-in, and free response analyzing a political cartoon. The questions cover presidential administrations on both foreign and domestic policy, and various civil rights movements, and other social milestones. The goals of the proposed project include the following: i. What factors led to the loss of classroom time originally dedicated to social
studies and history at the elementary and middle school levels, and what
could be done to reverse that trend? ii. Were there economic factors to consider for this loss of time in social
studies / history classrooms? iii. Did the 2002 implementation of No Child Left Behind (NCLB) play a role in
this loss of time? iv. Was there evidence that music had an impact on learning, on effecting
social change? v. What could teachers do to modify their lesson planning to make history
more meaningful to students?
I began teaching the class in the 2008-09 school year, and continued to do so during the 2010-11 and 2011-12 school years, but in this year (2012-13), a new teacher has taken over the class. I assembled a manual, which was created for her to use as
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 54
an in-depth guide this year, and she has provided me feedback for each unit. We met
on a semi-monthly basis to go over each unit. The feedback from her, as well as student work has given me insight into how the class is for other teachers to teach this course.
The fall of 2012 marks the fourth year the class is being offered. The class was originally written to offer a more in-depth examination of US History between the years of 1950-2000, focusing on foreign policy and other social and political events on the domestic front. What it has evolved into, however, is an in-depth examination of
marginalized groups in society – such as African Americans, Latinos, women, the gay
community, and American Indians, and how their struggles have been conveyed
through music. There is also an emphasis on oral history and teaching the students how
to find the “story” from people who came of age during different eras.
The “Understanding by Design” approach was incorporated for planning units
that included a sampling of activities, primary source document analyses, and projects
listed below between August 2012 and November 2012. A webpage was created for
students to refer to for daily activities, assignments, and links for additional assistance
and information. The site is:
http://www.teacherweb.com/ca/ranchobuenavistahighschool/terigerent/
Evaluation of Process
Because there was a high level of practical application and the research was gathered from the high school that this class is taught at, the “Evaluation Research” method was used for the purpose of my research (Mertler & Charles, 2010). This
approach resonated with me because my research was focused on the scope and
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 55
sequence of curricula that I authored. The research I conducted is based on how much
historic content students glean from the rock and roll class (which is really a history
class cloaked in music). The data consisted of reflections written by students based on
the historic knowledge they absorbed, as well as a detailed unit reflection from Ms.
Martin, who taught the course. To this end, I utilized the objectives-oriented evaluation for the purpose of my research (Mertler & Charles, 2010).
In terms of the “main criteria of effectiveness” I looked to see how effective music was in aiding or enhancing comprehension of issues surrounding civil rights movements and social justice (Mertler & Charles, 2010). I was also interested in assessing how well
student performance meets and/or exceeds standards established by the State of
California Commission on Standards for both State and Common Core State Standards.
It is my assertion that students who are identified as “musically intelligent” by Howard
Gardner learn history better with this pedagogical approach.
I also wanted to teach a class that would give students, most of whom felt
marginalized by their high school experience, something to look forward to when they
came to school. I cannot count how many times I’ve heard, “this is my favorite class
and I look forward to coming to it every day”, and “I’ve learned more about history in this
class than all of the other history classes combined” from students who have taken the
elective class. However, the measurement of how well students learn from this class is
evidenced by the feedback I have received from other teachers like Steve Sanchez
(2012), who told me that “certain students in my class could teach the entire unit on civil
rights from what they learned in your class.” I was also made aware by my former
department chair that the new software program recently adopted by our District (called
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 56
“Illuminate”) indicated an overall increase among last year’s juniors who were in the
elective class over their peers on California Standardized Tests (CST) state standards
for U.S. History spanning the years between 1950 and 2000 (Aguirre-Simpson, 2012).
Summary
Research tells us that music plays an integral role in preparing the brain for learning, whether the students listens to or plays music, and yet, music and art programs are generally the first casualties of an economic crisis. The educational crisis that has been witnessed in the past decade has resulted in a continued hemorrhaging of arts programs, but also in the areas of social studies and history at the elementary and middle school levels. And while strides were made in the 1980’s and 1990’s with holistic project-based teaching and differentiated methods outlined in Gardner’s Multiple
Intelligences, backsliding to the more traditional approaches has occurred, leaving
many students without a meaningful way to connect to content.
Music is a powerful force, and while individuals are moved by a specific genre of
music, there is a universal understanding that the kind of music to which one listens is
as powerful to what someone else listens to. Music not only creates brain activity, it
serves as a stimulant for memory, comprehension, and a tool for action. (Cole, 2010).
Music is also a power force in effecting social change. Whether fighting against
apartheid in South Africa or segregated facilities in the United States, music has played
an integral role in the call for action against social injustice. As quoted by Bernard
Lafayette in the documentary, “Let Freedom Sing: How Music Inspired the Civil Rights
Movement”:
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 57
The music has been the life blood of the movement. It runs throughout
the veins of the movement so you don’t just hear the songs with your
ears, but the music is one of the forces for the soul and it empowers
people.” (Goodman, 2009)
Using the “Understanding by Design” (“backward planning”) approach for planning units that include activities, primary source document analyses, and projects listed below provide students with a more engaging and meaningful learning experience.
Studies conducted by researchers Levy and Byrd (2011) reveal that student engagement increased when music was incorporated into social studies curricula at the elementary, middle, high school, and college level social studies courses. Further, research work conducted by high school history teacher, Sean Kelsey (2011), offers alternatives into teaching social studies electives to make content more relevant.
The curriculum for “A Socio-Political History of Rock and Roll” course is presented in the next chapter. The chapter includes a complete unit breakdown for each of the 16 units presented in the course.
You can bend but never break me
‘cause it only serves to make me
more determined to achieve my final goal.
And I come back even stronger, not a novice any longer
‘cause you’ve deepened the conviction in my soul. (Helen Reddy, 1973)
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 58
Chapter 4: Curriculum Project
A Socio-Political History of Rock ‘n Roll
Curriculum Overview
The inspiration for the elective class called, “A Socio-Political History of Rock-
and-Roll” is two-fold: the implementation of standardized testing at local, state, and
federal levels has made it challenging to deliver full coverage of U.S. History curriculum
in a thorough or engaging manner; and while there seems to be something of interest
for all (or most) student population sects, one remains the “forgotten” group; those
interested in rock-and-roll music. A companion class to U.S. History such as A Socio-
Political History of Rock-and-Roll provides an opportunity to reinforce the U.S. History
content (particularly in the areas of foreign policy and civil rights), thereby increasing
performance on standardized testing, and engaging a student population who may not
otherwise enjoy a relevant or satisfying high school experience. Because our goal is to
provide a high school experience that meets the needs of all students, we have to be
willing to offer electives tailored to those varied student interests.
This course focuses on three areas of emphasis: basic skills development
(reading comprehension and writing), state and common core standards alignment, and
development of an in-depth, oral history project that promotes the vision of the
Southwest Oral History Association.
In the field of basic skills development, students will be expected to read, analyze,
and interpret content from a variety of primary and secondary sources. In examining
lyrics, students will be expected to connect lyrics to the historical context in which they
were written. Additionally, students will understand the difference between “implied”
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 59 and “expressed” lyrics aiding in the analysis of documents such as the Constitution. In addition to a required textbook, students will be responsible for reading and analyzing excerpts from a variety of sources, as well as writing an investigative report on a historical figure of their choice.
Most units will underscore and reinforce the Common Core State Standards, as well as the California State Standards for 10th, 11th grade and 12th grades. Each unit will be placed in a historical context focusing primarily on the periods between 1950-
2000, but dating as far back as 1915, and will include appropriate themes as they relate to the time eras being covered.
The culminating project for this course will be one that encompasses an oral history, incorporating multi media, and employing research skills and principles established by the Southwest Oral History Association. The goal is to foster an understanding of and use of oral history for students so that they become lifelong historians.
This course is broken into sixteen units of study, ranging in length from one to four weeks. The information covered in these units will consist of a textbook and several excerpts from books on US foreign policy, primary sources on the various civil rights movements, and other pieces examining economic components. Additionally, each unit will cover historical content pertinent to the musical era, highlighting significant historical events that meet many of the California State Standards found in the US
History component. Assessments will include research papers, a written debate between musical genres, mind maps, lyric analysis and interpretation, C.R.E.A.M
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 60 project, writing a protest song, and a culminating project focusing on oral history and multimedia.
The course objectives for this are:
1. Reinforce reading, analyzing, interpreting, writing, and oral communication
skills utilizing high-interest content,
2. Support and apply US History/World History/American Government/
Economics state standards; and
3. Promote the value and application of oral histories while learning and
implementing new multi media technologies.
Each of the ten unit overviews include:
1. California Content Standards
2. Common Core Standards
3. Essential Questions
4. Enduring Understandings
5. Differentiated Strategies and Sheltered Instruction Observation Protocol
(SIOP)
6. Content and Language Objectives (CO and LO)
7. Activities and Performance Tasks
8. Assessment Evidence
9. Resources
10. Musical Artists Featured
Overviews for ten of the sixteen units follow on the next page:
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 61
UNIT I: THE BLUES, ROCK ‘N ROLL, AND RACISM (1915-1957) OVERVIEW (2 weeks)
CA Standards: 11.8.8 Discuss forms of popular culture, with emphasis on their
origins and geographic diffusion (e.g. jazz and other forms of
popular music….)
CA Standards: 11.10.2 Examine and analyze the key events, policies, and court
cases in the evolution of civil rights, including.... Brown v.
Board.
CA Standards: 12.5.4 Explain controversies that have resulted over changing
interpretations of civil rights, including those in... Brown v.
Board...
Common Core Standards: RH.11-12.7 Integrate and evaluate multiple sources of
information presented in diverse formats and
media (e.g., visually, quantitatively, as well as
in words) in order to address a question or
solve a problem.
Essential Questions:
! Compare / contrast civil rights in 1950’s with 19th century “Jim Crow” south.
! Should states have the power to set laws that challenge federal law?
Enduring Understandings: Students will know and understand the social and
political significance of:
! Push-Pull Factors for Migration (from rural South to urban North) (Lecture notes)
! Plessy v. Ferguson (1896) and Brown v. Board of Ed. (1954)
! Murder of Emmett Till (August 1955)
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 62
! Rosa Parks / Montgomery Bus Boycott (December 1955 – November 1956)
! White Citizens Council of Birmingham, Alabama
! Little Rock 9 (September 1957)
Differentiated Strategies and Sheltered Instruction Observation Protocol (SIOP)
Content Objectives and Language Objectives (COs and LOs):
! Using KWL charts, brainstorm what students already know. (CO)
! Use sentence frames: “I know that ______”, “I want to know that
______”, and “I learned that ______.” (LO)
Activities and Performance Tasks:
! Theme Music: (“Society’s Child”, “No Such Thing”, “Jeremy”) (lyrics and
directions for Theme Music)
! Analyze lyrics from “Death of Emmett Till” song (music and lyrics by Bob Dylan)
! Delta Blues musicians and covers of songs – Matching (listing of songs by
original artists and covers by more contemporary artists)
Assessment Evidence
! Pre-Post Test
Resources:
! Rockin’ in Time: A Social History of Rock and Roll, 7th Edition, Chapter 1: “The
Blues, Rock-and-Roll, and Racism”, Szatmary, David P., Pearson, Prentice Hall,
2009.
! “History of Rock and Roll: Part I” (video)
! “Ray” (video)
! “The Century: 1950’s Civil Rights” (video)
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 63
! Langston Hughes poem, “One Way Ticket”
! “Meeting David Wilson” (video)
! “Martin Scorsese presents the Blues: The Road to Memphis” (video)
! Guest Speaker: Tay Cooper, “Why We Listen to Music – What Happens to Our
Brain When We Listen to Music” [email protected]
! Video clip from “Separate but Equal” (scene with dolls)
Musical Artists Featured:
! Theme Music: (Janis Ian, John Mayer, and Pearl Jam)
! Robert Johnson – “Sweet Home Chicago”
! Billie Holliday – “Strange Fruit”
! Bessie Smith – “Nobody Knows You When You’re Down and Out”
! Muddy Waters – “Rollin’ and Tumblin’”, “Trouble No More”
! Howlin’ Wolf – “Smokestack Lightenin’”, “Back Door Man”, “How Many More
years”, “I Ain’t Superstitious”, “Killing Floor”, Spoonful
! Bo Diddley – “I’m a Man”
! BB King – “Why I Sing the Blues”
! John Lee Hooker – Boom Boom”
! Little Richard – “Good Golly Miss Molly”
! Chuck Berry – “Johnny B. Goode”
! Ray Charles – “I’ve Got a Woman”
! Fats Domino – “Blueberry Hill”
! Arthur “Big Boy” Crudup – “That’s All Right
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 64
UNIT II: ELVIS AND ROCKABILLY (1953-1959) OVERVIEW (2 weeks)
CA Standards: 11.8.7 Describe the effects on society and the economy of
technological developments since 1945...
CA Standards: 11.8.8 Discuss forms of popular culture, with emphasis on their
origins and geographic diffusion (e.g. jazz and other forms of
popular music….)
CA Standards: 11.9.3 Trace the origins and geopolitical consequences (foreign
and domestic) of the Cold War and containment policy,
including the era of McCarthyism, instances of domestic
Communism…, and blacklisting...
Common Core Standards: RH.11-12.3 Evaluate various explanations for actions or
events and determine which explanation best
accords with textual evidence, acknowledging
where the text leaves matters uncertain.
Essential Questions:
! To what extent did television influence and change the social landscape of
America?
! In what ways did rock and roll challenge 1950’s conformity?
Enduring Understandings: Students will know and understand the social and political significance of:
! Eisenhower Administration (Korean War Armistice, Highway System, Geneva
Accords, Domino Theory)
! Television and its impact in the music industry
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 65
! 4 C’s of the 1950’s: Civil Rights, Consumerism, Conformity, Communism
! McCarthyism (Rosenbergs)
Differentiated Strategies and Sheltered Instruction Observation Protocol (SIOP)
Content Objectives and Language Objectives (COs and LOs):
! Use vocabulary related to content concepts. (CO)
! Identify realia, photographs, and/or illustrations using appropriate labels and
vocabulary. (CO)
! Write a sentence for each topic: civil rights, consumerism, conformity, and
communism. (LO)
Activities and Performance Tasks:
! Dot Game (from History Alive!)
! Examine Eisenhower’s Farewell Address (speech)
! “History and Cultural Events of the 1950’s” (lecture notes)
Assessment Evidence:
! Photograph Analysis (graphic organizer that plugs images from unit and identifies
themes linking the images)
Resources:
! Rockin’ in Time: A Social History of Rock and Roll, 7th Edition, Chapter 2: “Elvis
and Rockabilly”, Szatmary, David P., Pearson, Prentice Hall, 2009.
! Rise to Globalism: American Foreign Policy Since 1938, 8th Ed., Chapter 9:
“From Hungary and Suez to Cuba” (Eisenhower), Ambrose, Stephen E., and
Brinkley, Douglas B., Penguin Books,1997
! “History of Rock and Roll” (video)
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 66
! “Walk the Line” (video)
! “The Century: 1950’s – Pop Culture and Consumerism” (video)
! “I Love Lucy: Role Reversal” (working the chocolate factory episode) (video)
! Video clip from “Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet”
! Video clip from “The Majestic” (testifying before House of un-American Activities
Committee -H UAC - scene)
! Video clip from “Ed Sullivan Rock and Roll Classics: Elvis”
! Video clip from “Pleasantville” (book burning scene)
! Video clip from “Mona Lisa Smile” (the firing of staff surrounding birth control)
! YouTube clip of Sen. Joseph McCarthy addressing Congress
Musical Artists Featured:
! Sun Records
Elvis Presley – “That’s All Right”
Johnny Cash – “Folsom Prison Blues”
Carl Perkins – “Blue Suede Shoes”
Jerry Lee Lewis – “Whole Lotta Shakin’ Goin’ On””
! Roy Orbison – “Oh, Pretty Woman”
! Johnny and Dorsey Burnette – “Train Kept a ‘Rollin’”
! Buddy Holly and the Crickets – “Peggy Sue”
! Everly Brothers – “All I Have to do is Dream”
! Ricky Nelson – “Hello Mary Lou”
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 67
UNIT V: BOB DYLAN AND THE NEW FRONTIER (1960-1963) OVERVIEW (3 weeks)
CA Standards: 11.9.3 Trace the origins and geopolitical consequences (foreign
and domestic) of the Cold War and containment policy,
including the Bay of Pigs invasion and the Cuban Missile
Crisis.
CA Standards: 12.7.8 Understand the scope of presidential power and decision
making through examination of case studies such as the
Cuban Missile Crisis...
Common Core Standards: RH.11-12.8 Evaluate an author’s premises, claims, and
evidence by corroborating or challenging them
with other information.
Common Core Standards: RH.11-12.9 Integrate information from diverse sources,
both primary and secondary, into a coherent
understanding of an idea or event, noting
discrepancies among sources
Essential Questions:
! Is compromise with an enemy a sign of weakness?
! Do corporations have an ethical obligation to provide their workers with a livable
wage and medical benefits?
Enduring Understandings: Students will know and understand the social and
political significance of:
! Kennedy Administration (Peace Corps, Bay of Pigs, Cuban Missile Crisis)
! Marxism
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 68
! Progressive Era
! IWW / Folk Revival
Differentiated Strategies and Sheltered Instruction Observation Protocol (SIOP)
Content Objectives and Language Objectives (COs and LOs):
! Use coding system while reading nonfiction text to identify concepts and facts
that are familiar, confusing, new, unusual, or surprising. (CO)
! Clarify misconceptions and misunderstandings about a text in group setting. (CO)
! Have students ask questions about concepts and facts that are confusing. (LO)
! Read and discuss with group members parts of the text. (LO)
Activities and Performance Tasks:
! ”Evolution of Labor Movement” (lecture notes)
! Analyze JFK’s Inaugural Address (speech)
! Magazine analysis (graphic organizer for “Life” magazines from 1960’s)
! Theme Music: (Pete Seeger – “Waist Deep in Big Muddy”, Peter, Paul & Mary –
“Don’t Think Twice”, Bob Dylan – “The Times They are a-Changin’”) (lyrics and
directions for Theme Music)
Assessment Evidence:
! Political Cartoon analysis
! Pink Floyd’s “Animals” (Pigs, Dogs, and Sheep) illustrating Corporations,
Managers, Workers (graphic organizer and lyrics to identify which animal belongs
to corporations, managers, or workers)
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 69
Resources:
! Rockin’ in Time: A Social History of Rock and Roll, 7th Edition, Chapter 5: “Bob
Dylan and the New Frontier”, Szatmary, David P., Pearson, Prentice Hall, 2009.
! Rockin’ in Time: A Social History of Rock and Roll, 7th Edition, Chapter 9: “Folk
Rock”, Szatmary, David P., Pearson, Prentice Hall, 2009.
! Rise to Globalism: American Foreign Policy since 1938, 8th Ed., Ch. 10:
“Kennedy and the New Frontiers”, Ambrose, Stephen E., and Brinkley, Douglas
B. Penguin Books, 1997
! “The History of Rock and Roll: Part IV: Plugging In” (video)
! JFK Inaugural Speech (speech)
! “The Century: Kennedy Administration” (video)
! Video clip from “13 Days”
! Video clip from “Smothered: Smothers Brothers” featuring Pete Seeger
Musical Artists Featured:
! Woodie Guthrie – “Better World a-Comin’”
! The Weavers – “This Land is Your Land”
! Pete Seeger – “Waist Deep in the Big Muddy”
! Peter, Paul and Mary – Don’t Think Twice, it’s Alright”
! Simon & Garfunkel – “Sounds of Silence”
! Phil Ochs – “Talking Cuban Crisis”
! Bob Dylan – “The Times They are a-Changin’”
! Joan Baez – “Diamonds and Rust”
! Pink Floyd – “Pigs”, “Dogs”, “Sheep”
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 70
UNIT VI: MOTOWN: THE SOUND OF INTEGRATION (1960-1966) OVERVIEW (2 weeks)
CA Standards: 11.10.4 Examine the roles of civil rights advocates (MLK, Jr.),
including the significance of MLK, Jr’s “Letter from
Birmingham Jail” and “I Have a Dream” speech.
CA Standards: 11.10.6 Analyze the passage and effects of civil rights and voting
rights legislation (1964 Civil Rights Act, Voting Rights Act of
1965 and the, 24th Amendment with an emphasis on equality
of access to education and to the political process.)
CA Standards: 11.11.2 Discuss the significant domestic policy speeches of…
Johnson... (e.g. with regard to education, civil rights,
economic policy, environmental policy).
CA Standards: 11.11.6 Analyze the persistence of poverty and how different
analyses of this issue influence welfare reform, health
insurance reform, and other social policies.
Common Core Standards: RH.11-12.8 Evaluate an author’s premises, claims, and
evidence by corroborating or challenging
them with other information.
Common Core Standards: RH.11-12.9 Integrate information from diverse sources,
both primary and secondary, into a coherent
understanding of an idea or event, noting
discrepancies among sources
Essential Questions:
! When is civil disobedience justifiable? When is it not?
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 71
! What are the costs and benefits of public education?
Enduring Understandings: Students will know and understand the social and
political significance of:
! President Johnson (the Great Society, War on Poverty, Civil Rights Act of 1964,
24th Amendment Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1964, Voting
Rights Act of 1965)
! Civil Disobedience: Woolworth Sit-Ins/Freedom Riders
! SNCC / SCLC
! Children’s March
! James Meredith / Ole Miss
! MLK’s “I Have a Dream” speech / “Letter from a Birmingham Jail”
Differentiated Strategies and Sheltered Instruction Observation Protocol (SIOP)
Content Objectives Language Objectives (COs and LOs):
! Identify three key concepts related to MLK’s “I Have a Dream” speech. (CO)
! Orally explain to a partner why he or she thinks the identified three concepts are
the most important in the speech. (LO)
Activities and Performance Tasks:
! “Civil Rights in the 1960’s” (lecture notes)
! Analyze “Letter from a Birmingham Jail” (transcription of letter)
! Analyze “I Have a Dream Speech” (transcription of speech)
! Literacy Test (Louisiana Literacy Test)
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 72
Assessment Evidence:
! Children’s March primary source document analysis activity (primary source
documents including letters and telegrams to Pres. Kennedy, as well as
photographs, and 1963 timeline. Graphic organizer to plot information.)
! Story Telling Project (Mind Map assignment)
Resources:
! Rockin’ in Time: A Social History of Rock and Roll, 7th Edition, Chapter 6:
“Motown: The Sound of Integration”, Szatmary, David P., Pearson, Prentice Hall,
2009.
! You Can’t Be Neutral on a Moving Train, Ch. 5: “Selma, Alabama”, Zinn, Howard.
Beacon Press, 1994.
! “History of Rock and Roll: Part II: Good Rockin’ Tonight” (video)
! “Mississippi Burning” (video)
! “I Have a Dream Speech” (transcription of speech)
! “Letter from a Birmingham Jail” (transcription of letter)
! “Mighty Times: The Children’s March” (from Teaching Tolerance) (video)
Musical Artists:
! Smokey Robinson & the Miracles – “You’ve Really Got a Hold on Me”
! The Supremes – “I Hear a Symphony”
! Marvin Gaye & Tammi Terrell – “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough”
! Temptations – “I’m Losing You”
! The Four Tops – “Can’t Help Myself”
! The Jackson 5 – “Never Can Say Goodbye”
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 73
UNIT VIII: ACID ROCK: COUNTER-CULTURE MOVEMENTS IN THE 1950’s & 60’s OVERVIEW (2 weeks)
Common Core Standards: RH.11-12.2 Determine the central ideas or information of
a primary or secondary source; provide an
accurate summary that makes clear the
relationships among the key details and
ideas.
Common Core Standards: RH.11-12.4 Determine the meaning of words and phrases
as they are used in a text, including analyzing
how an author uses and refines the meaning
of a key term over the course of a text…”
Common Core Standards: RH.11-12.5 Analyze in detail how a complex primary
source is structured, including how key
sentences, paragraphs, and large portions of
the text contribute to the whole.
Essential Question:
! When does freedom of speech go too far? Can it go too far?
Enduring Understandings: Students will know and understand the social and political significance of:
! The Beat Generation (Jack Kerouac, Allen Ginsberg, Merry Pranksters)
! The Haight-Ashbury scene
! Monterey Pop Festival
Differentiated Strategies and Sheltered Instruction Observation Protocol (SIOP)
Content Objectives and Language Objectives (COs and LOs):
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 74
! Identify three key concepts related to Ginsberg’s “America” poem. (CO)
! Orally explain to a partner why he or she thinks the identified three concepts are
the most important in the poem. (LO)
Activities and Performance Tasks:
! PowerPoint of “The Beat Generation”
! Analyze the poem, “America” by Allen Ginsberg
Resources:
! Rockin’ in Time: A Social History of Rock and Roll, 7th Edition, Chapter 10: “Acid
Rock”, Szatmary, David P., Pearson, Prentice Hall, 2009.
! “The Century: 1968” (video)
! Video clip from “Tom Brokaw: 1968”
! Video clip from “Woodstock”
! Video clips from Monterey Pop
! “When You’re Strange” (Jim Morrison) (video)
! Video clip from “The Magic Bus”
! Video clip from “History Channel: Hippies”
! “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest” (video)
! “America” excerpt from Howl and Other Poems, Ginsberg, Allen. City Lights
Books, 1959
Musical Artists:
! The Velvet Underground and Lou Reed – “Heroin”
! Big Brother and the Holding Company – “Ball and Chain”
! Grateful Dead – “Estimated Prophet”
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 75
! The Doors – “Break on Through”
! The Fugs – “Nothing”
! Jefferson Airplane – “Volunteers”
! Quicksilver Messenger Service – “What About Me?”
! Beatles – “Blue Jay Way”
! UFO – “Doctor Doctor”
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 76
UNIT IX: FIRE FROM THE STREETS (1966-1968) OVERVIEW (2 weeks)
CA Standards: 11.10.5 Discuss the diffusion of the civil rights movement of African
Americans from the churches of the rural South and the
urban North, including the resistance to racial
desegregation…
Common Core Standards: RH.11-12.6 Evaluate authors’ differing points of view on
the same historical event or issue by
assessing the authors’ claims, reasoning, and
evidence.
Common Core Standards: RH.11-12.9 Integrate information from diverse sources,
both primary and secondary, into a coherent
understanding of an idea or event, noting
discrepancies among sources.
Essential Questions:
! What are the impacts on a society of assimilation and separation?
! In what ways does the dominant culture of a society maintain its position?
Enduring Understandings: Students will know and understand the social and
political significance of:
! Riots in Detroit, Watts, and Chicago
! Sanitation Strike and murder of Dr. King
! Black Panthers
Differentiated Strategies and Sheltered Instruction Observation Protocol (SIOP)
Content Objectives and Language Objectives (COs and LOs)
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 77
! Select and define words for ongoing vocabulary learning. (CO)
! Make connections between previously learned vocabulary and vocabulary found
in text. (CO)
! Write definition for each new vocabulary word selected from text, such as: “I
remember this word from when we read about ______.” (LO)
Activities and Performance Tasks:
! Magazine Analysis (graphic organizer to accompany “Life” magazines from
1960’s)
! White Privilege Activity (taken from “Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack” by Peggy
McIntosh)
! Compare/Contrast: Booker T. Washington, W.E.B. DuBois, Marcus Garvey,
Malcolm X, Dr. King (video clips and graphic organizer)
Assessment Evidence:
! Social Justice Photography Project (project assignment and group assessment
adapted from “Using Photography to Conceptualize Social Justice” by William
DeJean)
Resources:
! Rockin’ in Time: A Social History of Rock and Roll, 7th Edition, Chapter 11: “Fire
From the Streets”, Szatmary, David P., Pearson, Prentice Hall, 2009.
! History of Rock and Roll: Part V: The Sounds of Soul” (video)
! Life Magazines from the 1960s
! Video clips from “Black History: From Civil War thru Today: Malcolm X, MLK,
and Booker T. Washington”
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 78
! “Witness” (MLK) (video)
! Video clip from “Amistad” (the scene in which Cinque retells the story of how he
landed off the coast of Connecticut)
! Video clip from “The Pianist” (the scene in which the pianist is discovered by the
Nazi soldier just before the end of the war).
! “White Privilege: Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack” by Peggy McIntosh handout
! “Picture This: Using Photography to Conceptualize Social Justice” by William
DeJean assignment and group assessment forms.
Musical Artists:
! James Brown – “Say it Loud”
! Otis Redding – “The Dock of the Bay”
! Wilson Pickett – “In the Midnight Hour”
! Sam Cooke – “A Change is Gonna Come’”
! Aretha Franklin – “Respect”
! Sam & Dave – “Soul Man”
! Booker T & the MG’s – “Green Onions”
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 79
UNIT X: MILITANT BLUES ON CAMPUS (1968-1973) OVERVIEW (3 weeks)
CA Standards: 11.9.2 Understand the role of military alliances, including NATO
and SEATO, in deterring communist aggression and
maintaining security during the Cold War.
CA Standards: 11.9.4 List the effects of foreign policy on domestic polices and vice
versa (e.g. protests during the war in Vietnam).
CA Standards: 12.5.1 Understand the changing interpretations of the Bill of Rights
over time, including interpretations of the basic freedoms
articulated in the First Amendment.
CA Standards: 12.7.8 Understand the scope of presidential power and decision
making through examination of case studies such as …the
War Powers Act…
Common Core Standards: RH.11-12.1 Cite specific textual evidence to support
analysis of primary and secondary sources,
connecting insights from specific details to an
understanding of the text as a whole.
Essential Questions:
! Does criticizing one’s government during times of war weaken the country?
! How effective was antiwar music of the late 1960’s in ending the Vietnam War?
! How do alliances benefit a country? How do they harm?
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 80
Enduring Understandings: Students will be know and understand the social and political significance of:
! President Nixon (détente, Vietnamization, Pentagon Papers, Watergate, War
Powers Act)
! North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) / Southeast Asia Treaty Organization
(SEATO), Vietnam War
! Tinker v. Des Moines (1969)
! National Democratic Convention of 1968, Kent State Massacre and Campus
Riots
! Woodstock and Altamont concert events from 1969
Differentiated Strategies and Sheltered Instruction Observation Protocol (SIOP)
Content Objectives and Language Objectives (COs and LOs):
! Using KWL charts, brainstorm what students already know. (CO)
! Use sentence frames: “I know that ______”, “I want to know that
______”, and “I learned that ______.” (LO)
Activities and Performance Tasks:
! PowerPoint on “Militant Blues on Campus” (worksheet)
! Album Cover analysis (graphic organizer analyzing album covers)
Assessment Evidence:
! Strategic Academic Controversy: Tinker v. Des Moines and First Amendment
rights (SAC form/instructions, text of background information and majority and
dissenting opinions from Tinker case.)
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 81
Resources:
! Rockin’ in Time: A Social History of Rock and Roll, 7th Edition, Chapter 12:
“Militant Blues on Campus”, Szatmary, David P., Pearson, Prentice Hall, 2009.
! You Can’t Be Neutral on a Moving Train, Ch. 8: “Sometimes to be Silent is a Lie:
Vietnam”, Zinn, Howard. Beacon Press, 1994.
! Rise to Globalism: American Foreign Policy since 1938, 8th Ed., Ch. 12 – “Nixon,
Détente, and the Debacle in Vietnam, Ambrose, Stephen E., and Brinkley,
Douglas B. Penguin Books, 1997
! “Dear America: Letters from Vietnam” (video)
! “The Century: Nixon and the Vietnam War” (video)
! Video clip from “Legends of the Canyon”
! Video clip from Dick Cavett’s 1970 interview with Janis Joplin
! “History of Rock and Roll: Part VII: Guitar Heroes” (video)
Musical Artists:
! Crosby, Stills & Nash – “Find the Cost of Freedom”
! Barry McGuire – “Eve of Destruction” v. Sgt. Barry Sadler – “Ballad of the Green
Berets”
! Jimi Hendrix – “Purple Haze”
! Cream – “Sunshine of Your Love”
! Led Zeppelin – “How Many More Times
! Black Sabbath – “Into the Void”
! Country Joe and Fish – “Feel Like I’m Fixin’ to Die Rag”
! Santana – “Soul Sacrifice” performance from Woodstock
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 82
! Steve Miller Band – “Your Saving Grace”
! Yardbirds (Eric Clapton to Jeff Beck to Jimmy Page) – “Shapes of Things”
! Janis Joplin – “Move Over”
! Motor City Five (MC5) – “Kick out the Jams”
! Creedence Clearwater Revival – “Suzy Q”
! Johnny & Edgar Winters – “Rollin’ and Tumblin’”
! Allman Brothers – “Trouble No More”
! Lynyrd Skynyrd – “That Smell”
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 83
UNIT XI: SOFT SOUNDS OF THE SEVENTIES AND ACTIVISM OVERVIEW (4 weeks)
CA Standards: 11.10.5 Discuss the diffusion of the civil rights movement of African
Americans …including the resistance to desegregation….
and how the advances influenced the agendas, strategies,
and effectiveness of the quests of American Indians, Asian
Americans, and Hispanic Americans for civil rights and equal
opportunities.
CA Standards: 11.11.3 Describe the changing roles of women in society as reflected
in the entry of more women into the labor force and the
changing family structure.
CA Standards: 11.11.4 Explain the constitutional crisis originating from the
Watergate scandal.
CA Standards: 11.11.5 Trace the impact of, need for, and controversies associated
w/ environmental conservation, expansion of the national
park system, and the development of environmental
protection laws…
CA Standards: 12.5.4 Explain the controversies that have resulted over changing
interpretations of civil rights, including those in …Regents of
the Univ. of CA v. Bakke…
CA Standards: 12.7.8 Understand the scope of presidential power and decision
making through examination of case studies such as …the
War Powers Act…
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 84
Common Core Standards: RH.11-12.1 Cite specific textual evidence to support
analysis of primary and secondary sources,
connecting insights from specific details to an
understanding of the text as a whole.
Common Core Standards: RH.11-12.6 Evaluate authors’ differing points of view on
the same historical event or issue by
assessing the authors’ claims, reasoning, and
evidence.
Common Core Standards: RH.11-12.9 Integrate information from diverse sources,
both primary and secondary, into a coherent
understanding of an idea or event, noting
discrepancies among sources.
Essential Questions:
! Does a society benefit more by protecting its environment or ensuring economic
stability? Can you successfully have both simultaneously?
! Are civil rights’ protection ensured in the Constitution?
Enduring Understandings: Students will know and understand the social and political significance of:
! The Commercialization of Music (the aftermath of Woodstock)
! Environmental Activism (Rachel Carson)
! ERA and the Women’s Movement (Betty Friedan)
! United Farm Workers (Cesar Chavez)
! American Indian Movement (Leonard Peltier)
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 85
! Movement for Gay Rights (Harvey Milk)
Differentiated Strategies and Sheltered Instruction Observation Protocol (SIOP)
Content Objectives and Language Objectives (COs and LOs):
! Take notes on a framed outline during lecture notes, text reading, and video
viewing. (CO)
! Make meaningful guess about key concepts in a framed outline. (LO)
! Determine if the guessed key concept makes sense in the sequence of a framed
outline. (LO)
Activities and Performance Tasks:
! Bracero Program (picking up confetti from floor to illustrate how hard it is to have
your back bent over for extended periods of time)
! Evolution of Women’s Role (graphic organizer comparing and contrasting “Leave
it to Beaver”, “Brady Bunch” and “Roseanne” clips)
! Theme Music: “Under My Thumb”, “That’s the Way I’ve Always Heard it Should
Be”, “I am Woman” (lyrics)
! Theme Music: “Big Yellow Taxi”, “Wind on the Water”, “Nature’s Way” (lyrics and
instructions for Theme Music)
! “Activism in the 1970’s” (lecture notes)
Assessment Evidence:
! 1970’s Project
Resources:
! Rockin’ in Time: A Social History of Rock and Roll, 7th Edition, Chapter 13:
“Escaping into the Seventies”, Szatmary, David P., Pearson, Prentice Hall, 2009.
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 86
! Fast Food Nation: The Dark Side of the All-American Meal, Ch. 2: “Your Trusted
Friends”, Schlosser, Eric. Harper Perennial, 2005.
! You Can’t Be Neutral on a Moving Train, Ch. 9: “The Last Teach-In”, Zinn,
Howard. Beacon Press, 1994.
! Guest Speaker: Lupe Rodriguez (her father was a Bracero)
! “History of Rock and Roll: Part VIII: The ‘70’s” (video)
! “Mr. K and the First Earth Day” (handout)
! “Leave it to Beaver” / “Brady Bunch” / “Roseanne” (videos)
! “Milk” (video)
! Video clips from “Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee” and “Incident at Oglala”
! “Viva La Causa” (Cesar Chavez) (from Teaching Tolerance)
! Video clip from “If a Tree Falls: A Story of the ELF”
! Video clip from “Iron Jawed Angels”
Musical Artists:
! Carly Simon – “That’s the Way I’ve Always Heard it Should be”
! Helen Reddy – “I am Woman”
! Carole King – “Tapestry”
! Stevie Wonder – “You Haven’t Done Nothin’”
! Steely Dan – “King of the World”
! Eagles – “The Long Run”
! Jethro Tull – “Hymn 43”
! Yes – “Roundabout”
! Pink Floyd – “Time”
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 87
! Robin Trower – “Day of the Eagle”
! Emerson, Lake and Palmer – “From the Beginning”
! Neil Young – “Like a Hurricane”
! Joni Mitchell – “Big Yellow Taxi”
! Crosby & Nash – “Wind on the Water”
! Spirit – “Nature’s Way”
! Billy Joel – “Leningrad”
! Aerosmith – “One Way Street”
! Fleetwood Mac – “Hypnotized”
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 88
UNIT XIII: PUNK ROCK AND THE NEW GENERATION (1975-1988) OVERVIEW (3 weeks)
CA Standards: 10.9. Analyze the reasons for the collapse of the Soviet Union
including weaknesses of the command economy, burdens of
military commitments, and growing resistance to Soviet rule..
CA Standards: 11.9.5. Analyze the role of the Reagan administration and other
factors in the victory of the West in the Cold War.
CA Standards: 11.9.6 Describe U.S. Middle East policy and its strategic, political,
and economic interests, including those related to the Gulf
War.
Common Core Standards: RH.11-12.4 Determine the meaning of words and phrases
as they are used in a text, including analyzing
how an author uses and refines the meaning
of a key term over the course of a text…”
Essential Questions:
! Are there advantages for a country to have a “perceived” enemy?
! Is war good for a country’s economic stability/recovery?
! Is it the responsibility of a country to care for its citizens when they are not able to
care for themselves?
Enduring Understandings: Students will know and understand the social and political significance of:
! Reagan Administration (Fall of Communism, AIDs, Homelessness, Strategic
Defense Initiative (SDI), Iran Contra Scandal, Iran-Iraq War, USDA de-regulation)
! Jamaica and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) / World Systems theory
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 89
Differentiated Strategies and Sheltered Instruction Observation Protocol (SIOP)
Content Objectives and Language Objectives (COs and LOs):
! Generate predictions about cold war events, justify predictions, and after listening
and reading, confirm or disconfirm predictions. (CO)
! Use the following sentence frames when making predictions, justifying
predictions, and confirming or disconfirming predictions: “I predict that
______will happen, because ______.” “I wish to
change my prediction to ______because ______.” (LO)
Activities and Performance Tasks:
! Compare / Contrast “American History X” and “This is England” video clips
(worksheet with questions to compare and contrast)
! President Reagan’s speech on the “Evil Empire” (transcription of speech)
! BB Demonstration (taken from History Alive!)
Assessment Evidence:
! Cold War / Vietnam War Test
Resources:
! Rockin’ in Time: A Social History of Rock and Roll, 7th Edition, Chapter 14: “The
Era of Excess”, Szatmary, David P., Pearson, Prentice Hall, 2009.
! Rise to Globalism: American Foreign Policy since 1938, 8th Ed., Chapter. 15
“Regan and the Evil Empire”, Ambrose, Stephen E., and Brinkley, Douglas G.
Penguin Books, 1997.
! Why Nations go to War, Ch. 7: “The War Lover: Saddam Hussein’s Two Wars
in the Persian Gulf”, Stoessinger, John G., Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2001.
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 90
! Fast Food Nation: The Dark Side of the All-American Meal, Ch. 9: What’s in the
Meat?”, Schlosser, Eric. Harper Perennial, 2005.
! “The Century: Reagan Administration” (video)
! “History of Rock and Roll: Part IX: Punk” (video)
! Guest Speaker: Brian Underhill on Reggae
! Guest Speaker: Colin from Standards Records in Vista on Punk –
! Video clip from “This is England”
! Video clip from “American History X”
! Video Clip from “Life and Debt” (scene explaining impacts from International
Monetary Fund loans to Jamaica)
! “SLC Punk” (video)
! “American Hardcore” (video)
! “Marley” (Bob Marley – not the dog! video)
! Video clip from “The Harder They Come”
! YouTube clips of several nuclear bomb tests
Musical Artists/Genres:
! Television – “See No Evil”
! Talking Heads – “Psycho Killer”
! Patti Smith Group – “Because the Night”
! Ramones – “I Want to be Sedated”
! Sex Pistols – “God Save the Queen”
! X – “Johnny Hit and Run Pauline”
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 91
! The Police – “Walking on the Moon”
! Billy Idol – “Rebel Yell”
! Bob Marley - “Waiting in Vain”
! President Reagan speech on “Evil Empire”
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 92
UNIT XVI: HIP HOP NATION (1982-1997) OVERVIEW (2 weeks)
CA Standards: 11.9.7 Examine relations between the US and Mexico in the 20th
century, including key economic, political, immigration, and
environmental issues.
CA Standards: 12.2.5 Understand the process by which competition among buyers
and sellers determines a market price.
Essential Questions:
! Did NAFTA benefit the United States, Canada, and Mexico equally?
! Were impeachment charges brought against President Clinton justified? How do
the charges compare with the impeachment of President Johnson, the
resignation of President Nixon, and Iran Contra Scandal of the Reagan
administration?
Enduring Understandings: Students will know and understand the social and political significance of:
! Clinton Administration – NAFTA and Impeachment hearings
! Rebirth of 1970’s “blaxploitation”
! Continued disparity between Black and White
Differentiated Strategies and Sheltered Instruction Observation Protocol (SIOP)
Content Objectives and Language Objectives (COs and LOs):
! Explain the importance of NAFTA in relation to each of the countries that make
up North America: Canada, the United States, and Mexico. (CO)
! Talk about what the differences are, and which, if any, country benefits more
than the other two. (LO)
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 93
Activities and Performance Tasks:
! Analyze Freakonomics chapter on the “economics” of drug dealing (worksheet
with questions incorporating supply and demand concepts)
! Evaluate effects of NAFTA from a US perspective and Mexico perspective
Resources:
! Rockin’ in Time: A Social History of Rock and Roll, 7th Edition, Chapter 19: “Hip
Hop Nation”, Szatmary, David P., Pearson, Prentice Hall, 2009.
! Rise to Globalism: American Foreign Policy since 1938, 8th Ed., Chapter 18:
“Clinton and the Democratic Enlargement”, Ambrose, Stephen E., and Brinkley,
Douglas G., Penguin Books, 1997.
! Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden side of Everything, Ch.
3: “Why do Drug Dealers Still Live with Their Moms?”, Levitt, Steven D., and
Dubner, Stephen J. HarperCollins, 2005.
! NAFTA excerpt
Musical Artists/Genres:
! Run-D.M.C. – “It’s Like That”
! Beastie Boys – “Brass Monkey”
! Cyprus Hill – “Insane in the Membrane”
! L.L. Cool J. – “Goin Back to Cali”
! Notorious B.I.G. (Biggie Smalls) – “Hypnotize”
! Tupac Shakur – “Changes”
! Snoop Dogg – “Who I am”
! Eminem – “Lose Yourself”
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 94
They took all the trees and put them in a tree museum,
then they charged the people a dollar and a half just to see ‘em.
Don’t it always seem to go, that you don’t know what you’ve got
‘til it’s gone.
They paved paradise and put up a parking lot. (Joni Mitchell, 1970)
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 95
References
Ambrose, S. & Brinkley, D. G. (1997). Rise to Globalism, New York, NY: Penguin
Books.
Levitt, S. D. & Dubner, S. J. (2005). Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the
Hidden side of Everything, New York, NY: HarperCollins.
Schlosser, E.. (2005). Fast Food Nation: The Dark Side of the All-American Meal,
New York, NY: Harper Perennial.
Stoessinger, J. G. (2001). Why Nations go to War, Boston, MA: Bedford/St. Martin’s.
Szatmary, D. P. (2009). Rockin’ in Time: A Social History of Rock and Roll, 7th
Edition, Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson, Prentice Hall.
Zinn, H. (1994). You Can’t Be Neutral on a Moving Train, Boston, MA: Beacon Press.
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 96
Chapter Five: Project Recommendations
The issues tackled in this project are twofold: the potential educational crisis created by the elimination of the arts and music programs in high schools, and a reduction in time for social studies and history coverage in classrooms across the country is at our doorstep. While a bad economy is the culprit for at least part of this phenomenon, new federal mandates focusing on mathematics and language arts has contributed significantly as well. It is incumbent upon educators to teach about civil responsibilities and how to be a model citizen of the community, state, country, and world, and yet social studies takes a back seat whenever an economic or educational crisis hits.
I wrote the curriculum for “A Socio Political History of Rock and Roll” as an answer to this very problem. This course teaches history through the lens of the musicians and gives meaning to students in a format that makes sense to them.
Students, particularly the ones identified by Howard Gardner as “musically intelligent” are taught through an approach that helps them comprehend content (2011). This 16- unit curriculum examines the social and political upheavals that took place in this country between 1950-2000, placing an emphasis on social justice and oral history.
In earlier chapters, the following questions were raised for consideration: What factors led to the loss of classroom time originally dedicated to social studies and history at the elementary and middle school levels, and what could be done to reverse that trend? Were there economic factors to consider for this loss of time? Did the 2001 implementation of No Child Left Behind (NCLB) play a role? Was there evidence that music had an impact on learning, on effecting social change? And lastly, what could
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 97
teachers do to modify their lesson planning to make history more meaningful to
students? What I found in my research, and my own personal experience was that
there is a swinging pendulum when it comes to education. I had heard this early in my teaching from the veteran teachers. They told me that superintendents come and go, principals come and go, and proposed approaches to teaching come and go, but
teachers and students remain constant, and authentic ways of teaching, which include
differentiated methods, the arts, and covering all core contents equally reaches the
largest number of students.
Research of music’s beneficial impacts on learning cannot be denied; there is
solid proof that listening to and playing music contributes to reading readiness and
comprehension, language acquisition, and mathematical readiness. And we know
intuitively, and based on our own experiences, how deeply the music we learn in our
preschool years stays with us. Despite this, cuts in education funding resulting from
state legislation like Proposition 13, and unintended impacts from federal mandates like
No Child Left Behind have taken a toll on arts programs, and social studies and history
classes.
History has shown the powerful effects of music on social change, particularly during the 1960’s. One could argue that the music written during this era not only placed pressure on the Presidents Johnson and Nixon and Congress to end the
Vietnam War, but it led high school students to force the hand of President Kennedy to end segregation in Alabama’s public facilities. In terms of making history more meaningful and engaging for students, elements of this elective course could be incorporated into lesson planning.
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 98
This chapter will review the lessons that I learned from the process, which began
over ten years ago, along with a plan to implement the course throughout the country,
as well as its educational implications. Limitations to the project are addressed, and
future aspirations for the course are identified.
Lessons Learned
Growing up, the least favorite subject throughout my educational experience was
social studies / history. I blame my distaste and apathy for this content area on two
factors: having the two cruelest teachers of my junior high years for 7th and 8th grade
social studies; and a dry, boring, one dimensional delivery of social studies year after year, which lacked emotion and relevance to my own life. This was over 40 years ago, and today’s teachers have the benefit of teaching, literally, in “3D”. We now have technology and an array of tools at our disposal to make history come alive for our students.
While it’s true that we have benefited from having great tools at our disposal, we
have been cursed with covering more content in less time. A typical high school U.S.
History class in 1973 offered either 19th or 20th century history. Today, that same U.S.
History class covers Christopher Columbus through the Regan Administration, so not only are you covering nearly 500 years of content, you are still 25 years behind current history by the end of the school year. In the 1990’s, states across the country adopted
frameworks designed to prepare students with “knowledge and skills necessary for
career and postsecondary options and provide a blueprint for organizing and delivering
instruction” (CA Department of Education, 1998). Despite the fact that components of
U.S. History are required in 5th and 8th grades, there are over 70 standards identified for
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 99
11th grade U.S. History by the Social Studies Framework for the state of California (CA
State Board of Education, 1998).
No Child Left Behind (NCLB) has exacerbated the situation further by reducing the amount of time dedicated to social studies coverage in elementary and middle schools, leaving students with a weakened understanding of historic content upon entrance into high school. And the content most often glossed over, abbreviated, or in some cases omitted altogether often centers on issues of social justice. How are students expected to know how to confront today’s issues of social injustice if they have little to no understanding of the civil rights movements that took place during the 1960s and
1970s? If you read any high school’s mission or vision statement you are likely to see one feature of the overall statement dedicated to social justice, as such, “A caring community that safeguards human dignity in daily interactions and personal conduct”
(Rancho Buena Visa High School, Vision Statement, 2012). If time in the classroom is not dedicated to addressing such issues, how can the mission or vision be met?
Finding space in high school schedules to teach the history that “fills in the blanks” is the answer, and my suggestion for accomplishing this is to offer an elective course that uses music as the vehicle to drive the class.
Project Implementation Plans
Five years ago I went through the process of getting this elective class added to the high school course catalogs in my District to make the class available at all of the high schools. Since its adoption by the District, and in the three years I’ve taught it, the class has gone through a bit of a transformation. The original scope and sequence for the class focused on foreign policy and oral history, with an emphasis on civil rights.
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 100
Initially, my goal was to teach a class that more heavily emphasized our country’s
foreign policies as it has changed dramatically since World War II. Our country has
moved from an isolationist to an interventionist body, creating for ourselves a vulnerable
position – as evidenced by events such as the 9/11 terrorist attacks. To this end,
Stephen Ambrose’s book, Rise to Globalism, has been an important part of the class. It
was also my desire to impart to my students the importance of “oral history” and to learn
how to listen and ask questions from people who have first hand experience to history.
To this end, I hoped to augment reading and deconstructing text from secondary
sources.
The evolutionary path this class has taken over the past three years has
transformed it into one with social justice at its very core. I have also learned how
relevant the class is for students, and how deeply the themes resonate with them. The
class is still offered at Rancho Buena Vista High School, and I recently met with the
principal at my new high school to add this class to our course catalog beginning in the
2013-14 school year. My principal tells me there is every reason to be optimistic.
Educational Implications
I have taken this class “on the road” at several social studies and history conferences since 2010. I have presented the class at California Council for the Social
Studies (CCSS) conferences, a Teaching American History (TAH) conference, a
Perspectives on the American Experience (PAE) conference, a Colonial Williamsburg conference, a California Council for History Education (CCHE) conference, and the
Social Justice and Equity conference at California State University San Marcos. Finally,
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 101
I presented the class at the National Council for the Social Studies (NCSS) conference in Seattle on November 16, 2012.
Presenting at these conferences has given me an opportunity to reach out to my colleagues who find themselves in the same frustrating situation – that of wanting to teach social studies and history in a meaningful and relevant manner, while meeting critical state and Common Core State Standards. The lesson that I present, which is on the evolution of women’s rights, is an example of what can be incorporated into a stand- alone lesson plan (included as Appendix A).
In confronting the educational implications of a course such as “A Socio-Political
History of Rock and Roll,” I would like to underscore the importance of incorporating
music into lesson planning, addressing the need for differentiating teaching strategies,
using a unit design that is focused on enduring understandings, and finding a way to
make social studies and history content a stronger focus in today’s classrooms.
Adding Music to Teaching
Educators do not need to teach the entire elective class; they can add one unit or
lesson to their teaching repertoire. While the optimum scenario would include having this elective class added to a school’s course catalog, daily lessons or units could be used to augment teaching style. Music could be used to highlight the lesson of the day in the form of the implicit/explicit example, or in theme music, mentioned earlier in this study, or lyric analysis.
Differentiating Strategies
Using methods outlined in Garner’s multiple intelligences, and differentiating strategies is essential for reaching all students. While applying strategies that address
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 102
the seven different intelligences is beneficial for student engagement, using SIOP
strategies makes comprehension and literacy more accessible to all learners.
Understanding by Design (Ubd)
Creating units that incorporate essential questions and enduring understandings
help students retain content years later. The strategies used in this “backwards” approach to teaching also helps to make content more accessible to all students.
Make Social Studies and History a Focus in Schools
As economic and educational crises have forced the hands of the decision makers to impose cuts in those areas, research on music’s beneficial impacts on learning combined with the need to understand our history’s past in order to avoid making the same mistakes in the future argues for inclusion of these classes.
The curriculum written for this project offers a solution to the problem of students not receiving enough instruction of social studies and history content, and offers a creative way of using music as a “hook” for engagement.
Limitations of Project
I am a firm believer in the idea that disappointments come bearing gifts. I believe everything is a process and that (perceived) obstacles are opportunities in disguise. It took close to ten years from the time I initially conceived the idea for this class until the time I taught it for the first time. There were many obstacles and frustrations along the way, and each of them has proven to be a gift. I would not have done anything differently. I believe that if we lived in a time before 2000 when the economy was more robust, and the climate for public education was more supportive, I would have been
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 103
able to move more quickly with this class, but I would have missed out on some great
lessons along the way.
However, there were some very real obstacles that I experienced. The first one I
faced in promoting this course was getting approval from the three high schools within
the Vista Unified School District. While the two comprehensive schools, Vista High
School and Rancho Buena Vista High School, were on board with the course, the
alternative high school, Alta Vista High School, held out for four months before giving its
approval. At the time, Alta Vista offered a class called, “A History of Rock and Roll” and
considered my course a duplication of that class. I spent a great deal of time explaining
that my class was aligned to 25 state standards and included the social and political features, as well as the music present in their offering.
Another frustration I encountered was having my course canceled one week before school started due to budget cuts in the 2009-10 school year. I had taught the course the year before and was eager to implement modifications I had made, based on the feedback I’d gotten from the students in the inaugural class. I had invested close to
$1,000.00 of my own money in books, music, video and other technological supplies for the class. The course was restored the following school year, and has been offered each year since.
My biggest frustration overall, however, was and continues to be the knee-jerk
reaction to a course that many consider a “fluff” elective. The fact that the words “rock
and roll” are contained in the title leads many to believe is it not a worthwhile or
academic course, and the decision makers are more likely to remove it from the roster
when budget cuts are necessitated by a bad economy. To underscore the rigor of this
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 104
course, I secured UC a-g approval, which means that the course qualifies as an elective that can be used by students applying to University of California (UC) and universities in the Cal State University system. The course is also up for discussion at the District’s next Curriculum meeting as being eligible as a history elective. The erroneous perception of the course is what has led to me giving eight presentations at several history, social studies, and social justice and equity conferences since March 2010.
Future Research and Project Suggestions
I would like to continue presenting this class at social studies and history conferences so that other teachers will see the value of incorporating music into their lesson planning, particularly for the students identified by Howard Gardner as “musically intelligent” (2011).
When I look into the future, I would love to work as a lecturer at a community college or university in a teaching credential program as a social studies methods instructor. I am also interested in publishing the course. And when I look further into the future, after I’ve retired from my teaching career I see myself on Sirius Radio with the program, “A slice of history with your morning music.”
Conclusion
This project was born from a desire to find a way to make social studies and history content more relevant and engaging, as well as provide an incentive for students who felt disconnected to want to come to school. Teaching history through the lens of an artist, writer, or musician offers the learner a different perspective of the past, and invites them to analyze primary and secondary sources in a more organic manner. It is anticipated that comprehension of content will increase as well when social studies or
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 105
history is taught as a humanities class that resonates with individual learning styles. I
would like to invite other educators to use this class as an example of how to make their
own teaching resonate with their students. I would also like to see more research
completed in the area of direct connections between music and learning, as well as
other types of humanities (arts, sports, fashion, etc.) that could be used as vehicles for
teaching social studies and history in more engaging ways.
In Chapter One, Definition of the Problem, the power of music on learning is
introduced, using Sesame Street and songs like the “ABC song” as examples. Included
are powerful teaching techniques and references to David Brinkley’s book (1992), Majic
Bus, which highlights the value of fieldwork, literature, and hands-on approaches on learning.
Chapter Two, the Literature Review, focuses on research that links brain activity that is generated by listening to and playing music, and how it leads to improved language acquisition, reading comprehension, and mathematical improvements (Cole,
2010). Other research bears witness to the fact that incorporating music into social studies and history curricula at the elementary, middle, high school, and college levels can lead to better engagement and enhanced (Levy & Byrd, 2011). Chapter Two also features the negative impacts of No Child Left Behind on social studies and history curricula (O’Connor, Heafner, & Groce, 2007). An example of how social studies electives could be used for better content comprehension is noted by graduate work done by social studies teacher, Sean Kelsey (2011).
Chapter Three, Methodology, takes a closer look at the mechanics of the elective class called, “A Socio-Political History of Rock ‘n Roll” and how the class is structured to
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 106 accommodate English Language Learners, resource students and other students requiring differentiated strategies.
Chapter Four, Curriculum Project, includes examples of ten of the sixteen unit outlines from the class. In this chapter, a breakdown of the units, the pacing, resources required, and featured musicians, as well as California State Standards, Common Core
State Standards, Enduring Understandings, Essential Questions, and Sheltered
Instruction Observation Protocol objectives are detailed.
Chapter Five, Educational Recommendations, offers a glimpse into what I’ve learned from this process, limitations I faced, how it can be used in other classrooms, and where I go from here.
It is my hope that our country will once again listen to experts like Howard
Gardner and promote curricula that is multi-intelligence oriented, differentiated, and project based in addition to what we see in classrooms today. And it is my fervent hope that history will once again be considered as valuable as mathematics or language arts.
Yes, how many years can a mountain exist
before it’s washed to the sea?
Yes, how many years can some people exist
before they’re allowed to be free?
Yes, and how many times can a man turn his head
pretending he just doesn’t see?
The answer my friend is blowin’ in the wind,
The answer is blowin’ in the wind. (Bob Dylan, 1963)
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 107
References
Aguirre-Simpson, E. (June 25, 2012). Interview. Rancho Buena Vista High School
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Ambrose, Stephen. & Brinkley, D. G. (1997). Rise to Globalism, New York, NY:
Penguin Books.
Brinkley, D. (1992). The Majic Bus: An American Odyssey. New York, NY: Hartcourt,
Brace & Company.
California State Board of Education. (1998), Standards and Frameworks: History-Social
Science Standards for California Public Schools, Kindergarten through Twelfth
Grade, California Department of Education, http://www.cde.ca.gov/
Cavanaugh, M. (host, 2010). Sorting out Prop 13’s Impact on Education, “These Days
on KPBS” program, KPBS.org http://www.kpbs.org/news/2010/mar/29/sorting-
out-prop-13s-impact-education/
Causey-Bush, T. (2005). Keep Your Eye on Texas and California: A Look at
Testing, School Reform, No Child Left Behind, and Implications for Students of
Color, The Journal of Negro Education, 74 (4), 332-343.
Cole, K. (Sept 2011). Professional Notes: Brain-Based Research Music Advocacy,
Music Educators Journal, 98(1), 26-30.
Denselow, R. (1990). When the Music’s Over: The Story of Political Pop. Boston, MA:
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Devine, D. (Director). (2005) “A Raffi: A Young Children’s Convert with Raffi.”
Dorough, B. (Director). (1998). “The Best of Schoolhouse Rock.”
“Donald” (May 12, 2011). Interview. Rancho Buena Vista High School student.
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 108
Ducat, C. R. (1996). Constitutional Interpretation: Rights of the individual, Vol. II, 6th
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Dufour, R. & Marzano, R. J. (2011). Leaders Learning: How District, School, and
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Edelman, G. M. (December 2005). Scientific Report: Music and Brain Function,
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Flohr, J. W. (January 2010). Best Practices for Young Children’s Music Education:
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Gardner, H. (2011). Frames of Mind: The Theory of Multiple Intelligences, New York,
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Goodman, J. (Director). (2009). “Let Freedom Sing: How Music Inspired the Civil
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Kelsey, S. (2011). History Electives in High School: Making Social Studies
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USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 109
Lane, J. (July 1997). Keep on Rockin’ in the Free World: The Advantages of
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Stoessinger, J. G. (2001). Why Nations go to War. Boston, MA: Bedford/St. Martin’s
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USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 112
Appendix A
A Socio-Political History of Rock ‘n Roll
Unit on the Evolution of Women’s Rights
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 113
THE EVOLUTION OF WOMEN’S RIGHTS
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 114
THE EVOLUTION OF WOMEN’S RIGHTS TABLE OF CONTENTS
The Evolution of Women’s Rights: Introduction / Rationale Students Objectives Assessment Strategies / Activities Write-Ups Materials
Write-Ups cover page Lesson Plan No. 1: The Evolution of Women’s Rights: The Fight for Independence to the Constitution Lesson Plan No. 2: The Evolution of Women’s Rights: From Seneca Falls to the 19th Amendment Lesson Plan No. 3: The Evolution of Women’s Rights: Women’s Role during WWII Lesson Plan No. 4: The Evolution of Women’s Rights: Women’s Role in the Home 1950’s-1980’s Lesson Plan No. 5: The Evolution of Women’s Rights: International Day of the Woman
Materials: Supporting Documents for Lessons cover page Collaborative Learning Study (CLS) Lesson Plan by Oklahoma! Modified Language for excerpts from the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence Graphic Organizer for Constitution and Declaration of Independence Compare/Contrast Declaration of Sentiments and Declaration of Independence “Ain’t I a Woman” transcription Lyric samples that parallel content of Declaration of Independence Assignment for Declaration of Independence and Lyric parallel Rubric for Declaration of Independence and Lyric parallel assignment Notes: Timeline for Evolution of Women’s Rights Implicit/Explicit lyric content explanation and activity Evolution of Women’s Role in the Home Between 1950’s-1980’s worksheet Theme Music lyric content explanation Theme Music: “Under My Thumb”, “That’s the Way I’ve Always Heard it Should Be”, “I am Woman” Photograph Analysis activity and worksheet International Women’s Day project assignment
Works Cited
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 115
THE EVOLUTION OF WOMEN’S RIGHTS INTRODUCTION / RATIONALE:
The chosen topic for this multicultural unit comes from an elective class called, “A Socio-Political
History of Rock and Roll,” which examines the social and political upheavals that took place between 1950-
2000 as seen through the lens of the musicians of the time. It highlights the administrations of Eisenhower to Clinton, and focuses heavily on civil rights movements and social justice by using music as the vehicle through which content is delivered. Students are not only taught about content often abbreviated or altogether overlooked during their U.S. History course, but are encouraged to participate in the debate that implicit lyrics offer to the listener. Additionally, this class offers students the opportunity to examine struggles made for equality by society’s marginalized groups. “The Evolution of Women’s Rights” is one of the units covered in this class.
The lesson plans included in this curriculum span two weeks, or ten days of instruction. I have authored all of the lessons, with the exception of the first lesson called “The Fight for Independence to the
Constitution”, which was authored by a Collaborative Learning Study (CLS) team I participated in called
“Oklahoma!” through a Teaching American History (TAH) grant two years ago. The two- week long unit begins with the American Revolutionary War and concludes with the efforts in amending the Constitution with the 1972 Equal Rights Amendment.
STUDENTS:
Students include those registered at Rancho Buena Vista High School (RBV) who are enrolled in the Socio-Political History of Rock and Roll elective class. It is an elective class, and as such, students enroll in the class voluntarily. It is presumed that a high interest in music is the motivating factor for signing up for the class. They are required to be upperclassmen (11th and 12th grade), and the overall racial/ethnic/ gender/ orientation composition of the class is reflective of the RBV student-body.
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 116
Currently the ethnic breakdown at RBV is approximately 46% Latino and 45% Caucasian, with the remaining 9% comprised mostly from the African American, Asian, and Pacific Islander communities. The
English Language Development students (ELD) are primarily identified as “3’s” and “4’s,” which is an indication that students are at a level ready to understand most of the readings and lecture, but who would still benefit from SDAIE and other scaffolding strategies. There are students in honors and college prep
(“non-honors”) classes, as well as special needs students in this class. Unlike RBV’s gender composition, there are more males than females in this class by a nearly 2-1 margin. Students in this class self-identify as straight, gay, or bisexual.
OBJECTIVES:
The standards for this unit include California State Standards, Common Core Standards, ELD
Standards, and Social Justice and Equity Standards focusing on Gender Equality. Most of the standards and objectives center around women’s struggle for equality, beginning with the 1848 Seneca Falls
Convention (at which the Declaration of Independence was modified to include women in the “Declaration of Sentiments”) through the failed attempt to amend the Constitution with the 1972 “Equal Rights
Amendment” proposal. However, the fight for equality has roots that date back to the Revolutionary War when Abigail Adams wrote in a March 31, 1776 letter to her husband and then reluctant revolutionary, John
Adams (Adams, Adams & Hogan, 2007), to “remember the ladies….” The standards also follow the 72- year long battle for ratification of the 19th Amendment in 1920, and continue through WWII when women did their part for the war effort, only to be expected to “go back to the kitchen” at the close of the war. The conformity of the 1950’s reinforced traditional societal values and mores, but was confronted head-on by the book, The Feminine Mystique, in which Betty Friedan attempted to identify “the problem that has no name” (Freidan, 1963).
To prepare for the upcoming Common Core Standards, expectations for utilizing primary and secondary source material to connect insights, identify central ideas and themes, and evaluate contrasting
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 117
explanations have been included. Further, ELD Standards centering on text analysis through oral
identification of simple excerpts, as well as comparing and contrasting themes is included throughout the
unit. Specific Social Justice and Equity Standards emphasizing Gender Equality have been added as well
to different stages of this evolution.
Objectives for teaching this curriculum include fostering a genuine appreciation for and
understanding of the events that took place, as well as the sacrifices that were made (outlined in the
standards above). A series of classroom activities are used to enhance learning and comprehension.
Included are cooperative learning groups, coffee klatch, sentence frames, and think-pair-share. Improving
listening and reading skills are targeted as well by incorporating lyric analysis, presenting modified primary
source material, and using secondary text excerpts from books like Joy Hakim’s A History of Us. This book
series is written at the 5th grade level and includes short stories of those within marginalized groups who
are notoriously omitted from the more commonly approved textbooks at the District level. The contributions
made by the historically “disenfranchised” are highlighted in Ms. Hakim’s book series, giving all students a
sense of relevance and pride; a “seat” at the American table.
ASSESSMENT:
Students will demonstrate competency and understanding through a variety of assessments,
informal, and formative, and summative, including, but not limited to journal checks (lyric analysis, quick
writes, and note-taking), graphic organizers, sentence frames, observations, thumbs up-thumbs down,
discussions, tests, group presentations, and a cumulative project in which each student selects the woman
who has been most inspirational to them personally, and conveys that story through a tribute of their choice.
Projects will offer the flexibility for the different intelligences outlined and articulated by Dr. Howard
Gardner’s theory of multiple intelligences, specifically logic-mathematical, bodily-kinesthetic, spatial,
linguistic, musical, interpersonal, intrapersonal, and naturalistic. I will assess progress and check for
understanding through observation (walking around the classroom, listening to students asking and
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answering questions, and listening to discussions), and evaluating photograph analysis and the cumulative
International Day of the Woman project.
Because this class is primarily comprised of students who are motivated by music, identified by Dr.
Gardner as “musically intelligent” (Gardner, 2011), it is presumed that many of these projects will contain an element of music to them. To allow for individual strengths, project requirements will be open-ended
and can be as simple as a poster or as complex as an iMovie. It can be a musical performance, a mini play,
a poem, a painting, or other art piece. Rubrics for the Declaration of Independence-parallel assignment will be assessed as well.
STRATEGIES/ACTIVITIES
The strategies for this unit focus on writing, listening, speaking, and developing critical thinking skills. As much as possible, different activities that touch on the seven different intelligences identified by
Dr. Gardner will be included. One of the strategies is called “implicit/explicit.” The idea for this came to me the second year I was teaching when I was looking at a standardized test question, which asked, “what is being implied by the following passage?” I wondered to myself if students knew what the word “implied” meant. The explanation for implicit/explicit is outlined in the Materials section of this curriculum, but the activity is designed to teach students how to identify the difference between content that is open to interpretation and vague or ambiguous, and content is straight forward, or direct. This strategy has other applications as well, such as American Government class in which students are asked to decipher implied and expressed powers of Congress.
Another strategy applying music as the “hook” is “theme music.” This activity is also designed to teach students higher level thinking skills. By the time I get these students in my class they know how to define events and people, and they usually Google the “term”, look it up in the textbook glossary, or when all else fails, they look up the paragraph in the textbook and write the 5 w’s: who, what, when, where and
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 119 why. I take them from definition to significance and theme. Again, this strategy is explained in more detail in the Materials section.
Listening and speaking skills will be developed by the “coffee klatch” activity that involves students selecting coffee cups that have premade concepts and definitions labeled inside the cup. They will meet up with other students in the class and read the concept and definition, and their partner will respond, “oh, I didn’t know that, so what you’re saying is …..” and then rephrase the concept and definition. This activity is designed to reduce the self-consciousness that may accompany speaking out loud because it is done in pairs. This activity is also good for kinesthetic learners because students are able to get out of their seats and walk around the classroom.
For the artistic students, one of the activities will include using butcher paper and other art tools such as markers. Students will design mind map that “tell the story” of a particular lesson being covered that day. For example, if the art piece is implemented during the opening lecture on letters between Abigail and John Adams, the story will be told through art.
Other activities include note-taking and lecture to frontload information for students, but also to prepare them for what to expect in college. Many students begin the year knowing how to write Cornell notes, but it a skill that is taught in this class.
WRITE-UPS:
This section includes five different lesson plans, varying in length from one- to three-hour lessons.
The first lesson addresses the fight for independence from England, and early women’s rights advocates like Abigail Adams who strongly encouraged her husband, John, to “remember the ladies” (Adams, Adams,
Hogan & Taylor, 2007). (p. 110). The next lesson focuses on the Seneca Falls Convention through the
19th Amendment, giving women the right to vote. The third lesson speaks to women’s role during WWII, and the fourth lesson illustrates women’s role during the convention 1950s. Finally, the fifth lesson
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING 120 introduces the birth control pill, Betty Friedan’s liberating book, The Feminine Mystique, and the fight for equality with the proposed 1972 Equal Rights Amendment.
MATERIALS:
Perhaps the most obvious feature of the materials included for this unit is the fact that there is a lot of analysis built around music, but there is also a focus on thematic content. As a history teacher, my goal is to get students to understand the significance of key events and then to take that information and apply it to a larger scale, or thematic view. Because music resonates with most people, and in particular the population of students taking this class, content is likely to be more engaging using this strategy. Analyzing lyrics for implicit, explicit, and thematic content is more palatable for students, regardless of academic ability, because much of it is open to interpretation and getting inside the head of the artist. Frontloading information with books that are written at a level serves as a scaffold for lower achieving students to make lyric analysis and critical thinking more attainable. As mentioned earlier, the reading excerpts from A
History of Us offers a refreshing departure from the traditional history textbooks used in the past. Chapters are chunked in manageable 3-5 page sections, highlighting contributions made by an array of diverse individuals who make up the textured fabric of this country.
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WRITE-UPS
LESSON PLANS:
LESSON PLAN #1: THE FIGHT FOR INDEPENDENCE TO THE CONSTITUTION
LESSON PLAN #2: FROM SENECA FALLS TO THE 19TH AMENDMENT
LESSON PLAN #3: WOMEN’S ROLE DURING WWII
LESSON PLAN #4: WOMEN’S ROLE IN THE HOME – 1950’s-1980’s
LESSON PLAN #5: THE INTERNATIONAL DAY OF THE WOMAN
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LESSON PLAN #1: The Evolution of Women’s Rights: The Fight for Independence to the Constitution (2 Class Periods)
Title of the Lesson: “The Evolution of Women’s Rights: Curriculum Area & Grade Level The Fight for Independence to the Constitution” US History-11th Grade; American Government-12th Grade
CA Content Standard(s) CA ELD Standard(s) Grades 9-12: Reading Comprehension 11.11.1 Describe the Enlightenment and the rise of Analyze Text Features: democratic ideas as the context in which the nation ! Read and use simple sentences to identify orally the founded. features and the rhetorical devices of simple excerpts of public and workplace documents and content area texts. Common Core Standards: Reading Standards for Literacy ! Recognize a few specific facts in familiar expository in History/Social Studies 11-12 texts, such as consumer publications, workplace Key Ideas and Details: documents, and content area text. 1. Cite specific textual evidence to support analysis of Literary Response and Analysis: primary and secondary sources, connecting insights ! Compare and contrast a similar theme or topic across gained from specific details to an understand of the text as genres and explain how the genre shapes the theme or a whole. topic. 2. Determine the central ideas or information of a primary or secondary source, provide an accurate summary that Social Justice and Equity Standard: Gender Equality makes clear the relationships among the key details and 1. Describe the factors leading up to the Revolutionary War. ideas. 2. Evaluate letters between John Adams and Abigail Adams. 3. Evaluate various explanations for actions or events and 3. Examine content of “Declaration of Independence” and determine which explanation best accords with textual “Constitution” for language pertaining specifically to women. evidence, acknowledging where the text leaves matter uncertain.
Learning Goal(s) - Objective(s) Assessment(s) Students Will Be Able To: 1. Journal (quick writes – to check for understanding) 1. Identify and articulate the inconsistencies between a list of 2. Observation grievances (Declaration of Independence) and the “law of 3. Graphic Organizer the land” (the Constitution). 4. Discussion 2. Understand that the Constitution is a living document that provides for constant amendment (“upgrades”). Instructional Strategies Student Activities 1. Frontloading with text, video clip, and lecture 1. Quick write after video clip 2. Graphic Organizer 2. Read modified text and complete graphic organizer. 3. Think Like a Historian 3. Read excerpts from A History of US (Vol. 3, Ch. 22)
Differentiation Strategies for ELL and/or Sp Ed Students 1. Modified primary source documents 2. Text written at the 5th grade level 3. Word Bank Rationale:
Enduring Understanding: How have the actions, ideas, and values of people changed over time? Essential Question: Did the Constitution, as written in 1787, live up to the ideals and promises made by the Declaration of Independence of 1776?
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LESSON PLAN #2: The Evolution of Women’s Rights: From Seneca Falls to the 19th Amendment (2 Class Periods) Title of the Lesson: The Evolution of Women’s Rights: Curriculum Area & Grade Level from the Seneca Falls Convention to the 19th Amendment US History-11th Grade; American Government-12th Grade CA Content Standard(s) CA ELD Standard(s) Grades 9-12: Reading Comprehension 11.10.7 Analyze the women’s rights movement from the era of Analyze Text Features: Elizabeth Stanton and Susan Anthony and the passage of the ! Read and use simple sentences to identify orally the Nineteenth Amendment to the movement launched in the 1960’s features and the rhetorical devices of simple excerpts including the perspectives on the roles of women. of public and workplace documents and content area texts. Common Core Standards: Reading Standards for Literacy ! Recognize a few specific facts in familiar expository in History/Social Studies 11-12 texts, such as consumer publications, workplace Key Ideas and Details: documents, and content area text. 1. Cite specific textual evidence to support analysis of Literary Response and Analysis: primary and secondary sources, connecting insights ! Compare and contrast a similar theme or topic across gained from specific details to an understand of the text as genres and explain how the genre shapes the theme or a whole. topic. 2. Determine the central ideas or information of a primary or secondary source, provide an accurate summary that Social Justice and Equity Standard: Gender Equality makes clear the relationships among the key details and 1. Describe the factors leading up to the Seneca Falls ideas. Convention. 3. Evaluate various explanations for actions or events and 2. Evaluate the lyrics to songs protesting WWI. determine which explanation best accords with textual 3. Analyze the significance of the passage of the Nineteenth evidence, acknowledging where the text leaves matter Amendment. uncertain. Learning Goal(s) - Objective(s) Assessment(s) Students will be able to: 1. Student Record Keeping (Journal Questions and Notes) 1. Record notes on the timeline of the evolution of women’s 2. Observation rights 3. Sentence Frames 2. Identify and articulate the similarities and differences between the “Declaration of Sentiments” and the “Declaration of Independence” 3. Understand the 72-year progression of women’s suffrage. Instructional Strategies Student Activities 1. Prior Knowledge Activation (Cues and Questions) 1. Journal Questions: a) What famous women do you know 2. Lecture and Note Taking (Cornell Notes) and what are they famous for? b) Have women achieved 3. Identifying Similarities and Differences (Venn Diagram) the same level of equality as men. Why or why not? 4. Identifying difference between content (lyrics) open to 2. Note-taking: Timeline of Evolution of Women’s Rights interpretation and content (lyrics) that are straight forward. 3. Compare and Contrast: Declaration of Sentiments with 5. Frontloading (Don’t Know Much About History and A the Declaration of Independence. History of Us) 4. Read excerpts from Don’t Know Much About History (pp. 259-262; 360-363 5. Read excerpts from A History of Us (Vol. 5, Ch 22; Vol. 9, Ch. 5) 6. Video Clip and Quick Write: “Iron Jawed Angels” 7. Implicit/Explicit Music: “I Didn’t Raise My Son to be a Solider” Differentiation Strategies for ELL and/or Sp Ed Students 1. Venn Diagram 2. Cornell Notes 3. Text written at the 5th grade level Rationale: Enduring Understanding: How have the actions, ideas, and values of people changed over time? Essential Question: How did the Seneca Falls Convention in 1848 lead to Women’s Suffrage in 1920 with the 19th Amendment?
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LESSON PLAN #3: The Evolution of Women’s Rights: Women’s Role during WWII (1 Class Period)
Title of the Lesson: The Evolution of Women’s Rights: Curriculum Area & Grade Level Women’s Role during WWII U.S. History-11th Grade; American Government-12th Grade
CA Content Standard(s) CA ELD Standard(s) Grades 9-12: Reading Comprehension 11.7.5 Discuss the constitutional issues and impact of events on Analyze Text Features: the U.S. homefront, including … the roles of women in military ! Read and use simple sentences to identify orally the production… features and the rhetorical devices of simple excerpts of public and workplace documents and content area mmon Core Standards: Reading Standards for Literacy in texts. History/Social Studies 11-12 ! Recognize a few specific facts in familiar expository Key Ideas and Details: texts, such as consumer publications, workplace 1. Cite specific textual evidence to support analysis of documents, and content area text. primary and secondary sources, connecting insights Literary Response and Analysis: gained from specific details to an understand of the text as ! Compare and contrast a similar theme or topic across a whole. genres and explain how the genre shapes the theme or 2. Determine the central ideas or information of a primary or topic. secondary source, provide an accurate summary that makes clear the relationships among the key details and Social Justice and Equity Standard: Gender Equality ideas. 1. Identify the role women played during WWII. 3. Evaluate various explanations for actions or events and 2. Evaluate the lyrics to songs portraying women’s role in WWII. determine which explanation best accords with textual evidence, acknowledging where the text leaves matter uncertain.
Learning Goal(s) - Objective(s) Assessment(s) Students will be able to: 1. Observation - Identify the roles women played during WWII to support the 2. Sentence Frames “war effort.” 3. Discussions Instructional Strategies Student Activities 1. Identifying difference between content (lyrics) open to 1. Read excerpts from A History of Us (Vol. 9, Chs. 20 & 21) interpretation and content (lyrics) that are straight forward. 2. Video Clip and Quick Write: “A League of Their Own” 2. Frontloading (A History of Us) 3. Implicit/Explicit Music: “Rosie the Riveter” Differentiation Strategies for ELL and/or Sp Ed Students 1. Using text written at the 5th grade level. 2. Mindmap
Rationale
Enduring Understanding: The contributions made by all Americans, including marginalized groups, led to victory in WWII and an end to the Great Depression. Essential Question: How did women’s role reversal during WWII contribute to the war effort and the economy?
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LESSON PLAN #4: The Evolution of Women’s Rights: Women’s Role in the Home 1950’s-1980’s (3 Class Periods)
Title of the Lesson: “The Evolution of Women’s Rights: Curriculum Area & Grade Level Women’s Role in the Home 1950’s-1980’s” U.S. History-11th Grade; American Government-12th Grade CA Content Standard(s) CA ELD Standard(s) Grades 9-12: Reading Comprehension 11.10.7 Analyze the women’s rights movement from the era of Analyze Text Features: Elizabeth Stanton and Susan Anthony and the passage of the ! Read and use simple sentences to identify orally the 19th Amendment to the movement launched in the 1960’s features and the rhetorical devices of simple excerpts including differing perspectives on the role of women. of public and workplace documents and content area 11.11.3 Describe the changing roles of women in society as texts. reflected in the entry of more women in the labor force and the ! Recognize a few specific facts in familiar expository changing family structure. texts, such as consumer publications, workplace documents, and content area text. Common Core Standards: Reading Standards for Literacy Literary Response and Analysis: in History/Social Studies 11-12 ! Compare and contrast a similar theme or topic across Key Ideas and Details: genres and explain how the genre shapes the theme or 1. Cite specific textual evidence to support analysis of topic. primary and secondary sources, connecting insights gained from specific details to an understand of the text as Social Justice and Equity Standard: Gender Equality a whole. 1. Describe the importance of the role of the birth control pill in 2. Determine the central ideas or information of a primary or offering women the opportunity to pursue college and a secondary source, provide an accurate summary that career, and in effect establish gender equality. makes clear the relationships among the key details and 2. Account for the factors that led to Betty Friedan’s book, The ideas. Feminine Mystique. 3. Evaluate various explanations for actions or events and 3. Evaluate the efforts made by the National Organization of determine which explanation best accords with textual Women (NOW) and to what extent those efforts were evidence, acknowledging where the text leaves matter realized in proposed legislation such as the Equal Rights uncertain. Amendment (ERA) proposed in 1972. Learning Goal(s) - Objective(s) Assessment(s) Students will be able to: 1. Graphic Organizer - Worksheet 1. Identify how and why women’s role inside and outside of 2. Journal entries (check for understanding) the home has changed since the 1950’s. 3. Observation – Coffee Klatch 2. Articulate why the 1972 Equal Rights Amendment failed to be ratified. 3. Understand the difference between definition, significance, and theme. Instructional Strategies Student Activities 1. Identifying Similarities and Differences (Graphic Organizer) 1. Video Clips: “Mona Lisa Smile” and “I Love Lucy” 2. Identifying differences between “definition” “significance” 2. Quick Write: a) How different would the expectations for a and “theme” using lyrics. female college professor and female college student be 3. Frontloading (The Feminine Mystique and Fast Food today compared with 1953? b) How are women’s roles Nation) different today than the 1950’s? 4. Review for unit test using Coffee Klatch technique 3. YouTube Clips: “1950’s Suburban Housewife” “Leave it to Beaver”
“Brady Bunch” “Roseanne” 4. Worksheet/Graphic Organizer: Evolution of Women’s
Role in the Home between 1950s-1980s 5. Read Excerpt from The Feminine Mystique (pp. 6. Read excerpt from Fast Food Nation (Ch. 2)
7. Read excerpt from A History of Us (Vol. 10, Ch. 29) 7. Theme Music: “Under My Thumb”; “That’s The Way I’ve Always Heard it Should Be”; “I am Woman” 8. Quick Writes: a) In what ways are these 3 songs
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connected?; b) In what ways are songs 2 and 3 different from the first song? 9. The Equal Rights Amendment (1972)
Differentiation Strategies for ELL and/or Sp Ed Students 1. Graphic Organizer 2. Coffee Klatch
Rationale
Enduring Understanding: The status quo of women’s “place” in the 1950’s was forever altered by the birth control pill. Essential Question: In what ways have women’s role inside and outside of the “domestic sphere” changed since the 1950’s?
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LESSON PLAN #5: The Evolution of Women’s Rights: The International Day of the Woman (2 Class Periods)
Title of the Lesson: “The Evolution of Women’s Rights: Curriculum Area & Grade Level The International Day of the Woman” U.S. History, 11th Grade; American Government-12th Grade
CA Content Standard(s) CA ELD Standard(s) Grades 9-12: Reading Comprehension 11.10.7 Analyze the women’s rights movement from the era of Analyze Text Features: Elizabeth Stanton and Susan Anthony and the passage of the ! Read and use simple sentences to identify orally the 19th Amendment to the movement launched in the 1960’s features and the rhetorical devices of simple excerpts including differing perspectives on the role of women. of public and workplace documents and content area 11.11.3 Describe the changing roles of women in society as texts. reflected in the entry of more women in the labor force and the ! Recognize a few specific facts in familiar expository changing family structure. texts, such as consumer publications, workplace documents, and content area text. Common Core Standards: Reading Standards for Literacy Literary Response and Analysis: in History/Social Studies 11-12 ! Compare and contrast a similar theme or topic across Key Ideas and Details: genres and explain how the genre shapes the theme or 1. Cite specific textual evidence to support analysis of topic. primary and secondary sources, connecting insights gained from specific details to an understand of the text as Social Justice and Equity Standard: Gender Equality a whole. 1. Identify women (by image and description) who have been 2. Determine the central ideas or information of a primary or instrumental in the fight for equality over the years. secondary source, provide an accurate summary that 2. Articulate a woman who has been inspiration and create a makes clear the relationships among the key details and product and essay. ideas. 3. Evaluate various explanations for actions or events and determine which explanation best accords with textual evidence, acknowledging where the text leaves matter uncertain.
Learning Goal(s) - Objective(s) Assessment(s) Students will be able to: 1. Observation 1. Identify pioneers of the fight for women’s rights through 2. Summative Assessment (product) images and descriptions. 2. Articulate an inspirational woman through art and essay. Instructional Strategies Student Activities 1. Photograph Analysis and Organizational Chart. 1. Photograph Analysis and discussion
Differentiation Strategies for ELL and/or Sp Ed Students
Rationale
Enduring Understanding: “Well-behaved women seldom make history.” Laurel Thatcher Ulrich Essential Question: “How much does infamy play a role in the extent to which a woman is inspirational?
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MATERIALS:
SUPPORTING DOCUMENTS
FOR
LESSONS
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Collaborative Learning Study Team: Oklahoma! Step-by-Step Lesson Plan: “How to Think Like a Historian Using Primary Source Documents
Research Question: How do teachers use primary Guiding Question/Objective: Did the Constitution of the sources to teach students to think historically? United States live up to the ideals of the Declaration of Independence? Students will understand that the Constitution and Students will analyze the Constitution and its success in the Declaration of Independence are different implementing the ideals of the Declaration of Independence. documents written to serve different purposes.
Materials: Chart paper, white board, core documents, video clip, graphic organizer, 2 supplemental images, highlighters, pens, pencils, markers.
Preparation before students arrive. ! Core documents (side-by-side, ledger size) placed on student tables. ! Images: Trumbull’s & Vacant Seats and video clip imbedded in PPT slides. ! Post guiding question on white board or chart paper visible to students—Did the Constitution of the United States live up to the ideals of the Declaration of Independence?
Steps in Lesson Delivery Timing Teacher welcomes students, draws attention to lesson objective. Teacher introduces the two 2 min. primary sources, Declaration of Independence and Constitution and the purpose for which each was written. (Slide)
Here are some questions to think about while you are watching this video. We will discuss these questions after the video (Put the questions on chart paper and leave up) ! Have you heard this before? ! What were they reading? ! Did anyone hear or see anything interesting?
Hook: Play video of famous actors reading the Declaration of Independence. 3 min.
Teacher passes out primary source and graphic organizer documents while students are watching 3 min. the video. Teacher revisits the questions after the video and has students “think/share” responses.
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Teacher says, “I’ve often wondered if the Constitution lives up to the Declaration of Independence. 3 min. Today we’re going to look at primary source documents to try to answer this question. Teacher refers to the primary source document (Declaration of Independence) and invites students to look at the document. Teacher says, I’m going to read the Declaration of Independence and I’d like you to follow along and highlight parts of the document that puzzle to you as well as vocabulary.
Teacher introduces vocabulary and charts student responses on chart paper. Students respond 3 min. and highlight in document. Vocabulary: endowed (to give, have) unalienable (rights that can’t be taken away) Teacher says, “What does this mean: there are certain rights that everyone has that can’t be taken away. What specific rights are listed in the Declaration of Independence? What does life mean? What does liberty mean? What does pursuit of happiness mean?
Teacher introduces the graphic organizer and asks students to provide evidence by listing what 6 min. they see in the document. Write down evidence of the actual rights that are stated in the Declaration of Independence. Teacher asks students the following questions. What do you see that shows equality? Teacher leads class in completing the section titled, “equality”. Students complete exercise “rights” on their own.
Teacher says, “Okay, now let’s see how the Declaration transfers to the Constitution.” Teacher 2 min. introduces the Constitution, Article 1 Section 2 Clause 3. Teacher asks students to follow along as she/he reads the original and highlight any language that stands out or poses a question.
Teacher calls attention to important vocabulary terms: Apportioned, bound to service, 3/5th of all 4 min. other persons (simply to determine #’s). This assumes there are people who are “not free”. Ask students to read the document and discuss the terms and complete the graphic organizer next to “equality” and “rights”.
Students work in small groups to find similarities and difference between the two documents. Ask 5 min. yourself, “Where do you see “free” in the constitution? Do a small share out.
Teacher shows picture of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. (Trumbull Image) Who 2 min. do you see? What do you see here? Who do you not see here? Chart on paper their responses.
Next, teacher puts up the picture with vacant chairs and asks “Who should be sitting in these chairs?”
Finally, imagine the constitution is signed. Pretend it’s1787, and ask yourself, “Does the 6 min. constitution live up to the ideals or promises in the Declaration of Independence? Does it keep the promises for you? Does it keep the promises for everyone else in the classroom? Explain your answers. On the bottom of this page answer the question
Teacher leads a share out among students via the following guiding questions. Who is not 2 min. represented? When there are mistakes or problems in our government how do we correct them? Lesson end-- Total time 45 min. Notes: The constitution implies that some people won’t be free. Some people won’t count-Native
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Americans. The word slave doesn’t appear in the constitution because the framers were embarrassed by the term. This is a small part of a very complex document that was mainly concerned with setting up a system of government. The bill of rights was passed right after the constitution. Our government isn’t perfect, but it is probably the freest country in the world.
Teacher ends lesson leading into the Bill of Rights.
If time allows teacher will show Star Trek video clip.
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Declaration of Independence United States Constitution, Article I, Section II, Paragraph III
Original Original When in the Course of human events it Representatives and direct Taxes shall be becomes necessary for one people to apportioned among the several States which dissolve the political bands which have may be included within this Union, connected them with another and to according to their respective Numbers, assume among the powers of the earth, the which shall be determined by adding to the separate and equal station to which the whole Number of free Persons, including Laws of Nature and of Nature’s God entitle those bound to Service for a Term of Years, them, a decent respect to the opinions of and excluding Indians not taxed, three fifths mankind requires that they should declare of all other Persons. the causes which impel them to the separation.
We hold these truths to be selfevident, that all men are cre ated equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.
Modified Modified
We want to explain why we don’t want to Each State will have representatives in be part of Britain. Congress, and will be taxed. The numb er of representatives and the amount of tax will Everybody knows that we are all equal. God be determined by counting the number of gave us certain rights. Nobody can take free people in each state, including servants those rights away. working on longterm indentures (contracts). Indians will not be counted, and people who are not free will count as three fifths of a person.
Word Bank endowedto give something to someone unalienable—cannot be taken away apportioned—divide something among many bound to service—obligated/forced to do something, under contract, not free
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Name: ______Period: ______Date: ______
Does the Constitution live up to the ideals or the promises made in the Declaration of Independence? Find the words or phrases that show evidence of these concepts in each of these documents in the boxes below:
Declaration of Concept Independence Constitution Similarities Differences 1776 1787
______Equality ______
______Unalienable Rights ______
Put yourself in the year 1787. Does the Constitution live up to the ideals or promises made in the Declaration of Independence, signed just 11 years before? Does it keep the promises for you, personally? Does it keep the promises for everyone else in the classroom? Why or why not? Explain your answer using the words and phrases you see in these documents.
______
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Compare/Contrast: “Declaration of Sentiments” and “Declaration of Independence”
“Declaration of Sentiments”: “When, in the course of human events, it becomes necessary for one portion of the family of man to assume among the people of the earth a position different from that which they have hitherto occupied, but one to which the laws of nature and of nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes that impel them to such a course.
We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men and women are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness; that to secure these rights governments are instituted, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed. Whenever any form of government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the right of those who suffer from it to refuse allegiance to it, and to insist upon the institution of a new government, laying its foundation on such principles, and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their safety and happiness.
Prudence, indeed, will dictate that governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and, accordingly, all experience has shown that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same object, evinces a design to reduce them under absolute despotism, it is their duty to throw off such government and to provide new guards for their future security. Such has been the patient sufferance of the women under this government, and such is now the necessity, which constrains them to demand the equal station to which they are entitled.
The history of mankind is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations on the part of man toward woman, having in direct ---object the establishment of an absolute tyranny over her. To prove this, let facts be submitted to a candid world
“Declaration of Independence”:
When in the Course of human events it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature’s God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.
We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. — That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, — That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shown that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security. — Such has been the patient sufferance of these Colonies; and such is now the necessity, which constrains them to alter their former Systems of Government. The history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over these States. To prove this, let Facts be submitted to a candid world.
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“Ain’t I a Woman?” by Sojourner Truth Delivered 1851 at the Women’s Convention in Akron, Ohio
“Well, children, where there is so much racket there must be something out of kilter. I think that 'twixt the negroes of the South and the women at the North, all talking about rights, the white men will be in a fix pretty soon. But what's all this here talking about?
That man over there says that women need to be helped into carriages, and lifted over ditches, and to have the best place everywhere. Nobody ever helps me into carriages, or over mud-puddles, or gives me any best place! And ain't I a woman? Look at me! Look at my arm! I have ploughed and planted, and gathered into barns, and no man could head me! And ain't I a woman? I could work as much and eat as much as a man - when I could get it - and bear the lash as well! And ain't I a woman? I have borne thirteen children, and seen most all sold off to slavery, and when I cried out with my mother's grief, none but Jesus heard me! And ain't I a woman?
Then they talk about this thing in the head; what's this they call it? [member of audience whispers, "intellect"] That's it, honey. What's that got to do with women's rights or Negroes' rights? If my cup won't hold but a pint, and yours holds a quart, wouldn't you be mean not to let me have my little half measure full?
Then that little man in black there, he says women can't have as much rights as men, 'cause Christ wasn't a woman! Where did your Christ come from? Where did your Christ come from? From God and a woman! Man had nothing to do with Him.
If the first woman God ever made was strong enough to turn the world upside down all alone, these women together ought to be able to turn it back , and get it right side up again! And now they is asking to do it, the men better let them.”
Quick Write: Summarize in your own words the points Sojourner Truth is making in the above speech.
______
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“Changes” – Tupac Shakur Instead of war on poverty, I see no changes. Wake up in the morning and I ask myself, they got a war on drugs so the police can bother me. "Is life worth living? Should I blast myself?" And I ain't never did a crime I ain't have to do. I'm tired of bein' poor and even worse I'm black. But now I'm back with the facts givin' 'em back to you. My stomach hurts, so I'm lookin' for a purse to snatch. Don't let 'em jack you up, back you up, crack you up and Cops give a damn about a Negro? Pull the trigger, kill a pimp smack you up. nigga, he's a hero. You gotta learn to hold ya own. Give the crack to the kids who the hell cares? One less They get jealous when they see ya with ya mobile phone. hungry mouth on the welfare. But tell the cops they can't touch this. First ship 'em dope & let 'em deal the brothers. I don't trust this, when they try to rush I bust this. Give 'em guns, step back, and watch 'em kill each other. That's the sound of my tune. You say it ain't cool, but "It's time to fight back", that's what Huey said. mama didn't raise no fool. 2 shots in the dark now Huey's dead. And as long as I stay black, I gotta stay strapped & I never I got love for my brother, but we can never go nowhere get to lay back. unless we share with each other. We gotta start makin' 'Cause I always got to worry 'bout the pay backs. changes. Some buck that I roughed up way back... comin' back after Learn to see me as a brother 'stead of 2 distant strangers. all these years. And that's how it's supposed to be. Rat-a-tat-tat-tat-tat. That's the way it is. uhh How can the Devil take a brother if he's close to me? I'd love to go back to when we played as kids, “Redemption Song” – Bob Marley but things change, and that's the way it is. Old pirates, yes, they rob I; Sold I to the merchant ships, I see no changes. All I see is racist faces. Minutes after they took from the bottomless pit. Misplaced hate makes disgrace for races we under. But my hand was made strong by the hand of the Almighty. I wonder what it takes to make this one better place... We forward in this generation let's erase the wasted. Triumphantly. Take the evil out the people, they'll be acting right. Won't you help to sing these songs of freedom? 'Cause mo' black than white is smokin' crack tonight. 'Cause all I ever have: Redemption songs, And only time we chill is when we kill each other. It takes skill to be real, time to heal each other. Emancipate yourselves from mental slavery; And although it seems heaven sent, None but ourselves can free our minds. we ain't ready to see a black President, uhh. Have no fear for atomic energy, It ain't a secret don't conceal the fact... 'Cause none of them can stop the time. the penitentiary's packed, and it's filled with blacks. How long shall they kill our prophets, But some things will never change. While we stand aside and look? Ooh! Try to show another way, but they stayin' in the dope game, Some say it's just a part of it: Now tell me what's a mother to do? We've got to fulfill the Book. Bein' real don't appeal to the brother in you. You gotta operate the easy way. Won't you help to sing these songs of freedom? "I made a G today" But you made it in a sleazy way. 'Cause all I ever have: Sellin' crack to the kids. "I gotta get paid," Redemption songs (3 Xs) Well hey, well that's the way it is. Emancipate yourselves from mental slavery; We gotta make a change... None but ourselves can free our mind. It's time for us as a people to start makin' some changes. Wo! Have no fear for atomic energy, Let's change the way we eat, let's change the way we live 'Cause none of them-a can-a stop-a the time. and let's change the way we treat each other. How long shall they kill our prophets, You see the old way wasn't working so it's on us to do While we stand aside and look? what we gotta do, to survive. Yes, some say it's just a part of it: We've got to fulfill the book. And still I see no changes. Can't a brother get a little Won't you have to sing these songs of freedom? - peace? 'Cause all I ever had: Redemption song. There's war on the streets & the war in the Middle East.
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The Declaration of Independence of the Thirteen Colonies
The Declaration of Independence of the Thirteen Colonies In CONGRESS, July 4, 1776
The unanimous Declaration of the thirteen united States of America,
We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. --That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, --That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn, that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security. —Such has been the patient sufferance of these Colonies; and such is now the necessity, which constrains them to alter their former Systems of Government. The history of the present King of Great Britain [George III] is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over these States. To prove this, let Facts be submitted to a candid world.
Assignment:
Using the document above, find the lyrics to a song that you feel parallels the content, or meaning. This may seem like a very easy assignment on the surface – for example, in the past people have used the lyrics to songs such as Lee Greenwood’s “God Bless the USA.” Don’t use a song that is obviously the same. The idea of this assignment is to really read what the Declaration of Independence is stating – and find a song, perhaps with lyrics that are more implicit in their meaning, that really says the same thing. Don’t confine yourself to just one genre of music – you can use country, rock, classical, hip hop, punk, etc. Be creative!
In addition to selecting and printing the lyrics to the song, you will also need to type an analysis comparing the two, and pointing out what the connections between the two are – especially with those songs where the meaning is more hidden (implicit). This must be typed, and should be at least 2 paragraphs. Handwritten assignments will be marked down 10%.
This assignment is at the beginning of the period, ______, and is worth 30 pts.
CA State Standards:
12.1 Students explain the fundamental principles and moral values of American democracy as expressed in the U.S. Constitution and other essential documents of American democracy. 12.1.3 Explain how the U.S. Constitution reflects a balance between the classical republican concern with promotion of the public food and the classical liberal concern with protecting individual rights; and discuss how the basic premises of liberal constitutionalism and democracy are joined in the Declaration of Independence as “self-evident truths.”
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Declaration of Independence and Similar Lyrics Rubric
Points Description of Work
23-25 The lyrics selected make clear parallels to three or more points made in the Declaration of (A to A-) Independence (DOI). These connections are clearly articulated, analysis is thorough and substantial, and demonstrates a genuine interest in and a sophisticated understanding of the DOI. The organizational structure is strong and coherent, appropriate for the topic, and conveys a sense of completeness. Word choice is precise and diverse, and enhances the analysis. Few, if any, mechanical errors exist. Paper is typed.
20-22 The lyrics selected make parallels to two or more points made in the Declaration of (B to B-) Independence (DOI). These connections are articulated, and analysis is thorough and substantial, and demonstrates interest in and an understanding of the DOI. The organizational structure is coherent, appropriate for the topic, and conveys a sense of completeness. Word choice is diverse, and sentence structure is varied. Mechanical errors present do not prevent understanding. Paper is typed.
18-19 The lyrics selected make parallels to at least one point made in the Declaration of (C to C-) Independence (DOI). There is an attempt to make a connection, but little elaboration. Word choice and sentence structure are simple, but organization structure is apparent. Mechanical errors make understanding difficult. Paper is not typed.
15-17 The lyrics selected make no clear parallels made in the Declaration of Independence (DOI). (D to D-) There is an attempt to make a connection, which is not always clear. Word choice and sentence structure are extremely simple. Mechanical errors may impair understanding. Paper is not typed.
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Timeline for Evolution of Women’s Rights
Abigail Adams – (1776) - “Remember the Ladies” – Declaration of Independence
Seneca Falls Convention (1848) - Elizabeth Cady Stanton - Lucretia Mott
National Woman Suffrage Assn. (NWSA) - Hardliners for women’s suffrage, led by Stanton and Susan B. Anthony
American Woman Suffrage Assn (AWSA) - Moderates for women’s suffrage
Abolitionist Movement - Harriet Tubman – escaped slave who became the Underground RR “conductor” - Harriett Beecher Stowe (Uncle Tom’s Cabin)
Sojourner Truth – Prominent spokeswoman for women’s rights
National American Woman Suffrage Assn. (NAWSA) (1890) -u nited NWSA & AWSA w/ Stanton as its 1st President
19th Amendment (1920) -g ave women the right to vote
National Organization of Women (NOW) (1966) - Betty Friedan (The Feminine Mystique - 1963) - “is this all?’
Ms. Magazine (1972) - Gloria Steinem – delivered NOW’s message
Equal Rights Amendment (1972) - passed by Congress but fell short by 3 states and died in 1982.
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Implicit v. Explicit Music (or Implied v. Expressed)
One of the ways we will be using music this year, in addition to theme music where one finds the common thread or connection, we will be listening for implicit and explicit content in lyrics. When I say explicit, I do not mean finding cuss words! I mean content.
When something is “implicit” it means that it is being implied. It is vague, ambiguous, and open to interpretation. Two people can read the same thing and come away with a different interpretation of what they just read. When something is explicit, there is no doubt about what the content is saying to the reader. Everyone has the same idea.
In the Constitution there are “implied” and “expressed” powers given to the Legislative Branch. Expressed powers, such as laying taxes, creating post offices, etc. are straight forward. The implied powers, however, cause conflict because they are open to interpretation.
In Government we also have “strict constructionist” (those who believe that you can only do what is expressly outlined in the Constitution), and those who have a “broad” or “loose” interpretation of the Constitution, meaning that the Founding Fathers couldn’t think of everything in 1787, so there’s room for interpretation. A sitting president has the power to nominate candidates for the US Supreme Court, and while the nomination must be confirmed by the Senate before being placed on the “Bench,” this is a significant power that the president has. A president will use the logic of “strict constructionist” or “broad interpretation” when considering such a nomination.
…So, in class we will listen to songs for implicit, or explicit content. In your journal you will write whether you believe the song is implicit, or explicit, or possibly a combination of both – using lyrics contained in the song as your evidence. When you are in college you can take whatever position you want, you just need to back it up with evidence.
Read over the lyrics below and write whether or not you believe it is implicit or explicit, or if both implicit and explicit apply. Use specific lines or words to back up your assertion. There is no wrong answer.
“I Didn’t Raise My Boy To Be A Soldier”—1915 Lyrics by Alfred Bryan, music by Al Piantadosi I didn’t raise my boy to be a soldier, Performed by Morton Harvey I brought him up to be my pride and joy, Who dares to put a musket on his shoulder, Ten million soldiers to the war have gone, To shoot some other mother’s darling boy? Who may never return again. Let nations arbitrate their future troubles, Ten million mothers' hearts must break, It’s time to lay the sword and gun away, For the ones who died in vain. There’d be no war today, Head bowed down in sorrow in her lonely If mothers all would say, years, I didn’t raise my boy to be a soldier. I heard a mother murmur thro' her tears:
______
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Evolution of Women’s Role in the Home Between 1950s-1980s Name: ______
“Leave it to Beaver”: 1. What is the relationship between the parents – are the roles clearly defined between the genders? Who appears to have more authority? ______
2. Is it in color or black and white? If it’s in color, are there apparent color themes in the house? ______
3. What is the relationship between the children and the parents? ______
4. Describe the background music. ______
5. Describe differences you see in the television show and what you have today. For example, telephones. ______
“Brady Bunch”: 1. What is the relationship between the parents – are the roles clearly defined between the genders? Who appears to have more authority? ______
2. Is it in color or black and white? If it’s in color, are there apparent color themes in the house? ______
3. What is the relationship between the children and the parents? ______
4. Describe the background music. ______
5. Describe differences you see in the television show and what you have today. For example, telephones. ______
“Roseanne”: 1. What is the relationship between the parents – are the roles clearly defined between the genders? Who appears to have more authority? ______
2. Are the roles clearly defined between the genders? Is one more dominant than the other? ______
3. What is the relationship between the children and the parents? ______
4. Describe the background music. ______
5. Describe differences you see in the television show and what you have today. For example, telephones. ______
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Theme Music Moving from Definition – Significance – Theme
Definition – This is the 5 w’s – who, what when where why, and if they want, “how.” Answering the 5 w’s will give you a good definition of the event/person, etc. You can get all the necessary information you need to “define” something by reading a paragraph in your book – or even looking it up in the glossary. But the definition doesn’t tell you what is important about the person or event, or how it can be seen as a pattern
Significance – To find significance you are looking for what made the person or event important. Unlike the definition, you need to keep reading because you have to find out what came after. You will want to use the following phrases to frame the significance of an event or person such as:
______led to ……. ; ______caused ………; ______resulted in ……
The significance will be shorter than the definition, and unlike the definition, there can be many, and they can be from different perspectives on the event.
Theme – Theme spans space and time. It will be the most broad of the 3 ( each gets broader – definition is specific, significance is broader, and theme is broadest). Use the event or person to get an idea of something similar that happened in time – and when trying to phrase the theme remember that you shouldn’t identify a specific time, person, or place where it happened. Just look for patterns, etc. Kind of similar to significant only more general.
Example: 9/11
Definition: On September 11, 2001, the US was attacked in New York, Washington, DC, and Pennsylvania by al Qaida because of US presence in the Middle East (or it could be religious differences).
Significance (where do I begin?!!!!!): 9/11 led to the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. 9/11 resulted in the PATRIOT Act. 9/11 caused the watering down of our civil liberties. 9/11 led to TBI (traumatic brain injury), the signature wound of the Iraq War.
Theme: Religious differences lead to war. (This could be talking about the Crusades, WWII, on and on…)
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“Under My Thumb” Well, that's the way I've always heard it should be Mick Jagger and Keith Richards You want to marry me, we'll marry
Under my thumb My friends from college they're all married now The girl who once had me down They have their houses and their lawns Under my thumb They have their silent noons The girl who once pushed me around Tearful nights, angry dawns It's down to me Their children hate them for the things they're not The difference in the clothes she wears They hate themselves for what they are Down to me, the change has come, And yet they drink, they laugh She's under my thumb, Ain't it the truth babe? Close the wound, hide the scar Under my thumb The squirmin' dog who's just had her day CHORUS Under my thumb A girl who has just changed her ways Well O.K, it's time we moved in together It's down to me, yes it is And raised a family of our own, you and me The way she does just what she's told Well, that's the way I've always heard it should be Down to me, the change has come You want to marry me, we'll marry She's under my thumb Under my thumb, a siamese cat of a girl “I Am Woman” Under my thumb Helen Reddy She's the sweetest, hmmm, pet in the world It's down to me I am woman, hear me roar in numbers too big to ignore The way she talks when she's spoken to And I know too much to go back an' pretend Down to me, the change has come, 'cause I've heard it all before And I've been down there She's under my thumb, ah, take it easy babe on the floor It's down to me, oh yeah No one's ever gonna keep me down again The way she talks when she's spoken to Down to me, the change has come, CHORUS She's under my thumb Oh yes I am wise but it's wisdom born of pain Under my thumb Yes, I've paid the price but look how much I gained Her eyes are just kept to herself If I have to, I can do anything Under my thumb, well I I am strong (strong) I can still look at someone else I am invincible (invincible), I am woman It's down to me, oh that's what I said The way she talks when she's spoken to You can bend but never break me Down to me, the change has come, 'cause it only serves to make me She's under my thumb More determined to achieve my final goal Say, it's alright. And I come back even stronger Take it, take it easy babe. Not a novice any longer 'cause you've deepened the conviction in my soul “That’s the way I’ve Always Heard it Should Be” Carly Simon I am woman watch me grow, see me standing toe to toe As I spread my lovin' arms across the land My father sits at night with no lights on But I'm still an embryo, with a long long way to go His cigarette glows in the dark Until I make my brother understand The living room is still, I walk by, no remark I tiptoe past the master bedroom where Oh yes I am wise, but it's wisdom born of pain My mother reads her magazines Yes, I've paid the price, but look how much I gained I hear her call "Sweet dreams", but I forget how to dream If I have to I can face anything. CHORUS I am strong, I am invincible, I am woman But you say it's time we moved in together And raised a family of our own, you and me
Running head: USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING
Evolution of Women’s Rights Photograph Analysis Work Sheet
Group Members:
______
______
1. Using clues in the picture, identify the era/event of the picture by its number (on the back):
______
______
______
______
______
2. What social and/or political connections can be made? ______
______
______
Significance: Determining the significance of a person or event is figuring out the importance of it. To know the significance, you have to know what comes after. Examples of phrases that help develop the significance of a person or an event are: … led to. .… caused. ….. resulted in. For example, 9/11: “The events of 9/11 led to war in Iraq.”
3. Write the significance for one of the pictures in this set: ______
Theme: To determine the theme of a person or event, you look for general patterns and similarities of people or events that lived or took place at any time in history, in any part of the world. In other words, theme spans space and time. Theme could be as simple as 1 word such as “conformity” or a sentence that is similar to significance. A theme of 9/11 could be: “War that results over religious differences.”
4. Write the theme or themes for the pictures in this set: ______
______
USING MUSIC TO MAKE HISTORY MORE ENGAGING
International Women's Day Project
Background: International Women's Day (8 March) is an occasion marked by women's groups around the world. This date is also commemorated at the United Nations and is designated in many countries as a national holiday. When women on all continents, often divided by national boundaries and by ethnic, linguistic, cultural, economic and political differences, come together to celebrate their Day, they can look back to a tradition that represents at least nine decades of struggle for equality, justice, peace and development.
International Women's Day is the story of ordinary women as makers of history; it is rooted in the centuries-old struggle of women to participate in society on an equal footing with men. As an example, during the French Revolution, Parisian women calling for "liberty, equality, fraternity" marched on Versailles to demand women's suffrage.
Assignment: Please select a woman who has inspired you and made an impact on your life, possibly one who has taught you to trust in yourself and follow the path of what you will do with your life, or one who embodies characteristics you most admire. The “product” can be in the form of a poem, a collage, a box filled with items that represent that person, or something else that you choose. It must be accompanied by a 2-3 paragraph (typed) that explains why you admire this person. This is a tribute to somebody incredibly significant, and the format and presentation of your “product” should reflect that significance.
This project is due block day, ______and is worth 30 points.
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More Interesting Background: The idea of an International Women's Day first arose at the turn of the century, which in the industrialized world was a period of expansion and turbulence, booming population growth and radical ideologies. Following is a brief chronology of the most important events:
1909 In accordance with a declaration by the Socialist Party of America, the first National Woman's Day was observed across the United States on 28 February. Women continued to celebrate it on the last Sunday of that month through 1913.
1910 The Socialist International, meeting in Copenhagen, established a Women's Day, international in character, to honor the movement for women's rights and to assist in achieving universal suffrage for women. The proposal was greeted with unanimous approval by the conference of over 100 women from 17 countries, which included the first three women elected to the Finnish parliament. No fixed date was selected for the observance.
1911 As a result of the decision taken at Copenhagen the previous year, International Women's Day was marked for the first time (19 March) in Austria, Denmark, Germany and Switzerland, where more than one million women and men attended rallies. In addition to the right to vote and to hold public office, they demanded the right to work, to vocational training and to an end to discrimination on the job.
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Less than a week later, on 25 March, the tragic Triangle Fire in New York City took the lives of more than 140 working girls, most of them Italian and Jewish immigrants. This event had a significant impact on labor legislation in the United States, and the working conditions leading up to the disaster were invoked during subsequent observances of International Women's Day.
1913-1914 As part of the peace movement brewing on the eve of World War I, Russian women observed their first International Women's Day on the last Sunday in February 1913. Elsewhere in Europe, on or around 8 March of the following year, women held rallies either to protest the war or to express solidarity with their sisters.
1917 With 2 million Russian soldiers dead in the war, Russian women again chose the last Sunday in February to strike for "bread and peace". Political leaders opposed the timing of the strike, but the women went on anyway. The rest is history: Four days later the Czar was forced to abdicate and the provisional Government granted women the right to vote. That historic Sunday fell on 23 February on the Julian calendar then in use in Russia, but on 8 March on the Gregorian calendar in use elsewhere.
Since those early years, International Women's Day has assumed a new global dimension for women in developed and developing countries alike. The growing international women's movement, which has been strengthened by four global United Nations women's conferences, has helped make the commemoration a rallying point for coordinated efforts to demand women's rights and participation in the political and economic process. Increasingly, International Women's Day is a time to reflect on progress made, to call for change and to celebrate acts of courage and determination by ordinary women who have played an extraordinary role in the history of women's rights.
The Role of the United Nations Few causes promoted by the United Nations have generated more intense and widespread support than the campaign to promote and protect the equal rights of women. The Charter of the United Nations, signed in San Francisco in 1945, was the first international agreement to proclaim gender equality as a fundamental human right. Since then, the Organization has helped create a historic legacy of internationally agreed strategies, standards, programs and goals to advance the status of women worldwide.
Over the years, United Nations action for the advancement of women has taken four clear directions: promotion of legal measures; mobilization of public opinion and international action; training and research, including the compilation of gender desegregated statistics; and direct assistance to disadvantaged groups. Today a central organizing principle of the work of the United Nations is that no enduring solution to society's most threatening social, economic and political problems can be found without the full participation, and the full empowerment, of the world's women.
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WORKS CITED
Adams, Abigail, Adams, John, Hogan, Margaret A., and Taylor, James (2007). My Dear Friend: Letters of
Abigail to John Adams, Belknap Press of Harvard University Press
Bryan, Alfred (Lyricist) and Piantadosi, Al (Composer) (1915). “I Didn’t Raise My Son to be a Soldier.”
Davis, Kenneth C. (1995). Don’t Know Much About History, Avon Books, Inc.
Desilu Productions (1955). “I Love Lucy: Season 2, Episode 4: Job Switching”
Evans, Redd and Loeb John Jacob (1942). “Rosie the Riveter.”
Freidan, Betty (1963). The Feminine Mystique, W. W. Norton & Company.
Gardner, Howard (2011). Frames of Mind: The Theory of Multiple Intelligences, Basic Books.
Hakim, Joy (1995). A History of Us, Oxford University, New York Press.
Jagger, Mick and Richards, Keith (1966). “Under My Thumb”
Marley, Bob (1975). “Redemption Song”
Marshall, Penny (Director). (1992). “A League of Their Own.”
Newell, Mike (Director). (2003). “Mona Lisa Smile.”
Reddy, Helen (1972). “I Am Woman.”
Schlosser, Eric (2001). Fast Food Nation, Penguin Books.
Schwartz, Sherwood (Director). (1969). “The Brady Bunch: Episode 1: The Honeymoon.”
Shakur, Tupac (1995). “Changes.”
Simon, Carly (1971). “That’s The Way I’ve Always Heard It Should Be.”
Williams, Matt (Creator). (1988). “Roseanne” Episode 1: Life and Stuff.”
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