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History at the CrossroadsPushing American History in Different Directions

Go to War

AnnexPrime Pump

Secede

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At its heart, History at the Crossroads is an exercise in analogizing history. While not a direct 1 to 1 application of analogy, the mental processing involved in History at the Crossroads is almost analogous in nature. As such it is instructive to examine the use and application of analogies in the history classroom. The next seven slides discuss analogies and their limitations in the classroom.

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USING ANALOGIES

How many times have you seen the Vietnam Conflict compared to the American Revolution (the southern campaign in particular)?

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Analogy

• 1.a similarity between like features of two things, on which a comparison may be based: the analogy between the heart and a pump.

• 2.similarity or comparability

From Dictionary.com

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Why Use Analogies in History

1. Build conceptual bridges for students between the familiar and the unfamiliar– Between the known and unknown

2. Breaks complex information down into familiar and manageable parts

3. Activates prior knowledge4. Utilizes cross-curricular connections5. Can tap into multiple intelligences

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Some Educationism

“Analogy is properly the domain of higher order thought because it requires fluency – lots of ideas – and integration across multiple representations. Analogy is also more simply thought of as flexible pattern recognition, the process involved in all those good things that should be emphasized in education – critical thinking and deduction, inference, and solutions by insight”

From the studies of Dr. Kevin Dunbar, Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences at Dartmouth University

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Beware of the Fallacies!

• Fallacy of the Perfect Analogy• Fallacy of the Multiple Analogy• Fallacy of the Proof by Analogy

Adapted from: Fischer,David H. Historians Fallacies. New York: Harper Perennial, 1970.

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Fallacy of the Perfect Analogy

• This is where one sees a partial resemblance between two entities and expands it to an exact correspondence. – Analogy by its very nature is a resemblance in

some respects only• A Prime example is using Munich as an analogy

for America becoming involved in Vietnam– If America didn’t intervene then China would have

been encouraged to gobble up SE Asia

Adapted from: Fischer,David H. Historians Fallacies. New York: Harper Perennial, 1970.

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Fallacy of the Multiple Analogy

• Using a second analogy to piggback or bootleg off of the original analogy

• An example from Alfred Sigwick– “The growing size of London bodes evil to England

because London is the heart of England and a swollen heart is a sign of disease.”

Adapted from: Fischer, David H. Historians Fallacies. New York: Harper Perennial, 1970.

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Fallacy of the Proof by Analogy

• First and foremost analogy is a useful tool of historical understanding NOT as a proof

• Example dealing with slavery:– Stanley Elkins established an analogy between

American slavery and Nazi concentration camps.– His argument is that they are analogous on several

levels and that slavery created the “Sambo” effect and it is comparable to the “old prisoner” mentality psychologists have found in the Concentration Camp survivors

Adapted from: Fischer, David H. Historians Fallacies. New York: Harper Perennial, 1970.

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The end result is to be careful drawing too many conclusions from analogies or placing too great of a reliance on their abilities to prove or predict.

“Though analogy is often misleading, it is the least misleading thing we have."

- Samuel Butler

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THE ANALOGY

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Dorothy at the CrossroadsIn the acclaimed 1939 film, The Wizard of Oz Dorothy finds herself at a crossroads as she was on her way to see the wizard.

Dorothy had been caught in a tornado that displaced her house and dropped it on top of a wicked witch. Dorothy emerged from the house into a fantasy world of munchkins, wicked witches, good witches, and a yellow brick road.

The crossroads that Dorothy has come to goes off into three different directions and she has no idea which way to go. She asks her little dog Toto, "Now which way do we go?“

”Pardon me. That way is a very nice way…” said a Scarecrow pointing in a direction.

Dorothy was in utter disbelief. Then the Scarecrow said, “It's pleasant down that way too!” as he pointed in the opposite direction.

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Why This Applies to HistoryDorothy’s trip down the Yellow Brick Road is much like America’s path through history. From tumultuous beginnings America has been on a journey and that journey has been fraught with pitfalls, side adventures, groups of compatriots, and others who wish the country evil.

At various points in its history America has found itself at a crossroads. The events of the past pushed the country to its current place but it found itself in a quandary. Much like Dorothy, America had to ask itself "Now which way do we go?“

The Scarecrow was little help to Dorothy, but America has many scarecrows offering advice and demanding action. From demagogues to fire-eaters to hawks and doves there have been vast forces that wanted to steer America down one path or another.

The question becomes not only Dorothy’s "Now which way do we go?“, but also “Why should we go that way?”

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American CrossroadsApril 1775

Ft. Sumter

Death of William Henry Harrison

Annexation of Hawaii Versailles

Great Depression

Tonkin Gulf Nullification Crisis Watergate Crisis

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American ScarecrowsApril 1775

Ft. Sumter

Death of William Henry Harrison

Annexation of Hawaii Versailles

Great Depression

Tonkin Gulf Nullification Crisis Watergate Crisis

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Principal Components of the Analogy

Street Signs :Informative, cautionary, or hindsight information

Road : The course of American history leading to this point

Crossroads :The point where America finds itself at a crucial junction

The Directions :Possible avenues of action that America could take

The Person :Us trying to decide which way to go

The Cars:The pressures pushing America one way or the other

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The Crossroads Process

1. Briefly introduce the target concept 2. Review the America at a crossroads analogy3. Identify the relevant features of the target concept and

Crossroads4. Map similarities between the target and Crossroads

(this is the heart of the process)5. Indicate the limitations of the Crossroads for the target

concept6. Draw conclusions about the target concept based on

the presentation

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Introduce the Target Concept

This generally involves recapping the material that led us close to the point where the lesson is designed to start.

For example, if we were going to use the Crossroads analogy in discussing the early American Revolution the it would be wise to have a short discussion on the events leading up to the war as well as what may be the causes of the war.

In the case of the early American Revolution example it would follow that there needs to be an introduction to the fighting at Lexington, Concord, and the British flight back to Boston.

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Review the Crossroads Analogy

In order for Crossroads to be successful student must have a thorough understanding of the analogy itself.

We are trying to cross the boundary between what is known (the analogy) and what may be unknown (the target concept).

Without a working understanding of the Crossroads analogy the target concept will be garbled and the exercise will not work.

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Present the Lesson

Use the pieces of the Crossroads Analogy throughout the lesson.

As you move to new concepts and ideas, reinforce the Crossroads approach.

Summarize each section with a brief conclusion.

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Indicate the Limits of Crossroads

Breaks Down• Where it may totally miss

the mark• Places where the analogy

can be misleading or lead to false conclusions

Excels• Parts of the analogy that are

very poignant • Spots where the analogy

draws the correct inferences and leads to logical conclusions

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Draw Conclusions

This is where students are asked questions about the analogy and the target concept to demonstrate understanding.

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Let’s go see if we can do some of this …