History taught in grade schools in the 50s and 60s

[Tankeryanker]

I am watching a ww2 flick (the winds of war) and Wake island is mentioned multiple times. Because Wally chose Wake Island to write about I was wondering what was the type/tone of history taught during the beaver years.

[PracTz]

My mother told me that when her 8th grade textbook of Official History of Virginia back in the 1940's started with the settlement of Jamestown in 1607 and ended with General Lee's Surrender at Appomattox Court House in 1865- with NOTHING happening thereafter.

No Reconstruction, Panic of 1893, No WWI, No Depression,etc.

IOW, it wasn't unheard of for them to leave out a lot of stuff not so easily discussed.

[CosmicCharlie]

There are many episodes they mention of Indians being killed ... now a days the word Indian is practically banned

Not a peep about the Nazi's ? How about Pearl Harbor ? Even the Un Civil War ?

I went to High School in the 60-70's and never heard of Auschwitz until college

[Tankeryanker]

So Wally and the Beav might have not even heard of Wake Island when they were in school? Hmm...

[stevea]

Maybe just from Ward's stories. IIRC Wally used Wake Island because he couldn't spell Guadalcanal.

I went to school around the time of Beaver, and I don't remember when they "cut off" history in high school. I never asked my mother and she would have been in high school in the 1930s. I know a lady who is 85 and I'll ask her.

[vitoscotti]

Kids back then were voracious readers. Our town, and grade school had very good libraries. Reading about history wasn't a chore, but very enjoyable.

[PracTz]

Originally Posted by vitoscotti

Kids back then were voracious readers. Our town, and grade school had very good libraries. Reading about history wasn't a chore, but very enjoyable.

Oh, I agree but alas many of the official textbooks (in weeding out historical entities' shadow sides) often wound up being dry, bland and lifeless.

The KEY back then and now is to read the ORIGINAL sources found in libraries (or, if one has no access, a Website that has a link to a valid hard copy of said original source).

[CosmicCharlie]

History is recorded by the victors +- lol

[GentlemanJim]

I remember history, geography, and social studies being canned in a very Pro Euro/manifest destiny frame of reference. Almost no mention of treaty betrayals, or the USA's almost total disregard for the Treaty of Ghent stipulations specific to the native Americans. Almost no mention of the buffalo slaughter(s), and a very stilted, xenophobic treatment of the treaty of Guadalupe-Hidalgo (and it's outfall)

I did have a black social studies teacher in 1972 who really went above and beyond the call of duty to make up for deficiencies in my prior teacher's coverage of the civil war and peripheral issues. Had Crispus Attucks and Dred Scott coming out our ears....

Also had an 8th grade science teacher who assured us that people concerned about noxious emissions of coal fired generating plants, were all misguided fools, since coal combustion by-products were all organic.....
Wonder if teachers can be sued for malpractice?

I also recall being spoon fed a very Israel-centric perspective on the middle east conflict.

And, of course, if I just stayed in school and hated communism at every available opportunity, I was sure to bask in the American dream. However....within 7 years of graduating highschool, the term "rust belt" entered the public vocabulary. I never opted for factory work, but my friends who did all eventually regretted it. The American Dream...sounds nice, doesn't it?

[CosmicCharlie]

American Dream ?
Some may argue that the ills of the US came more from the Robber Barons and their Corp monopolies, and the influence they wielded to criminal politicians ... and the average working stiffs were just doing their best to survive +-

Maybe that too much of a generalization ?

One thing for sure is the historical records are biased.

[GentlemanJim]

As a kid, I was an avid short wave radio listener. And was fascinated by the different spin put on news stories by stations such as Radio Havana, Radio Moscow, and Radio Bejing,...compared to the way Walter Cronkite presented the very same stories.

Yeah I knew what "propaganda" was, but had been brainwashed to believe it was something only the "other" guys did.

And, of course the version we heard from Walter was the version getting written into history books, so that "proved" it must be the truth, right? lol.

Except I also noticed that often the news stories on BBC world services, and other allied interests strayed from Walter's preferred version, as well.

And then there was the "little golden books" version of each day's events, Voice of America.

[Sgt. Saunders]

I remember seeing the late comedian/social commentator George Carlin in concert at the Park Theater in Union City, NJ in 1988. During the show, Mr. Carlin opined on the oppressive history of the European peoples:

“It’s those blue eyes of the European people,” George Carlin exclaimed, pointing to his own blue eyes. “The Europeans came to the New World to take away the land from the Red man, and then brought over the Black man from Africa in slave ships in order to work the land. And then the White man took away the land from the Brown man in Texas and California, so that he could fly a plane across the Pacific and drop atomic bombs on the Yellow man in Japan. It’s those blue eyes, that start all the trouble, I tell you, those blue eyes!”

Somehow, this was not the European and American history that Sister Cordes taught myself and my young classmates in grade school many years ago.

[CosmicCharlie]

LOL - check out the TV casts from the 50's 60's even into the 70's - old blue eyes dominate !

[Sgt. Saunders]

Yes, that’s quite true! Although, I guess it wasn’t until “Still the Beaver” aired in 1983 (?), that we finally got to see if June and the boys, along with Eddie, Lumpy, Larry, Fred, etc., did have eyes of blue or not.

[Tankeryanker]

Originally Posted by Sgt. Saunders

“It’s those blue eyes of the European people,” George Carlin exclaimed, pointing to his own blue eyes. “The Europeans came to the New World to take away the land from the Red man, and then brought over the Black man from Africa in slave ships in order to work the land. And then the White man took away the land from the Brown man in Texas and California, so that he could fly a plane across the Pacific and drop atomic bombs on the Yellow man in Japan. It’s those blue eyes, that start all the trouble, I tell you, those blue eyes!”

There is a lot wrong with his speech, but hey, good thing for him for those blue eyes. Ireland would never have been so kind and given him the money or career.