Lesson
Materials (word document)
Aim:
How far have we come since Brown v. Board of Education?
Objective:
After this four day unit, students will be able to identify
key ideas from two landmark court cases, Brown v. Board
of Education and Plessy v. Ferguson. Using information
from Campaign for Fiscal Equity (CFE), students will assess
how far we have come since schools were desegregated. Students
will learn about a recent case brought by the CFE, and argue
whether they are receiving a fair education.
Social
Studies Standards:
Standard 1 History of the United States
Students will use a variety of intellectual skills to demonstrate
their understanding of major ideas, eras, themes, developments,
and turning points in the history of the United States.
Standard
5 Civics, Citizenship, and Government
Students will use a variety of intellectual skills to demonstrate
their understanding of the necessity for establishing governments;
the U.S. Constitution; the basic civic values of American
constitutional democracy; and the roles, rights, and responsibilities
of citizenship, including avenues of participation.
Summary:
When we look at the situation with our public schools today,
it is easy to recognize that some schools are much better
than others. They have better facilities, more certified
teachers, and more money to invest per pupil. It is important
when examining any situation to consider its context –
its history. By looking at America’s history of segregation,
by law and by custom, we are able to understand the root
of the inequity in our schools today. Just as in the past,
the only way to make steps towards justice is to organize
and use collective power to make change. The Campaign for
Fiscal Equity is trying to do this for New York schools.
If we look at Brown v. Board of Ed and how much progress
we’ve made since then, we can see how important it
is to keep fighting for equality in public schools.
Motivation:
Are you getting a fair and equal education?
Materials:
www.landmarkcases.org
is a good source for obtaining information on Brown and
Plessy. You will also need images from the time of segregation,
specifically those of schools. |
Subject
Areas:
Social Studies
Grade Levels: 6-8
About
the teacher:
Rebecca
Rufo has been teaching in the New York City public
school system for over five years. After receiving her MA
in English Education from Teachers College, Columbia University,
she taught English and Journalism at ACORN High School for
Social Justice in Brooklyn. At ACORN, she and her students
started both the school newspaper “In a Nutshell”
and the school literary magazine “Off the Wall.”
She believes that students’ voices have power and
that these school publications helped the students raise
their concerns and bring attention to vital issues in their
community.
Rebecca is currently teaching 8th grade Humanities at East
Side Middle School (MS 114). She has been a participant
in the school leadership team and started a Model UN program
with a colleague. She worked with a local theatre company
to put on Shakespearean plays with her 8th graders, and
last April she helped implement and run the school’s
first poetry festival in collaboration with the Urban Word
organization. These grade and school-wide programs have
allowed the students at ESMS to use their imagination and
experience the power of language.
rjrufo@yahoo.com |