New York Times: The Trouble With Online College

From today's New York Times in an article entitled, The Trouble with Online College:


Stanford University ratcheted up interest in online education when a pair of celebrity professors attracted more than 150,000 students from around the world to a noncredit, open enrollment course on artificial intelligence. This development, though, says very little about what role online courses could have as part of standard college instruction. College administrators who dream of emulating this strategy for classes like freshman English would be irresponsible not to consider two serious issues.

Click here to read the full story. 

George Washington's Mount Vernon: Online Museum

Historian Gordon S. Wood referred to George Washington as, "The greatest president we ever had..." George Washington, Commander-in-Chief of American forces in the Revolutionary War and the first President of the United States, called Mount Vernon home for more than 40 years. George Washington and his wife Martha Washington lived at Mount Vernon, which is now the most popular historic estate in America. Situated along the Potomac River in Northern Virginia, Mount Vernon is just 16 miles south of Washington, D.C.

Mount Vernon has added a new and very exciting online museum dedicated to Washington's leadership. "George Washington's bravery, leadership, and impeccable character encouraged a boldness of spirit that the world has seldom seen. Although public knowledge of Washington has diminished, he remains an unparalleled model which will be forever relevant."  

View the Online Museum and learn more about The Real George Washington.

Also, click this link to Amazon.com for a new book on Washington and his leadership. 

American Antiquarian Society: New Issue of Common-Place Focuses on Music

We received the following from the American Antiquarian Society today: 

"Long before Americans had Spotify or iTunes, before they had eight-track cassettes or phonographs, they had music.  Music was part of worship and work, entertainment and politics. “Music and Meaning in Early America,” a special issue of Common-place offers new perspectives on music ranging from Shaker hymns to Negro jigs. 

"Guest Editors Peter Leavenworth, Nikos Pappas, and Stephen Marini have collected some of the most exciting new work now appearing in American music history. They have also assembled a marvelous cache of resources for further reading and listening."  

Please click this link and enjoy this new edition of one of the leading online journals of history. 

Online: The Photographic History of the Civil War (Published 1911)

Attention U.S. Civil War history buffs! Have we good news for you!

We've learned through one of our board members that The Photographic History of the Civil War, published in 1911, is available for free online! The authors were Francis Trevelyan Miller and Robert Sampson Lanier.

For volume one go to this link. For volume to click this link. Note that you can read or browse through the volumes in a variety of formats. You can also download and save copies. Enjoy!

FREE Online Seminar: The Business of America and the Consumer Economy of the 1920s

Word has reached us from the National Humanities Center of a FREE online seminar through its program, America in Class:

The Business of America and the Consumer Economy of the 1920s.
Date: March 7, 2013
Time 7:00 pm - 8:30 pm EST
Price: FREE

Leader: Edward Balleisen
Associate Professor of History, Duke University
National Humanities Center Fellow

About the Seminar:

“The chief business of the American people is business.” President Calvin Coolidge said those oft-quoted words in a speech to newspaper editors in 1925. Coolidge and many others went much further, claiming that business was nothing less than America’s religion. “Through business, properly conceived, managed, and conducted” wrote efficiency expert Edward E. Purinton in 1921, “the human race is finally to be redeemed.” How did business acquire its cultural significance in the 1920s? What effect did the obsession with business have on American society? And what of the prosperity it bred? Was it anchored in sound economics, or was it sustained only by dreams and illusions?

American Presidents: Discover Our Shared Heritage Travel Itinerary

In honor of President's Day, History Education Hawaii has decided to share with you a wonderful web-based experience from the National Park Service.

American Presidents: Discover Our Shared Heritage Travel Itinerary takes its visitors on tours of the homes lived in by America President's:

From George Washington's precedent-setting refusal to seek a third term to the present day, the presidents of the United States who led the nation, growing it from an infant republic to a global superpower, have all left their mark. This travel itinerary aids visitors in exploring the lives and contributions of 43 American Presidents. Experience the places they knew during their lifetimes and that honor their memories after their deaths.

American Presidents: Discover Our Shared Heritage Travel Itinerary was produced in partnership with the National Park Service's Heritage Education Services, the National Park Service Office of Tourism, the White House Historical Association and the National Conference of State Historic Preservation Officers.

Hawaii History Bee and Bowl 2013

The Hawaii History Bee and Bowl 2013 competitions were held Saturday in Honolulu. 

Founded in 2010, these two academic quiz competitions for students focus on all aspects of history. Sponsored by History Education Hawaii, Inc., the official council of the National Council for History Education, the tournaments reinforce a rigorous history curriculum and promote history education throughout the USA and internationally. 

Ken-Ben Chao of Iolani School finished first in the Hawaii History Bee. The Iolani A team finished first in the Hawaii History Bowl. The winning team from Saturday's History Bowl competitions are from Iolani School. In April they will go on to the 2013 National History Bee and Bowl to be held in Arlington, Virginia. 

In addition, the first-ever U.S. Geography Challenge competition in Hawaii was held. Founded in summer, 2012, this new competition tests students' geography skills and fosters geography education and literacy throughout the country. Kento Tanaka of Iolani School won first-place in the Junior Varsity category. Ken-Ben Chao won first-place in the Varsity category.

Click here for a link to our photos album for this event.

Crafting Freedom: Black Artisans, Entrepreneurs and Abolitionists of the Antebellum Upper South

This announcement is for the Crafting Freedom workshop, one of the longest running National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) workshops for K-12 educators and one that's been rated EXCELLENT year after year participants. 

The deadline for application is March 4, 2013. 

"Crafting Freedom: Black Artisans, Entrepreneurs and Abolitionists of the Antebellum Upper South" or simply the "Crafting Freedom Workshop" is an acclaimed Landmarks of American History and Culture Workshop for K-12 educators funded by the National Endowment for the Humanities ( NEH). 

It will be offered this summer in two sessions: June 20 - June 25 or June 27-July 2, 2013. 
The workshop provides educators a generous stipend for travel and living expenses and the opportunity to visit off-the-beaten track sites and to study the lives and works of figures such as Thomas Day ( 1801-ca.1861) a highly successful free black furniture maker and Elizabeth Keckly (1818-1907) a famous dress designer, author and activist of the antebellum era. Keckly was not only the dress designer but the confidante of Mary Todd Lincoln and was featured as the first lady's companion in the recently released Spielberg film, "Lincoln."

For more information and to apply go to this link or call 919 405 2326.