States have been passing laws mandating that public school teachers teach “patriotism” and downplay racist or disturbing events from the nation’s past. As a former teacher, I find this truly unAmerican and the worst possible way to teach history. How can we ever learn from our mistakes if we don’t acknowledge them?
Today I read about an amazing lesson teachers in Tulsa at the Mayo Demonstration School used to teach their students about the mob attack on the Black section of Tulsa 100 years ago. The teachers assigned the third-, fourth-, and fifth grade students to research and build a model of the Greenwood section of the city, the part that was torched and where about 200 Blacks were murdered. The kids toured the area, built model buildings, and labeled the stores and streets. They planned a memorial celebration for the day after they finished and invited their parents to attend.
The night before the event, the teachers doused the model with lighter fluid and then set it on fire. The students were distraught. The teachers then asked the students to imagine real buildings, real schools, real people. Many of those students said this was among the best lessons they had ever learned in school.
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