Responsibility in History:
Guided and Misguided

http://edweb.sdsu.edu/courses/edtec596/Units/Respon/ResHistory.html

by

Dan McDowell

Introduction

Historically responsibility has been perceived differently. Just as your idea of responsibility may be different than your classmates, such is true when you examine the perceived responsibilities of the different leaders in history. In the 200 years of American history, people from farmers to presidents have defined the responsibilities of the nation in different ways. You are about to undertake a journey through history to examine how these perceived responsibilities have affected American foreign policy and how they have changed over time. You need to think of yourself as a historian, looking closely at the different perspectives and the deeper meaning behind the events. Good Luck!

The Task Week 1 Week 2 Resources Evaluation

The Task

By the end of the lesson you, the students, will have traced United States foreign policy and will have identified the key motivations and concepts behind the actions America and Americans have taken over the years.

You will:

The Process

This lesson has been structured to last two weeks. The following guide will help outline the events that are to be included in this lesson.

(Note to the Instructor: An important part of this lesson includes keeping track of how the students are comprehending the information they are receiving and researching. A way to gauge this is to have them keep a journal of events. The subject matter lends itself to getting the students somewhat emotionally involved (i.e. blatant racism); therfore, a time for reflection each day may help the students understand how they feel about what they are studying.)

Week 1: This week will be used to identify and research the important issues regarding responsibility and American foreign policy.

  1. Depending upon the extent of prior knowledge of American History, two events could start this lesson:
    • If the knowledge level is low, a lesson briefly overviewing American foriegn policy will be needed. If this is the case important topics that need to be covered are the interactions with Native Americans, the results of the Spanish-American War, WWII, Korea, Vietnam, and the modern examples of Somalia, the Persian Gulf, and Panama. Once this is done, move onto the next item.
    • Brainstorm events or issues in American history that exemplify the United States feeling that they have responsibility for others. Do this activity as a class and write the ideas on the board. Once the brainstorming is completed, organize the words and ideas on the board into the following categories: Race, Location, Communism, Politics, and any additional categories which are revealed as a result of the brainstorm session.

  2. Have a discussion on these categories and what they encompass. Be sure to address the time eras of the events and look for correlations. Are the ideas behind the categories similar? Completely examine each of these areas and compare them. Remember, this will still be a somewhat superficial discussion. This is to provide a basis for the rest of the lesson and develop possible research topics.

  3. Pick an event or issue to research. It needs to be broad enough for there to be materials, but not too broad as to incorporate too much information. Examine the reasoning behind the actions taken by individuals and the government. (Note to the Instructor: These topics need to be approved by the instructor to ensure that during the second week of this lesson there is an equal balance of topics pertaining to the early and late parts of the twentieth century. There are Internet as well as physical resources listed below, but outside research is encouraged. The use of primary source documents can also be a valuable resource. If the students have not used this type of research source before, it would be a good idea to give a brief overview of their significance. Emphasize the importance of perspective when using these resources.

  4. Define the responsibilities which government and leaders felt they had towards other cultures and countries. This should be in outline or note form.

Week 2: Over this week you will draw on your research, work together to make comparisons, and look to the future of American foreign policy.

  1. As we enter the second week you are going to be combining your event or issue with someone else in the class. Each student will be partnered according to the topics they have choosen. (Note to the Instructor: By the nature of this assignment, one student will have researched a topic in the late nineteenth century or the early twenteith, while the other will have covered an event or issue in the second half of the twentith century.) The remaining portion of the lesson will be done in pairs.

  2. Once you have chosen or have been assigned groups, you will begin the process of comparing the two events or issues you bring together.

  3. During this cooperative activity, groups will pool together the resources they have been collecting and come to several conclusions which include, but are not limited to:

    • How were these two events/issues similar?
    • How were they different?
    • Judge the leaders and government. Were they justified in their actions and beliefs? Why? Why not?
    • What were the key concepts that held up their arguments and their perceived responsibilities?

  4. Now you will write a comparison on the two issues. It will incorporate the above conclusions, but you are not to simply answer the questions. Work them into a research paper format.

  5. Once the papers are in progress or completed, the class will come together for a discussion. Several topics will be addressed. These include:

    • What are the different perceived responsibilities and what were the foundations for these ideas?
    • Brainstorm current events related to the issue of responsibility in American history.

  6. After the discussion predict the future of American foreign policy and how responsibilities of the government have changed and will continue to change. Be sure to look at domestic and international influences.

Internet Resources

*U.S. Racism and Intervention in the Third World, Past and Present - This link gives a comprehensive, but a very biased look at what the title says!
*The Monroe Doctrine - The speech that James Monroe first stated his famous doctrine.
*A history of U.S. intervention in Latin America and the Caribbean -Just what it says.
*The United States Constitution
*Thomas Jefferson: To the Chiefs of the Cherokee Nation - A speech by Jefferson (look at the language he uses!).
*The White Man's Burden, By Rudyard Kipling - A poem published in 1899.
*The White Man's Burden, by F. C. W. - A poem published in response to Kipling's poem.
*The Hypocrisy of It - An 1899 response to Kipling's poem.

Physical Resources

*Race and Manifest Destiny, by Reginald Horsman - This is an excellent book that outlines the U.S. motivations for expansion.
*Ideology and United States Foreign Policy, by Michael Hunt - Another great resource for information regarding the United States and its dealings with other countries and cultures.

Evaluation

Your performance will be evaluated by your progress which will be checked daily, your participation in the discussions, your reflections on your research and discussions, and the final written project. You need to show evidence of critical thought in the discussions, reflections, and the final paper.

Conclusion

The value of this unit lies in the importance of understanding how earlier Americans thought and how they acted upon those thoughts. In today's society, many of the ideas held by leaders in the beginning of the century are simply unacceptable in modern times. While things are slowly changing for the better it is important to recognize the events of the past. By reading primary source documents, students are able to tap into the minds of those who actually lived during those times and see the reasoning they had for those decisions. At the end of this lesson students should be angry, they should see some of the actions of the Presidents and the people of America to be wrong. They need to see these events as they happened, for the reasons that they happened. It is only then that they can understand and ensure that history does not repeat itself.

Last updated May 22, 1996. Return to the Responsibility Page