This ERIC Digest reports on the findings of a 1984 Wingspread Conference on Strengthening High School World Studies Courses. The digest considers key challenges that the course poses for educators, the goals of the conference, long-term efforts that have been initiated, activities recommended by conference participants that would provide practical…

Presents a sampling of items from the ERIC database about Christopher Columbus. Includes items on Columbus' voyages, his contacts with the New World, ecological imperialism, and the explorer's experiences in Jamaica. Explains how to obtain ERIC documents. (SG)

Lists and describes some resources on teaching world history that are available from the Educational Resource Information Center (ERIC). Articles cover periodization, humanistic approaches, hierarchical organization of knowledge, skills in world history, teaching about Japan to students in Texas, Oklahoma, and Louisiana, global history, and a…

This digest discusses "Lessons From History," the report of the National Center for History in the Schools at the University of California, Los Angeles. The report provides a rationale for the study of history throughout the K-12 curriculum and specifies core ideas, themes, and topics that undergird both content and performance standards…

Presents a partial bibliography of ERIC database entries concerning Christopher Columbus and the effects of his discoveries upon the world. Includes works on historiography, the ecological impact of the meeting of the two worlds, and history lesson plans. (DK)

Since 1980, an increasing number of state and local education agencies have reintroduced a world history requirement into their secondary curricula. This ERIC Digest examines five key questions related to that trend. Questions raised, together with some salient points made in the discussion of each, are as follows: (1) What is the background to…

Written by teachers from the United States and Canada, these lesson plans focus on integrating the teaching of history and art history. Seventeen lesson plans cover the topics of (1) Slavery, Henry Ossawa Tanner, and His Family--Grades: Elementary; (2) Chinese Landscape Painting--Grades: Elementary; (3) Regionalism: American Art of the Great…

This ERIC Digest discusses the National History Standards and their implementation in elementary education. The National Standards, along with recent research on history learning, have influenced curriculum guides, textbook revisions, and new instructional materials in various formats. This digest summarizes research on children's ability to learn…

This book of lesson plans, compiled from resources in the ERIC database, focuses on writing activities for junior high and high school social studies classes. The book begins with an introductory essay by John J. Patrick and then provides lessons on world history, United States history, general topics, and newspapers, as well as, a user's guide,…

Presents abstracts of 10 documents, selected and reviewed from the Educational Resources Information Center (ERIC) that deal with the debate over how to teach history. Includes information for accessing or ordering documents. (NL)

Presents summaries of 12 documents from the Educational Resources Information Center (ERIC) system that address genocide and its place in history. Includes documents that stress teaching from a human rights perspective and incorporate critical thinking. Explains access to the documents. (NL)

In 1991, the 50th anniversary of the United States' entrance into World War II was observed. This is an opportune time to reevaluate and renew the teaching of this cataclysmic event. Most people have been affected by the political, economic, and social consequences of the War. But perhaps the most important reason to rededicate ourselves to…

The voyage of Columbus in 1492 is a turning point in world history. After 1492, people and civilizations of long-separated regions began to develop connections that have led to the incipient global community of the 1990s. It is their global significance that justifies a prominent place in today's curriculum for the four voyages of Columbus to the…

This ERIC Digest outlines what world history is and why and how world history should be implemented into social studies curricula. The Digest offers suggestions on how to improve the study of world history in schools. Topics discussed in the Digest include: "What Is World History?"; "Why World History in the School…

A Holocaust survivor recently implored social studies teachers to "remember our faces." This becomes an especially poignant plea when one considers the ages of the Holocaust survivors, rescuers, and liberators. This generation will soon be gone. Who will remain to tell their stories? As the 50th anniversary remembrance of World War II…