History

Education news, analysis, and opinion about how history is taught

Explainer

Image of books on history.
Who Decides What History We Teach? An Explainer
Education Week breaks down how politics has long been embedded in this decision, and how new laws may affect the process.
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Texas Curriculum Bible 26174560455079
State Board of Education Vice Chair Pam Little votes on a proposed required reading list during a meeting at the Barbara Jordan Building in Austin, Texas, on Tuesday, June 23, 2026. Critics have argued that both the list and proposed social studies standards attempt to embed religious teaching in public school classrooms.
Jay Janner /Austin American-Statesman via AP
Social Studies Why Texas' Fight Over Social Studies Standards Has National Consequences
The Texas State Board of Education is poised to vote on a new set of controversial social studies standards this week.
Sarah Schwartz, June 23, 2026
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10 min read
Group of students walking into an illustration of the convention of 1787 in Philadelphia. They will use the case method to understand the context more deeply.
Vanessa Solis/Education Week + iStock/Getty
Social Studies Opinion Why I Use a Business School Model to Teach History
Students who can see themselves in historical figures learn how to debate respectfully.
Maureen O'Hern, June 18, 2026
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4 min read
The United States Capitol building as a bookcase filled with red, white, and blue policy books in a Washington DC landscape.
Luca D'Urbino for Education Week
Social Studies Opinion Reading Scores Are Awful. Can Teaching History Help?
A curriculum expert explains why teaching context is key to student learning.
Rick Hess, May 26, 2026
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9 min read
Teacher of the Year Leon Smith on March 25, 2026 Haverford High School in Pennsylvania.
The 2026 Teacher of the Year, Leon Smith, in his classroom at Haverford High School in Pennsylvania on March 25, 2026,
Courtesy of the Council of Chief State School Officers
Teaching Profession 2026 Teacher of the Year Preps History Students for a Diverse and Divisive World
Leon Smith of Pennsylvania engages high school students in new angles on seemingly well-trodden topics and events.
Sarah D. Sparks, April 21, 2026
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3 min read
FILE - A Bible is seen on a chair in the House chamber in Washington, Jan. 6, 2023. The Bible will return to the shelves in a northern Utah school district that provoked an outcry after it banned them from middle and elementary schools. The Davis School District said in a statement on Tuesday, June 20, that its board had determined the sacred text was age-appropriate for all school libraries.
A Bible is seen on a chair in the House chamber in Washington, Jan. 6, 2023. Utah joins several other states that have moved to incorporate Christian teaching and text into the classroom.
Andrew Harnik/AP
Social Studies Another State Is Requiring Students to Study the Bible in School
In Utah, schools will teach Biblical passages that are “cited or alluded to in founding documents."
Sarah Schwartz, April 2, 2026
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3 min read
The United States Capitol building as a bookcase filled with red, white, and blue policy books in a Washington DC landscape.
Luca D'Urbino for Education Week
Social Studies Opinion How to Teach What It Means to Be American
As America turns 250, Richard Kahlenberg discusses how schools can cultivate a common identity.
Rick Hess, March 24, 2026
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9 min read
Alisson Ramírez, right, listens to her social studies teacher during class Wednesday, Aug. 28, 2024, in Aurora, Colo.
Alisson Ramírez, right, listens to her social studies teacher during class Wednesday, Aug. 28, 2024, in Aurora, Colo. Elementary social studies is the focus of a new tool meant to guide curriculum selection that leans more heavily on history content than on skills like weighing primary sources.
Godofredo A. Vásquez/AP
Social Studies What Makes for a Good Social Studies Curriculum?
A new curriculum review tool makes the case for elementary schoolers to learn more history.
Sarah Schwartz, March 4, 2026
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6 min read
Interior view of the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylavnia. In the distance Independence Hall is visible. Feb. 7, 2026.
Teachers from across the country convened at National Constitution Center in Philadelphia on Feb. 7, 2026, to create lessons for America's 250th anniversary this summer. In the distance Independence Hall is visible.
Matthew Ludak for Education Week
Social Studies It’s a Complicated Time for Teachers to Celebrate America’s 250th Anniversary
At a lesson-writing workshop, teachers discussed how we should interpret founding principles today.
Sarah Schwartz, February 19, 2026
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8 min read
Illustrated silhouettes gathered before the historic Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Alabama, a historic landmark, important to the Civil Rights Movement
Vanessa Solis/Education Week + Getty + Photo: Dennis Rosario/iStock
Social Studies Opinion 'There Are No Heroes Coming to Save Us': Black History Without the Hero Worship
We should teach the history of justice work through a community lens, explains Bettina L. Love.
Bettina L. Love, February 19, 2026
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4 min read
Conceptual illustration of classroom conversations and fragmented education elements coming together to form a cohesive picture of a book of classroom knowledge.
Sonia Pulido for Education Week
Social Studies Opinion How Two Educators Are Teaching History Right Now
The "fire hose" of current events provides an opportunity for classroom discussion.
Larry Ferlazzo, February 16, 2026
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9 min read
Black History books behind a Sankofa bird image
Erin K. Robinson for Education Week
Social Studies Opinion Studying Black History Primary Sources? Try the Sankofa Framework (Downloadable)
A blueprint for unearthing truths from Black history when grappling with a vast assortment of complex sources.
Nick Kennedy, February 2, 2026
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1 min read
Black History teacher class with hands raised in front of Philadelphia skyline Jawn orange
Erin K. Robinson for Education Week
Social Studies Opinion My Secret for Engaging Students in a Black History ‘Jawn’
Here’s the class discussion you should be having before introducing a new history lesson.
Abigail Henry, February 2, 2026
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3 min read
Historic black figures silhouettes with sun and start iconography.
Erin K. Robinson for Education Week
Social Studies Opinion Why We Need to Study the Black Founders Who Shaped U.S. Democracy
America’s founders weren’t just old, white men in wigs.
LaGarrett J. King , February 2, 2026
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4 min read
Black History books behind a Sankofa bird image
Erin K. Robinson for Education Week
Social Studies Opinion My Step-By-Step Framework for Taking Flight Into Black History
Here’s how I teach my AP African American Studies students to excavate truth from primary sources.
Nick Kennedy, February 2, 2026
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4 min read