Doghouse Schools and the Edgewood Kids: The Fight for Educational Opportunity from Plessy to Rodriguez
William Carlos Wagoner-Morales
Guide Entry to 14.03.09
Have your students become lawyers and judges to prepare and argue a momentous Supreme Court case! This unit takes a look at some of the history of equal educational opportunity in America, from the "separate but equal" laws of
Plessy
, through the triumph of
Brown v. Board of Education
, and the reversal of
San Antonio v. Rodriguez
in pursuit of the question, "how did we get to the 'savage inequalities' of education today?" Designed for 8th grade and up, this unit will engage students beyond merely "studying" as they step into the roles of history to research, prepare, write, and deliver their arguments before a court of law. The unit is designed to achieve an active and educated mentality regarding a still pressing issue, through a teaching strategy perfectly suited for the Common Core and New Haven school district's emphasis on close reading, use of evidence, argument, and writing.
(Developed for English Language Arts, grade 8; Recommended for English and Social Studies/History, grades 8-12)
