NOTE: If you are short on time, watch the video and complete this bell ringer activity: What did you notice? What did the story make you think about? What would you want to learn more about?

SUMMARY

This Brief But Spectacular comes from historian Daina Ramey Berry, who chairs the history department at the University of Texas at Austin. She is dedicated to rethinking the way we teach American history to all students, and her latest book is called, "A Black Women's History of the United States."

View the transcript of the story.

News alternative: Check out recent segments from the News Hour, and choose the story you’re most interested in watching. You can make a Google doc copy of discussion questions that work for any of the stories here.

WARM-UP QUESTIONS

1. Who is Daina Ramey Berry, and what is her background?
2. When did Berry's son first experience racism?
3. What was taught in schools about African American history, according to Berry?
4. Why is Berry creating a digital humanities project about Texas slavery?
5. How is Berry working towards changing the education system?

FOCUS QUESTIONS

1. Why is the work that Daina Ramey Berry is doing important? How will her work impact the education system?
2. Why do you think schools ignored African American history for so long?

Media literacy: If you could meet Daina Ramey Berry and discuss her project with her, what would you ask her?

WHAT STUDENTS CAN DO

Discuss with a partner the following questions:

1. How did this lesson make you feel about the education system?
2. Did this lesson bring anything to your attention that you had not known previously?

Written by Payton Alfieri, PBS News Hour Classroom's intern and senior at Episcopal High School, and News Hour's Luke Gerwe.

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