C-SPAN Classroom:the 2008 Election Cycle
C-SPAN Classroom provides teachers access to an array of
free non-partisan curriculum resources that can be used
during the 2008 election cycle and beyond. The resources are
developed by C-SPAN, a private, non-profit company created
in 1979 by the cable television industry as a public
service. C-SPAN provides coverage of a variety of public
affairs events, most notably Congress, the President and the
Supreme Court. A 2006 study by the Pew Research Center
identified CNN, 60 Minutes and C-SPAN as the top three “most
trusted sources” of news in the United States.
C-SPAN Classroom,
www.c-spanclassroom.org, provides teachers with lessons
and supplemental materials as well as unrestricted taping
and viewing rights for C-SPAN-produced programming.
By registering for a free C-SPAN Classroom membership,
teachers will gain access to a searchable database of video
clips, student activities, teacher resources, student
contests and periodic special offers like free classroom
posters. By registering for a membership at
http://www.c-spanclassroom.org/Registration.aspx
teachers will also be sent a free DVD of 17 C-SPAN video
clips that can be used to teach important and complex
concepts in civics and government. |
Free Teaching & Learning Resources
ONGOING: The
Federal Resources for Educational Excellence (FREE)
website has recently been re-designed and now offers
over 1,500 teaching and learning resources
addressing 100 different educational topics, all
available free-of-charge from the federal
government. http://free.ed.gov |
Free resource: The American Promise
ONGOING: For the past several years,
National Council for the Social Studies and Farmers
Insurance Group have joined forces to conduct
education outreach activities for The American
Promise. We are pleased to offer you an
opportunity to receive complimentary copies of
The American Promise Teaching Guide and the two
classroom-formatted video cassettes.
As you may already know, National Council for the
Social Studies endorsed the series The American
Promise, which aired in October 1995 as the kick-off
for the PBS Democracy Project. The series,
subsequent classroom materials, and their free
distribution have been made possible by Farmers
Insurance Group. NCSS is proud of its association
with this innovative tool for fulfilling the primary
purpose of social studies education, “to help young
people develop the ability to make informed and
reasoned decisions for the public good as citizens
of a culturally diverse, democratic society in an
interdependent world.”
In nine acts, The American Promise tells the story
of individuals meeting the challenges of
democracy—freedom, responsibility, participation,
hard choices, information, opportunity, leverage,
deliberation, and common ground. Each act explores a
theme through four or more documentary stories about
grassroots heroes and heroines who are practicing
the arts of citizenship and giving life to
democratic ideals. The stories embody the conflicts,
compromises, victories, and frustrations that are
part and parcel of a working democracy. The
accompanying standards-based teaching guide suggests
ways for classroom teachers to capitalize on the
teaching potential of the series. Content is most
appropriate for middle level and high school
students. To order The American Promise Teaching Kit
visit www.americanpromise.com |
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Free Newsletters Offers
Join the TEA Listserv
Sign Up Here
Listserv Archives
From the folks who bring us the Preserve America Awards
Gilder
Lehrman Newsletter
At the bottom of the home page, click on "Join the
mailing list for the Gilder Lehrman Institute" to receive
these items by email. |
National History Day Resources
Two new resources have been developed for use with
students in studying history as well as in preparing
successful projects for History Day competition entries
Complete Details |
Featured Sites
World
History for Us All
An Innovative World History Curriculum for American
Schools
At a time when student proficiency in reading and math
dominates public debate over education, how important is
world history in the middle and high school classroom? A
national team of teachers, historians, and web specialists
thinks it is so important they have been developing a
comprehensive electronic-based model curriculum for world
history that any teacher or school in America may use
without subscription or fee. Called World History for Us
All, the project is a collaboration of faculty at San Diego
State University and UCLA’s National Center for History in
the Schools.
The World History for Us All web site offers educators
and students not only a treasury of teaching materials and
resources but also a coherent conceptual framework for
thinking about the human story from early times to the
present. This innovative program is premised on the idea
that humankind as a whole has a history to be explored and
that classroom world history suitable for the twenty-first
century must pay attention to large-scale changes and
cross-cultural linkages, not just to the achievements and
contributions of different civilizations.
World History for Us All draws heavily on the burgeoning
academic research of the past several years that focuses on
history from cross-cultural, comparative, and transnational
perspectives. It is also inspired by cognitive research in
the U.S. and Great Britain which shows that students achieve
greater competence in history when they are guided to relate
particular facts and stories to bigger historical trends and
patterns.
Therefore, the World History for Us All project team has
organized the model curriculum to connect concrete
instructional materials rich in class activities and primary
source documents to an overarching framework of guiding
historical concepts, objectives, and themes. For example,
rather than conceiving of separate, compartmentalized
civilizations as the main subjects of study, the curriculum
has a unified chronology, organizing the human past into
nine Big Eras, each of them encompassing changes around the
globe. |
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The National Consortium
for Teaching about Asia
The National Consortium for Teaching about Asia (NCTA),
funded by the Freeman Foundation, is a multi-year initiative
to encourage and facilitate teaching and learning about Asia
in world history, geography, social studies, and literature
courses.
Launched in October 1998, this nationwide program is a
collaboration of the East Asian Studies programs of five
institutions: the University of Washington, the University
of Colorado, Indiana University, Columbia University, and
the Five College Center for East Asian Studies at Smith.
The NCTA Seminars
Each seminar leader or team facilitates a 30-hour seminar on
East Asian history and cultures that incorporates
primary-source selections from the Chinese, Japanese, and
Korean traditions. Individual seminars are adapted to the
needs and curricula of the participating teachers and school
districts to promote long-term engagement in East Asian
studies by core groups of teachers within schools and
districts. NCTA seeks to develop a community of inquiry
among educators interested in East Asian studies that serves
as a forum for collegial discussion of issues relevant to
the teaching of East Asia. |
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Texas Beyond
History
Texas Beyond History (TBH) is a free public education
service of the Texas Archeological Research Laboratory at
the University of Texas at Austin. In this virtual museum
you will find information on and images of many different
aspects of the cultural legacy of Texas, a legacy spanning
at least 13,500 years. Human interest stories, archival
photos, maps, primary documents, and photographs of both
prehistoric and historic cultural treasures fill this
educational website.
TBH’s extensive Teachers and Kids sections offer many
colorful, high interest, interactive pages for curious K-12
students to discover, as well as TEKS aligned lesson plans
designed for teacher use. TBH has been recognized by the
National Endowment for the Humanities as one of the top
humanities education websites in the country and is featured
on both the NEH EdSitement website, the U.S. Department of
Education’s ERIC website, and the University of Texas’
Utopia website. |
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The George Ranch
The George Ranch Historical Park holds Texas's "big"
stories, from cattle and cotton to oil, from the Texas
revolution to World War II. The Ranch's history follows
family lines. Originally settled in 1824 as part of Austin's
Colony by Nancy and Henry Jones, four generations of the
Joneses' descendants have managed and loved this land.
Today, the George Ranch is a 23,000-acre working ranch.
The family's original "home place" is at the core of the
George Ranch Historical Park. Here the legends and legacies
of those who shaped the ranch come to life. Authentic
locations, historic homes, costumed presenters and a
remarkable story of determination and courage set the stage
for exploring Texas's past. |
History links
Ease History: Online Learning
Smithsonian Institution
The National Archives
Library of Congress
Texas
Treasures
The Handbook of Texas
Eyewitness
to History
The History Place
The History Net |
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World geography links
National
Geographic
The CIA World Factbook
About.com -
Geography
Google Earth
U.S. Census Bureau
SAGE -- Global
Education
Library of Congress Country Studies
The Weather Channel |
 |
government links
Thomas - Legislative
Information Online
The White House
The Supreme
Court
Department of Homeland Security
Univ. of
Virginia's Center for Politics
Texas
Legislature Online |
 |
Economics
National Council for Economic
Education
Texas Council for
Economic Education
Foundation for Teaching
Economics
The
Fed's Education Site
Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas
The Stock Market
Game
Junior Achievement |
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Publications
American Heritage
Magazine
U.S. News
& World Report
The Washington
Post
The Austin
American-Statesman |
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Agencies
The
Social Studies Center at TEA
The Teacher Center -- U.S. Department of Ed. |
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Psychology
American Psychological
Association
Teachers of
Psychology in Secondary Schools |
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