For much of its existence as an academic field of study, history has been taught using methods based on rote memorization and
heroic narrative rather than on critical examination of the primary documents within the social and cultural contexts which
produced them. Students were basically asked to read an assigned portion of the book, write out answers to the questions, and
take quizzes and tests.
In the “Progressive Era,” which ran from the late 19th century to the early 20th century, public school systems all across the
United States gradually evolved from the one-room schoolhouses (grouping students of different ages together) into the solidly
stratified elementary, junior high (middle), and high school grade-level divisions that exist to this day. As the United States was
gradually industrializing and urbanizing, a need arose to divide academic curricula into age-specific categories. Additionally,
academics became increasingly enamored with “scientific” methods of teaching and learning, and thus shifted their key focus
from “heroic tales” to rote memorization and questions about details.
Learning about history is one of the best places for the development and refinement of critical thinking skills to take place. Since
history is, in essence, a set of ongoing discussions about the past, everybody can make their voice heard, and the more voices
there are, the richer the experience of learning about history will be.
Here is an introductory video that outlines what this website is about:
U.S. History Textbooks and Teachers’ Guides in the Progressive Era (on YouTube)
Back to Main Page for History 502: Digital Media and Technology in History
How History Has Usually Been Taught
Students’ History Textbooks in Progressive-Era America
Instructors’ Guides for U.S. History in the Early 20th Century
What Can We Do to Make History More Exciting for Our Children and Teenagers?