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Hearing their Voices

Teaching History to Students of Color

Kay Traille

This book is about what teachers need to know before they teach history to students of color. It is a book about the ‘inside feel’ of these students and what they think and say history is for, based on research in the United States with reflections on the United Kingdom. It gives history teachers a better understanding of why culturally relevant pedagogy, inclusion and issues surrounding diversity are of crucial importance if we are to reach these students. We live in a world where many multicultural students think they have little connection with the histories, traditions and values in which they have grown up, some look toward groups who promise them a sense of belonging and ownership of created histories which clash with and threaten democratic societies. This book begins with the belief that it is important to understand how a subject, history, makes non-White students think and feel about themselves. At its center are assertions made by students of color who think learning history that is rich in aspects they can connect with culturally and personally, is important and necessary in gaining and holding their attention. Then I make suggestions of how we best communicate and set high expectations for these students, how as history teachers we use strategies to better engage these students, and redirect the unengaged. We need to make sure history educators provide necessary and appropriate scaffolding for students of colour to better process what they learn in history lessons, making sure they are engaged in higher-order thinking in an equitable safe environment where they see and know that their diversities are respected and valued.

Rowman & Littlefield Publishers

Pages: 184 • Trim: 6⅜ x 9⅜

978-1-4758-5555-5 • Hardback • December 2019 • $62.00 • (£48.00)

978-1-4758-5556-2 • Paperback • December 2019 • $32.00 • (£25.00)

978-1-4758-5557-9 • eBook • December 2019 • $30.00 • (£25.00)

Subjects: Education / Multicultural Education, Education / Inclusive Education, Education / Current Issues, Education / Elementary / Social Studies

Hearing their Voices

Teaching History to Students of Color

Hardback

Paperback

eBook

Summary

This book is about what teachers need to know before they teach history to students of color. It is a book about the ‘inside feel’ of these students and what they think and say history is for, based on research in the United States with reflections on the United Kingdom. It gives history teachers a better understanding of why culturally relevant pedagogy, inclusion and issues surrounding diversity are of crucial importance if we are to reach these students. We live in a world where many multicultural students think they have little connection with the histories, traditions and values in which they have grown up, some look toward groups who promise them a sense of belonging and ownership of created histories which clash with and threaten democratic societies. This book begins with the belief that it is important to understand how a subject, history, makes non-White students think and feel about themselves. At its center are assertions made by students of color who think learning history that is rich in aspects they can connect with culturally and personally, is important and necessary in gaining and holding their attention. Then I make suggestions of how we best communicate and set high expectations for these students, how as history teachers we use strategies to better engage these students, and redirect the unengaged. We need to make sure history educators provide necessary and appropriate scaffolding for students of colour to better process what they learn in history lessons, making sure they are engaged in higher-order thinking in an equitable safe environment where they see and know that their diversities are respected and valued.

Details

Rowman & Littlefield Publishers

Pages: 184 • Trim: 6⅜ x 9⅜

978-1-4758-5555-5 • Hardback • December 2019 • $62.00 • (£48.00)

978-1-4758-5556-2 • Paperback • December 2019 • $32.00 • (£25.00)

978-1-4758-5557-9 • eBook • December 2019 • $30.00 • (£25.00)

Subjects: Education / Multicultural Education, Education / Inclusive Education, Education / Current Issues, Education / Elementary / Social Studies

Author

Kay Traille taught history at Secondary school and University level and guided precervice teachers for over three decades in a variety of settings from Urban United Kingdom to the Southern United States. Her research centers on inclusion and diversity in history education, specifically how best to teach emotional and controversial histories.

Table of Contents

Preface

Chapter 1: The history of history education for students of color since 1800

Chapter 2: How students learn history and why it matters

Chapter 3: Cognitive and Affective Factors and possible impact on the learning of Multicultural Students

Chapter 4: Students of color talk about the role and purpose of history in their lives

Chapter 5: Students decoded

Chapter 6: Counterstories of American History: Students of color examine the past

Chapter 7: An approach for teaching World history

Chapter 8: Cultivating curiosity, complexity and authentic engagement in history classrooms for students of color

Appendices

References

Reviews

Traille, an experienced educator and educational leader, presents the fruits of her research on how students of color respond to traditional patterns of curriculum, instruction, and evaluation in history and social studies education. Chapter 1 offers a limited overview of the history of history and social studies education, chapter 2 examines recent research on how students learn history, and chapter 3 discusses the cognitive and affective factors influencing history teaching and learning. Chapters 4 through 7 present Traille's research on students in secondary and higher education settings in the UK and the US, which highlights the deficits that students of color experience when confronted with traditional historical narratives that marginalize the histories of oppressed groups. In chapter 8, the author provides detailed suggestions and strategies to improve student engagement, emphasizing culturally responsive pedagogy and a broad-based, inclusive study of history. Chapter 8 also includes an excellent summary of why history should be taught and the implications of effective history instruction for students of color. Strongly recommended for teacher educators and practicing classroom teachers of history and social studies. Summing Up: Highly recommended. Lower-division undergraduates through graduate students; professionals.

— Choice Reviews

Kay Traille’s Hearing Their Voices: Teaching History to Students of Color is a must-read for educators at all levels of schooling, especially those teaching history. What Traille offers educators is invaluable—interview excerpts from a widely diverse group of students from the United States and Great Britain interwoven with accessible theory and robust analysis. Traille allows students in their own voices to let educators know where they are going wrong in the teaching of history and what they need to do to “cultivate curiosity, complexity, and authentic engagement.” Asking provocative guiding questions throughout the text, Traille challenges educators to re-think their taken-for-granted assumptions about students of color and what their assumptions might mean in the teaching of history. While Traille resists simplistic step-by-step formulas for teaching history, she does offer in great detail what a culturally responsive history classroom looks like for students of color, and she reminds us that this kind of classroom is effective for all students. This text will help educators transform how they teach history and help them make their classrooms a welcoming space for all students.
— Nichole Guillory, PhD, Professor of Curriculum & Instruction, Department of Secondary & Middle Grades Education, Kennesaw State University

Traille walks readers through the policies, practices, theories, and ideologies that have impacted students of color as they learn about events in history. Through narratives and counterstories, she provides voice to students who are often marginalized and silenced in current texts. Their lived experiences will challenge and provoke educators to create more inclusive spaces of learning.
— Corrie L. Davis, Interim Associate Dean for Diversity and Community Engagement and Professor of Educational Research Bagwell College of Education, Office of the Dean

Hearing their Voices

Teaching History to Students of Color

Kay Traille

Hearing their Voices

Teaching History to Students of Color

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