Crestfallen, The House by Robert Remini

I was very disappointed in this work from such a respected historian. Remini is the historian of the Jacksonian era. I loved his biography of Andrew Jackson and have read multi other biographies and other volumes that have flowed from Professor Remini's impressive scholarship. The House was a monumental disappointment. It is definitely aimed at a general readership with little background in American history. It felt that over half of the work was general scholarship to give the reader a background for what little discussion over the personalities and the events that shaped the modern House of Representatives. I was expecting memorable anecdotes and biographical sketches, legislative history and details of events that stemmed from the House that shaped this nation. There was too little of the actual history of the House. It read as if Remini had not formulated an approach to such a huge undertaking, and never did concoct one as he wrote. It is a great book for someone who has no general knowledge of the history of this great nation, for others....look elsewhere.

Church and State

The interaction of religion and government is currently a hot topic in both popular media and among historians. There is an ongoing discussion among historians (and some zealots) over the religious belief of the founders. The active participation of many Christians in the political processes today has raised the question of the concept separation of church and state in modern political structures. Pelosi's documentary focusing on the effect of Evangelists on the political process is interesting and worth viewing. Check the HBO schedule for documentaries!!!

Teaching the Civil War

Now, just how do you communicate to students the momentous impact of the war on our lives today? I plan to start with Ken Burns' The Civil War and give them some of the basic facts. It is time to try to get them to finish a worthwhile project, like a campaign ad for Lincoln's election in 1860? A video, powerpoint, poster, pamphlet, etc. Hhem, now I just need project guidelines. The biggest question is, how will the students do so close to the end of the year and after the state mandated test. Most think that the year is over...little do they know. Now, the real fun begins. If you happen to follow this blog, and know of any great projects or have any ideas....I designed a Civil War game for the students...but it is lengthy and cumbersome. Time to streamline.

State of History Education

After a comment on the American Revolution blog I feel that I must make a post on this subject. History education is wholefully underfunded and worse, undervalued as part of a modern curriculum. Relegated on many campuses as part of the humanities courses, history is often ignored and pushed aside since it does not make you richer or further your career or ambitious plans for material gain. But without out, we as a people are wholefully ignorant of who we are, were we have been and therefore where we are going. I can point to Iraq, the economic crisis, immigration and find dozens of examples in our history that speak to us. From Cicero to Franklin to Truman our sense of history grounds us and allows us to stand, think, consider, imagine and move forward building on the marvelous tapestry that the human experience...history...provides for us.

Realizations I had while teaching American history...the first six presidents were all from the two first powerhouse states, Virginia and Massachusetts....Manifest Destiny did not stop at the California coast...Henry Clay must have thought that becoming Secretary of State was the path to the presidency since Jefferson, Madison, Monroe and JQ Adams had all held the position.

Excellent Resource!!! Digital History Site

This site contains an amazing number of resources for teaching American history. The resources listed include everything from documents to movie trailers and flash videos...the total resources would be too lengthy to go into here. Kudos to the primary sponsor, University of Houston and their partners!!!

Check it out, www.digitalhistory.uh.edu

Virtual Charter Schools

After reading about the Texas Virtual Academy in the Fort Worth Star Telegram, I feel that I have to comment. If parents want to educate their children at home then they should home school. This charter school provides materials not available to students at public schools (laptop and other materials). The students are required to take the state exam and are scoring below their counterparts at public school. Charter schools in Texas also prosper under loose spending guidelines, lack of oversight and top heavy administrative staffs.

The answer? Put that money back where it belongs, your local public school. I feel that the biggest difference between a high performing and low performing campus, particularly for elementary and middle schools is parent volunteerism. PTA, parent tutors, parent at lunch duty, parents on campus before and after school, parent in the school office helping parents of new studnets, etc. The two most influential factors of the success of a school campus are principal leadership and parent volunteerism.

Were are the Texas resources?

Teaching Texas History? Have you found anything? Has the state actually helped, produced or maintains any websites, programs, materials? The answer is no. The resources are scant and very few, practically none are state supported. So where do we go? What do we do? These are question asked by any first year teacher looking for support when teaching Texas history. I do love the history of this great state, who wouldn't? But where do we get the help? If we are to build the founding mythos of this state and instill the awe that I feel when I enter the Alamo, where can we go?

Library of Congress, Travel for Research?

I had the distinct pleasure to visit the Library of Congress last year and now count my library card as one of most treasured possesions. The LOC has done such an amazing job of digitizing their collections and making them avaliable on-line that many of the collections that you would have to see in person.....Soon may come a time where a writer will only have to visit locations to see jealously guarded collections or those of such limited resources that they have not yet made them available on-line. Of course, I can tell you there is something magical about actually holding a primary source in you hands. Holding the actual general orders from Gen. Scott's headquarters in Vercruz and later, Mexico City.....it just makes a real connection that cannot be underestimated. When writing, I still plan to travel. For example, the paper of Thomas Jefferson...check it out, the link is below.

http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/collections/jefferson_papers/

American Creation By Joseph Ellis

As usual, Ellis is doing an excellent job in this book. Though I have only started I find myself enjoying Ellis' writing style. He explains the premise of the book and his approach to the subject at the beginning, which I find refreshing from many of the scholarly works that I read. This explains his appeal to a general audience. He is teaching, starting from the reason for the question and his approach. So far, is seems that he borrowing a lot from his biography on Adams and has stuck to Adam's perspective on the causes and need for revolution. He endorses the view of Adams as a cautious conservative revolutionary and explains how strange an animal this thinking is in such a time. Paine on the other hand..... More review later.

Documentaries, Iraq War

Today I watched the following documentaries which have been on my DVR for some time. Why We Fight really shows you the extent to which the military industrial complex has entwined itself in our political process. It does not show anyone who seriously watches the news or keeps up with current events something new, but all in one place with it all laid out is more shocking. Everyone knows that Cheney was CEO of Halliburton and personally assured more than eight hundred contracts for his old company. It is sickening, so it is a good idea to watch it when you are already sick to your stomach. The follow-up to this for me was Iraq for Sale :The War Profiteers.