Bringing civics into other curricula (continued)
Another example is the Edwards v. South Carolina case featured in the Protesting module. The Edwards case is a 1st Amendment case and concerns the right to assembly. The module also contains storylines covering social and labor movements. Challenges in the courts over the right to assemble during these movements made it clear that the right to free speech, to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievance are the right of all Americans and cannot be suppressed. Our freedoms are not separate from historical events but part of this country’s dynamic. The site can be used to illustrate this point, and teaches civics at the same time.
California's English and Language Arts Standards allow for the overlap of curriculum. Teachers can assign and develop curriculum around novels that highlight historical periods or events being taught in social sciences. For those schools engaged in cross-curriculum teaching, the site can be used as part of the English and Language Arts curriculum. A teacher assigning books concerning segregation could additionally assign the Equal Protection module to explain the constitutional issues being addressed.
The site is particularly useful for writing assignments. A teacher could assign individual storylines in a module or full modules on different days and ask students to prepare “think writes” (Do you think school officials can forbid students from assembling at their lunch break to protest the elimination of art classes and why?)
< back |
