Search

The United States is a country built by immigrants, and its de velopment and history continue to be in fluenced by immigration. This topic is therefore usually covered in U.S. history courses. In geography, the themes of human movement requires the study of immigration. Textbooks, however, do not always provide enough information on the topic, creating a need for supple mentary materials. U.S. history and geography teachers can locate supple mentary resources on teaching about immigration by turning to the bibliographic database of the ERIC (Educational Re sources Information Center) system. The resources listed below are supplemen tary materials listed in ERIC's database. Materials noted in this column that are preceded by an ED number are known as ERIC documents and are an notated monthly in RIE (Resources in Education), available in many libraries throughout the country. Documents may be purchased from the EDRS (ERIC Document Reproduction Services), 3900 Wheeler Ave., Alexandria, VA 22304 6409, in either microfiche (MF) or paper copy (PC). Check, money order, Master Card and Visa are all accepted. EDRS also provides a toll free number (1-800 227-3742) for customer service and phone orders. Entries preceded by an EJ number are journal articles which are annotated monthly in CUE (Current Index to Jour nals in Education), available in many li braries. EJ articles are not available through EDRS; however, they may be located in the journal section of most libraries by using the bibliographic infor mation provided in each annotation. Additional resources on teaching about immigration, as well on as other social studies topics, can be found by searching the monthly RIE and CUE indexes, or by searching the ERIC data base on CD-ROM or online. These in dexes, CD-ROMs, and online search serv ices are available at libraries throughout the country. These libraries also may have complete microfiche collections of ERIC documents available for viewing.

ERIC (Educational Resources Information Center), spon sored by the U.S. Department of Education, is the largest 'and oldest education information system in the world. The ERIC Clearinghouse for Social Studies/Social Science Education (ERIC/ChESS) is one of sixteen subject-oriented clearinghouses that compose the ERIC system. The heart ofthe ERIC system, the ERIC database of education-related literature, contains over one million citations with abstracts to journal articles, teaching and curriculum guides, bibliographies, research reports, conference papers, and other materials, all pertaining to education. The citations with abstracts listed below, all drawn from the ERIC database, are for teaching materials and background infor mation on the homefront during World War II. The key to obtaining the full text of the materials cited below is the unique "ERIC number" assigned to each item in the ERIC database. Journal articles, denoted by "EJ" numbers (for example, EJ412432), can be obtained at most academic libraries, borrowed through interlibrary loan, or purchased from commercial article reprint services such as Ingenta and ISI. Research reports, conference papers, and other materials besides journal articles are denoted by "ED" numbers (for example, ED388583); paper or microfiche copies of most of these documents can be purchased from the ERIC Document Reproduction Service (EDRS), 7420 Fullerton Road, Suite 110, Springfield, VA 22153-2852, (800) 443-3742; ; ; or copied at an ERIC microfiche collection, available at many libraries. ERIC/ChESS welcomes requests for general information or sample database searches on topics within the social studies, social sciences, music education, and art education. Contact ERIC/ ChESS by telephone at (800) 266-3815 or (812) 855-3838, or by e-mail at .

F'or some time I had been deeply frustrated by students who ignored a wealth of valuable scholarly sources in the library, and instead brought unsatisfactory and undigested informa tion from the Internet to bear on classroom assignments. My students approached Internet resources uncritically, assuming the inherent value of more information, regardless of its quality. Eventually "http" in a student's citation provoked dread, and I seriously considered forbidding use of web material for class assignments. But as a historian, I recognized the electronic tide was against me. Fortunately I was given the chance to develop a solution. With the assistance of a Summer Instructional Development Professor ship from the University of North Dakota's Office of Instructional Development, I taught a new upper division course last fall entitled, "Women in Victorian Europe." Due to a strong popular and academic interest in the subject, the course offered me a tremendous opportunity to introduce students to informed use of electronically accessible information. Numerous web sites shed light on the nineteenth century?from images used in advertising and popular culture to analysis of clothing, growing government activism, working class life, unionization, and the emergence of female professions. Furthermore, using electronic media would allow my students access to primary sources in European social and economic history, which are hard to come by in our library. Several major document collections are available online, as are census records. An extensive project on Victorian women writers has historically relevant material, and there are a number of university-based web sites devoted to Victorian research. As with many sources on the web, this information was unfiltered and of mixed quality. With this class I hoped to provide both the critical thinking skills and the intellectual content students need for an intelligent approach to this increasingly pervasive electronic format and a rapidly expanding body of knowledge. The course allowed me to embrace the advantages of elec tronic resources while learning how to guide my students around some of its pitfalls, and the process was rewarding for my students and me. In a midterm assessment conducted by an external evaluator, and in their end of the semester class evaluations, students consistently expressed their enthusiasm for web-based learning. They liked being able to read material on the web and to follow links I provided for additional information. They liked accessing our class web page for announcements and assign ments. They liked the exposure to primary source material that allowed them to come to their own conclusions. In general, they had little trouble accessing web sites, although there was the occasional glitch. Internet access also allowed me to try assignments that lead to a very productive learning environment. Using the Spartacus Encyclopaedia of British History: 1700-1950 , which has a vast wealth of topically arranged primary and secondary source mate rial, I assigned each student a historic figure (a specific factory owner, reformer, child worker, doctor, newspaper editor) who took part in the nineteenth-century debate on child labor. I assigned them the task of composing a biography of their character and a speech defending the position they had taken in regard to child labor. On the day students handed their papers in, they enthusiastically enacted a debate that allowed them to explore the nuances of a very complex social and economic issue. In the process they got excited, angry, and deeply concerned. They engaged in the material and the ideas fully. The class enjoyed this experience so much they asked me to create another in-class debate. In our second enactment each wrote about and then spoke in the voice of a person that supported or opposed women's suffrage. These experiences allowed my students to be part of the interpretive process, and to see history as relevant and pertinent to their own lives.

The period between 1812 and the Civil War vas a time of tremendous change in the United States. Events like the War of 1812, the annexation of Texas, the Kansas-Nebraska Act, and the continuing question of slavery were paramount dur ing this period of U.S. History. This ERIC column will highlight materials available from the Educational Resource Information Center (ERIC) sys tem. Documents may be purchased from ERIC Document Reproduction Service (EDRS), 3900 Wheeler Ave., Alexandria, VA 22304-5110, in either microfiche (MP) or paper copy (PC). Orders should be accompanied by a check or money order. EDRS now provides a toll-free number (1-800-227-3742) for customer service and phone orders. Entries followed by an EJ number are annotated monthly in CUE (Current Index to Journals in Edu cation^ which is available in libraries containing ERIC collections. EJ docu ments are not available through EDRS; however, they can be located in the journal section of most libraries using the bibliographic information provided in each annotation. Additional resources on Nationalism and the time period between 1812 and the Civil War can be found by searching the monthly ERIC index RESOURCES IN EDUCATION, located in many libraries throughout the country. These libraries also may have complete microfiche col lections of ERIC documents available for viewing. EJ 295 902. "Indiana and the Kansas Nebraska Act of 1854," by William J. Medland and Morton M. Rosenberg in INDIANA SOCIAL STUDIES QUARTERLY, Winter 1983-84, volume 36, number 3, pp. 22-31. The Kansas-Nebraska Act, which re pealed the ban against slavery in the North, served as a catalyst to activate numerous groups which were unhappy with the Indiana Democratic party. From this period emerged the new Republican party and also a revitalized Democratic party with new leadership.

The celebration of the bicentennial of the Constitution is a continuing process. Officially, it does not end until 1991 with the anniversary of the signing of the Bill of Rights, but the celebration should continue far beyond the official conclusion. This ERIC/ChESS column will highlight current resources available on the Con stitution. Documents in this column that contain an ED number are available from the Educational Resource Informa tion Center (ERIC) Document Reproduction Service (EDRS) facility located at 3900 Wheeler Ave., Alexandria, VA 22304-5110. 1-800-227-3742. Documents are available in either microfiche or paper copy. Additional resources can be found by searching the monthly ERIC index RESOURCES IN EDUCATION (RIE) located in many libraries throughout the country. Entries which contain an EJ number are annotated monthly in CURRENT INDEX TO JOURNALS IN EDUCATION (CUE) which is available in libraries containing ERIC collections. EJ documents are not available through EDRS; however, they can be located in the journal section of most libraries, using the bibliographic information provided in each annotation.