Following are the themes and topics explored in the 2003 series. These pages also include the resources provided during each evening, and in some cases, the response from the teacher participants.

February 27 | March 27 | April 24 | May 15 | May 29

Carolyn Long, WSU Vancouver

Art Pearl, WSU Vancouver, Education

Resources
Readings for "The Legal and Political Constitution"
Dr. Richard Sawyer's opening remarks
The Center for Civic Education. Producers of the "We the People" curriculum mentioned by Art Pearl in his presentation.

Discussion
The questions addressed in the small group discussions included:

1. How democratic is the Constitution?
2. Was it the Framers' intent that the judiciary have an exclusive role in constitutional interpretation? If yes, explain why members of the judiciary are well suited for this role or if no, who else did the Framers believe should have a role in interpreting the Constitution?
3. Was it the Framers' intent that American citizens play a role in Constitutional interpretation? Why or why not? If citizens should play a role, how can they be involved in the development of constitutional meaning? Is the Constitution accessible to the American public?
4. How can you use content in your classrooms to increase student knowledge and understanding of the Constitution?

Sue Peabody, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Department of History, Washington State University, Vancouver

Karen E. Hoppes, Ph.D., Social Studies Department Chair, Lakeridge High School, Lake Oswego, Oregon

Resources
Links | Readings | Multimedia | Teaching Units

Discussion
Questions to consider:

1. How did slaves feel about slavery?
2. How can students use slave narratives to connect with the experience of slavery? Does it make a difference whether that connection comes from textual, visual or other means?
3. How do we move beyond slavery as the defining experience for black America?
4. What does the history of slavery imply for white Americans today?
5. How do we work with the student who is resistant to this history?

Laurie Mercier, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Department of History, Washington State University, Vancouver

David Barber, Teacher, Communications Academy and Instructional Technology Facilitator, Vancouver School District

Resources
Links | Readings | Topic Chronology
Mercier Talk Outline | Barber Talk Outline

Discussion
Questions to consider:

1. What are the "push" factors that motivated people to leave their place of origin, and what "pulled" them to the U.S. (and in particular to the Pacific Northwest)?
2. How does one "become" an American? From the late 18th to the early 21st centuries, who has been allowed to immigrate to the U.S., and who could become citizens?
3. How are racial and ethnic identities constructed over time?
4. Why and how do immigrant/ethnic groups maintain and reshape their cultural traditions?
5. How do we incorporate these questions/topics in teaching U.S. history?
6. How do we use these questions to help teach the history of Mexican Americans (and other immigrant/ethnic groups)?

William L. Lang, Ph.D., Professor of History, Portland State University.

Larry McClure, Education Liaison for the National Council of the Lewis and Clark Bicentennial.

Lewis & Clark Resources for Teachers

Discussion
Questions to consider:

1. How did the Lewis and Clark Expedition affect U.S. political and economic development, especially in the American West?
2. Much has changed during the 200 years since the Expedition, but it is not always clear what changes are most important. What changes have made the most difference to the Pacific Northwest?
3. What were the Expedition's most important accomplishments and its most significant failures?
4. Why have Sacagawea and York attracted so much attention from the public?
5. How can we help students in classrooms see themselves as a modern-day Corps of Discovery making history in their own ways now and in the future?
6. How can themes uncovered in the Lewis and Clark story be compared and contrasted to other eras in American History?
7. How can modern-day instructional tools such as GIS and the Internet be used in teaching history (in this case, with Lewis and Clark as the hook)?
8. How does Lewis and Clark provide a framework for engaging other teachers in your building in interdisciplinary activities?
9. What unique education resources do we have along this part of the Lewis & Clark Trail?

LeRoy Ashby, Ph.D., Professor of History, Claudius O. and Mary Johnson Distinguished Professor of History, Washington State University

Richard Galeno, Vancouver School of Arts and Academics

Resources for Teachers

Discussion
Questions to consider:

1. Why was popular culture so controversial in the 1950s and 1960s? (After all, the House Un-American Activities Committee's investigations were of entertainers, who hardly had access to nuclear materials or classified government information.)
2. What answer would you, a student of history, give to someone who says, "It's just a movie," or "It's just a TV program," or It's just music?" In what ways can "artifacts" from popular culture help to illuminate history?
3. Whose popular culture is it and why does it matter?
4. What can we learn about the Cold War by studying popular culture?
5. Does popular culture shape society or does society shape popular culture?
6. Why is it essential to emphasize that popular culture invariably involves not a monologue -- not one point of view -- but a dialogue, a series of "conversations" and "debates," a collision of images and sounds?
7. By using popular culture to study society's "margins" (or "outsiders"), how is it possible to learn much about society's "center" or "mainstream" as well?

Washington State University, Vancouver | Center for Columbia River History
Evergreen School District | Klickitat School District | Vancouver School District