|
"Universal Geography, Ancient and Modern: Comparison and Classification"
"Rudiments of Geography"
"Smith's Geography on the Productive System; for Schools, Academies, and Families"
"A System of School Geography"
"Geography Made Easy"
"A Practical System of Modern Geography: or View of the Present State of the World."
"A Practical System of Modern Geography"
"A System of Modern Geography, Comprising a Description of the Present State of the World..."
|
Summary and Objective
The National Standards for the study of Geography revolve around five concepts or themes. Those themes are PLACE (physical and human characteristics); LOCATION (importance of where one thing is in relation to another); HUMAN AND ENVIRONMENTAL INTERACTION (changes people have made and continue to make in their environment); HUMAN MOVEMENT AND COMMUNICATION (routes taken and effects of movement on areas where people settle); REGIONS (what makes one area different from another). This activity will allow students and teachers to view portions of American geography books from the 18th and 19th century and investigate whether these same themes, while not nationally mandated, may have been taught. It will also give students and teachers an opportunity to compare/contrast the titles, purposes, illustrations, and text to their current textbooks. Students/teachers will also have an opportunity to identify whether there were cultural and racial stereotypes in the textbooks.
Teaching Plan
Step 1.
In a pre-activity class, students/teachers will first review and familiarize themselves with the Five National Themes of Geography and what they mean.
Step 2.
Students/teachers will also have familiarized themselves with their own geography textbooks perusing titles, introductions, table of contents, illustrations, and text.
Step 3.
Students/teachers will discuss the word "stereotyping" and how stereotyping of races and cultures takes place in our own society in conversations, and through pictures, text, advertising, etc.
Step 4.
Students/teachers will be shown how to use the digital collection to peruse selected portions of 18th and 19th century geography textbooks for the Five Themes and stereotyping. Direction: Go to the digital collection. Click on one of the nine icons. A title page will come up. To view other pages, scroll to the area above the title page to "Select a page". Scroll down to selected pages and highlight in order for the page to appear on the screen. Then peruse the material. If viewer wants to convert older book text to a more readable text click on "Show Text".
Step 5.
Using the above method students/teachers will view an example of stereotyping in one of the books in the digital collection. Access L00.015 A PRACTICAL SYSTEM OF MODERN GEOGRAPHY (1831). They will view the frontspiece and also read the 3rd paragraph on p. 92. They will then discuss any thoughts they have about stereotyping that might be occurring in the illustrations and/or text. Students(working individually, in pairs, or small groups) will then peruse other geography books in the digital collection for examples of cultural/racial stereotyping and record them in their notebooks.
Step 6.
Students/teachers will view an example of PLACE and REGIONS by clicking on L99.115 A PRACTICAL SYSTEM OF GEOGRAPHY (1841. They will read about MISSISSIPPI REGION on page 123 and THE OREGON TERRITORY on page 148. They will then discuss how these address the themes of PLACE and REGION. Students/teachers will then peruse the sample pages of the nine geography books in the digital collection for examples of the Five Themes of Geography. They will record these in their notebooks.
Step 7.
Students/teachers can compare/contrast pages from the collection with pages in their own textbooks looking for similarities and differences.
Step 8.
As a post-activity, students will record their findings in writing and share them during class discussion and/or presentations.
|
