IU, MCCSC team up to revamp history program

The minute hand on the clock might have been moving forward Monday morning, but a group of Monroe County Community School Corporation history teachers were falling further into the past as they listened to two IU history professors share ideas about how to get their students interested in the subject.

A group of about 25 MCCSC teachers met at Bloomington High School North on Monday to kick off a week of programs designed to help improve the teaching of American history in Monroe County.

This is the second year of a three-year, half-million-dollar program funded through the U.S. Department of Education, said Patricia Wilson, co-director of the Teaching American History grant.

Wilson said it took a lot of time, networking and hard work to successfully apply for the grant and become the only school district in the state of Indiana to be approved.   
She said the grant was the result of a partnership with the IU School of Education, IU College of Arts and Sciences, MCCSC, Agency for Instructional Technology and the Monroe County History Center.

“We forged these partnerships and built these bridges so collectively we can deliver a dynamic and vibrant program that will deepen the understanding of American history,” Wilson said.

One stipulation of the grant was that the school district had to partner with a library, museum, nonprofit history or humanities organization or a higher education institution that has extensive knowledge of American history.  

James Madison, an IU professor of history, said the history department and the MCCSC have had a long partnership and that programs like this are vital to students, regardless of grade level.

“I think knowing our past is now more important than ever because we’ve got horrendous problems, issues and controversies,” Madison said. “Among the most important bases for thinking about those problems is to ask about the past to know what happened before so we can understand where we are and make smart choices about where we want to go as Americans.”

MCCSC teachers will be using the skills they learn to conduct their own research and integrate that into their lesson plans.
“Teaching is a very hard job and it demands a lot of time and energy,” Madison said. “By being here and giving their time during the summer, these teachers are showing they are committed to improving their students’ educational experiences.”

Wilson said that thanks to the dedication of these teachers, students will be able to partake in activities that promote historic thinking and not just rote memorization.
She also said the time and work put into applying for the grant would be worth it if MCCSC students embrace history.

“This program is giving teachers the tools to use in the classroom to allow students the ability to think historically and to analyze history, analyze photographs, analyze newspapers and old texts to see what those stories are and what is really there,” Wilson said.