What's New in Evaluation?

Facing History as a Tool for Whole School Reform: A Chicago Middle School Case Study

A dynamic and experienced Latina principal in northwestern Chicago chose Facing History and Ourselves as a key partner when she was selected by the Chicago Public Schools to turn around an extreme-poverty middle school (more than 90% of students on free or reduced lunch) in her old neighborhood. We conducted a case study of this predominantly Latino school and found that her vision and understanding of the school allowed this partnership to thrive. She framed her work as "transforming the culture of the school." Scores on standardized tests were dismal, yet she saw the entry point of the work as the challenge to empower her young students , persuade them that their voices matter, and inoculate them against the pervasive gang culture. In her words, her job was to "organize to get our sense of family and belonging back" by taking students seriously and offering them compelling content and new methods to engage them. The principal also credited Facing History with improving teacher retention. She and the teachers themselves reported that teachers' understanding of their students deepened as they worked together in new ways.

Choices in Little Rock: Urban and Suburban 8th Graders Report Powerful Impacts

Two recent studies of 8th grade students who are all studying in other districts which mandate this historical case study affirm its value for increasing informed civic engagement. Even when teachers are required to participate in Facing History professional development and are new to our learner-centered methods and materials, their students learn and report impacts in the domains of academic engagement, agency, critical thinking, and tolerance. Asked about the most important thing learned, one African American suburban female student responded:

"I've learned about the ugliness of segregation of schools. I learned about what happened in the Little Rock Central High School as well. I learned about the malevolent ways of Governor Faubus, and how he claimed to call the National Guard to protect the black students when he didn't. Of all the things I've learned, I think that learning that segregation is wrong was most important"

Students from randomly chosen classes from 7 different schools across two districts where they are mandated to study Choices in Little Rock rated 8 statements about the impact of the unit. As a group, they "agreed" most strongly, on average, with the following statement: Choices in Little Rock increased my capacity to stand up for what I believe in, even when others disagree. (4.21 on a 5-pt. scale, 1=strongly disagree, 2=disagree, 3= neutral, 4= agree, 5= strongly agree, 101 students)

When we sorted students' responses by their self-identified race, a couple of differences emerged. Interestingly, the 46 African American students agreed, on average, that the unit led them "to feel more motivated and work hard in school" to a much greater degree than other students, supporting the link between relevant content and engagement. Conversely, White students and students of color (non-African American) agreed, on average, much more strongly than the African American students that the unit led them to "recognize racism, antisemitism and other forms of bigotry."

 

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