RELATIONSHIP
TO CURRICULUM FRAMEWORKS
History/Social
Science - American History:
Core knowledge
topics in American History frameworks that are relevant
to African American studies:
- Early
America and Americans (Beginning to 1650): Africa
and the slave trade;
- Settlements,
Colonies (1600-1763); Colonial era labor and North
American slavery;
- American
Revolution: Creating a New Nation (1750-1815): the
three-fifths compromise;
- Expansion,
Reform, and Economic Growth (1800-1861): the Northern
and Southern economic systems; Jackson Era &
Pre-Civil War reformers: abolitionism;
- Civil
War and Reconstruction (1850-1877); A nation divided
over slavery; Abraham Lincoln; Scenes of war; Mass.
soldiers; Emancipation Proclamation; Gettysburg
Address, Reconstruction;
- The
Advent of Modern America (1865-1920): Changes and
constraints for African-Americans; Plessy v.
Ferguson; African-American migration to the
North and West;
- The
United States and Two World Wars (1914-1945): Jazz
Age; arts and letters; the Harlem Renaissance;
- Contemporary
U.S. (1945-Present): Continuity and dislocation
in Mass. economy since 1945; poverty and causes;
Rising demands for desegregation; Brown v. Board
of Education and '60's busing; Assassination,
civil rights struggles and laws; 80’s and 90’s:
racial tensions and culture wars; debates over immigration.
Other
History/Social Science frameworks include:
- World
History (roots of African Americans; West Indies
slavery and trade, immigration and emigration);
- Geography
(Places and Time);
- Economics
(slavery and its implications; comparisons of economic
opportunities among Mass. populations);
- Civics
and Government (relevant civil rights laws and court
cases);
All
Learning Standards in History are covered:
1) Chronology
& Cause;
2) Historical
Understanding;
3) Research
Evidence & Point of View;
4) Diversity,
Commonality and the Individual;
5-6) Interdisciplinary
Learning.
Other
Disciplines:
Language
Arts aspects covered: this project is particularly
rich in spoken and written literature that draws from
African and African American cultures and encourages
a respect for differences. Writings of Phillis Wheatly,
Frederick Douglass, Harriet Beecher Stowe (Uncle
Toms Cabin) and other abolitionists, as well as
biographies of key activtists, fit into curriculum
frameworks. Media use is also strong: the Internet
for research, video presentations, preparation of
projects in various media, etc.
Arts
that include music and dance can have many Mass. connections.
The timeline includes The Anti-Slavery Harp, 1848,
by William Wells Brown, with songs to recognized tunes.
"I am an Abolitionist" is to the tune of Auld Lang
Syne. Another is called "Jefferson's Daughter", on
her being sold into slavery. This information that
was already known at the time, has more recently come
to light , in terms of genetic testing proof.
Instructional
Technology competencies are achieved through use
of multimedia tools for learning, including website
research.
