Why don't my students know ANY history?

Question

I teach at the college level so my students have completed high school, yet them arrive in my class knowing NOTHING about history. Vietnam, Desert Storm, Civil Rights...all draw blank stares. Why have they lived with their fingers stuck in their ears?

yet they...
it's early here, sorry

Answer 1

I assume we've all heard about the deterioration of the quality of education kids are getting, and with it the decline of their interest...

One has to understand that nowadays, children have differing priorities. They've been raised on single-parent homes, rock concerts, and a culture that no longer stresses the importance of scholarly knowledge. Today's culture heroes are about independence, individualism, and heroic rebellion which are important elements in themselves, but are not trustworthy replacements of the old values. Unfortunately, such an ignorant attitude is glorified, and every student interested in History 101 is a thing to be grateful for. Everything's really different now- I adore history, but Genghis Khan and the details of Dutch mercantilism in the 17th century just aren't pressing street knowledge, and what doesn't qualify for (immediate) everyday life doesn't earn their attention.

Don't mope. They're not hopeless yet. You're moulding young minds who have every potential (if you don't believe that, why else are you still on the podium?) of becoming great, well-informed, interested an active students who care a lot about shaping the history of their generation. You're just faced with greater challenges, but the triumph of overcoming is sweeter. You can inspire these people to care about knowing about Desert Storm or the Vietnam War, or whichever.

*Read: Tuesdays with Morrie by Mitch Albom.

Answer 2

I cannot answer for your students, but I have always been deeply interested in learning about History. In high school I did take two History courses that were offered in my high school, but I learned much more outside of my school than I did in class. Your students may find it boring - but learning about History was never boring for me.

As seen in some of the answers here, and in response to the same question by others, the teacher's personality or teaching method has a lot to do with the students' level of interest in History. As for the "names and dates are boring" types - I am of the opinion that students who make that kind of claim have not fully developed the use of the left side of the brain and instead use the right side. Those types need the teacher to "breathe life" into their lessons, and that becomes the teacher's challenge and responsibility.

Answer 3

By invitation I have presented Constitutional history seminars at various educational institutions and have been amazed of the degree of lack of basic knowledge. However, beyond that lack of knowledge is an apparent lack of caring. At one such seminar I stopped right in the middle of the presentation (which is anything but boring) and asked the students about their seemingly not caring. The response floored me. The general response was that “these are just old documents and events and simply don’t matter to their lives.”

I cannot imagine what is lacking in the public school system that such things so important to their day-to-day personal lives has been skipped.

In that particular class I stopped the seminar and related a story to these students about my great grandmother. That is, when I was a small lad I sat on her knee and she had been born in the Tidewater of Virginia in 1861. That is, she had been born before the Civil War began. I had actually touched someone from that period. But more significantly, when she was a little girl she had sat on the knee of someone born before the Constitution had been written. My point is that, don’t anyone tell me that these are old insignificant documents when only a single blood relative stands between me and the people who wrote the Constitution.

Later I told this same story to a neighbor of mine who happens to be the vice principal of curriculum and to my surprise, not only wasn’t he concerned, he believed that the school was doing a good job in teaching the youth. Amazing that he would believe this when our local public school system has, from ninth through twelfth grade nearly a 40% dropout rate.

Answer 4

A lot of it has to do with the way we teach history in America. It's not just the agendas, it's the Syllabus. Most teachers just run through Wars, Leaders and Laws passed without any explanation. It's boring memorization that doesn't appear to relate to anything.

The PBS series "Connections" does it right. They take one thing and show what it led to and what that, in turn caused. History is STORIES, not dry facts. When you tell the stories, kids listen. It's something they can relate to.

We just don't teach teachers how to teach history. Even back in the 50's and 60's, (OK, only two years of the 50's when I was going to school, all they did was present an outline of the text. History is boring when it's just a series of snapshots. It's really exciting when you learn to see it as a process.

But, there aren't many teachers who teach it that way.

Answer 5

ha ha ha heres an interesting 'historical fact' for you and the rest. The Last time Kenny won the title with Liverpool, was back in 1990. Manchester United finished 13th that year when Liverpool were crowned champions of England for a record 18th time. We may have gone 21 years without winning it, but since being in their shadows we've never finished lower than 8th in the top flight division (8th was in 93/94 btw)

Answer 6

well vietnam, desert storm, and civil rights are relatively recent, I know in my AP US history class, we are way behind, and probably won't ever get there, the same is probably true for most history classes. Also, the period after 1970 is usually not on the AP Exam, for that same reason. As for other topics, i do blame bad education and laziness, however I think you are talking about the relatively recent US History

Answer 7

I had some of the most pathetic history teachers in junior high/high school. I graduated high school in 1973 with an A-minus average, so I'm not a slacker, but these teachers were mostly coaches and people the system needed for one reason or another, and couldn't find any other slot for. The ONLY reason I know history now is that I've studied it on my own. Until our schools stop making sports the number-one priority, and start hiring TEACHERS instead of coaches, you will continue to see sub-standard education in the U.S.

Answer 8

Unless your students took AP History in high school. Average students may know some history, but don't expect most of them to know a lot about history. They may have an idea on some history, but students forget information they learned if they don't use it often.

Answer 9

Too much of it is taught by people with English degrees who did not like it themselves, who present it as boring and useless except to pass that grade level.

Answer 10

because most high schools dont have time to cover that deeply into history, by the time they reach WWII the year is nearly over.