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For Teachers
Learn about the history and culture of Asian Pacific Islander Americans through our educational resources and school tours. Bring your classroom for a docent-led tour of the current displays and our permanent exhibition, "One Song, Many Voices: The Asian Pacific American Experience" and discover almost 200 years of Asian Pacific American history in the Pacific Northwest. Or bring an outreach kit into your classroom to supplement your study of Asian Pacific history and culture. For students, teachers and researchers interested in furthering their study, the WLAM's Community Heritage Center is accessible week day afternoons and by appointment and includes literature, archival documents, videos, oral history collections and the Densho - Japanese American Legacy Project computer archive database.
Day of Remembrance: Classroom Based Assessment / Compare & Contrast
Overview
History is not only about studying what happened in the past. An integral part of learning is to not only learn (versus memorize) but to also apply that learned information. Often times, by studying the past, we can understand contemporary events.
In a persuasive essay, you will:
• develop a thesis on a historical event and a contemporary event;
• compare the events;
• describe how events have affected their respective communities; and
• describe similarities of both events and discuss how what happened in said past event can be applied to the contemporary event.
The project is designed around the idea of application. Students will not only learn about a historic event, but they will apply themes learned to a different event.
Rubric:
History EALR 1.2.3: Identify and analyze major concepts, people and events
in 20th century U.S. History ie. WWII:
• Minimal: Thesis on events is attempted and presents histories as “static” events without any historical context. Provides no argument for comparison.
• Partial: Develops a clear and reasonalbe thesis on historic and contemporary event and is supported by the analysis of one specific artifact/resource. Account contains few or no inaccuracies. Argument for comparison is made and minimal historical context is used to explain events.
• Proficient: Develops a clear and reasonalbe thesis on historic and contemporary event and is supported by the analysis of two specific artifact/resource. Account contains few or no inaccuracies.
• Excellent: Develops a clear and reasonable thesis on historic and contemporary event and is supported by the analysis of three specific artifact/resource. Account contains no inaccuracies. Implications of historic event are applied to the contemporary event.
History EALR 1.3.3: Examine and analyze how the contributions of various
cultural groups influence society:
• Minimal: Only refers to communities affected and does not discuss how events effected said communities.
• Partial: Discusses how communities were affected by events and presents one example for each community.
• Proficient: Discusses how communities were affected by events and presents two examples, also discusses similarities between the communities.
• Excellent: Discusses how communities were affected by events and presents three examples, also discusses similarities between the communities, and how the communities have responded.
Student Checklist:
• I learned about a historic event in class.
• I learned about a contemporary event in class.
• I learned about the the political, social and economic climate of the societies before, during and after the events.
• I learned how the communities were affected by the event and how they responded.
• I learned how different resources interpret events.
Researching the events:
• I chose a historic and contemporary event.
• I collected background information from a variety of resources other than school text books.
• I identified similarities and differences between both the communities and the events.
• I analyzed the events of community and compared them to the other.
• Analyzed the implications of one communities events to the other.
Writing:
• I stated a thesis on a historical and contemporary event.
• I offered 3 examples showing similarities between the events.
• I described how the communities were affected and how they responded.
• I gave contextual information that lead to the events.
• I applied themes discovered from the historic event to the contemporary
event.
Organizer:
• Thesis
•

Historical & Contemporary Event:
- Historic Event
• Context of event
• Timeline
• Social, Political & Economic Climate
• Lasting effects on the community
• Community Response
• Contemporary Event
• Context of event
• Timeline
• Social, Political & Economic Climate
• Lasting effects on the community
• Community Response
• Comparisons

- Events

- Historical Context

- Communities
• Historical implication on Contemporary event

Directions for Teachers:
Learning about history and contemporary events.

Student Performance:
• I learned about a historic event in class.
• I learned about a contemporary event in class.
• I learned about the the political, social and economic climate of the societies before, during and after the events.
• I learned how the communities were affected by the event and how they responded.
• I learned how different resources interpret events.
Teacher Instructional Steps:
• Explain the importance of historical context.
• Have students prep by going over more current contemporary historic events.
• Diverge from studying “static” events.
• Discuss how events effect communities differently.
• Have students identify a conflict they plan to examine.

Researching the events.

Student Performance:
• I chose a historic and contemporary event.
• I collected background information from a variety of resources other than school text books.
• I identified similarities and differences between both the communities and the events.
• I analyzed the events of community and compared them to the other.
• Analyzed the implications of one communities events to the other.
Teacher Instructional Steps:
• Model or show expectations for note-taking, paraphrasing, and summarizing source information.
• Show students the implacations of plagarism.
• Explain the purpose of and demonstrate formats for annotated bibliography.
• Discuss the benefits of using multiple sources and sources other than text books.

Writing.

Student Performance:
• I stated a thesis on a historical and contemporary event.
• I offered 3 examples showing similarities between the events.
• I described how the communities were affected and how they responded.
• I gave contextual information that lead to the events.
• I applied themes discovered from the historic event to the contemporary event.
Teacher Instructional Steps:
• Give students the rubric and have them apply that to their own essays.
• Give students the benefits of multiple drafts

Suggested List of Topics:

• Japanese American Internment during WWII & aftermath of 9/11 and the war on terrorism.
• Military occupation of the Philippines and military occupation of Iraq.
• Witch hunts of Colonial America and the Red Scare of the 1950’s.
• Anti-Vietnam War movement and War on Terrorism.

Resource List:

• Wing Luke Asian Museum
• University of Washington Library
• University of Idaho
• Washington State Historical Society
• National Archives
• American Social History Project
• Smithsonian Institution
• History Matters (http://historymatters.gmu.edu)
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