Historical Encounter Reaction

[Sara Newman]

I really enjoyed this afternoon’s historical encounter because it made me feel motivated to thoroughly read and take notes on the readings because I knew that I’d be publicly held accountable. I’ve done debates in class before, but the relatively informal nature of this historical encounter made it feel more fun and energizing than intimidating. I liked how we worked in teams so that we didn’t have to have answers to every question asked and so that collectively we could refute the other team’s ideas. Additionally, knowing that we’d have to respond to our peers’ criticisms and ideas made it easier to stay engaged and actively listening to the whole hour-long conversation. I think this sort of historical immersion/ loose debate would work well to get students to consider the concerns of segregationists, white modernists, and Civil Rights protesters before reading To Kill a Mockingbird.