11th Grade U.S. History Unit: Lesson Plan #1

11th Grade United States History Unit: A Critical Look at U.S. Legislation and its Impact on Educational Access: Past and Present

Lesson Author: Brenda Rubio

Intended Grades: 11th

Subject: United States History

Lesson Plan #1: The Context and Effects of Brown v. Board of Education

Content Description: This lesson plan focuses on students understanding school segregation and school conditions before and after Brown v. Board of Education. On the first day of the lesson, the lesson discusses Plessy v. Ferguson and Mendez v. Westminster in order to understand the context of school segregation. On the second day, Brown v. Board and its implications are discussed, particularly its ruling of ending school segregation. The aftermath of Brown v. Board is reviewed within the context of violent backlash in the South.

Learning Objectives:

• The students will be able to explain the differences between the following court cases: Plessy v. Ferguson, Mendez v. Westminster, and Brown v. Board of Education. They will also be able to see their connections.
• The students will be able to describe the conditions of white and Mexican schools and how the conditions affected learning and reflected racist ideologies.
• Students will be able to explain how the violent backlash witnessed in the Little Rock Nine incident.

Themes:

• The themes for this lesson are: school segregation, racism, inequity, injustice

Key Terms:

• Plessy v. Ferguson (1896): The Supreme Court case that declared that racial segregation was constitutional as long as facilities were separate but equal (Resnick, 2012).
• Mendez v. Westminster (1946): In this case, California courts outlawed the use of Mexican schools as a way to segregate Mexican students into poor quality schools (Oakes, Rodgers, Silver, & Goode, 2004).
• Brown v. Board of Education (1954): In this court case, the Supreme Court ruled that segregation in public schools was unconstitutional (Resnick, 2012).
• Mexican Schools: Segregated schools designated for Mexican American students to attend and such schools often had less resources and poor quality facilities (Valencia, 2008).
• White: To be part of the dominant group in the U.S., which provides specific privileges, opportunities and access (DiAngelo, 2012).
• School segregation: The process of separating and placing students into specific schools based on race through the use of legal policies or societal structures (i.e., class) (Valencia, 2008).
• School Integration: The process of reducing/ending school segregation by having students of color attend predominantly white schools
• Race: A social construct that is rooted in distinguishing and othering people based on skin color (Howard, 2010).
• Structural Racism: Structural systems that place people of color at a disadvantage in regards to opportunities, access, and resources (DiAngelo, 2012; Howard, 2010).
• Individual Racism: Individual acts of hatred against people of color that dehumanize and delegitimize their backgrounds (DiAngelo, 2012; Howard, 2010).
• Little Rock Nine Incident (1957): After the Brown decision, the Arkansas governor sent the national guard to block African American students from entering Central High School in Little Rock. (Resnick, 2012). President Eisenhower sent army troops to ensure the safety of the students. (Resnick, 2012).

California Standards:

• HSS-11.10 Students analyze the development of federal civil rights and voting rights. (California Department of Education, 2000, p.52).
• HSS-11.10.2 Examine and analyze the key events, policies, and court cases in the evolution of civil rights, including Dred Scott v. Sandford, Plessy v. Ferguson, Brown v. Board of Education, Regents of the University of California v. Bakke, and California Proposition 209 (CDE, 2000, p.52).

Materials:

• Pencils
• Paper
• Projector
• Chromebooks
• Printouts of images for each student (i.e., Anglo and Mexican Schools)
• Worksheets with Discussion Questions

Note: Each day is broken into 50 minutes, which is the equivalent of one class period of history at the high school level. Also, the content description, learning objectives, themes, key terms, standards, and materials apply to Lesson #1, Day 1 and 2.

Lesson #1, DAY 1

Layout for Lesson #1, Day 1: Lesson #1 will be split into two days. On Day 1, students will learn about Plessy v. Ferguson and Mendez v. Westminster. I will provide a short lesson and review of what each court case entailed. After direct instruction, students will work in groups to analyze photographs of white and Mexican schools. After students discuss the guiding questions in groups, the class will have a larger discussion. Day 1 will end with the students writing a reflection post on the class website.

Goal: Students will learn about the context and rulings of Plessy v. Ferguson and Mendez v. Westminster. Through the analysis of segregated school photographs, students will learn the conditions of segregated Mexican schools and how these inequitable conditions reflected racism and how the conditions negatively affected learning.

Activities:

Direct Instruction (10 min.)

• Through a short powerpoint, I review Plessy v. Ferguson, including its context and overall ruling. After discussing Ferguson, I discuss the context and details of Mendez v. Westminster, particularly the conditions of Mexican American schools.

Note: In order for students to see what Mexican schools looked like, students will analyze images of white and Mexican American schools. I pass out copies of the images to each student and the worksheet with the discussion questions they should answer.

Activity 1: White & Mexican American Schools Photo Analysis & Student Discussion (15 min.)

• Students work in groups of five in order to compare and contrast the images of white schools and Mexican American schools. They write notes on what they see, and they work together to answer the discussion questions provided on the worksheet I provide.

Note: The images are from a book, Chicano students and the courts: The Mexican American Legal Struggle for Educational Equity by Richard Valencia. The images are on pages 45–46.

• Images:

• Photograph Set #1: One picture is of the restrooms at a white school and the other is of the bathrooms at a Mexican American school. (Valencia, 2008, p.45).

• Photograph Set #2: One picture is of an indoor water fountain located at a white school and the other photograph is of an outdoor water fountain at a Mexican American school (Valencia, 2008, p.46).

Note: Picture source: Valencia, R. R. (2008). Chicano students and the courts: The Mexican American legal struggle for educational equity. New York: New York University Press.

Discussion Questions:

• Using the two images, what are key physical differences between the two schools?
• Predict what type of learning took place in each school (e.g., bad, quality, etc.)?
• What message do the conditions of each school send to the students (i.e., White students vs. Mexican American students)?
• Why do you believe Mexican American students were placed in different schools?

Note: Students answer these questions on worksheets that are passed out, and they work in groups in order to discuss and complete the questions. The groups are based on table groups.

Activity 2: Class Discussion about the Photograph Comparison (15 min.)

• The class comes back together and we have a discussion about what students saw in the images and how they answered the questions.

Activity 3: Self Reflection (10min.)

Self Reflection:

Students will write a short paragraph reflection on the classroom website where they answer the following questions:

• What did you learn today?
• How would you feel if you were placed into one of the Mexican schools?
• Do you see connections between your educational experiences and what was discussed in class?

Note: Discussion questions will be submitted in-person and self-reflections will be submitted on the class website.

Assessment:

• Students turn in their answers to the discussion questions, and they submit their self- reflection online.
• Students’ answers to the discussion questions and their self-reflection post will be used to assess students’ understanding of the topics.

At the end of the unit, students will pick one of the following project options to demonstrate their understanding of the one of the themes/concepts/topics discussed in the overall unit.

• Pick a concept and design a zine (i.e., a political magazine) that aims to build awareness about one of the unit topics.
• Write a spoken word poem in order to highlight one of the concepts.
• Create an art piece (e.g., poster, drawing, 3D model) that encompasses the message of social justice.
• Design a PowerPoint presentation that reflects one of the topics that you can use to educate other people about the topic.
• Pick a social issue within your school or community that reflects one of the themes in the unit. Describe the issue, why it is important, and design a plan of action for how to address it.

Lesson #1, DAY 2

Note: For Lesson #1, Day 2, the content description, learning objectives, themes, key terms, materials, and standards are the same as Day 1 of the lesson.

Layout for Lesson #1, Day 2: On Day 2, students will be presented with a review of the Brown v. Board case. After reviewing the key points and context of the Brown case, students will watch a video about the “The Little Rock Nine.” Students will work in partners in order to answer discussion questions. After working in groups, we will have a discussion as a class. At the end, students will reflect.

Goal: Students will learn about the context and ruling of Brown v. Board. They will analyze how the end of segregation from the ruling led to violent backlash in the South. Students will learn about the violence through the perspective of the Little Rock Nine, which were African American students who were harassed because they integrated into a white school.

Activities:

Direct Instruction: (15 min.)

• I will introduce and talk about Brown v. Board of Education. In doing so, I will highlight how Brown v. Board overturned Plessy v. Ferguson. Also, I will discuss the violent backlash that was expressed in the South after the Brown decision. Students will learn about the Little Rock Nine incident in Little Rock, Arkansas.

Activity 1: Introduce and Watch Video about the Little Rock Nine (5 min)

• I will introduce the video and ask students to take notes.
• Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ym8rdtq-KBE

Activity 2: Student Discussion about the Little Rock Nine Video (10 min.)

• Students will work in partners in order to complete the discussion questions that are provided on the worksheet.

Discussion Questions:

• Why was Governor Orval Faubus against African American students attending Central High School?
• In the video, Ernest Green states that there was something bigger going on to explain the violence and hatred that he and the other African American students faced. What was that “something bigger?”
• Also, Ernest Green states he felt rejected everyday he went to school. Why do you think that was?

Activity 3: Class Discussion (10 min.)

• The class will come back together and we will have a discussion about what students discussed and how they answered the questions.

Activity 4: Self Reflection (10 min.)

• Self Reflection:

Students will write a short paragraph reflection on the classroom website where they answer the following questions:

• What did you learn today?
• How did racism play a role in the treatment of the Little Rock Nine students?
• Ernest Green stated that going to school was like going to war everyday. Why did he feel this way? Based on your experiences, can you connect to this feeling? Why or why not?

Note: Discussion questions will be submitted in-person and self-reflections will be submitted on the class website.

Assessment:

• Students turn in their answers to the discussion questions, and they submit their self- reflection online.
• Students’ answers to the discussion questions and their self-reflection post will be used to assess students’ understanding of the topics.

At the end of the unit, students will pick one of the following project options to demonstrate their understanding of the one of the themes/concepts/topics discussed in the overall unit.

• Pick a concept and design a zine (i.e., a political magazine) that aims to build awareness about one of the unit topics.
• Write a spoken word poem in order to highlight one of the concepts.
• Create an art piece (e.g., poster, drawing, 3D model) that encompasses the message of social justice.
• Design a PowerPoint presentation that reflects one of the topics that you can use to educate other people about the topic.
• Pick a social issue within your school or community that reflects one of the themes in the unit. Describe the issue, why it is important, and design a plan of action for how to address it.

References

Associated Press. (2017, September 24). 60 years on, a look back at the Little Rock nine [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ym8rdtq-KBE

California Department of Education (2000). History-Social Science Content Standard for California Public Schools. Retrieved from https://www.cde.ca.gov/be/st/ss/documents/histsocscistnd.pdf

DiAngelo, R. J. (2012). What does it mean to be white? Developing white racial literacy. New York, NY: Peter Lang. Chapters 1, 2, and 10.

Howard, T. C. (2010). Why race and culture matter in schools?: Closing the achievement gap in America’s classrooms. New York, NY: Teachers College Press.

Oakes, J., Rodgers, J., Silver, D., & Goode, J. (2004). Separate and unequal: 50 years after Brown: California’s racial “opportunity gap.” Retrieved from https://escholarship.org/uc/item/1rr6d06h

Resnick, E. V. (2012). AP United States history. Hauppauge, NY: Barron’s Educational Series.

Valencia, R. R. (2008). Chicano students and the courts: The Mexican American legal struggle for educational equity. New York, NY: New York University Press.