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University of South Carolina Scholar Commons Theses and Dissertations 2018 Historical Thinking At Historical Sites And Museums: An Action Research Study Timothy Edward Hicks University of South Carolina Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarcommons.sc.edu/etd Part of the Curriculum and Instruction Commons Recommended Citation Hicks, T. E.(2018). Historical Thinking At Historical Sites And Museums: An Action Research Study. (Doctoral dissertation). Retrieved from https://scholarcommons.sc.edu/etd/4857 This Open Access Dissertation is brought to you by Scholar Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of Scholar Commons. For more information, please contact [email protected]. HISTORICAL THINKING AT HISTORICAL SITES AND MUSEUMS: AN ACTION RESEARCH STUDY by Timothy Edward Hicks Bachelor of Arts Furman University, 1991 Master of Arts in Teaching University of South Carolina, 1993 ________________________________________________________ Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements For the Degree of Doctor of Education in Curriculum and Instruction College of Education University of South Carolina 2018 Accepted by: Todd Lilly, Major Professor Yasha Becton, Committee Member William Morris, Committee Member Linda Silvernail, Committee Member Cheryl L. Addy, Vice Provost and Dean of the Graduate School © Copyright by Timothy Edward Hicks, 2018 All Rights Reserved. ii DEDICATION The Apostle Paul once wrote: “And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together” (Col. 1:17 ESV). I owe all things to the Lord Jesus Christ including the talents and wherewithal to complete this doctoral program. He blessed me with wonderful parents, Eddy and Priscilla Hicks, who have supported the academic proclivities of their eldest son, and I am forever grateful. He also gave me three sons who bring great joy. Noah, Micah, and Elijah, you have had to sacrifice so much time with Dad so that I could read, write, and do it all over again. My middle son often said, “Dad, remember you’re doing this for the money.” While that will be a nice perk, what I have learned and my growth as a teacher and writer have made this experience worthwhile. Finally, I want to thank my wife Julie for everything. Her understanding, support, and logistical talents made this doctorate possible. Thank you for being the captain of our ship so I could complete this program. I have often said that you are better than I deserve. Next to my salvation, you are God’s greatest blessing. I love you, and it is to you that I dedicate this dissertation. iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS No achievement is the work of one person, and my completion of this dissertation was no exception. I would first like to thank my advisor Dr. Todd Lilly whose patience, support, suggestions, and hospitality were invaluable in finishing this literary behemoth. In addition, I would like to express my gratitude to my committee – Dr. Yasha Becton, Dr. William Morris, and Dr. Linda Silvernail. Your feedback will make the next cycle of this action research study an even better one. My colleagues at Dent Middle School – Donnie Brown, Jill Carroll, Shelli Franco, Jennifer Hedrick, Cathy Stinson, and Marc Turner – have extended patience and support during this arduous process, and I greatly appreciate it. I would also like to thank my principal Tamala Ashford whose flexibility and support were necessary to complete course requirements and the successful implementation of this action research study. Two friends of mine – Matt Daugherty and Patrick Stack – were my go to technology guys. Thank you so much for helping me with my computer questions. Matt was key in the formatting of this dissertation, and I greatly appreciate it. Finally, I would like to thank all of my students over the years who have helped me grow as a teacher, but my second block class deserves a special thank for being the sample class. I ask for the reader’s indulgence as I address them directly. Please know that you did great work and grew in your critical thinking of historical sites and museum exhibits. I will forever be grateful for the important role you played in this action research study. You learned from me, but know that I learned from you as well. iv ABSTRACT This action research study examined the impact of the Historical Thinking Method (HTM) on how students interacted with actual and virtual historical sites and museums. From September 2017 to May 2018, students engaged in analysis and evaluation of online exhibits and actual sites in the Washington, DC, and Columbia, South Carolina, areas using the 32 prompt HTM guide. The HTM was designed to develop not only students’ analytical abilities but also consideration of social justice issues such as racism and sexism in the exhibition and memorialization of history. Using qualitative data from student HTM guides, papers, teacher observations, and written interviews, I will modify future cycles of this action research study to make both actual and virtual trips to historical sites and museums into lessons on historical thinking. I will also share my findings, the HTM, and list of resources with colleagues at my school and beyond so that others can help students develop their historical thinking skills even if socio-economic factors make off-campus trips unlikely. Keywords: action research, empathy, historical thinking, actual and virtual historical sites and museums v TABLE OF CONTENTS DEDICATION ................................................................................................................... iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ............................................................................................... iv ABSTRACT .........................................................................................................................v LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS ..............................................................................................x CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION ........................................................................................1 1.1 INTRODUCTORY BACKGROUND ...............................................................1 1.2 PROBLEM OF PRACTICE STATEMENT .....................................................3 1.3 RESEARCH QUESTION ..................................................................................7 1.4 PURPOSE STATEMENT ...............................................................................11 1.5 SOCIAL JUSTICE ISSUES ............................................................................15 1.6 ACTION RESEARCH DESIGN .....................................................................21 1.7 ETHICAL CONSIDERATIONS .....................................................................25 1.8 DISSERTATION IN PRACTICE OVERVIEW .............................................27 CHAPTER 2: REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE ..................................................29 2.1 INTRODUCTION ...........................................................................................29 2.2 IMPORTANCE OF A LITERATURE REVIEW ...........................................33 2.3 METHODOLOGY ..........................................................................................35 2.4 THEORETICAL BASE ...................................................................................39 2.5 HISTORICAL CONTEXT ..............................................................................61 vi 2.6 KEY CONCEPTS/GLOSSARY ......................................................................67 CHAPTER 3: ACTION RESEARCH METHODOLOGY ...............................................70 3.1 INTRODUCTION ...........................................................................................70 3.2 PURPOSE OF THE STUDY ...........................................................................70 3.3 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM OF PRACTICE.....................................71 3.4 RESEARCH DESIGN .....................................................................................73 3.5 CONCLUSION ................................................................................................97 CHAPTER 4: FINDINGS, DISCOVERIES, REFLECTIONS, AND ANALYSES .............................................................................................................98 4.1 INTRODUCTION ...........................................................................................98 4.2 A DESCRIPTION OF THE HISTORICAL SITES AND MUSEUM EXHIBITS .........................................................................................101 4.3 A DESCRIPTION OF HOW THE DATA WAS ANALYZED ...................112 4.4 FINDINGS AND INTERPRETATION OF THE CREATION DATA .............................................................................................114 4.5 FINDINGS AND INTERPRETATION OF THE CONTEXT DATA ...............................................................................................137 4.6 FINDINGS AND INTERPRETATION OF THE CONTENT DATA ...............................................................................................152 4.7 FINDINGS AND INTERPRETATION OF THE CONNECTION DATA .......................................................................................203 4.8 FINDINGS AND INTERPRETATION OF THE CORROBORATION DATA ...............................................................................233 4.9 FINDINGS AND INTERPRETATION OF THE CRITICISM DATA .............................................................................................245

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