History In Halstead

US History

2007-01-18T08:10:00.000-06:00

Poster Website:

http://www.archives.gov/exhibits/powers_of_persuasion/powers_of_persuasion_home.html

US History Discussion Question #6

2007-01-11T07:47:00.000-06:00

Mr. Warsnak loves quotes!

Find a quotation from the World War II Era. Post it to this blog, tell who said the quote and write a sentence why you think the quote is important or significant.

US History Discussion Question #5

2007-01-09T07:00:00.001-06:00

What was the biggest tragedy of World War II? Why?

US History Discussion Question #4

2007-01-09T07:00:00.000-06:00

What were some of the positive and negative changes that occurred in the US during World War II?

US History Discussion Question #2

2007-01-09T06:59:00.001-06:00

Which country had the best leader in World War II?

US History Discussion Question #3

2007-01-09T06:59:00.000-06:00

What is the most important thing to learn about World War II and why?

US History Discussion Question #1

2007-01-03T21:45:00.000-06:00

Could anything have been done differently to prevent the outbreak of Wolrd War II?

Poem of the Day

2006-12-13T20:58:00.000-06:00

You have no enemies, you say?
Alas, my friend, the boast is poor.
He who has mingled in the fray of duty
that the brave endure, must have made foes.
If you have none, small is the work that you have done.
You've hit no traitor on the hip.
You've dashed no cup from perjured lip.
You've never turned the wrong to right.
You've been a coward in the fight.

Charles McKay

I think too often in the spirit of the moment that we do not say the right things and then later on when we have had time to think through the problems we lose the courage to go back and make them right. I am going to have to do a better job of having the courage to go back and make things right.

A great comment from a former student

2006-11-04T17:59:00.000-06:00

First, I can not say this often enough, I am so proud of my former students. I think many of them are going to be outstanding in their chosen career paths. In fact I believe that some them will make substantive changes to our world. It is my deepest hope that I had some small influence that might have helped them in their pursuit of greatness. To that accord I received a comment from a former student concerning the lack of understanding of history. She said:

I think the researchers hit on a very important fact, but it's not just limited to the field of history. I don't think people know how to learn. In all honesty, the things I remember from high school aren't study habits or the mechanisms for comprehending challenging information, but a few facts scattered about that I managed to lock away in my memory and then throw back out on the tests. Now that I am in college, I have had to spend time learning the process I have to go through to actually understand what is going on. This may go back to what you have always said about the education system and how it trains us for a factory setting. When, in that situation, would someone need to know the reasoning or logic behind what happens? There are three types of intelligent people, as anyone would tell you. Book smart, street smart, and both. I'm not saying that it is up to schools to teach people common sense, but it flies in the face of logic to give some people such a high recommendation over the rest when in reality they are just better at taking tests. Then again, students are by nature resistant to learning. So the root of the problem isn't necessarily in the way information is taught, but in the way students are taught to accept it.

Her post leads me to more questions:

Brittany says that schools teach knowledge instead of habits or the mechanisms for comprehending challenging information. I agree with her but I wonder if schools could teach the habits for comprehension that she speaks of without first teaching knowledge. Maybe it is better to teach knowledge at the secondary levels and then expect students at the college level to do something with that knowledge. Part of the issue could be the importance of tests which Brittany makes reference to but I also think that there are other issues. It is easier to teach knowledge and since their are few monetary incentives for teachers to innovate their units so why bother? Also, since their is pressure to get through certain material teachers have very few built in structures to help students if they fail on tests. Typically, if you do not get the information, then you simply move on to the next unit. Lastly, I am dying to know more about her last comment:

So the root of the problem isn't necessarily in the way information is taught, but in the way students are taught to accept it.

Any ideas?

2006-10-29T21:52:00.000-06:00

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME

I AM THIRTY_TWO TODAY!!!

Leadership Quote

2006-10-29T21:49:00.000-06:00

I found this quote from an article on yahoo finance. It was from an article named Overlooked Risks Great Leaders Take

An often-overlooked trait of great leaders is that while they grow their business, they also grow their business' future leaders. They are always on the lookout for leadership talent, and when they find it they give those talented people opportunities to develop, finding ways to test them and expand the breadth and depth of their capabilities.

FOR DISCUSSION: Based on your educational career what are some overlooked that great teachers have?

Fall is upon us and Football is going well

2006-10-22T21:27:00.000-05:00

A good weekend of football:

Pittsburg State won their Homecoming game
Notre Dame won is a wonderful comback
the Kansas City Chiefs won a thriller with a last second field goal
and best of all...

Halstead High School won their district game versus Hutch Trinity.

also we had three runners qualify for the state cross country meet so good luck Emma, Travis and David.

World War I Links

2006-10-10T06:50:00.000-05:00

The following sites can be beneficial in finding information relating to the US entering World War I. Remember the quiz is open notes not 'open stuff that you copied from the internet!'

US enters the war!
The Lusitania
The US enters WWI

Feel free to leave other links in the comment section.

STUDENTS LACK UNDERSTANDING OF HISTORY THAT LEADS TO WISDOM

2006-10-01T19:54:00.000-05:00

I read an interesting article by David Shirbman discussing history and children in our nation. Here are some of the highlights:

I was not exactly stunned when I read that a perfectly reputable group, using perfectly simplistic methodology, came to the perfectly predictable conclusion that college freshmen were basically historically illiterate and that college seniors were little better

the temptation is there -- you think it's their fault. It's not. It's ours. They don't have historical amnesia, because you have to know something to be able to forget it. They have historical ignorance, and we gave it to them.

here is more to understanding history than merely knowing facts. Facts are the raw material of history. But, just as coke is not steel, facts are not history. And truly the best way to understand history -- and here the words know and understand do not mean the same thing -- is to study it.

In showing how governments were created or overthrown, how movements began and faded away, how historical forces gathered strength and then petered out, history provides few lessons but much perspective. Your grandfather had a word for perspective, and if you were lucky he personified it: wisdom.

Personally, I try very hard to get students in my classroom to get students to ask the question why? this is not an easy thing to do because people naturally economize and often will not exert effort if they do not see the benefit. It is difficult to see the benefit of knowing and understanding history often times. Still, I enjoy the challenge and will keep working at it.

Test

2006-09-13T17:49:00.000-05:00

Another Reason For US Economic Success

2006-09-07T06:47:00.000-05:00

The World Bank recently published its index of the cheapest and esiest counties to do business in. The US ranked third behind New Zealand and Singapore. I have little doubt that the lack of government interference plays a large role in our economic success. Here is part of the report:

New Zealand has the most business-friendly regulation in the world, as
measured by the Doing Business indicators (table 1.2). Singapore is the
runner-up. The United States is third. Five other East Asian countries—Hong Kong
(China), Japan, Thailand, Malaysia and Korea—are among the top 30. So are the
Baltic countries—Lithuania, Estonia and Latvia. Their ranking is a remarkable
achievement, as only a decade has passed since they first began reforms.

But the rankings on the ease of doing business also show that
many reformers still have a long way to go. Although Eastern Europe was the top
reforming region, some of its countries still rank poorly on the ease of doing
business. For example, Serbia and Montenegro’s rank is 92, Croatia’s is 118 and
Ukraine’s 124. Egypt, another top reformer in 2004, ranks 141. And India, though
making big gains on collateral recovery and ease of registering property, ranks
116—25 places behind China.

For Discussion: Does the same correlation between success and government regulation hold true in the field of education?

A mystery

2006-09-04T19:51:00.000-05:00

A student challenged me to find out who he/she is based on a post in the comments section of my blog. after hours of calculations, deciphering clues, and looking at sentence structure my first guess is:

Justin F.

Please let me know if I am brilliant or an idiot?

Football is off to a great start

2006-09-04T19:48:00.000-05:00

My teams did wll this weekend and I am already looking forward to nest weekend.

Hee are the highlights:

Pitt State won 52-12
Halstead beat Marion 34-6
KU won
Notre Dame won

What more can a person ask for?

Pitt State Game

2006-08-31T15:17:00.000-05:00

Who will win the Pitt State Game this weekend? Post a guess for extra credit

Unintentional Sexism????

2006-08-31T05:56:00.000-05:00

I got take out Chinese food last night for dinner since I was too lazy to Mac anything at home. As I was finishing up my delicious meal my wife opened a fortune cookie and here is what it said:

Behind an able man, there are always other able men

.

Looking at the quote I suppose it could be read many different ways:

1. The term man was used to simplify the fortune and there was no sexism intended. This would be akin to saying "all men are created equal."

2. It was meant to be funny since most people would expect the quote to say behind an able man is an able woman.

3. It is a straight up sexist quote

4. It was unintentional but some people might read it as sexist.

Your Opinion: What is your take on the quote?

Good News From the Homefront

2006-08-27T10:57:00.000-05:00

I have had the chance this summer to talk to a lot of former students and I am quite proud to say that many of them are doing well for themselves. Also, I have discovered that many of them are attending college and majoring in social science or education fields. It would be ridiculous to believe that I was responsible for this but at least I can be assured that I didn't do too much damage to turn them away from areas. Also, I have one aide interested in economics (maybe) and another who will probably major in history (and maybe go to Pitt State).

Uh-Oh... Somebody was Wrong

2006-08-25T21:36:00.000-05:00

In an two year battle royale the art teacher and me have have been arguing over outsourcing. I am a straight up fan of it and as a stockholder I expect my BODs to act in a legal and ethical manner that provides dividends and increases in the stock prices. I have know economic, moral or ethical problems with outsourcing. Our art teacher sees it as one of the greatest evils in the nation. Now I have more evidence that his view might be more emotional instead of economic:

Taking a swing at conventional wisdom, Princeton professors Gene Grossman and Esteban Rossi-Hansberg argued that wages for the least-skilled blue collar jobs had been rising since 1997 as outsourcing boosted productivity.

The professors presented their paper on Friday at the Kansas City Federal Reserve conference in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. The meeting's theme, "The New Economic Geography," comes at a time when some fear that the United States is becoming trapped in a wages-prices spiral to the bottom by cheap labor in India and China.

The Princeton economists contend that many observers tended to gloss over the productivity benefits involved in the offshoring of labor.

They presented evidence that the productivity effect had helped raise real wages for the least skilled among U.S. blue collar workers -- those who do jobs most likely to be shipped overseas -- by about a quarter of a percent per year between 1997 and 2004.

So is outsourcing good?

PS Kyle you should appreciate this too!

Source For World History

2006-08-24T09:45:00.000-05:00

Her is the source for the Palestinian/Israel timeline assignment.

A Breif History

Advice For Your Life

2006-08-23T21:10:00.000-05:00

As a teacher it is my reposability to teach a lot of information to my students. In addition to this try to mentor them in one possibility of how to lead their life. This encompasses a lot of practical informations. One great site for such information is Signum sine tinnitu--by Guy Kawasaki. Here is a sample from his ten things to learn this school year:

How to explain something in thirty seconds. Unfortunately, many schools don’t have elevators or else students would know how to explain things in a thirty-second elevator pitch. Think mantra (three words), not mission statements (sixty words). Think time, not money, is the most important commodity. Think ahead, not on your feet. At the end of your thirty-second spiel, there should be an obvious answer to the question, “ So what?” If you can’t explain enough in thirty seconds to incite interest, you’re going to have a long, boring career.

An Economics Story

2006-08-21T19:58:00.000-05:00

Icame across the delicious tidbit of information in the local news weblog and it will find a place in my economics class:

When more than 60 people showed up at the Wichita City Council meeting this week to protest the proposed displacement by Starbucks of minority-owned Sarah’s Ice Cream and Bakery at Mid-Continent Airport, council members got the message and instructed city staff to work it out. Given travelers’ stated desire for a Starbucks, the best outcome would be for the airport to have the benefit of both businesses. It certainly needs more such amenities. And the way this episode was handled suggests there is still a lack of sensitivity at City Hall to the concerns of the African-American community. That’s hard to believe, given the steps taken since 2003 in response to charges of institutional racism, including formation of a task force to review city relationships with minority contractors.

I ike the discussion of havin both coffee shops in the airport as a discussion starter for competition but there is a better discussion about the expectations of those who pay the rent at the airport and what they expect in return for their rent. Of course, there is also some room to talk about government interaction ith a local economy. Finally, it will give a hance to talk about the book The Undercover Economist.

GIVE TEENS MORE ROAD RULES

2006-08-21T19:47:00.000-05:00

The Wichita Eagle has endorsed an idea of adding new restrictions on driving for teens until they reach the age of eighteen. The Eagle would like to see a more graduated, transitional approach to teen licensing in Kansas, including a period of driving with nighttime or teen passenger restrictions, or both. The Eagle would also like the Legislature to take another look at banning cell phone use by teen drivers. Obviously, since I am thirty-one years old this law doesn't matter much. It also will not effect my daughter since she will be operating under another set of 'family' laws. I do wonder if there is a better way to improve teen driving records without imposing new laws.

Any ideas?

A Preference for Ignorance

2006-08-17T21:40:00.000-05:00

I came across the quote while reading Tech Central Station. It looks at government spending and how well (or poorly) the government spends money. This is a topic that I have been ranting about for sometime and I thin the quote has a lot of truth.

In the fields of health care, education, and assistance to poor countries, we rarely measure value properly. It seems as though we prefer to be ignorant about what succeeds and what fails. We know shockingly little about the cost-effectiveness of very expensive programs.

Read the rest of the article here.

For discussion: Do you thinkpeople are intersested in the government spedning money wisely?

Things Are Looking Up

2006-08-17T21:33:00.000-05:00

We are about to finish the first week of schol and I am impressed with how things are going. The teaching staff seems to be motivated and highly professional. They are setting high expectations and working well together. The studetns are giving a good effort and they have been very respectful. There are a couple of potential problems that might blow up but hopefully they can be resolved before they get bad. Overall, the 2006-07 year has a A- grade!

Interesting Information

2006-08-16T21:48:00.000-05:00

My economics class bought stock in Gilead Labs last year and it is looking like it was a good choice. The stock is out performing the major indexes and it is also doing some social good. It has teamed with Merk Labs and is trying to create a once a day AIDS prevention pill for females. The goal would be to provide this drug at low cost in poor countries (mainly Africa). I had never heard of this company before last year and none of my students had ever invested before last year but together we learned about a nice company, investing and AIDS prevention. Not bad for a high school econ class.

Are We Fighting World War III?

2006-08-15T19:40:00.000-05:00

The basis of my first unit in World History/Geography is an analysis on whether or not we are fighting World War IIL. I thought it would be a good way to integrate current issues, history and geography into a single lesson. We used this NPR clip as an intorduction:

Are we fighting World War III?

What do you think?

First Day of School

2006-08-15T19:36:00.000-05:00

Halstead High School started the the 2006-07 school year today. I was looking forward to getting back into the swing of things and today did not disappoint me. My classes look pretty solid and I think I am going to be able to do some pretty impressive things with my students. Attitudes of both the students and staff seemed positive and the school climate was good. The first day of school is typically pretty good so its not a great barometer but I will take a good day anytime that I can get them.

Transition Day

2006-08-14T17:57:00.000-05:00

We had new students at school today in order to tell them about how we do things and our expectations. This meant a whole lot of 9th graders, some foreign exchange students and transfer students. This was a brand new idea and I thought it went over well. The conversation was light, the atmosphere was celebratory, there was a lot of humor but the message still seemed to get across. My contribution was a top ten list of why we have a dress code. It is listed below. Tomorrow we start school for real so we'll see how well things sunk in.

TOP 10 REASONS TO HAVE A SCHOOL DRESS CODE

Imagine Mr. Knoll wearing some of the outfits that aren't allowed.
ItÂs worth leaving something to the imagination
It might take your attention away from Mr. Gerber's interesting lectures
ItÂs sure a lot better than school uniforms
You might accidentally get a hook, hoop, stud or other piercing snag on a locker and that can be pretty darn painful.
It might inspire you to go to college, become a teacher, get a master's degree, become a principal, become a superintendent and then pressure the school board into getting rid of the dress code.
It is a good excuse to get your parents to buy you a brand new wardrobe
Short shorts and sleeveless shirts with large holes are pretty uncomfortable when a classroom is 50 degrees.
Dress codes are better than metal detectors at the doors and policemen in the halls.
You can save money on hair dye

Things Are Coming Into Shape

2006-08-11T20:40:00.000-05:00

We welcome new student next Monday and then start regular classes on Tuesday. I like to actually try and teach the first day since most of the other teachers are just going over class policies and rules. In my world history class we will discuss whether we are currently fighting World War III using this NPR clip . My US history class will look at statistics as historical evidence and my Sociology class will discuss how we act different when we are in groups. Overall it should be a pretty solid first day.

It's Go Time

2006-08-10T20:37:00.000-05:00

The school year is about to start and I'm pretty excited about it. I have some good ideas for classes and I saw my rosters which look pretty good. I do have huge classes this year (18-23 per class) but it shouldn't be too much of a hassle. My aides are super fantastic and will help me to no end (I will also rant to them on a consistent basis). we will integrate a lot more technology this year, many more primary sources and a lot more THINKING!!! Overall, it's go time so let's hit it!

Little House on the Prairie

2006-07-20T09:37:00.000-05:00

The Little House on the Prairie historical site offered a lot of history and some interesting insights into the lives of pioneers and settlers on the western frontiers. The entire site gave different aspects on how people lived on the prairie. The size of the cabin was basically equal to a storage shed today but it served as a home for five people. I was surprised that there was only one bed and no clear designations of what different parts of the cabin served for. This tells me that the cabin itself would serve as different room depending on the time of day. This would mean that at different times of the year meals might be cooked outside and the house would serve different functions. This is also reflected in the book Little House on the Prairie. Another, thing that I learned and found interesting was the one room school house. While it was a bit cramped, it was designed to serve all the children’s needs as well as possible. It was clear that a lot of cooperation would expected from the students and as positive attitude. The more that I looked at the historical site, the more I realized the incredible amount of work that went into making things livable and even maybe enjoyable for the families. The final aspect that I learned was the sheer expanse of the land on the prairie. The amount of open space between families must have been incredible and scary at the sometime. Overall, it was a excellent experience.

Life

2006-07-18T17:44:00.000-05:00

I thought the assignment analyzing major events of my life for each year was interesting. The fact that so many people had gaps in similar areas of their life was a suppose to me. It is understandable that many people would not remember the early years but the gap at age seven and eight surprised me. Dr. Mathew's explanation makes sense because the mind is experiencing a lot of changes at that time period. When I looked at my list of events; it surprised me how many events I racalled. As I continued to work on the list it seemed more and more event came back to me. While I might not use the activity in a US History class, it could be integrated into my Sociology class.

Another way of looking at Minimum Wage

2006-06-25T11:20:00.000-05:00

I came across this example against the logic of minimum wage at Cafe Hayek and I thought it was quite clever.

The market prices of most used-cars are too low for sellers of those cars to support their families. This fact is especially true for poor people, who, when they sell their old cars, almost always have only old, high-mileage, often dilapidated used-cars to sell. These people aren't selling two-year-old Lexuses or BMWs. They're selling 15-year-old Chevys and 20-year-old Hondas. So let's enact legislation mandating that no used-car can sell for less than, say, $25,000. That way, anyone who sells a used-car is assured that he or she will earn at least enough money to support a family for a year.

I doubt that many people would argue that government should legislate a minumum price for used-cars. But why not? If merely identifying a problem with a low price (such as "At the current minimum wage, even full-time workers can't support a family of four") is sufficient to justify legislative action to raise that price, why won't such action work for used-cars as well as it will work for labor hours?

Open Letter on Immigration

2006-05-17T11:00:00.000-05:00

I agree with almost all of the ideas listed in the letter open letter below. It was prinited by Alex Tabarrok and he lays out some great points about immigration that often time get left out of emotional political speeches.

Dear President George W. Bush and All Members of Congress:
People from
around the world are drawn to America for its promise of freedom and
opportunity. That promise has been fulfilled for the tens of millions of
immigrants who came here in the twentieth century.
Throughout our history as
an immigrant nation, those who are already here worry about the impact of
newcomers. Yet, over time, immigrants have become part of a richer America,
richer both economically and culturally. The current debate over immigration is
a healthy part of a democratic society, but as economists and other social
scientists we are concerned that some of the fundamental economics of
immigration are too often obscured by misguided commentary.
Overall,
immigration has been a net gain for existing American citizens, though a modest
one in proportion to the size of our 13 trillion-dollar economy.
Immigrants
do not take American jobs. The American economy can create as many jobs as there
are workers willing to work so long as labor markets remain free, flexible and
open to all workers on an equal basis.
Immigration in recent decades of
low-skilled workers may have lowered the wages of domestic low-skilled workers,
but the effect is likely to be small, with estimates of wage reductions for
high-school dropouts ranging from eight percent to as little as zero
percent.
While a small percentage of native-born Americans may be harmed by
immigration, vastly more Americans benefit from the contributions that
immigrants make to our economy, including lower consumer prices. As with trade
in goods and services, the gains from immigration outweigh the losses. The
effect of all immigration on low-skilled workers is very likely positive as many
immigrants bring skills, capital and entrepreneurship to the American
economy.
Legitimate concerns about the impact of immigration on the poorest
Americans should not be addressed by penalizing even poorer immigrants. Instead,
we should promote policies, such as improving our education system that enables
Americans to be more productive with high-wage skills.
We must not forget
that the gains to immigrants from coming to the United States are immense.
Immigration is the greatest anti-poverty program ever devised. The American
dream is a reality for many immigrants who not only increase their own living
standards but who also send billions of dollars of their money back to their
families in their home countries—a form of truly effective foreign
aid..
America is a generous and open country and these qualities make America
a beacon to the world. We should not let exaggerated fears dim that
beacon.

Thoughts and Reflections

2006-05-11T07:06:00.000-05:00

Well, the year is just about done and these are a few of my observations and feelings:

1. Our school changed the grading scale to 90-80-70-65. This is not a huge change and it is being sold as lowering the standard to raise the expectations. I voted for it because I did not see it having a major impact on the way that I teach or the process that my students go through to learn. Still, the perception is that we simply lowered the standard.

2. I was notified I would be getting a Deans Honors for my masters degree since I have a 4.0 GPA. I found it interesting the fact in high school I graduated with a 3.2 and then I got a 3.8 GPA for my BSE and now I'm up to a 4.0 for my graduate degree. I must have gotten smart at some point? I wonder what I would get with a doctorate degree.

3. Golf is great. I enjoy my team, the other school's coaches, my assistant coach and most everything about this season. There are always small road bumps but overall it has been my most enjoyable season in the past four years. Regionals are Monday and we have a slightly outside shot of qualifying someone for state.

4. The seniors graduate this weekend. They have been a solid class with a good variety of people. Too many of them are graduating with the idea that gas prices are high because oil companies are greedy but that is their fault for not taking my economics class. I hope they don't do anything stupid this week to tarnish their image as they leave.

5. My teaching this year would earn a grade of a C+ or B-. It has not been as strong as years past but I know exactly what I want to do to improve. Also, my economics class was excellent and my US history class did pretty well. Next year, I already know what I need to do to improve so I am cautiously optimistic about the future.

6. I found out that there is a campaign to get me to run for president on facebook.com. I think my chances of winning are a bit weak since I am only 31 but I must admit the picture they have makes me want to vote for myself.

7. The summer will be really busy but fun. I have a week long seminar in at Washburn, two weeks in Parsons and a road trip to Washington DC along with golf, basketball and a new closet. Luckily I don't have to work in the summer so I have plenty of time.

Reflections on the Spring Sports Season

2006-04-12T13:01:00.000-05:00

I am the golf coach here at Halstead and I always love the spring sports season. Golf is more of an individual sport and there is not as much pressure on the athletes as with basketball or some of the other sports. There is also more time for personal interactions with the kids on the course and a lot of time to try and mentor these young adults. Overall I think some of my best teaching happens on the course and it often time has nothing to do with the game of golf. Instead, its talking about how to deal with pressure, finding solutions to problems, risk management and lots of social skills. I like the idea of achievement tests and I think standardized tests are important and essential, I just wish that there was a way for me to also show the growth my golfers have in these other areas throughout the years.

Agriculture Today

2006-04-09T10:50:00.000-05:00

Although I have only lived in south central Kansas for six years, there is little doubt that substantive changes have occurred over the years here in the agriculture industry. Being about twenty five miles from Kansas’ largest city, Wichita, means that we are starting to see a change in demographics. More and more of our students’ parents work in Wichita and use Halstead as a bedroom community to commute from. These families enjoy the small town atmosphere that stresses community life. There is still a large amount of farmland in the area but fewer students plan on entering the industry. I only know of three students in the past six years that are currently farming. Many of the students whose families own farms are planning for other careers. Our school no longer has a FFA program and during a recent career day nobody represented the farm industry. Another changing aspect that is also reflected in Douglas Hurt’s book American Agriculture is the disappearance of a strong town main street. Halstead’s main street businesses struggle at times since it has become easy to travel to Newton or Wichita. Those interested in farming would have to go through the local coop or the Harvey County Economic development Council but the best information would probably come from heading down to the town coffee shop and talking to some of the local farmers. One of the nice aspects of Halstead is that the town respects privacy but is always open to giving advice and help when needed.

Iraq War Discussion Starter

2006-03-31T06:44:00.000-06:00

As a primer for our discussion on the current war in Iraq use some of the sources we have disscussed in class to find the answer to these questions. Simply cut and paste the questions to a WORD document and then answer them.

Who was the first two groups in the United States to call for war against Iraq?
What does UNMOVIC stand for? What roll did they play in the Iraq War?
What is the coalition of the willing?
Name 5 countries that are part of the coalition of the willing.
Name five countries that are no longer part of the coalition of the willing.
What date did the 2003 invasion of Iraq start?
What were the 8 rationales for war
Why was Bush Criticized for his Mission Accomplished Speech?
Who was the US fighting in the Ramadam Offensive?
What day were Saddam Hussein’s sons killed?
What three provinces have had the largest amount of insurgent attacks?
How did Operation Ivy Needle get its name?
Have Weapons of Mass Destruction been found in Iraq thus far?
What day was Saddam Hussein captured?
What was the goal of Operation Devil Siphon
What happened at Fallujha?
What is an IED?
What is the total deaths in American Deaths thus far?
What is the current US public support for war? (give a per cent)
Is the Sunni triangle good?

Made It To Spring Break

2006-03-21T18:14:00.000-06:00

I love spring break! I consider myself fortunate to be in a profession that affords me many days of vacation. I have this week off and I plan on doing some painting, cleaning my carpets, and maybe putting in a new ceiling fan and while this might not sound to exciting I will be doing at my own leisure instead of cramming it into a weekend. Some teachers complain about pay, but not I. The summer, winter and spring breaks make up for my the pay gap between me and other with comparable education levels plus if I wanted more money I would change jobs. So no complaints here, just a week of slow paced work and a lot of time with my daughter... and of course I will watch Wichita State in the Sweet 16.

We Are Going To State!!!!

2006-03-05T13:25:00.000-06:00

We were down by two at halftime but ended up beating Hillsboro 52-40 and now it is off to Hutchinson for the state tournament. It was a fun night and I enjoyed watching our crowd and student section have so much fun but most of all it was great to watch our seniors play an excellent game. It has been a great coaching year and I am glad that it will continue for another week!!!!

BAKKE CASE

2006-03-04T15:29:00.000-06:00

Affirmative action has become one controversial issue that has derived from the civil rights movement of the mid-twentieth century. It is an important issue and case that is not only debated today but it is also greatly misunderstood. It is also an issue that will most certainly be revisited by future courts. With a controversial subject like affirmative action, I think the information that students need to know is a little bit different than other issues. Based on my years in the classroom, there are many students who have narrow minded opinions based on emotions instead of facts. This means that before looking at any opinions about this case we would first go over a lot of facts and ideas. One essential idea would be the difference between equality and substantive equality. Another important idea to acknowledge before forming opinions is the “compelling interest of diversity” and how important it is in the educational environment. From there, students could start to use their knowledge of civil rights to discuss what the purpose of the UCD program was and why Allan Bakke saw it as an unconstitutional quota system. As far as the recent cases dealing with affirmative action it would be interesting to discuss if there are any similarities between the UCD program and the “twenty five” year references made by Sandra Day O’Conner, Atonin Scalia and Clearance Thomas.

Saying farewell

2006-02-27T11:32:00.000-06:00

AskJeeves.com is dropping the iconic butler Jeeves -- borrowed from the late novelist P.G. Wodehouse -- from its name. Starting today, the site will be called Ask.com. It will feature a more straightforward search service than the original, which allowed users to phrase queries as questions to the fictional Jeeves.

My Dog...That I Will Miss

2006-02-19T15:34:00.000-06:00

This is Rommel and he was a loyal companion. He died this weekend of a sudden stroke. I am glad that he went quickly but I am going to miss him.

Vietnam- National Archives

2006-02-19T15:17:00.000-06:00

The National Archives has a lot of good, high quality digital images of documents availiable online for teachers to use. Upon doing a simple search for 'Vientam" I discovered President Johnson's White House schedule/diary from the day after the Gulf of Tonkin Incident. The schedule shows that President Johnson met with his closest advisors in the morning. The incident would end up leading to Congressional authorization to send combat troops to Vietnam and the massive escalation that would lead to the Vietnam War. This document is highly teachable because a class could use the document research and investigate to find out:

Indentify who the people were who met the president during the day.
Discuss what was going on in the US at that time.
Make inferences about what they discussed at the meeting.
Find out what happened in the weeks after August 3rd.

I should also point out that you could always hook kids by talking about the scandal that would erupt a few months later concerning Walter Jenkins.

Citation:

Arc Identifier: 192444
Title and Description: President's Daily Diary Entry, August 2, 1964: In the early hours of Sunday, August 2, 1964, President Johnson received a message that North Vietnamese torpedo boats had attacked an American destroyer in the Gulf of Tonkin. In the morning the President met with Secretary of State Dean Rusk and others to discuss the situation in Vietnam. At the meeting it was decided not to retaliate at this time, to strengthen the American patrols, and to issue a protest note to North Vietnam. Later that day, the President walked to church services at St. John's Episcopal Church with Lady Bird Johnson.

Making History Questions For Paper

2006-02-13T10:16:00.000-06:00

Country you will focus on:
Time you will focus on:
Name of scenario you are playing:

Real Events:

Name of your country’s leader:
What political party did he represent?
When did he come to power?
How did the leader come to power?
Who were the countries allies?
What earlier actions helped or hurt the country?
What governmental actions did the government take during the time period?
What military actions did the government take during the time period?
What were the goals of the country during the time period?
How modern was the country?
Did the country have freedom of the press and other civil liberties?
What were the economic conditions of the country during the time period?
What was the country producing?
Were there any resources the country had to import?
Who did they import with?
Was there ample food and consumer goods?
Were there any strikes going on in the country?
Were the any protests in the country?
What was the US’s view of the country?
Was the country getting stronger during this period? Why?
What were key events during this time period?
What were the treaties or agreements that the country participated in during this time?
Who would say was this countries major friend?
Was the country heavily involved in foreign affairs?
What was the biggest obstacle for the country in this time period?
How did the country’s actions affect them in the future?
What were some mistakes or good decisions the country made?

Your Game:

What decisions were similar to real life?
What decisions were different?
What did you do better than real life?
Who did you make alliances with?
How did you help the economy?
How did you make your country strong in the international world?
What was your biggest obstacle?
What did you find very easy?
What did you do about dissidents?
Who did you trade with?
How did you help the economy of your country?
What military strategy did you employ?
Did you use any Clausewitzian ideas?

Free Trade Sites

2006-02-13T07:42:00.000-06:00

For our geography assignment today you might want to look at these sites to find some information pertaining to different views on free trade:

The Globalist : Both

The Economist : Both (watch the ad to get premium content)

Adbusters : Anti-

Global Policy Forum : Anti- (look under case studies)

Corpwatch: Both but more anti-

Heritage Foundation: Mainly pro-

National Review: Mainly pro-

Truman Library

2006-02-05T11:14:00.000-06:00

The Truman Library in Independence Missouri is one of the most teacher and school friendly places I have been to. Their exhibits are well made and their White House Decision Center is one of the most popular field trips for secondary students in Kansas and Missouri. It has been so successful that the other ten presidential libraries are adding their own decision centers in the upcoming years. With this knowledge I was fairly certain that the Truman Library website would be of equal quality for educators and I was not disappointed.

The website had a lot of quality information and was easy to navigate. The Harry Truman PowerPoint was especially nice since many times teachers can make power points but it is often times difficult to find pictures, graphics, quotes and questions to accompany the presentation. This had it all. It maybe had too much information but it could be saved as a .ppt file so it could be edited by teachers to customize it for their class. Also, their were PowerPoints for Bess and Margaret.

The secondary sources were impressive but the biggest appeal of www.trumanlibrary.org was the immense amount of primary sources waiting for teachers. The variety of material was of high quality and would appeal to students. Some of the more interesting items include a series of cartoons during the Berlin Airlift. These were published by the Airlift Task Force and show the feelings of the air force during the airlift in 1948. They also show some sexual stereotypes of the day and could be used to relate to recent humanitarian efforts. A teacher could easily integrate them into a Cold War unit as a bell ringer activity or in an anticipatory set (Wow I haven’t used those words since 1997 in my techniques class).

The website also has downloadable audio files that reflect a lot of the Kansas Social Studies Standards. Of particular interest to me was Truman’s address on the surrender of Japan. It included some discussion questions and gives a good idea what Truman saw for the future. Another good audio file was and interview with Truman regarding the firing of Gen. Doulas MacArthur during the Korean War. It would be neat to play MacArthurs farwell address and compare it to this interview to see how each felt about the situation and their position.

Overall, I was very pleased with the Truman Library website and will use a lot of the information in my class. It is also easily navigable and students could use it as a basis of research and find their own information on Truman and his administration on the site.

Civil Rights Court Cases

2006-01-30T21:02:00.000-06:00

For the assignment this week you will need to know the background facts of each case, the legal issues argued, the decision in the case along with the rationale for the decision.

Cumming v. Board of Education of Richmond County
Gong Lum v. Rice
State of Missouri ex rel. Gaines v. Canada
Sweatt v. Painter
McLaurin v. Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education
Henderson v. United States
Bolling v. Sharpe

Without Sanctuary

2006-01-26T08:40:00.000-06:00

ASSIGNMENT: Today you will have the opportunity to view some photographs. The goal is to interpret the photographs to gain an understanding of photographers’ motivations. Choose Five photographs from http://www.withoutsanctuary.org/. Answer the following questions about it to gain and deeper appreciation then view another photograph and do the same. You will be asked to present you ideas about the photograph.

1. Why does James Allen search for post cards of lynching?
2. What does he mean that even "shame is for sale" in America?
3. Is the photograph seem natural or do you think it was staged? What evidence supports your idea?
4. What is the emotional mood of the photograph?
5. Consider the overall setting of the photograph. What do you see?
6. What is the time of day, the season, or the ambiance of the scene?
7. What is the central message or story of the image?
8. What do think was the photographers purpose or point of view in taking this picture?
9. For what audience might the image have been intended?
10. How was the photographer more than a neutral spectator at the lynching. How is the photo itself part of the ritual?
11. Was it made for private consumption, as in a family portrait, or for public commentary, as in a political cartoon?
12. What is the historical context for the image?
13. Finally, analyze the image for the issues it does not raise, the objects and people not included, as much as for what is included. Does the image raise questions that are left unanswered about the scene?
14. List or make a table of all the items you see.
15. What details stand out to you?

Feel free to cut and past this assignment to a word document to answer the questions or you may email them to me.

War Without Mercy

2006-01-22T09:59:00.000-06:00

For a class I am taking this spring, I have just finished reading War Without Mercy by John Dower. This is an impressive book that was both readable a full of new information that can readily be incorporated into my US History classroom. The overall push of the book is to expose the influence of race in the Pacific Theatre of World War II. The book does an excellent job at pointing out the visceral hatred between the two sides in World War II and its basis in the idea of racial hatred that permeated both sides during the conflict.

This basis of the book is excellent but I was amazed and all of the supporting history that Dower was able to provide to support his thesis. There preoccupation of race ran from being subtly mentioned to extremely overt. The way that Winston Churchill called the Chinese “little yellow men”, the Navy’s view that Japanese pilots could not shoot well at night, or the songs against the Japanese were fascinating to read about. In addition to this, the chapter about Japanese views during the war was brand new information. While, I probably could have inferred that Japanese views of the Allies were parallel to American views the confirmation was interesting to read. Another interesting aspect was the report “Of Global Policy With the Yamato Race As the Nucleus.” This report was to be used in the future once Japan had established itself as a world leader. It talked about the role of islands over continents as innovators of society and the need for a population increase.

This book offers a lot of important information that can be intertwined into my classes. It is tough to be able to present a global view to a students (and teachers) lack global experiences. By looking at how different leaders and countries thought during the war one can have a class reflect on earlier policies that might have spawned and supported the views held during the war.

World Geography Questions Should Be Posted Here

2006-01-08T21:03:00.000-06:00

My World Geopgraphy class is going to post their "Where am I?" here. They should be posted in the following format:

List your clues in in order from easiest to hardest like this:

1. Easiest clue
2. Second easiest clue
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10. Hardest clue

Do not include the answer.

An Interesting School Debate

2006-01-02T14:42:00.000-06:00

Mr. Gerber (the other social science teacher) and me have been having an interesting debate over President Bush and the legality of the wiretaps on international calls. While I think the wire taps seem to be legal, I totally disagree with there use. My feeling on the whole deal are reflected in this article, We Need Domestic Spying

What I am afraid we will see is a tug-of-war between those who place a greater priority on preventing terrorist attacks and those who place a greater priority on reining in the spying agencies. Instead, an independent agency responsible for auditing domestic intelligence could add a layer of protection against abuse while also identifying weaknesses and shortcomings in our intelligence system.

Without an independent audit agency, the oversight of domestic intelligence is going to be spotty and ineffective. There will be Congressional hearings now and then, the occasional official study (think of the 9/11 Commission), and other episodic checks in response to notable events or revelations. However, the issue of domestic spying is too important to be dealt with in such an irregular, incomplete fashion. Auditing our security apparatus needs to be a process, not an event.

I also concur with this statement from James Joyner

While Drum's speculation about the nature of the program is just that, he's almost certainly right that there is more going on here than meets the eye. We'll learn more in the coming days and months, as the press, the Congress, and the courts do their jobs.

This story will not die easily and I think the ramifications might be large.

Happy 2006!

2006-01-01T08:59:00.000-06:00

I hope that htis year is enjoyable, productive and fufilling as 2005. Overall, I am happy where I am in my life but still looking to improve a few aspects. The plans for 2006:

Do a bettter job grading papers in a timely fashion
Play more with with my daughter (time to play golf with her)
Redecorate the bedroom
Eat more healthy foods
Finish my Masters degree

2005-12-11T22:45:00.000-06:00

You're a political intellectual.

What Sort of Intellectual Are You?
brought to you by Quizilla

Kansas History Class Is Done!!

2005-12-11T22:29:00.000-06:00

My fall class has ended. Overall, it was a good experience and afforded me tho opportunity to read and research some parts of Kansas history that I never would have gotten to do if not for this class. I think I will get an A in the class so all is good in the world right now.

Research Paper Reactions

2005-12-11T22:26:00.000-06:00

Rob Barcus

http://rbarcehikes.blogspot.com

The History of the Katy Hospital: This paper gives insights a number of important part of Parson’s history. Obviously it gives the history of the hospital but it also shows the importance of the hospitals in the town and tells some of the events in the town. The comparison of the hospital to modern day HMOs and how it was determined who would get services was especially interesting

Teri Blancho

http://dragonhistory.blogspot.com

The Clay Industries of Pittsburg, Kansas: This paper covered a new topic to me. Basically, I knew about the coal industry in Pittsburg but this paper opened up a new aspect of PittsburgPittsburg. that I never knew about. The variety of business pursuits and the competition in the industry show how important it was for the city of

Mark Boyd

http://section22.blogspot.com

Mayhem in Marmaton Township: Allen County Land Wars, 1882-1888: This paper gives information that few people have any ideas about. The idea of the high degree of violence and conflict that went on over the settling Allen County is crazy. The maps that were included were interesting to look at and added to the paper.

Steven Clark

http://scehikesblog.blogspot.com/

Douglass School: Disintegration or the Black Community: This paper takes an interesting and unique look at school disintegration. It set forth the idea of the sub cultures that developed in segregated African American communities. The end of the segregation in schools removed one of the pillars of pride that the African American community had in Parsons and has led to a more fragmented community.

Mary Colvin

http://colvinclass.blogspot.com/

Parsons, Kansas Public Education System Through The Years : As a history teacher it probably isn’t too surprising that the this paper was of great interest to me. The districts history from one teacher and a room that needed the door open to provide light up through the current years is interesting. I liked the small human interest references that Mary made which helped to add a lot of color to the paper

Julie Dunham

http://historycrop.blogspot.com

RACE RIOT OF 1920 IN INDEPENDENCE, KANSAS: This is another topic that I had read a couple of old newspaper articles about sometime ago. From reading the articles I had to assumed a lot of the before and after about the riot. Julie’s paper fills in a lot of the gaps about the events that actually led to the riot. The tension in the town must have been incredible especially as the American Legionnaires disarmed the African-Americans.

Tracy Hutton

http://huttont.blogspot.com

Lynching in Leavenworth: The Fred Alexander Story: I have actually read some of the articles that came from Leavenworth concerning this case so I was anxious to lead Tracy’s take on it. She did a wonderful job of going though some of the history that led to lynching in the state of Kansas and did a thorough job showing how the rest of the state and nation condemned the actions in Leavenworth.

Eddie Kearns

http://eddiekearns.blogspot.com

The History of the Army Ammunition Plant in Parsons: There is no doubt that the ammunition plant is one of the most important parts of Parson’s history and Eddie gives a well researched history of the plant. The recent history including the possibility of ghosts was new to me and enjoyable to read about.

Mike McEwan

http://nerdforhistory.blogspot.com

THE EARLY HISTORY OF MORAN, KANSAS: This paper gives another good history of a town that we all know exists but do not know how it came about. The naming of the town is interesting and the struggles and successes that the town has gone through since then is an important aspect of local history.

Mark McFarland

http://coachmac1.blogspot.com

Julius Augustus Wayland, The Rise, Fall, and Remains: This paper does a good job of showing the importance of how Girard became so influential in the socialist movement during the early 1900s. I especially found it interesting to read about Wayland’s suicde.

Patrick Moss

http://whitestreak.blogspot.com

THE HISTORY OF EDUCATION IN PITTSBURG, KANSAS: Patrick brings another history of education that I appreciated since many people from my family attended Pittsburg schools during the early part of the twentieth century. I especially liked the information on the Coal bucket game between Pittsburg and Columbus High School. The historical significance aspect of the paper is alos a nice addition and gives a solid rationale

Jolene Pennington

http://OldCuriousOne.blogspot.com

Orphan Trains: I had once read a small abstract about orphan trains but this paper shed an amazing amount of new information on the subject for me. The role of the Children’s Aid Society and the compassionate strength of those who found homes for the thousands of children is impressive. The variety of sources used in this paper also makes it a more interesting paper to read.

Michell Piva

http://mpiva.blogspot.com

Pleasures of the Past in Parsons: This paper answers the question of what did people do for fun when there was know television. It gives all sorts of recreational activities that were popular in Parsons through is early history. The Opera House is really neat and the 20 saloons were good to read about.

Tamara Ponce

http://ponceblog.blogspot.com

The Heritage of the Joplin & Pittsburg Electric Railway Company: This paper is a little different than many of the papers that I read. It goes through the history of one single business from its formation through its end. The story is a bit sad since the company was plagued with many mishaps and problems but it [provides a good idea of the business practices and issues of the early 1900s.

Diane Reeves

http://keenaboona.blogspot.com

History of Dorrance, Kansas: I did not know anything about this town but it has an interesting history. The order that buildings were built and the establishment of the different businesses were well researched. This paper adds a lot of good information about the town and its people.

Faith Rosson

http://faithistory.blogspot.com

History of Edna, Kansas: Faith brings answers to all those questions we have always wondered about Edna, Kansas. Her paper is a good example of how a topic might be of interest to very few people but when they read the paper there is a lot if interesting information. The conflict over shipping line between Edna and Elm Grove was particularly interesting.

John Seal

http://scothist.blogspot.com

John did a lot of research for this paper and then he put it together in a very well written paper. All of the different townships that existed in Bourbon Country is new for me. John does a real good job of explaining why certain towns were able to suvive while others became desrted.

Deborah Shaffer

http://historytogo.blogspot.com

The Katy Railroad and its Impact on Parsons, Kansas: This paper does a good job of explain how a city, town or community can be affected by a single industry or in this case a rail road. The Katy railroad and its impact of the early growth of the city is interesting. The end of the line in 1988 also shows the importance business in towns of any size. I also appreciated the explanation of where the name came from.

Greg Traxson

http://livingthathistory.blogspot.com

Civil War Massacre in Southeast Kansas: This paper had to be very difficult to research since it was so long ago and since there is so little information on the topic. I am really impressed with what Greg did with this topic. The different accounts of the massacre make you think about how many different accounts there can be to a single event.

Bill Wolff

http://ichabod56.blogspot.com

Parsons and the New Deal: I find the New Deal to be a fairly interesting aspect of American History so this paper was enjoyable to read. The variety of programs that had an impact on the city was an important aspect but more interesting was the information on the sewing room and the book binding project. There was quite a bit of good information that one could use in the classroom in this paper.

Miner Chapter 9: Like the Nations (Last Chapter!)

2005-11-20T17:02:00.000-06:00

The final chapter of the book covers some of the most recent history in the state of Kansas. In retrospect many of the issues in the past forty years seem so common day that it becomes easy to forget that the issues were even debated. Having students list out the arguments against things that are so common today could be a productive use of this chapter. The issues that were argued about would include the establishment of Wolf Creek Nuclear Power Plant, Alcohol by the Drink, Severance Taxes and the lottery. From there the movement to other forms of gambling was quick to come about and is still being discussed. Another item to look at might be all of the legislation that has been proposed over the course of the book and look for any trends in it. The final issue s that students would probably be interested in are the abortion debates, the controversy of evolution standards and the idea of some of the western counties to secede for the state. This chapter would be very relevant to many student’s lives and would probably be a good way to get them more interested in the role of government in their lives.

Miner Chapter 8: Concrete Steps

2005-11-20T17:00:00.000-06:00

This chapter begins with the famous Kansas “triple play” when Fred Hall resigned as governor and then was appointed to the Supreme Court by his lieutenant-governor, John McCuish. This ties to current events in Kansas because the triple play led to Kansas Supreme Court justices being appointed by a commission instead of by popular votes which some people want to do away with now (i.e. Kansas Republican Assembly). This chapter begins to drift from a strict historical analysis of the state and begins to fore-shadow into what the future of the state holds. With the 100^th anniversary of statehood Kansas removed some of its long lasting moralistic strongholds such as prohibition. The push to be modern had finally started to win over in the state. The growth of Kansas also brought new issues that had never been discussed, principle among these was water. The issue of flood prevention, environmentalism and water for Wichita could be debated in a classroom setting, especially the tapping of the Equus Beds. The other main teachable topic would be that of school desegregation and the Brown vs. Topeka Board of Education case and the desegregation cases that came after them. The classroom teacher could have students research how these issues are still being played out today in current events around the state.

Miner Chapter 7: Dust and Democrats

2005-11-20T16:59:00.001-06:00

This Chapter by Craig Miner takes the reader from the Great Depression up through World War II. The chapter might sound as if it would only cover mainly governmental affairs but a variety of issues are mentioned. One of the most important assertions made in this chapter is how with the massive failure of Alf Landon in the 1936 presidential campaign showed how far Kansas was from the other parts of the nation. This would coincide with the fact that many people looked at Kansas as more of a freak state and could not be taken seriously. Kansas also saw at this time the need to diversify its economy instead of being reliant on single commodities. The way that Kansas started to pull itself out of its economic crisis through the development of the Kansas Industrial Development Commission is important. This group helped pave the way for new business by encouraging new enterprises along with helping to present Kansas in a more favorable light. The book also makes a great point in looking at how the depression seemed to lessen the rhetoric that symbolized early Kansas history. As far as teaching, this chapter allows for some economic application dealing with the ideas of corporate farming and the pros and cons with their operations and the involvement of government in building up the state’s infrastructure.

Miner Chapter 6: Chastened and Changed

2005-11-20T16:59:00.000-06:00

This chapter was probably my most favorite in the book. It covers a variety of social issues starting with involvement in World War I, progressing to African American Civil Rights, and the idea of censorship. The chapter also provides some insights in how Kansas dealt with labor unions, strikes and transportation issues. This chapter also goes into added detail about the establishment of the air craft industry in the state. The anti-German paranoia that erupted during World War I was very interesting. The central region of Kansas has a high Mennonite population and their pacifist beliefs along with Eastern European dissent made them major targets for the jingoistic beliefs that infected so many people. Miner also points out that as this was going on the civil rights of many African Americans were being stripped away. A positive note can be made about William Allen White’s work to get the Ku Klux Klan out of the state of Kansas and the support that he got in his run for office. Teachers can use the ideas of censorship from this period in their classrooms. The way that the movie Birth of A Nation was not allowed to be shown and all of the clips of other movies that were removed for being to scandalous, rude, of profane. Teachers can use this piece of history to have a discussion about freedom of speech issues.

Miner Chapter 5: The Bone and Sinew of the State

2005-11-20T16:58:00.000-06:00

Kansas in the pre-World War I period shows the merging of the Populist ideas with the Progressive Era along with the modernization that technology brought to the state. In Kansas this means debates and resolutions on schools textbooks, the flood of 1903, Standard Oil litigation, railroad and anti-trust regulation, capital punishment, public health, city reform Teddy Roosevelt, and isolationism. The chapter was interesting in how with certain issues the Kansas Legislature was very involved and hands on while in other issues the government cared less about regulation in favor of education. The chapter also shows the beginning of the divergence between the old pioneer leaders and a more modern form of government. A final aspect of the chapter concerns the role of technology in everyday life of Kansans. While many might feel Kansas are a bit slow to adapt the chapter makes it clear that this is not correct. Farmers quickly saw the advantages of new machines and automobiles and integrated them into their farming businesses. A classroom teacher could use this chapter very effectively in a class. When studying the progressive era, a teacher could compare issues and actions taken at the national and the issues that were important in Kansas.

Favorite Quotes From Chapter 5:

About the early airplane “It hasn’t yet become addicted to the rising habit.”

“Knowledge is no longer to be monopolized by those who chance first to get it.”

“Regions which produce only corn, cotton … or silver usually wear the same badge – the badge of poverty.”

The Normal school at Emporia (Emporia State University) was “too much like high school.”

Richmond Chapter 18: Change, Controversy and Commemoration

2005-11-20T16:57:00.001-06:00

The past thirty years in Kansas has seen some major changes. The biggest change for the state has been the movement of people out of the state and how many Kansans have shifted from a rural setting to an urban setting. In order to maintain a high quality of living Kansas has created some relatively impressive environmental controls in place and loosened many of its morality based laws to make the state more appealing to a wider group of potential citizens. Kansas has also been forced to make some changes especially in the realm of civil rights. The Brown v. Board of Topeka case forced desegregation of schools in the state and some of the larger districts in the state are still dealing with desegregation issues. Educationally the material from this chapter could be used to once again discuss what the future for the state needs to be and what direction the state should take to create a more prosperous future.

Richmond Chapter 17: Kansas and the Arts

2005-11-20T16:57:00.000-06:00

The arts in the state of Kansas are something that people probably do not think about very often. Still, the state has had an impressive impact on the arts over the course of its history. They run the gamut from newspaper journalists like Jim Leher, writers such as Margaret Hill McCarter, a variety of musicians and actors. Students could research the works of the people listed in the chapter and create PowerPoint slideshows showing the works of some of these people. Another idea would be to look at selections of works that represent the state to see how they mention or portray the state of Kansas.

Richmond Chapter 16: The Second World War and Its Aftermath

2005-11-20T16:56:00.001-06:00

While Kansas was not particularly worried about World War II before Pearl Harbor they strongly supported the war after the attack. The second World War would end up changing Kansas in numerous different way but in particular it helped to really launch the aircraft industry in the state. In addition Kansas supported the war effort through the usual methods of mobilization, victory gardens and sending 215,000 soldiers to fight in the war. Kansas agriculture once again found eager markets which helped the state but once again the aircraft industry really propelled the state. After the war, Kansas seemed to modernize very quickly. Kansas ridded itself of prohibition, set out to create a modern road system, took steps for flood prevention via dams and elected Eisenhower as president.

Richmond Chapter 15: The Dirty Thirties: Kansas and the Great Depression

2005-11-20T16:56:00.000-06:00

The Great Depression hit the entire nation but in some ways it hit Kansas twice. The economic problems the plagued the entire nation hit Kansas but then the dust bowl literally blew Kansas away. The depression hit many aspects of Kansas life such as the extreme deflation, lower wages and high unemployment but the dust bowl brought the physical despair on top of the economic problems. Out of this trouble some interesting things came out of Kansas. Dr. John Brinkley gained fame for his attempt to be governor. He was a doctor of disputable ability and but he was wildly popular due to his common man ability, his radio show and his flying around the state in a plane. The other aspect of the depression was the political life of Alf Landon. The Kansas governor ran for president as a tight fiscal conservative and could be used in the classroom as a debate about what the role of government in the economy should be.

Richmond Chapter 14: The Changing, troubled Twenties

2005-11-20T16:55:00.001-06:00

The rapid changes that the United States experienced during the 1920s were also experienced in Kansas. Some of these items were very positives such as the spread of new technology and the automobile but it also brought the neoconservative movement that attacked the radical left and worried about the potential degradation of morals in the country. An interesting aspect of Kansas in the 20s was the ability of the Democrats to gain the governorship in the state. Johnathan Davis became governor in 1922 but had little success against a strong Republican legislature. William Allen White’s crusade against the Ku Klux Klan was impressive during this decade. It would be good to teach about why the Klan revived during this time period and the how the lawsuits of White helped to cripple it in the state

Richmond Chapter 13: the First World War and a Return to Normalcy

2005-11-20T16:55:00.000-06:00

The start of World War I and the subsequent US entry into the war led to an economic boost for the state of Kansas. There was a large demand for Kansas wheat but there was very little interst in participating in the war. It is interesting that many around the nation criticized Kansas for not showing more support of the war. Still, when the war was declared, even with the opposition, the state of Kansas did lots to support the war effort. It bought more than its quota of bonds and supported the rationing that was done. After the war Kansas did not continue its economic prosperity but did continue its anti-immigrant policies. The Ku Klux Klan revived itself and was strongly supported in the state of Kansas which is interesting because of the strong socialist influence in the southeastern part of the state.

Richmond Chapter 12: Progressive Politics and Progress In a New Century

2005-11-20T16:54:00.000-06:00

The heroics of Fredrick Funston and Kansas’ support of the Spanish American War open the chapter which shows the state of affairs in Kansas as a new century began in the state. Populism had died down but Progressive politics entered the spectrum around the state. In some ways there are some key similarities between the two in that they both looked towards the government for regulation in order to cure the ills they saw around the nation. In tis aspect students could compare and contrast the motivations, issues and methods that were implemented between the Populists and Progressives. It would also be advantageous to look at the results of both groups and discuss why the Progressives were more successful in the long run than their Populist counterparts.

Richmond Chapter 11: Prohibition to Populism, 1870-1900

2005-11-20T16:53:00.001-06:00

Richmond does a good job of outlining the origins of Populism, its rise and its subsequent fall. The Populist ideas were very popular in rural areas and especially strong in Kansas. Many of the farmers faced large economic difficulties after the Civil War and did not feel the establishment in Washington DC listened to their needs and problems. They also felt victimized by the railroads, bankers and business interests in the east. The farmer’s alliances that would later evolve in the People’s Party tried to unify these concerns into a political movement. Republicans with their pro-business position became the natural enemy of the Populists. Students could investigate the Populist Platform to see how the positions would help farmers in the state. The could also read William Allen White’s What’s the Matter With Kansas to see how some felt the Populist ideas were misguided.

Richmond Chapter 10: Immigrants On The Prairies

2005-11-20T16:53:00.000-06:00

This is the first chapter and really the first instance that the book mentions any immigrants or minorities. The Mennonites settled originally in Pennsylvania but slowly drifted westward to Kansas and brought their farming techniques and peaceful nonresistant ways. In western Kansas there were many German-Russians who farmed and kept their Roman Catholic religion. Both of these groups became major targets during the First World War. Other groups include the Balkan influence in Southeast Kansas and the African American exodusters who came into the state after the Civil War. It might be beneficial for students to use maps of Kansas and color in different areas that were settled by different groups of people. Another idea would be to go through last names from phone books to see the origin of different names that are common in the area.

Richmond Chapter 9: The Frontier Is Settled

2005-11-20T16:52:00.001-06:00

The establishment of the Homestead Act followed by the Timber Culture Act led to a general increase in the Kansas population. While many people tried to take advantage of the opportunity for land they found that living on the frontier was very difficult. There were difficulties in getting supplies and the Indian conflicts led to raising tensions, fears and distrust between Kansans and the Native Americans. The other key issue was weather and economic fluctuations. They weather was unpredictable but the economic depressions was going to become the origin of some of the Populist ideas. The chapter once again gives a good overview of life for the people in the state. The innovations and the adaptations people made include changing the landscapes by digging wells and trenches to provide water, and finding alternative fuels due to shortages of timber. Students could generate a list of “essential items” needed by the settlers of this time period in order to survive a difficult life on the plains.

Richmond Chapter 8: The Cattle trade: Trail herds, Towns, and Ranchers

2005-11-20T16:52:00.000-06:00

This short chapter deals with another part of the early Kansas economy, the cattle industry. The chapter deals with the actual life on the trail followed by a good over of the different cattle towns and finally the end of the cattle drives. The best teaching that can come from this chapter is looking at the four main towns involved in the cattle drives. These towns are Dodge City, Abilene, Ellsworth and Wichita. Students could look at what the cities did after the cattle drives ended and compare their status in Kansas today with the way they were in the past.

Richmond Chapter 7: The Development of Railroads

2005-11-20T16:51:00.000-06:00

The development and spread of the railroad is not only important in the state of Kansas but the entire nations. In Kansas many individual towns knew that their future was based on whether or not they had a railroad going through. The book gives interesting information on some of the different railroads that were developed starting with the Elwood and Marysville and spreading to the Union Pacific and the Atchison-Topeka and Santa Fe. The material and spread of the railroad can spur a lesson of how the railroad changed the economy of Kansas as it spread. Students could come up with both the positive and negatives aspects that came from the new industry and how it influenced so many parts of life, not just transportation.

Richmond Chapter 6: The First Years Of Statehood

2005-11-20T16:50:00.000-06:00

The sixth chapter of the book analyses the large amount of conflict the state of Kansas had to deal with after statehood was granted. The first main issue was a drought that hit the state followed by the Civil War and the soldiers that fought in the war along with some of the skirmishes that occurred within the state. The book gives some interesting facts about Kansans in the Civil War including that the state had one of the highest casualty rates of any state in the war. After the war finally came to an end the struggles in the state did not end. The next main challenge was the Indian conflict. This chapter mentions numerous people who were influential in Kansas at this time. Students could do research and write out biographies about some of these people to explain their influence in the state.

Richmond Chapter 5: “Bleeding Kansas” The Territorial Period

2005-11-20T16:49:00.001-06:00

This chapter covers the 1850s leading up to the Civil War when both proslavery and antislavery came to the state in order to gain the influence of the territorial government. Like the Miner book, Richmond makes it clear that the idea of Bleeding Kansas was greatly exaggerated by the media and has grown into legend over the years but the lack of violence does not diminish the importance of the actions taken during the time. The chapter covers the politics of the time period along with some of the violence that was experienced but an interesting aspect that Richmond takes a close look at is the variety of different people that came to the state and the lifestyle they dealt with when they arrived. This can be used in the classroom by looking at how the variety of people would bring with them tremendously different ideas and how that might influence future politics in the state.

Richmond Chapter 4: Trails and Early Transpiration

2005-11-20T16:49:00.000-06:00

There are some interesting excerpts from different people who were traveling across the state of Kansas during the first half of the nineteenth century. These excerpts from letters and diaries include how difficult some of the journals could be and the hazards experienced along the way. The chapter also mentions the landmarks that marked the route across Kansas. Students could map these or even email schools near those areas and get pictures of some of the landmarks. Students could also map the forts that were established to protect those going across the trails. As more and more people moved west the trails started the change in nature. The pony express and stagecoaches began to move information and material both east and west.

Richmond Chapter 3: Indian Removal and Christian Missionary Efforts

2005-11-20T16:48:00.001-06:00

The start of this chapter gives an interesting overview of Isaac McCoy who had helped with the Miami Indians in Indiana and did the same in Kansas. He wanted the separation of the Indians from white settlers but he did not want to only move the Indians he wanted to improve their lives. His unrealistic goals might go along with the attempts of Christian missionaries to work in the Indian tracks of Kansas. While successful with some educational aspects, the missionaries were never successful in spreading Christianity. The final part of the chapter looks at Indian removal FROM Kansas. With the establishment of Kansas as a territory, more and more settlers headed into the territory. The book does not explain how the Indian removal came about other than to say it was complex but this chapter could be used to debate whether other strategies should have been used to deal with the native Americans in Kansas.

Richmond Chapter 2: Exploration of the Great Plains

2005-11-20T16:48:00.000-06:00

This chapter goes over the first Europeans entering the Midwest and Kansas. It is divided up between the Spanish and French followed by the American Exploration after the start of the nineteenth century. A teacher could use the material in this chapter by having students make a chart showing not only the goals of the explorations, the motivations of the explorations, the results of the movements and most importantly look at how the different groups viewed the state of Kansas. Another aspect might include how the different explorations dealt with the Indian groups that they met along the way.

Richmond Chapter 1: The Land and Its People

2005-11-20T16:46:00.000-06:00

This book is bit shorter than the Miner book and there are a more chapters so these overviews will be a bit shorter by comparison. The first chapter of the book, as the title implies, goes through the geography of the state including how it differs in different parts and the original natives of the state dating back to the paleo-Indians that entered the central plain 11,000 years ago. The best method for this material in the classroom would be to look at how geography of a given area can influence the way people lives. Another idea would be to create a timeline showing the different aspects of native life in Kansas.

Back From The Dead

2005-11-15T21:22:00.000-06:00

I have not written in a lon time and to be totally honest I am not sorry about it. I have just finished a paper for my Kansas History class and I am still finishing some reading for the class. Additionally, basketball has started and that means practices at 6:00 AM and after school. My wife is working on her Masters Degree so I am trying to help keep her sane and she does the same for me. Further more I am involved on two leadership teams at school. This is all in addition to my regular teaching profession. I am not complaining by any stretch of the imagination but with all my work the blog has taken a temporary backseat. Things are onthe upswing and I think they will continue to get better.

PS My stocks have been doing great!

Miner Chapter 4: Toward A Brighter Day

2005-10-30T12:38:00.000-06:00

Kansas history as represented in most survey textbooks gets mentioned only three times. Bleedings Kansas is discussed with the prelude to the Civil War, Brown vs. Topeka Board of Education is talked about within the civil rights movement and finally the People’s Party and Kansas Populism in the late 1800s is referred to as one of the radical movements in our nation’s history. This chapter covers the end of the nineteenth century and the movements that make Kansas known as a politically eccentric state. This includes prohibition, populism and once again the rights of women and minorities including the Exoduster movement. The book gives a lot of good information on all of the topics including a good commentary on how most history looks at the far radical elements of the People’s Party while ignoring other more conventional aspects of the movement. Miner also gives a great overview of Governor St. John’s actions and motivations in running the state. As far as using this chapter in my classroom, there are a variety of different methods. One idea might be to have the student s make biographical sketches based on some of the men or women mentioned or maybe to make a timeline showing the progression of event leading to more radical ideas; but I think the best idea might be to focus on suffrage, prohibition and populism as individual ideas and have a discussion of what the goals of each idea was. Then discuss whether the ideas were good or bad and maybe discuss some alternatives.

Favorite Quotes From Chapter 4

“The boom and bust was only one of the many instances of over momentum in the west”

“Kansans will vote dry as long as they can stagger to the polls.”

“John Ingalls put it as harshly, referring to all reformers, male and female, as sexually unemployed.”

“We want to restore the supremacy of the people, and we propose to do it”

Any quote from a critic of Populists

Miner Chapter 3: How the Iron Must Burn

2005-10-30T10:58:00.000-06:00

The third chapter of the book covers the spread of the railroad throughout Kansas along with the dealings of Native Americans, the establishment of universities and to a lesser degree the role of women and African-Americans in the state. While this is a lot of information, the key to it all resides in the economic progress that the railroad could potentially bring to the state. The potential of the railroad and the extension of pioneers to the western parts of the state led to some conflict with Native Americans who had control of the land. My classes could look at the contradicting views of Native Americans. Governor Samuel Crawford gives a very hostile and negative assessment while James Mead describes his interactions with the Indians in a much more positive light. Still, the main crux of the chapter revolves around the establishment of railroads in the state. My classes could look at the similarities between the importance of railroads in the second half of the 1800s and draw some comparisons to economic development today with meat packing, gambling and other potential business ventures. The final are that I found interesting and teachable was the approach that Kansas took to black and women’s suffrage. I am sure that some of my students would like to know about why the measures were voted down and some of the opinions about the idea from the time period.

Favorite Quotes From Chapter 3

“Railroad corporations, those artificial beings with no body to kick or should to damn”

“I have thought much on this matter but am too confounded poor to put into execution”

“Now before we can have 2,000 miles of RR we must begin somewhere and build one mile. And then another.”

“To see a man squatted on a quarter section in a cabin which would make a fair hogpen… waiting for someone to come along an buy out his ‘claim’ is enough to give a cheerful man the horrors.”

Miner Chapter 2: Trampling Out the Vintage

2005-10-23T14:58:00.000-05:00

The second chapter of the book covers only one decade in Kansas history, 1855-1865. This decade only encompasses four years of Kansas statehood but the importance of the territorial period is paramount to the history of the state and is a tremendously significant event leading to the Civil War. This connection is the origin of the title of the chapter, Trampling Out the Vintage, which is a reference to Julia Ward Howard’s Battle Hymn of the Republic. The chapter covers a variety of topics in detailed fashion including biographical sketches of key Kansans such as Charles Robinson, James Lane, and James Denver (I was surprised that John Ritchie was not mentioned in the chapter). The chapter also gives insight to how the local politics of territorial Kansas influences and were shaped by the situation in the rest of the United States.

The one part of the chapter that I believe could easily be integrated into the classroom is the myths and reality of “Bleeding Kansas”. The phrase “Bleeding Kansas” is mentioned in almost every high school history textbook and is probably misunderstood. Most students come away with a misguided notion that Kansas was in full-scale war over slavery before the outbreak of the war. This chapter clarifies what caused the violence the ramifications it had. Students could compare and contrast this books interpretation with how the survey textbooks describe the violence in the state.

Favorite Quotes From Chapter 2:

On the proposal to give up rifles and ammunition during the Wakarusa War “We will compromise, we will keep the rifles & give them the contents.”

“The admission of Kansas as a state on January 29, 1861 (an unfortunate date for later chilly celebrations) was an anticlimax.”

According to John Ingalls, there was in the later 1850s no observation of the Sabbath, “no change of dress or manner indicates the advent of holy time and most of the citizens employ the day in hinting prairie chickens, and the whiskey shops were full of cursing Democrats and the click of billiard balls”

2005-10-12T20:30:00.000-05:00

My Daughter turned one year old today. We will have a big party for her this weekend. Take note that she is wearing shoes, which means she can walk on her own!!!

A New Idea In My Classes

2005-10-12T20:10:00.000-05:00

Every year I try to do some new things in my classes but this year has been much different. Our school is doing all right but as I have mentioned in earlier posts things can be better. This has led me to try a lot of new ideas in my classes and some will work and some will fail miserable but my goal is that if students feel more comfortable in my classes, enjoy the type of work and feel that their views are important then the amount they learn will increase.

It is never a problem for me to be interested in my students. I try to be a mentor to them and expose them and get them to think as much as possible. My job is to teach subjects but I am always interested in my students future plans, and their views on current events as well as their opinions on fried chicken, ranch dressing and favorite vacation spots. The tougher part is finding out how a diverse group of students best learn a subject. My World History classes are going well and my Sociology class is fine but the classes I usually teach the best, Honors and Regular US History are floundering a bit. Things are fine but I feel that I am not getting as much out of my juniors as possible. My most recent idea is to allow the students to create their assessments then I am giving them options on how they gain the content. The assessment will be a STRUCTURED group debate which will commence this Friday. It looks like this might be a slight success but some of my students are really lacking motivation and this could drag down the whole thing. Anyway, I have more ideas to try and am always open to ideas from other people. Have a good evening.

Update For Kansas History Paper (eHIKES)

2005-10-09T20:03:00.000-05:00

My research paper over African American in Wichita during the first half of the twentieth century is going fairly well. I am still researching the topic and have found a decent amount of material. There is not as much as I thought there might be but it still should be sufficient for the requirements of the paper. One area that I had previously not thought about looking at was the Kansas Historical Society but I believe that there might be some good information there. They have a lot of information on the spread of Jazz and then the Blues in Kansas during this time period and some of it relates to events in Wichita. Overall, the paper seems to be taking shape and I believe it will be fairly good.

School Improvement (extra credit)

2005-10-09T10:43:00.000-05:00

Recently, our high school has become part of a nation wide project known as Breaking Ranks II. It is sponsored by the Gates Foundation and its goal is to bring about high school reform. It's focus is adding rigor to the curriculum and instructions and personalization of the school environment which I do not think anyone can argue about (in fact this seems pretty obvious). However, the question comes up about how to do these things? For our school of 250 students with a good track record, I would think we would have the ability to do some impressive things if we want to.

FOR DISCUSSION: What changes can Halstead High School implement to increase student performance?

Excerpts from Sec. Spellings

2005-10-04T09:05:00.000-05:00

Sec. Of Education Margaret Spellings made gave a speech on September 28th to the National Association of Manufacturers. The speech focused on high schools and the attempt to prepare students for the future work place. I have only taken some sections of the speech but the entire speech is located at the Department of Education website if you want to read it. Spellings seems to be clear that there is a need to change the way high schools operate and in the end it is a moral obligation, that will have positive economic ramifications, to make the changes necessary to help students fulfill their potential. The speech was sent to me by Kelly W. and I appreciate her sending it to me.

From Sec. Spellings

If Katrina shows us anything, it shows how vulnerable we are. In fact, Tom Friedman's latest bestseller, The World Is Flat, spotlights some challenges to our future. Many of Friedman's points about America's waning competitiveness speak directly to education, and I want to highlight a few of these. But there's also one passage I want to address head on. That's the page where Friedman chides political leaders for too often downplaying the challenges of foreign competition. It's hard to have a national strategy to stay competitive, he says, if "people won't even acknowledge that there is an education gap emerging and that there is an ambition gap emerging and that we are in a quiet crisis."
Well, I agree and I'll say it: There is an education gap. And we are on a mission to close it.
As the international playing field becomes flatter, our students need better education and training to compete. Manufacturing executives rank a "high-performing workforce" as the most important factor in their firms' future success. But how can you be a high-performing worker when you don't even have a high school diploma?
If you're not scared yet, take a look at our high school graduation rates. Among ninth-graders, five out of 10 minority students fail to finish high school on time. Overall, three out of 10 ninth-graders don't finish on time.
Leaving our high school students behind is not only morally unacceptable, what the President calls "the soft bigotry of low expectations." It is also economically untenable. Studies show the staggering cost of high school dropouts. In addition to lost earnings for the individual, consider the cost to society.
The one million students who drop out of high school each year cost our nation more than $260 billion dollars. That's in lost wages, lost taxes, and lost productivity over their lifetimes. That equals the combined 2004 earnings of DuPont and Delphi and Intel and Verizon and Xerox and IBM! You and I know this is more than just bad for business, it's also bad for the future of our country's economy. When you lose a million students every year that has a tremendous impact on our economy. And it represents the American Dream ... denied.
Clearly, it's time to focus on improving high schools.
That's why the president and I are supporting high school reform to help more of our students reach the finish line on time and ready for college or work.
The more technology levels the playing field, the more critical postsecondary education becomes. You know this because you're living it. Thirty years ago, a majority of manufacturing workers did not have high school diplomas. Today, not only do most of them have high school diplomas, almost one-third have studied at the college level.
The problem is, not enough people understand how important this is. One of the parts I like best about Tom Friedman's book is what he calls the "dirty little
secrets": the ambition gap, the numbers gap, and the education gap. These secrets matter to business leaders and educators alike, and they certainly matter to those of us who have children. Parents must understand that their children will need math skills to succeed in the 21st century.
Friedman says, "Compared with the young, energetic Indians and Chinese, too many Americans have gotten too lazy." The numbers gap refers to the fact that we are simply not producing enough engineers and scientists. And the education gap means that U.S. high-tech companies are seeking employees abroad, not just because they can pay them less, but also because they are more skilled and more motivated. In other words, they're not following the money, they're following the brains. So the first thing all of us need to realize is that this is not the same world we grew up in. As a nation, we have no more important task than to help our children develop academic skills, and character, and a little ambition if we are going to succeed in this flattening world. I know I can count on you to continue speaking loudly and clearly about the need for continued reform, especially in our high schools and especially in math and science.
Today, there is no Sputnik to galvanize the nation into action, but Katrina has! This tragedy is a wake-up call, and people from every part of our country are responding. The N.A.M. and Monster.com are helping hurricane victims find jobs. Educators are opening their hearts and their schools to displaced children.
But the long-term solution is to make sure that every member of our rising generation has the education and skills to succeed in the 21st century. The education gap, the achievement gap—the quiet crisis—will cast a very long shadow over our future if we do not summon the will to stay competitive. And competitiveness begins with education.
This is our mandate and our mission, and it's also the right thing to do. Our children and our country deserve no less.

Good Weekend Except For Football

2005-10-03T06:07:00.000-05:00

We went to Kansas City this past weekend to see our parents and it was a very nice trip. Lindsey behaved well and we did quiet a bit in a small amount of time. You can see the most recent pictures at Lindsey's Mom. The sour note of the weekend was the performance of local football teams. Among the losers: Pittsburg State, Kansas City Chiefs, KU, K-State and Halstead. The good games included Missouri losing and Notre Dame winnning. Have a great week.

From one of our neighboring school districts

2005-09-29T12:41:00.000-05:00

Family suing school district over son being cut from team

By Amy Houston

A Valley Center family has filed a lawsuit against U.S.D. 262, alleging discrimination based on race in the high school basketball program.

Teresa Garvey, whose son Joe is a Valley Center High School senior, is the plaintiff in the class-action complaint for civil rights violations. A scheduling conference was held Wednesday morning before Magistrate Judge Karen Humphries in federal court.

Teresa Garvey declined to comment about the case.

“It’s unfortunate,” she said. “I really don’t want to put the school down. I don’t want to hurt anybody’s feelings.”

Her husband, Ray Garvey, also declined to comment.

“There’s nothing that I can comment on at the moment,” he said. “I’d have to refer all questions to our attorney.”

The Garveys’ attorney, Lawrence Williamson Jr., said the case is in the discovery phase when both sides may review records and take depositions. A jury trial has not been scheduled.

“It’s still way early in the process,” Williamson added.

The Valley Center school district is represented by Alan Rupe, Richard Olmstead and Patricia Dengler. Superintendent Mike Meier declined to comment on the case.

Wayne Morrow spent five years as head coach for the high school boys’ basketball team. He most recently was assisted by Matt Klusener and Kenny Carter. Morrow resigned in March and a new basketball coach, Brett Flory, was hired for this school year. Morrow is teaching and coaching in Larned.

The Garveys’ complaint alleges that selection procedures for the high school basketball team are excessively subjective.

“Selection of a sports team undoubtedly requires some subjectivity and discretion,” it states. “However, when that subjectivity and discretion is without boundaries, in the hands of racially or culturally biased coaches, such limitless discretion will have a disparate impact against minorities: just as it has in this case.”

The complaint outlines Valley Center’s cut policy and evaluation sheet for prospective basketball players. According to the policy listed in the Garveys’ complaint, the coaching staff makes a final cut for the basketball teams after a minimum of three full practices in November.

It states that students are evaluated in the mile run, vertical jump, consecutive tips, two-minute sprint, dribbling, shooting and the following intangibles: team player; heart, desire and dedication; caring; coachability; athleticism and size (positions); character; competitiveness; past basketball experiences observed; mental and physical toughness; basketball savvy; poise; intensity; passion; will to win; and will to persevere.

The complaint alleges that coaches often fail to correlate players’ scores to their completion of a task, and they fail to place a numerical value on the intangibles listed. It accuses the school district of “turning a blind eye to discriminatory impact that the neutral policies had upon the plaintiff and Class,” failing to adequately train staff and showing a deliberate indifference to Joe Garvey’s constitutional rights.

The class-action aspect pertains to minority students who were enrolled since Jan. 1, 1999, at Valley Center High School and who may have been “excluded from athletic competition because of their race, ethnicity and/or color.”

It continues: “Such discrimination has undermined and detracted from the plaintiff’s educational experience that has effectively denied plaintiff’s equal access to his school’s resources and opportunities and has had a concrete, negative effect on the plaintiff’s education. Additionally, plaintiff’s concentration level has been reduced, and anxiety increased.”

According to the complaint, damages should be awarded for the continuing offenses of lost educational benefits, financial loss, humiliation, embarrassment and mental anguish. It requests a declaration that the school district violated Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and an order to develop and implement a plan to ensure students will not face a discriminatory educational environment. Finally, it requests that the district be ordered to provide an annual report to Williamson for three years detailing the implementation of its plan and that it be ordered to “provide such relief as is necessary to compensate plaintiff for the discrimination to which he was subjected.”

Williamson said his clients’ goal is to persuade the district, either through a jury trial or settlement, to initiate a policy that prevents coaches from reaching decisions about players based on their race and to take complaints seriously

A nice overview..... especially in Kansas

2005-09-21T21:22:00.000-05:00

I haven't posted in a while and that is poor of me but there is just too much going on. I also found out that the kids at school can not post here on our school computers because it is blocked. This irritates me and I vow to get it fixed. I think blogs are too valuable not be integrated into classroom activities. Anyway this government classic was posted at Coach Brown's site and I thought it was worth bring to Halstead.

A bovine guide to political theory

Feudalism : You have two cows. Your lord takes some of the milk.

Fascism : You have two cows. The government takes both, hires you to take care of them, and sells you the milk.

Pure socialism : You have two cows. The government takes them and puts them in a barn with everyone else's cows. You have to take care of all the cows. The government gives you as much milk as you need.

Pure communism : You have two cows. Your neighbors help you take care of them, and you share the milk.

Bureaucratic socialism : You have two cows. The government takes them and puts them in a barn with everyone else's cows. They are cared for by ex-chicken farmers. You have to take care of the chickens the government took from the chicken farmers. The government gives you as much milk and as much eggs as the regulations say you should need.

Russian communism : You have two cows. You have to take care of them, but the government takes all the milk.

Pure democracy : You have two cows. Your neighbors decide who gets the milk.

Representative democracy; You have two cows. Your neighbors pick someone to tell you who gets the milk.

American democracy : The government promises you two cows if you vote for it. After the election, the president is impeached for speculating in cow features.

Capitalism : You have two cows. You sell one and buy a bull.

Hong Kong capitalism : You have two cows. You sell three of them to your publicly listed company, using the letters of credit opened by your brother-in-law at the bank, then execute a debt-equity swap with associated general offer so that you will get all four cows back, with a tax deduction for keeping five cows. The milk rights of six cows are transferred via a Panamanian intermediary to a Cayman Islands company secretly owned by the majority shareholder, who sells the rights to all seven cows? milk back to the listed company. The annual report says that the company owns eight cows, with an option on one more. Meanwhile, you kill the two cows because the feng shui is bad.

Totalitarism : You have two cows. The government takes them and denies they ever existed. Milk is banned.

Anarchism : You have two cows. Either you sell the milk at a fair price or your neighbors try to kill you and take the cows.

Dictatorship : You have two cows. The government takes both and shoots you.

Surrealism : You have two giraffes. The government requires you to take harmonica lessons

FOR DISCUSSION: Which system of government is practiced in Mr. Warsnak's classroom?

Another Former Student From Germany!!!

2005-09-18T22:53:00.000-05:00

I always love it when former students email or post on the blog and sure enough Jan, a foreign exchange student from last year, has made contact. He says

hello mr. warsnak,...

if you are surprised, yes, i really do read your blog from time to time,
and yes, i figured out your email that way ;-)

well, anywas i hope you're doin well with your new class,...
i heard you have a lot of new students.

let's see, first of all, about the spelling in germany about which you
wrote about on august 14th on your blog, it's really not that bad!
most of my friends, and of course me also, know how to write most of
thestuff, and let's be honest, the first time i got an agenda with a page
"commonly misspelled words" was in the US.

Katrina was a pretty big deal in germany, and what's really interesting
is to see the "other" side of the politic "war" in the world.Everyone
pretty much is scared or hates G W. Bush here.The media is showing it
that way too,... he's responsible for everything
and the "worst" leader in the world.
I guess you know that I would've never supported him, but the last year
really kinda changed my mind and sometimes i catch myself defending him
here.

I will start college this october in san francisco to study new media
arts and animation. I sometimes miss the small town quiet feeling, but
I'm still more comfortable with the bigger cities, so i guess this is
right for me.


I hope to hear from you and a nice weekend and next week!
Also tell all the colleagues I said hi,

Jan

I think Jan makes some great points and it is good to hear that things are going well for him. I hope that we get more notes and posts from him.

Happy Constitution Day

2005-09-18T12:27:00.000-05:00

Use the website below to help with today's assignment

National Archives

And This Guy Runs A Country????

2005-09-17T22:16:00.000-05:00

From Yahoo news:

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez said Friday he has documentary evidence that the United States plans to invade his country.

Chavez, interviewed on ABC's "Nightline," said the plan is called "Balboa" and involves aircraft carriers and planes. A transcript of the interview was made available by "Nightline."

He said U.S. soldiers recently went to Curacao, an island off Venezuela's northwest coast. He described as a "lie" the official U.S. explanation that they visited Curacao for rest and recreation.

"They were doing movements. They were doing maneuvers," Chavez said, speaking through a translator.

He added: "We are coming up with the counter-Balboa plan. That is to say if the government of the United States attempts to commit the foolhardy enterprise of attacking us, it would be embarked on a 100-year war. We are prepared."

Chavez has been attending the summit of world leaders at the United Nations in New York this week. On Thursday, he denounced the U.S.-led war in Iraq and told other leaders they should consider moving the U.N. headquarters out of the United States.

To prove U.S. intentions to invade Venezuela, Chavez offered to send "Nightline" host Ted Koppel maps and other documentation.

"What I can't tell you is how we got it, to protect the sources, how we got it through military intelligence," he said.

In the event of a U.S. invasion, Chavez said the United States can "just forget" about receiving any more oil from his country.

FOR DISCUSSION: Which line in the article was better?

1.In the event of a U.S. invasion, Chavez said the United States can "just forget" about receiving any more oil from his country.

OR

2. Chavez said U.S. soldiers recently went to Curacao, an island off Venezuela's northwest coast. He described as a "lie" the official U.S. explanation that they visited Curacao for rest and recreation.

A Nice Honor For Halstead

2005-09-13T19:17:00.000-05:00

Today it was announced that Halstead-Bentley USD 440 School District was one of the 16 school districts in the state of Kansas to be awarded the highest rating by Standard & Poor's Education Evaluation Program. The KC Star reported:

A preliminary report from analysts at Standard & Poor's has given
16 Kansas school districts its top rating when it comes to using their money to reach academic goals. The list was released Tuesday by S&P and Gov. Kathleen Sebelius, who called the information key to ensuring that the state's 300 school districts are getting the most from tax dollars, a subject of years of litigation and political rancor.

The 16 school districts rated "highly resource effective" are Arkansas City, Baldwin City, Geary County, Halstead,Hays, Hesston, Lincoln, Macksville, Nickerson, Renwick, Rock Creek, Scott County, Spearville, Stafford, Vermillion, and Wamego. The study looked at districts with more than 200 students, or 264 of the 300 districts.

Halstead has done this while spending less than the state average on instruction which is going to be cannon fodder for Democrats who are against the Republican idea of mandating 65% of state money on curriculum and instruction. From my stand point Halstead has been able to be successful by finding, recruiting, hiring and retaining a quality staff. That staff has then helped to find other quality teachers. I am sure that there are other factors but if I was to choose one it would have to be the quality of our teachers.

Miner Chapter 1: Child of the Grassy Plains

2005-09-13T18:31:00.000-05:00

First, in my opinion the first chapter should have been entitled “The Keepers of the Gates of Hell”, what a vivid image only to find out that it is used to refer to meteorologist stationed in Kansas City.

The first chapter of Miner’s book does exactly what one would expect a book covering the History of Kansas would do in the offset. It goes through the sketchy early history of the state when it was first settled by Native Americans up through the mid nineteenth century. The fist half of the chapter also covers some of the basic geographical features of the state. This includes the general make up of the state, major vegetation patterns and a lot of discussion of the weather in the state. Minor also makes references to some of the resources in Kansas while making it clear that Kansas actually has a lot of diversity.

The second half of the chapter hits on the Europeans entrance into Kansas history. From there the chapters discusses the Indians and there removal from the east to Kansas and then quickly dives into the territorial issues of Kansas after the Kansas Nebraska Act. This inevitably brings up the issue of slavery with those supporting the peculiar institution while the Emigrant Aid Companies were organizing anti-slavery forces.

One of the items I thought about as far as using the material in class was the following question: How did national policies effect early Kansas and how did Kansas effect national policies. Many of my students look at history a items, famous people and big events that happen but they really don’t think how these events effect the common man. Using Kansas history in this context could be beneficial.

Favorite lines from the chapter:

“Shall there be schools of Ohio, or ignorance of Tennessee?”

“They often seem to be people from another time . . . who just happen to find themselves surfaced in an era of X-rated movies, the Internal Revenue Service, Styrofoam burger boxes and nuclear medicine”

“It would be untrue to classify together the Egyptian, the Indian, and the Central American, as to speak of the Kansan man without distinguishing between the Eastern Kansan, the Central Kansan and the Western Kansan.”

And from the introduction:

“the largest, longest running agricultural and environmental miscalculation in American History”