During an AP US History class discussion comparing the Great Migration to immigration during the Gilded Age, a student said, “well, the Irish didn’t face racial violence like African Americans did.” While the point was not entirely wrong, it lacked important nuance and context. For example, the student was overlooking the discrimination Irish immigrants faced from both the British and Americans. I felt torn about how to respond in this moment. I wanted to jump in and add nuance, especially since I have Irish heritage and find this history fascinating. However, I have stepped in too quickly in similar moments during past discussions, which ended up just shutting down those conversations. I hoped another student would speak up and challenge the comment, but no one did. I was stuck between wanting to correct the oversimplification and wanting to keep the conversation student-driven.
-
Margarita
10th Grade
US History
First Year Teaching
- What is the teacher's dilemma? Consider the teacher's goals, possible actions, beliefs about the situation and the students, and their own self-perceptions.
- Complete or modify the following sentence in a way that captures the teacher's central tension in the situation: "While on the one hand, the teacher believed/wanted/felt/did __________, on the other hand, they believed/wanted/felt/did __________."
- Thinking about your own classroom, how do you decide to step in to correct a student’s oversimplification of historical content when doing so risks shutting down the discussion?