A Contested History

About this Lesson

Throughout most of the twentieth century, US history books, films, and other works of popular culture told a story of Reconstruction that today’s historians consider obsolete and incorrect and that was used to justify segregation. Many Americans still hold misconceptions about the Reconstruction era to this day. Centered on the video A Contested History, and enhanced with readings and activities, this lesson will illuminate how our experience of the past affects our choices and beliefs in the present. By watching the video and analyzing historical documents, students will learn about the misrepresentations of the history of Reconstruction. Students will also discuss and reflect on how the way a society understands its history can shape individuals’ beliefs about the present and can affect political, economic, and social choices.

This lesson is part of Facing History’s work on the Reconstruction era and part of a series of lessons focused on our Reconstruction videos. Use this lesson toward the end of your Reconstruction unit to engage students in conversations about the implications of how a history is remembered.

Guiding Question

How does the way we remember the past shape our choices and beliefs in the present?

Learning Objectives

• Our interpretation of the past is often heavily influenced by present-day events, attitudes, and beliefs. 
• Remembering the past can be a catalyst for positive change or progress, but it can also function as a way to preserve injustice or justify the status quo.

Lesson Plan

Activity 1: Reflect on the Connection between the Past and Present

The video A Contested History introduces students to the way the Reconstruction era has been remembered throughout the past 150 years. The battle over the memory of Reconstruction has in many ways mirrored the political, social, and economic struggles of each subsequent era of American history. Therefore, before showing the video, students should think about how they perceive the connection between the study of history and the present moment.
Ask students to write a short reflection in response to the following questions:

• Why is history important?
• How does our experience and memory of the past affect our choices and beliefs in the present?

After students have spent a few minutes recording their thoughts, use the Think, Pair, Share teaching strategy to help them discuss their ideas about these questions with each other.

Activity 2: Define the Term Historiography

The video A Contested History discusses the historiography of Reconstruction. Most students will not be familiar with this term. Therefore, before viewing the video, it is helpful to simply share this definition:

historiography: the way that historians have remembered, written about, interpreted, and taught specific historical eras and events through the generations.  

When one studies the historiography of a particular era, one especially focuses on the way that the memories and interpretations of that era have changed. Discuss with the class what might cause historians to change the way they remember and interpret an era or event from the past. It may be useful to point out that the narratives that historians create represent their interpretations of available evidence about a time in history and their judgments about which pieces of available evidence are more important than others.

Activity 3: Watch the Video “A Contested History”

Show the video A Contested History. Before showing the video, share the following questions with students to guide their note-taking:

1. Why is the title of this video “A Contested History”?
2. What, according to Eric Foner, do historians do?
3. How do scholars view the Reconstruction era today? What is the story of Reconstruction that they tell? What details about this story stand out to you?
4. What is the “Dunning School” of Reconstruction history? How does that story of Reconstruction differ from what historians say today? Who were the heroes of the story told by the Dunning School?
5. What were the consequences of the story of Reconstruction told by Dunning School historians?
6. How did W. E. B. Du Bois understand and approach the history of Reconstruction differently than other historians of his time? Why did he think that work was important to do?
7. When did scholars begin to question the Dunning School version of Reconstruction? When did the contemporary understanding of this history begin to emerge?

After watching the video, hold a class discussion centered on the following question:

• Why does it matter how we understand the history of Reconstruction?