Tonight I'm wondering just what I did learn in high school history classes.

[Brigid]

The 100th anniversary of the Triangle Shirtwaist fire is upon us, and I do not recall hearing about that in school. And this is not the only time I have run into something I feel I should have heard about there: the Battle of Blair Mountain, the Amistad incident, and the tragedy of the syphilis experiments of the 1930s are just a few others. Why is the truth that not all of our history is about great heroes and just wars and all the other sanitized crap we learn so hard to face?

[arcane1]

1. History classes = Civic religion classes

Their purpose is to instill patriotism, not to teach actual history. Thus, the truth is harder to face.

The author James Loewen does a great job on this very topic.

[tammywammy]

2. There's a great book about Triangle that I read a few years ago

Triangle: The Fire That Changed America
http://www.amazon.com/Triangle-Fire-That-Changed-America/dp/080214151X/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1300760792&sr=8-3

Really interesting and gets into a lot of the details of the time period and what happened.

I did briefly learn about the Triangle Shirtwaist fire while in school.

I think the reason so much gets glossed over, is that in the year they teach "American History" there's just too much to really get into all the details...that's why it's so focused on the "major" things.

[Rage for Order]

3. You're obviously trying to undermine teachers' unions

Otherwise why criticize public school teachers?

:sarcasm: , just in case it's needed

[Newest Reality]

4. Isn't history always written, for the large part,

by the victors, the winners, the conquerors?

Do the downtrodden, the victims and those who have been enslaved and/or subjugated get to gloss over the data and compose the history books? Doesn't that apply all through history?

Today, we do have scholars with intelligent and deep insight who clearly portray a different perspective on history, both ancient and more modern. You have to look to them to get a broader and less biased perspective as to what has transpired. That's a good way to understand it all better.

As for modern education, it is more like a form of training. The official line is what paints the most pleasing picture for the conquests of the Elite that control what is candy-coated in essence, and called a democracy. There is a big difference between being told you are in one versus the actuality of the power of the voice of the people. Today, we see that the voice of a majority is heard, but largely unheeded.

[Historic NY]

7. Perhaps you didn't know the fire is not forgotten...

http://www.wnyc.org/articles/wnyc-news/2011/mar/21/100-years-later-remembering-triangle-shirtwaist-factory-fire/

According to tradition, volunteers will fan out across the city on March 25 to chalk the names and ages of the Triangle fire victims in front of their former homes. All are welcome to participate.

[Historic NY]

5. I did a papers in college on it and the Cocoanut Grove fire which killed 492 people.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cocoanut_Grove_fire

I actually interviewed witness's to the fire. The Cocoanut Grove fire had bodies piled like cord wood. One witness helped removed the bodies.

My thesis at the time was on panic & mass hysteria.

[tammywammy]

10. I've never heard of the Cocoanut Grove Fire

I'll have to read more about that.

edited to add: Oh wow, what an awful fire. I worked at Six Flags when I was in high school, and my boss was a transfer from the New Jersey park. He was at Six Flags Great America (he was the overall head of customer service) when they had the fire at the haunted houses.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haunted_Castle_at_Six_Flags_Great_Adventure

[niyad]

6. read "lies your teacher told you" and "a people's history", and a couple of good women's history

[NYC Liberal]

8. I'm really glad that I had a great American History teacher in high school.

We learned about a lot of the stuff that apparently is completely ignored in a lot of schools.

Our teacher went into great detail about things like how Columbus enslaved and killed countless Natives, the NY Draft Riots during the Civil War, the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire, a lot of the history of organized labor and unions, history of women's rights.

Hell, he used to photocopy passages from Howard Zinn's "A People's History Of The United States" for handouts.

The kicker? He was a Bush-supporting Republican. But he never brought it into the classroom.

[demosincebirth]

9. Fifty percent of U.S. history I didn't learn in school. Sad to say.

[haele]

11. We learned about this in 10th grade civics -

But that was in 1973. Nowadays, they teach by modules, so who the district buys from pretty much determines what gets taught.

Haele

[bobbolink]

12. I'm also willing to bet you didn't hear about the plot to overthrow FDR, and Smedley Butler, either.

Here's the video:
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=628728631767818729#

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article13844.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Business_Plot

[madamesilverspurs]

13. Our high school history classes were taught

by off-season coaches, which meant that they'd switch places mid-year. Nice enough, I guess, but not at all enthusiastic about the subject matter. One of them "taught" by displaying the textbook on the overhead projector and reading it aloud (and mispronouncing words and names to an embarrassing degree).

First semester of college my history professor taped his lectures (audio only) and played the tape in the classroom while he sat at the desk; we were expected to take notes even though he always turned the lights off. Second semester of college I had a fantastic history professor, and I signed up for as many of his courses as they would allow me to take. He'd written text books that other professors were using in their classes. That was 1967 and I still have one of his books packed away.

Somebody please tell me that highschool students get better history instruction today. Please.


-

[riverbendviewgal]

14. I loved my History class

I was born in the USA and went to school there. In my junior year I had American History. I had a fantastic teacher. I learned a lot and he made it fun. What I do remember he said and he said it often, that empires have a usual lifespan of 200 to 250 years. He seems to be correct on that point.