Rhetoric v. Reality: Social Studies and History Education in Interwar Americahetoric v. Reality

Abstract

Contemporary analysis of American history and social studies education reveals a complex picture. On the one hand, the media depicts battles between liberals and conservatives over the inclusion of racism, slavery, and diversity in standards and textbooks. On the other, research indicates that innovative pedagogy and new content struggle to uproot the textbook-centric pedagogies and rote-memorization exercises that commonly appear in classrooms. While history and social studies education is no doubt amplified by news coverage and social media, these debates, challenges, and controversies are not new, instead, they are part of a long historical lineage. This article traces that lineage by centering history and social studies education and reforms during interwar America (1919-1939). The interwar years were crucial for US history and social studies education because school enrollments significantly expanded and academics, teachers, and administrators created many reforms. However, most studies of the interwar years only consider reforms and fail to explore if those reforms appeared in schools. Highlighting how teachers taught and what they taught, combined with the historical context of the era, illuminates the possibilities, challenges, and limitations of history and social studies education reform.

Key words: social studies, history education, education reform, interwar era, curriculum, curricular history, and social history

reform.