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World History Thematic Curriculum Update - February 2019

2/14/2019

10 Comments

 
I get a few messages a month from people who saw my guest post on The Civic Educator, asking about my curriculum and my experience with it. I have also reposted it on the site here. Here's some updates on my progress a year later in 2019. ​
​It's been a while since I have posted. I keep telling myself that I would write more often, but school responsibilities take over my priorities. As I enter my 3rd year in the class room, I've added even more responsibilities to my plate. I just don't know when to stop!

If you're interested in thematic teaching, here's an update about my curriculum. It is still a work-in-progress and I'm hoping to start uploading materials onto my website in the near future after I tweak some things out, hopefully by Summer 2019. It's a slow experimental transition from chronological to thematic rather than a complete overhaul. It's currently in its 2nd year of experimentation.

One downside I've noticed is that when I choose thematic over chronological some students will get confused which time period they're in as the unit changes. Students are so used to chronological teaching that when we jump around time periods between units a few will get confused. It will definitely be necessary to front-load a timeline to students OR keep a timeline somewhere in the classroom so they do not get confused. ​
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It's definitely necessary to create a timeline for students at the beginning because they've been comfortable with it for so many years.

For example, in my Revolutions unit, we cover the American, French, Mexican, Russian, Chinese, Iranian, and Cuban Revolutions. Then in my Race & Culture unit, we cover mainly the Atlantic Slave Trade, Imperialism, and the present day as a legacy of imperialism and racism - then we watch and analyze/critique a films that cover race in today's society, such as The Hate U Give, The Black Panther, and the 13th (Documentary). If there's time, or depending on the circumstances, I swap it with Hotel Rwanda. A few students got confused because they're lost with the time period we're in. They're too used to a chronological model. 

One thing I experimented with at the end of my first year doing thematic and now incorporating it is simulations, periodically. I am using this book, International Relations in Action. It's relatively inexpensive, around $15. Definitely worth checking out. It covers topics like environmental issues, ethnic conflicts, nuclear proliferation, etc. It assigns students into imaginary countries with specific roles per student. They have to work together to solve issues and score points. I used it in college and had so much fun with it. I decided to try it out with my students at the end of last year. They LOVE it! I've been using it to teach related historical content and then have them do a related scenario so they can see how people/country interact with each other. This is definitely worth trying out! I introduced this to my team English teacher and now we do this with both our classes. I will write about this experience in a future post. 

Here are other resources I am using that has been helpful:
  • Facing History and Ourselves
  • Teaching Tolerance  
  • Visible Learning for Teachers (Book) - A bit pricier between $20-30, but a good resource to reflect on.
  • Teaching US History Thematically: Document-Based Lessons in the Secondary Classroom (Book) - Obviously this covers US history, but the first several chapters are interesting reflection points about thematic teaching, which further reinforces the advocacy of thematic teaching. I was already trying out thematic teaching when I discovered this text and met the author last year at a conference and it's glad to know that we're not the only ones out there. 
10 Comments
Rita Gravina
6/20/2019 09:42:03 am

I would love to see your website of how you structured your courses and what you examined in the other themes. I am toying with this idea, but am not sure how to structure it.

Reply
Jace
6/30/2019 09:35:43 pm

Hi Rita. Feel free to shoot me an email. I'll be updating my site within the next two weeks. Stay tuned!

Reply
Rita Gravina
7/30/2019 06:39:04 am

Hello again,

I wondered if you have uploaded anything reD: thematic teaching of world history yet. If so, where is this located? I am looking forward to doing it this way for September. I’m happy to share my resources as well when I start.

Thanks,

Rita

Jace
7/15/2020 03:55:11 pm

Hi Rita,

The resources are located on my website now!

Reply
Lindsey
9/8/2019 07:13:39 pm

Hi there,
I'm wondering if you are able to share your updated thematic world history curriculum with me? I want to try something new in my classroom this year and this shift away from teaching chronologically sounds like a great idea.
Thank you!
Lindsey

Reply
Jace
7/15/2020 03:54:54 pm

Hi Lindsey,

The resources are located on my website now!

Reply
Jace
9/9/2019 07:08:25 am

Hi Lindsey! Thanks for your interest! I am currently reorganizing my thematic curriculum. At the moment, it's organized in a way where only I can understand. I will start gradually uploading them as I update them. It will be on this website, free of charge!

I will also be uploading a how-to guide on designing your own thematic curriculum very soon!

I will be in touch!

Reply
Hernan Ruiz
6/17/2020 08:32:42 am

Hello Jae,
I have enjoyed reading about your journey in teaching world history thematically. I am also a world history teacher and for a long while I have wanted to teach history thematically, but never was able to figure out an effective way to do it. Reading about your experience, though, has inspired me to try again. One concern I still have with this approach is being able to teach my students the content they need to know for passing our state standardized test. I was wondering if your district requires a state test and, if so, how you handle preparing students for all of the facts they need to know while still teaching the course thematically. I look forward to your response!

Hernan Ruiz

Reply
Jace
7/15/2020 03:55:38 pm

I'll reply to you via email!

Reply
Nohea
12/21/2020 11:32:12 pm

Thanks so much for the great comments and resources. I’ve been teaching world history for two years and find myself bored with my own lessons. I’ve been contemplating the idea of teaching world history somatically but have found so little on the subject that I’ve been overwhelmed and confused about him and how to start. Your material has inspired me and I’m curious how you’re doing it now with distance-learning. Any and all advice would be greatly appreciated. I teach in a low income predominately Polynesian school and find that they don’t understand why history has any relevance to them. How do we get students to understand that history is relevant, or can be relevant I guess if I teach it correctly. LOL looking forward to learning more! Mahalo’s from Honolulu

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    ABOUT ME

    I'm Jayson, a high school social science teacher with a strong passion for social justice and public education issues.

    Current education interests are: critical pedagogy, culturally relevant pedagogy, social-emotional learning, blended learning, and relationship-centered classrooms.

    ​Outside of the classroom, I am a travel enthusiast who loves to learn about how different people & cultures interact with each other in our society. 

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