Ctap 295: Teaching with Technology Final Presentation Secession : State's Right or Rebellion ? Jim Nash Bidwell Junior High School, Chico California

Ctap 295: Teaching with Technology Final Presentation Jim Nash, Bidwell Junior High School Secession: State’s Right or Rebellion My name is Jim Nash and I teach U.S. History and Social Studies at Bidwell Junior High School in Chico, California. My lesson is an eighth grade U.S. History lesson which deals with secession and the causes of the Civil War. Students examine two primary source documents and discuss their findings in an essay. Lesson web site: My home page:

Ctap 295: Teaching with Technology Final Presentation Jim Nash, Bidwell Junior High School Secession: State’s Right or Rebellion Standards 8.9 Students analyze the early and steady attempts to abolish slavery and to realize the ideals of the Declaration of Independence. 5. Analyze the significance of the States' Rights Doctrine, the Missouri Compromise(1820), the Wilmot Proviso (1846), the Compromise of 1850, Henry Clay's role in the Missouri Compromise and the Compromise of 1850, the Kansas- Nebraska Act (1854), the Dred Scott v. Sandford decision (1857), and the Lincoln- Douglas debates (1858) Students analyze the multiple causes, key events, and complex consequences of the Civil War. 3. Identify the constitutional issues posed by the doctrine of nullification and secession and the earliest origins of that doctrine. 4. Discuss Abraham Lincoln's presidency and his significant writings and speeches and their relationship to the Declaration of Independence, such as his "House Divided" speech (1858), Gettysburg Address (1863t, Emancipation Proclamation (1863), and inaugural addresses (1861 and 1865).

Ctap 295: Teaching with Technology Final Presentation Jim Nash, Bidwell Junior High School Secession: State’s Right or Rebellion Objectives 1.Students will gain an appreciation for the importance of using primary source documents when studying history. 2. Students will gain an understanding of South Carolina's justifications for secession and a basic understanding of the of States Rights Doctrine. 3.Students will gain an understanding of the arguments against secession put forth by Abraham Lincoln in his First Inaugural Address. 4.Students will form an opinion on secession based on arguments presented in historic documents.

Ctap 295: Teaching with Technology Final Presentation Jim Nash, Bidwell Junior High School Secession: State’s Right or Rebellion Place a lesson on the web for other educators to access and use Learn how to use Front Page Learn how to use Excel Discover the potential of technology applications in the classroom A check for $1000 Expectations

Ctap 295: Teaching with Technology Final Presentation Jim Nash, Bidwell Junior High School Secession: State’s Right or Rebellion Outcomes A better understanding of Excel Familiarity with Front Page Familiarity with Leech FTP A realization of the potential limitations of integrating technology into certain lessons

Ctap 295: Teaching with Technology Final Presentation Jim Nash, Bidwell Junior High School Secession: State’s Right or Rebellion Students gained a better understanding of the research process Students gained an appreciation for the challenges faced by historians as they research the past Students who were initially intimidated with the assignment eventually had some success after struggling initially Students gained an understanding of South Carolina's justifications for secession and a basic understanding of the of States Rights Doctrine. Successes

Ctap 295: Teaching with Technology Final Presentation Jim Nash, Bidwell Junior High School Secession: State’s Right or Rebellion Successes Continued Students gained an understanding of the arguments against secession put forth by Abraham Lincoln in his First Inaugural Address.

Ctap 295: Teaching with Technology Final Presentation Jim Nash, Bidwell Junior High School Secession: State’s Right or Rebellion Shortcomings If I had known that one goal of the course was to create a lesson which integrated technology when I started the course I would have picked a different lesson to work with. In other words, if you can teach the lesson without the computer, why use the computer? I could have FIRST looked for multimedia and other web resources before I created my web pages. I thought the course was set up to allow other educators access to lessons you teach. The lesson is very difficult for students because they are used to being fed sound bites or summaries of significant events without having to do any real research of their own.

Ctap 295: Teaching with Technology Final Presentation Jim Nash, Bidwell Junior High School Secession: State’s Right or Rebellion Shortcomings continued The lab setting was not conducive to students focusing on their research. The proximity of the stations to one another allowed for too much socialization as I was dealing the usual technical difficulties involved with this type of lesson, not the least of which being the student’s lack of computer literacy. The reading level of many of my students is very low. I had difficulty with software applications not functioning properly. Cuteftp would not recognize files on the server, so I had to load and learn Leechftp. The lesson is VERY challenging to eighth graders.

Ctap 295: Teaching with Technology Final Presentation Jim Nash, Bidwell Junior High School Secession: State’s Right or Rebellion Shortcomings continued My class had teachers who were just learning how to create a web page where others were competent in that area. In other words, for some the pace of the course was very SLOW.

Ctap 295: Teaching with Technology Final Presentation Jim Nash, Bidwell Junior High School Secession: State’s Right or Rebellion Student Data All data has not yet been collected.

Ctap 295: Teaching with Technology Final Presentation Jim Nash, Bidwell Junior High School Secession: State’s Right or Rebellion Revisions I modified the objectives of the lesson. The final essay requirements were reduced. The point scheme in my rubric for the final project I modified to better fit my point scheme. The Introductory Set was modified to allow more time to work with the primary source documents.

Ctap 295: Teaching with Technology Final Presentation Jim Nash, Bidwell Junior High School Secession: State’s Right or Rebellion Summary The Ctap 295 course needs revision: First, the course needs to offered in two sections: Ctap 295 for those who know web page design and how to use an FTP program and Ctap 295 for those who lack those skills. Second, make it clear in the first module that one goal of the course was to create a lesson which integrated technology. Pose the question: If you can teach the lesson without the computer, why use the computer? Don’t wait until later modules after we have spent HOURS creating web pages. I could have gone back and chose a different lesson. But I had too my hours already invested in the project to start from scratch.

Ctap 295: Teaching with Technology Final Presentation Jim Nash, Bidwell Junior High School Secession: State’s Right or Rebellion Summary Continued Finally, I should have started from scratch by choosing a lesson which incorporated available technologies. If this was meant to be a learning experience, the most valuable lesson I learned was that some lessons lend themselves to the incorporation of technology and some do not.