“Invisibility is not a natural state for anyone”: (Re)constructing narratives of Japanese American incarceration in elementary classrooms

Abstract

Difficult histories that may contradict national values are rarely taught in elementary schools. This comparative study of two elementary educators examines their pedagogical approaches to the teaching of Japanese American incarceration as difficult history.Framed by Asian American critical race theory, the teachers' practices revealed challenges in teaching Japanese American incarceration as an example of a difficult history. The author interrogates the role of counternarratives and empathy in teaching difficult histories, particularly with young children, and offers suggestions for pedagogies of discomfort that reveal difficult histories while fostering critical hope.

Emotional rules in two history classrooms

“…History curricula in countries around the world are part and parcel of the hidden curriculum of schooling, in that the curriculum contains difficult-to-identify silences and discourses that establish emotional attachments to national and global narratives of people, places, and events (Brown & Brown, 2010; Helmsing, 2014; King et al, 2020; Rodriguez, 2020; Schugurensky, 2002; Shear et al, 2015). The emotional and political debates over what to include and exclude from the history curriculum reveal how shaping young people’s relationships with historical narratives is significant to the purposes of education (Serwer, 2021; Symcox, 2002).…”

“…Teachers try to influence the classroom’s emotional environment through pedagogical decision making (Knight-Diop & Oesterreich, 2009; Sheppard & Levy, 2019). Social studies teachers often try to create and maintain what they view as an emotionally safe and comfortable learning environment for themselves and students, which can lead to the omission of controversial and difficult content from the curriculum (Gibbs, 2019; Hostetler & Neel, 2018; Rodriguez, 2020; Savenije & Goldberg, 2019; Vickery et al, 2022). Teachers will avoid teaching about difficult histories if teaching such history makes them uncomfortable or anxious, if they disagree with how the history is framed, or if they fear students’ emotional reactions (Zembylas, 2016).…”