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The Civil Rights Unit

Persistent Issue:
What should society do to promote fairness and justice for people who live within its jurisdiction?
Central Question:
With the passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, has society done enough to achieve equality for all citizens?
Topic:
Civil Rights
Course:
U.S. History
Strategy:
Document Analysis, Persuasive Campaign
Grade Level:
11
Lessons in this unit:
  1. The Civil Rights Unit

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Alabama State Standards

The learning goals for this lesson meet the following 11th Grade World History standards in the Alabama Course of Study:

  • Standard 14. Trace events of the modern Civil Rights Movement from post-World War II to 1970 that resulted in social and economic changes, including the Montgomery Bus Boycott, the desegregation of Little Rock Central High School, the March on Washington, Freedom Rides, the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church bombing, and the Selma-to-Montgomery March

National Standards for U.S. History

The learning goals for this unit correspond with the following NCSS Thematic Strands:

Era 9. The Postwar United States (1945-early 1970s)

  • Standard 3: Domestic Policies after World War II
  • Standard 4: The struggle for racial and gender equality and for extension of civil liberties.

National Council for the Social Studies Standards

Strand II: Time, Continuity, and Change

  • Social studies programs should include experiences that provide for the study of the ways human beings view themselves in and over time.
    • High School Standards b, d, e, f

Strand V: Individuals, Groups, and Institutions

  • Social studies programs should include experiences that provide for the study of interactions among individuals, groups, and institutions.
    • High School Standards g

Strand VI: Power, Authority, and Governance

  • Social studies programs should include experiences that provide for the study of how people create and change structures of power, authority, and governance.
    • High School Standards a, c, d, f, h

Strand X: Civic Ideals and Practices

  • Social studies programs should include experiences that provide for the study of the ideals, principles, and practices of citizenship in a democratic republic.
    • High School Standards a, c, d, h, j
Lesson Video

1.
Clip 1: Introducing the Lesson

Mr. Black explains the purpose for doing the document analysis activity.
Lesson Video
Teacher Reflection

2.
Clip 2: Supporting Student Understanding

Mr. Black works with a pair of students to make sense of the Johnson reading (see Document A1-1). They do not understand the concept of equality as stated in the reading.
Lesson Video
Teacher Reflection

3.
Clip 3: Addressing Student Misconceptions

Mr. Black tries to help students understand Malcolm X’s argument. (See Document B1-1).
Lesson Video
Teacher Reflection

4.
Clip 4: Using Relevant Examples to Grasp Abstract Ideas

Mr. Black helps to explain Friedman’s argument on unemployment among African American teens. (See Document B1-2)
Lesson Video
Teacher Reflection

5.
Clip 5: Assisting Students in Constructing Their Own Knowledge

Mr. Black works with a pair of students trying to make sense of Ayn Rand’s claims that we are guaranteed only political rights. (See Document A2-1)