Child-Sized History: Fictions of the Past in U.S. Classrooms by Sara L. Schwebel (review)

Carrere, Marissa

doi:10.1353/uni.2013.0010

Cited by 1 publication

(4 citation statements)

References 2 publications

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“…The context of publication—here, a mourning nation—molds depiction, as various studies demonstrate (e.g., Bickford, 2018a; Connolly, 2013, pp. 1790–2010; Eaton, 2006; Schmidt, 2013; Schwebel, 2011). All early grade books not published soon after Kennedy's assassination explicitly characterized it in age-appropriate detail.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…While two trained researchers engaged in all aspects of the inquiry, a third reviewer was not included. Many comparable studies, though, do not include a second reviewer (e.g., Bickford, 2018a;Connolly, 2013Eaton, 2006;Schmidt, 2013;Schwebel, 2011). Second, an adult author might encode meaning that is not accessible to a child and students' readings may differ from researchers' readings.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The context of a book's publication shapes the history it presents (e.g., Connolly, 2013, pp. 1790–2010; Eaton, 2006; Schmidt, 2013; Schwebel, 2011). In-print and out-of-print books are needed to investigate how historical representation changed over time.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Three authors that included minimized accounts of Kennedy's assassination (19%) were all published within a year after his death (Frisbee & Kennedy, 1964;Lee, 1964;Martin, 1964). The context of publicationdhere, a mourning nationdmolds depiction, as various studies demonstrate (e.g., Bickford, 2018a;Connolly, 2013Eaton, 2006;Schmidt, 2013;Schwebel, 2011). All early grade books not published soon after Kennedy's assassination explicitly characterized it in age-appropriate detail.…”

Section: Kennedy's Presidency and Its Aftermathmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Trade Books’ Evolving Historical Representation of John Fitzgerald Kennedy

Bickford

Dwomoh

2021

The Journal of Social Studies Research

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History-based trade books, such as biographies, narrative non-fiction, and expository texts, are essential secondary sources in social studies classrooms. Research, though, indicates a preponderance of misrepresentations in trade books’ depictions of historical eras and figures. We examined trade books’ historical representation of John Fitzgerald Kennedy, an iconic American president. The data sample featured biographies targeting various grade-ranges and published in different eras. Including books targeting early grade, middle grade, and high school students enabled comparisons of historical representation within and between different grade-ranges. Incorporating texts published in different eras allowed for consideration of how Kennedy's historical representation changed over time. Mixed methods content analysis—reliant on both open and axial-coding—yielded important findings about how children's and young adult authors depicted Kennedy's family history, particularly during World War II, privileged social position, Catholicism, wife, health, tensions during his presidency, and his assassination and subsequent conspiracy theories. Trade books’ representations appeared to be shaped more by date-of-publication than intended age of the reader. Identified historical misrepresentations included presentism, omission, exceptionalism, and heroification. Significance for teachers and researchers is articulated and practical classroom suggestions are provided.

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