What High School Teachers Teach about US History

AHA Session 3
Friday, January 3, 2025: 1:30 PM-3:00 PM
Gramercy West (New York Hilton, Second Floor)
Chair:
David W. Blight, Yale University
Panel:
Whitney E. Barringer, American Historical Association
Lawrence Paska, National Council for the Social Studies
David W. Blight, Yale University
George J. Sanchez, University of Southern California
Brenda J. Santos, Brown University

Session Abstract

What are American students learning about our nation's history? Since 2020, a contentious debate over history education has generated outrage, wild claims, and a growing sense of alarm in communities across the country. State legislators, school board members, pundits, and parents have proposed a dizzying array of potential solutions even as few seem to agree on either the root cause or the nature of a purported crisis in public schools. The loudest voices frequently focus on what they believe teachers discuss in the classroom.

But what do teachers actually teach?

After two years of sustained study of instructional materials, state standards, and thousands of classroom teachers, the AHA has some answers. This panel delves into research and data at the core of a major research report published in September 2024. Panelists offer a closer look at several key topics in American history, revealing what teachers actually use to teach their students, what they prioritize, and how they feel about it.

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