Why high school students hate history

Why does the author say high school students hate history? Explain why you agree or disagree?

Students consider history as being boring and irrelevant. I agree, I absolutely detested sitting through history class in high school. (many moons ago…) Seemed like our teacher was always a coach that the school opted to teach history

that year and didn’t really want to be there. Also, it may not have been so boring if we learned some interesting facts about our heroes and leaders.

In his opinion, do all students experience history class the same?

No, they don’t. African American, Native American, and Latino students learn history very poorly. They dislike history. Affluent white males think history is taught neat and rosy.

What does he say has gone wrong with history classes? Explain why you agree or disagree?

High school teachers reinvent how they teach history. I agree, some teachers only go over what they think is important and what is going to be on tests. The teachers skip the thick textbooks and settle for less.

What are the effects on students?

When learning history in high school, most students are misinformed and college professors have a lot of work to do teaching us with more accurate information.

Does he provide a solution? Explain why you agree or disagree?

Yes, Loewen provides a solution. He wrote the book to help students learn more from history and recommends ways for teachers to teach history more honestly.

What is the author’s main point of this chapter?

The author’s main point of this chapter is heroification, which is a process through which people make heroes out of ordinary people leaving out their negative traits.

What examples does he use to justify his claim?

Some examples are, Helen Keller and Woodrow Wilson. Most people know Helen as being a blind and deaf girl who worked to overcome her handicaps with the guidance of Anne Sullivan and people know Wilson as being a great

president.

Do you think he adequately supports his argument? Explain why you agree or disagree.

Yes, he does. I agree because they wrote textbooks to be considered neutral. They painted the picture of perfect nations and leaders when in fact, they were not.

What are the “three great taboos in textbook publishing?”

The three great taboos are sex, religion and social class.

What are some of the reasons for these taboos? Provide 3 of the author’s examples and explain why you agree or disagree with them.

Some reasons are that they are unacceptable. They don’t want to show the individuals flaws. One is Wilson’s promise to human rights and democracy. He wasn’t committed to either value when it conflicted with his US interests.

Also, with Helen Keller…it seemed her spot in fame ended with her knowing how to read and write. But that is where Helen’s amazing history began.

How does the author define “heroification” and what are the effects of the action?

The author defines “heroification” as a process through which people make heroes out of ordinary people often leaving out negative traits in order to make them appear as heroes of noble causes. (p11) I think the effects

give readers false sense and not the whole story of what happened.

Does he think it is a good or bad thing? Explain why you agree or disagree.

Bad, because it distorts what people know of these known heroes and again makes the reader think If they purposely omit things…what else could be left out or truth stretched.