D E F I N I N G
F R E E D O M
05
Our messy past
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By Jessica Friedlander Illustration by Peter Oumanski
ocial studies is the lowest-priority core class, always. History is not viewed as being as central or important as math and English, and science got a huge boost with Sputnik, the growth of the U.S. space program, and now the focus on STEM areas. I’ve always somewhat begrudged the lack of attention. History teachers have always banded together in the knowledge that we provide the most important core content; after all, if you don’t know where you’ve been, you can’t know where you are going. We have commiserated over the lack of attention. Why does science education get all the cool, fully funded professional development? But I’m beginning to feel the repercussions of “be careful what you wish for.” The thing is teaching history—heck, teaching any subject—is never free from oversight and conflicting opinions. In general, K-12 education has been subjected to ever-changing perspectives and demands, some rooted in education-based research and some in generalized public opinion or political agendas. But teaching American history has come under much more public scrutiny in the past several years. This attention has felt more restrictive than the usual focus on test scores or a new instructional methods. This attention is focused on what we teach, from changing the curriculum, to new textbooks, to public discussion of appropriate historical topics, to current legislation trying
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