Upon opening a discussion about the Jim Crow south as a setting for the novel, I found that not one in twenty 10th grade students knew: 1. What European country originally colonized the eastern United States 2. When the Declaration of Independence was signed 3. What the Revolutionary War was about 4. When slavery was abolished 5. The time frame between the abolishment of slavery and the civil rights movement.
Maybe one or two had a vague idea about events but no clue as to timelines.
Teachers have no accountability for passing students on in this district when they lack the skills necessary to move to the next level.
