The Enduring Communities Project of Japanese American Experiences in New Mexico During World War II and Beyond
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University of New Mexico UNM Digital Repository Language, Literacy, and Sociocultural Studies ETDs Education ETDs 6-25-2010 The ndurE ing Communities Project of Japanese American Experiences in New Mexico during World War II and Beyond: A Teachers Journey in Creating Meaningful Curriculum for the Secondary Social Studies Classroom Diane Ball Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalrepository.unm.edu/educ_llss_etds Recommended Citation Ball, Diane. "The ndurE ing Communities Project of Japanese American Experiences in New Mexico during World War II and Beyond: A Teachers Journey in Creating Meaningful Curriculum for the Secondary Social Studies Classroom." (2010). https://digitalrepository.unm.edu/educ_llss_etds/4 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Education ETDs at UNM Digital Repository. It has been accepted for inclusion in Language, Literacy, and Sociocultural Studies ETDs by an authorized administrator of UNM Digital Repository. For more information, please contact [email protected]. The Enduring Communities Project of Japanese American Experiences in New Mexico during World War II and Beyond: A Teacher’s Journey in Creating Meaningful Curriculum for the Secondary Social Studies Classroom BY Diane Leslie Ball B.A., History and Russian Studies, The University of New Mexico, 1984 M.A., Secondary Education, The University of New Mexico, 2002 DISSERTATION Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy Language, Literacy and Sociocultural Studies The University of New Mexico Albuquerque, New Mexico May 2010 DEDICATION To Mom, for the gift of history To Allyson, for the opportunity To Lyn, for the journey iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS In any endeavor of this size, the journey to create the dissertation was certainly not a singular act. This paper would have never have been written without the members of the Enduring Communities Project both in New Mexico and other participating states. My fellow team members provided me with the opportunity to be part of a rich and exciting experience that broadened my intellectual horizons and introduced me to an understudied piece of American history. Allyson Nakamoto and other members of the Japanese American National Museum provided encouragement and support to tell the story of our project to create meaningful curriculum. It is from others that we are taught and my own development can only be measured as part of our three-year interaction together. In order to take the Enduring Communities Project from implementation to dissertation, I owe a large debt of gratitude to my dissertation committee. Dr. Rosalita Mitchell taught me how to define the role of teacher education within the framework of the classroom and for that experience, I am so very grateful. She has also been a tireless supporter of National Board Certification in our state and I have enjoyed learning from her about the need for reflective teacher practice. Dr. Lucretia Pence brought to the conversation questions about why I was following certain threads within my research. She helped me to think beyond the boundaries of my research framework. Dr. Don Zancanella, as my chair, was able to guide my work into a theoretical framework that provided an opportunity for self-study and narrative inquiry. He also introduced me to the value of educational theory in the secondary classroom. And finally, Dr. Lynette Oshima brought me to the project and guided my research to maximize both the power of iv content and pedagogy. Her commitment to social studies education was demonstrated over and over again as she asked the hard questions about the value of my work and how it was reflected in student outcomes. As a leader, as an educator and as a mentor, I owe her a great deal of thanks for pushing my thinking beyond the immediacy of the classroom. All the members of my committee gave me the freedom to explore a different kind of research that brought meaning to the journey. In addition to the academic faculty, museum personnel and members of the Enduring Communities project, I want to thank Jean and Dave Oakes who read countless drafts of my paper, looking for the errors both large and small. Their family has been an important support system for me over the last several years. To Monique, my friend and principal, her support has been constant as this project grew beyond the confines of my classroom and she has been an inspiration in showing how leadership fosters learning at all levels. I have had the good fortune to be surrounded by colleagues, family, and dear friends who encouraged me when I thought the road was too rough, pushed me when I doubted my own abilities and cheered me as the journey came to a close. I am forever indebted to their love and support over the last six years as they provide me with inspiration each and every day. Finally, to the three girls who have given me unconditional love while not really understanding this whole process. I hope they are able to discover the value of their own history and see the impact they might have on the world. v The Enduring Communities Project of Japanese American Experiences in New Mexico during World War II and Beyond: A Teacher’s Journey in Creating Meaningful Curriculum for the Secondary Social Studies Classroom BY Diane Leslie Ball ABSTRACT OF DISSERTATION Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy Language, Literacy and Sociocultural Studies The University of New Mexico Albuquerque, New Mexico May, 2010 The Enduring Communities Project of Japanese American Experiences in New Mexico during World War II and Beyond: A Teacher’s Journey in Creating Meaningful Curriculum for the Secondary Social Studies Classroom by Diane Leslie Ball B.A., History and Russian Studies, The University of New Mexico, 1984 M.A., Secondary Education, The University of New Mexico, 2002 Ph.D., Language, Literacy and Sociocultural Studies, The University of New Mexico, 2010 ABSTRACT In 2006, the Japanese American National Museum funded a three year curriculum development project entitled Enduring Communities: Japanese Americans in Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, Texas and Utah. As a member of the team of teachers from New Mexico, I used this experience to study my process of developing meaningful content and pedagogy about Japanese American internment for U.S. History and Civics courses at the secondary level. History is full of stories involving characters, actions, events, artifacts and analysis by those within the experience and those studying the experience in an academic setting. Understanding the past means knowing how what happened was shaped by a multiplicity of factors including the lives of those affected then and now. Developing this kind of historical knowledge was transformative; ideas became more important than facts. For the student, it meant learning to analyze and synthesize information to expand their thinking beyond a single event. Civil liberties for example, vii could be examined through the lens of the Japanese American experience during World War II. Narrative inquiry provides a methodology to document as well as analyze this personal story of curriculum development. Using Clandinin and Connelley‟s (2000, 2002) three-dimensional narrative inquiry space, the study focused on the context of the experience, the temporality of locating events within a larger framework, story-telling and metaphor as a way to describe the experience, and the inclusion of different voices to explore point-of-view. Data included journal entries, primary sources, video tapes, readings of both historical and pedagogical materials, student work from field tests, and interviews with team members and museum personnel. The conclusions were that (1) teacher-driven curriculum development is an under- utilized process leading to effective instruction in the classroom, (2) teachers voices need to be included and valued within the field of curriculum development, (3) experiences like the Enduring Communities Project are invaluable professional development opportunities for teachers, and (4) the combination of research, pedagogy and time are crucial components of effective teaching. Future studies should explore the need for teacher-driven curriculum and study the connections between theorists, theory and practice in the secondary social studies classroom. viii TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF FIGURES ........................................................................................................ xii LIST OF TABLES ......................................................................................................... xiv CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION ................................................................................... 1 Statement of the Problem .......................................................................................... 2 History, Knowledge, and Teaching ........................................................................... 4 The Project ................................................................................................................ 5 Background Knowledge ............................................................................................ 7 Developing Core Knowledge .................................................................................... 8 Positionality ............................................................................................................. 13 Significance of the Study .......................................................................................