Programs > K-12 Programs > Teaching American History > Preserving Our Democracy
Preserving Our Democracy
TAH Courses, Saturday Seminars,
and Summer Institutes
2007-2010
Fall 2009 - Spring 2010
Professional Development Days for Worcester Public Schools Teachers
Coffee will be available at 7:45 a.m. Each program will begin promptly at 8 a.m. and will run until 2:30 p.m. Lunch will be provided for all participants.
- September 29, 30, October 1 and 2, 2009, "Modern American Dilemmas and Reforms, 1877-1932"
Held at Assumption College
Lead scholar: Rebecca Edwards, Vassar College
- December 1-4, 2009, "Wars and Rumors of Wars, 1919-present"
Held at Assumption College
Lead scholar: Edward O'Donnell, College of the Holy Cross
- March 16-19, 2010, "The New American State, 1933-present"
Held at Assumption College
Lead scholar: Stephanie Yuhl, College of the Holy Cross
- May 4-7, 2010, "American Identities, 1877-present"
Held at Assumption College
Lead scholar: Gary Gerstle, Vanderbilt University
Saturday Seminars
Each seminar will be held from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Assumption College. PDPs: Participants can earn 5 PDPs per session by attending at least 2 of the sessions. PDPS cost $10 each. For example, a participant earns 15 PDPs for attending 3 sessions and will pay $150. Grad Credit: Participants earn three graduate credits from Worcester State College for $300 by participating in all four seminars and completing a lesson plan. A Worcester State registration form and payment must be submitted to Amy Sopcak-Joseph before the course begins on October 24.
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October 24, 2009
"Alcohol Consumption and Prohibition"
taught by Stephanie Yuhl from the College of the Holy Cross
Of all the issues in American culture that galvanized reform movements from the late nineteenth through the early twentieth centuries, perhaps none better illuminates the landscape of the period than the push-pull of alcohol consumption and temperance/prohibition. Values, traditions and social fissures involving religion, ethnicity, immigration, class, gender, economies, crime, resistance, and leisure, among others, emerge. In this seminar, we will examine these issues in-depth as we trace the evolution of this compelling social reform.
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January 16, 2010
"The Fog of War"
taught by Doug Little from Clark University
This seminar will particularly emphasize three case studies: the First World War, which erupted in August 1914 in large measure because rumors of German and Russian mobilization became reality; the October 1973 Middle East War, which was triggered by both regional tensions between the Arab states and Israel and a superpower rivalry between the United States and the Soviet Union; and the Second Gulf War of March 2003, which raises questions about pre-war intelligence, post-war planning, and presidential power.
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April 10, 2010
"Teaching American History through Film"
taught by Alan Marcus from the University of Connecticut
Films offer representations of history with potential benefits and pitfalls. This interactive presentation explores a framework for using films that promotes effective instructional strategies for developing students. historical understanding. Specifically, participants will evaluate how to use film to develop historical empathy and to help students use films as both primary and secondary sources.
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May 22, 2010
"American Identities"
taught by John McClymer from Assumption College
The dream of a pluralistic America has endured throughout the nation's history, and much of the twentieth century witnessed progress, however halting at times, towards a more inclusive definition of "who is an American." In part, this seminar will examine the ways in which groups relegated to second-class status for much of the twentieth century nonetheless exercised enormous influence in the creation of American popular culture. Participants will focus upon music, film, radio and television, comic strips, comedy generally, language, and fashion.
Spring 2010
"The US and the World, 1945 to the Present"
Graduate Course
Taught by Nick Gannon from the
College of the Holy Cross
Tuesdays, 4 p.m. to 7 p.m.,
Starting Jan. 19, 2010
Location TBA
This course will use John F. Kennedy's inaugural address as a launching point for exploring some of the major issues confronting the United States from the end of World War II to the current day. Students will examine seminal primary documents from the Massachusetts curriculum frameworks, as well as a variety of secondary works. In examining the challenges faced by the Kennedy Administration, the course will draw parallels with the current day, engaging issues such as America's role in the world community, foreign perceptions of the United States, and the role of personality and the individual within the political process. Students, together with the instructor, will consider ways of applying both the content and analytical tools they encounter in this course to the classroom setting. Weekly topics will include: the Origins of the Cold War; Kennedy and Khrushchev; the U.S., U.S.S.R. and the "Third World"; the Domestic and Global War on Poverty; the Civil Rights Movement; America and the Middle East; the Vietnam War and its Social Impact; Religion and the U.S. Presidency; John F. Kennedy's Political and Cultural Legacy; the Fall of Communism; and Globalization.
This course will make use of materials that both U.S. history and world history teachers can employ in teaching the second half of the twentieth century. Participants will earn 3 graduate credits for this institute from Worcester State College. As part of the Preserving Our Democracy Teaching American History grant, participants pay the much-reduced cost of $300 for the graduate credits. A reading list will be provided, and participants are responsible for obtaining and paying for the readings. Participants will be expected to complete assigned readings, participate during the entire week of the program, and complete a final project.
Previous Programs
Fall 2007
Professional Development Days
- October 25, 26, and November 1, 2, "Colonial Encounters" - Led by Walter W. Woodward and Plimoth Plantation
Saturday Seminar
- December 1, 2007, "Colonial New England Family Life" - Led by Charlotte Haller
Spring 2008
Professional Development Days
- January 15-18, 2008, "Revolutionary America, 1763-1789" - Led by Ray Raphael
- March 4-7, 2008, "The First Republic, 1789-1844" - Led by Robert A. Gross
- April 8-11, 2008, "The West, 1783-1920" - Led by Jack Larkin
Saturday Seminars
- January 26, 2008, "Revolutionary America, 1763-1789" - Led by Steven Bullock
- March 15, 2008, "The First Republic, 1789-1844" - Led by Drew McCoy
- May 3, 2008, "The West, 1783-1920" - Led by Kathryn Morse
Summer 2008
Summer Institute
- July 28-August 1, 2008, Seneca Falls "Declaration of Sentiments" - Led by Kathryn Kish Sklar and Thomas Dublin
Fall 2008
Professional Development Days
- September 23-26, "Civil War and Reconstruction, 1845-1876" - Led by Robert Bonner at AAS (8 a.m. - 2:30 p.m.)
- December 2-5, "Capital, Labor, and Technology, 1790-1920" - Led by Bruce Laurie at Assumption College (8 a.m. - 2:30 p.m.)
Saturday Seminar
- October 18, "The Rhetoric of Race in the Civil War Era" - Led by Lucia Knoles at Assumption College (8 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.)
Spring 2009
Professional Development Days
- March 17-20, "Empire, 1845-1920" - Led by Kristin Hoganson at Assumption College (8 a.m. - 2:30 p.m.)
- April 28-May 1, "The City and the Immigrant, 1815-1924" - Led by Ed O'Donnell at Assumption College (8 a.m. - 2:30 p.m.)
- January 24, "Capital, Labor, and Technology" - Led by John McClymer at Assumption College (8 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.)
- April 4, "Understanding Empire" - Led by Aldo Garcia Guevara at Assumption College (8 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.)
- May 9, "The City and the Immigrant, 1815-1924" - Led by Annelise Orleck at Assumption College (8 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.)
Summer 2009
Summer Institutes- June 22-26, "FDR's Four Freedoms" - at Assumption College
For more information, contact:
Amy Lynn Sopcak-Joseph
Education Coordinator
American Antiquarian Society
Worcester, MA 01609
508-471-2129
asopcak[at]mwa.org
For more information about the 2009-2010 Teaching American History grant professional development days, please print this flyer.
Keepers of the Republic TAH Courses, Saturday Seminars, and Summer Institutes 2006-2008
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