2012-01-16 12:19:43

The Republic
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
First Posted: January 15, 2012

TUPELO, Miss. — In Mississippi, civil rights education is a year-round lesson — not something that shows up just the holiday to celebrate Martin Luther King Jr.'s birthday.

Every history course in the state — from kindergarten through high school — includes elements of civil or human rights. It's required under a 2006 law.

Teaching throughout each grade level and history course allows for greater continuity, Chauncey Spears of the Mississippi Department of Education told The Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal (http://bit.ly/w3yFoQ).

It's important for students to learn more than the "savior narrative" of "Rosa (Parks) sat down, Martin stood up and now everyone is free," said Susan Glisson, head of the William Winter Institute for Racial Reconciliation at the University of Mississippi, which suggested content for the curriculum.

"What we want to do is complicate that narrative and make it more historically accurate by focusing on Mississippi civil rights history," said Glisson, who worked to get the law enacted. "We wanted to focus on the leadership of ordinary people, grassroots efforts and the role of women and young people."

In Tupelo, Susan Hankins asked her first-grade class on Friday if they'd ever heard of King or knew why school would be closed Monday. A few arms rose.

She began reading a book about the famous leader. When he was 6 years old, she read, a white friend's mother told him the two boys could no longer play together because they were different colors.

"That's not nice," said many students, both black and white. Others said that would make them feel sad.

Hankins continued reading about how King committed himself to bringing both blacks and whites together.

The Winter Institute provides training for educators to better teach about civil rights and is collecting personal narratives from those who experienced and played a role in Mississippi's civil rights movement. Those narratives can be used by educators.

Although civil and human rights are now a part of all Mississippi history courses, the American Civil Rights movement is primarily taught in two such courses: Mississippi studies and U.S. history.

Carol Cummings, a U.S. history teacher at Shannon High School, said the course covers such topics as integration, the Supreme Court case that struck down "separate but equal" schools for blacks and whites, the march on Washington and King's assassination.

But, she said, thanks to lessons in elementary school, students know a lot by the time they get to her.

Hankins said her efforts to teach first-graders about civil rights begins on the first day of school when those of different races are encouraged to form a community with each other and respect one another.

At the end of her lesson on King last week, she asked her students about dreams they had for the school, making a reference to King's famous speech.

Two pupils, Jack Sanders and Keairrius Fair, combined on a thought. They said they were thankful that "all boys and girls" could go to school together.

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Information from: Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal, http://djournal.com

Source: http://www.therepublic.com/view/story/2e5df221168c4969b7602c47e9615c3f/MS--Civil-Rights-Education/