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Resources on Women on the Web
Joyce Kasman Valenza
RRemember the ladies,S Abigail Adams urged her husband John. He
didnUt.
Do we really remember about Rthe ladies?S Quickly, name five women you
actually studied in school.
I tried this little quiz on my husband who scratched his head and said,
RWell I heard Dolly Madison gave great parties.S In fairness, the
scratching did help, and after a few minutes he came up with a short list
of names. Perhaps you too came up with Harriet Tubman, Susan B.
Anthony, Eleanor Roosevelt, Amelia Earhart, or Pocahontas. The point
is, it is a stretch to remember many others. And it is not just the
names. Though many students recognize Seneca Falls, few have heard of
the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire. Few have considered the role of
women as professionals or reformers or social activists. Half our
population contributes to a very limited portion of our view of history.
RWe wouldnUt teach our students about half the numbers or half the
states,S says Mary Ruthsdotter, director and co-founder of the National
WomenUs History Project. RIf we teach only half our stories, our
students will not really understand how the United States got to be what
it is today.S
International WomenUs Day is celebrated on March 8th. A 1987
Congressional resolution designated March RWomenUs History Month. The
resolution points to the contributions of women Rto the growth and
strength of our Nation in countless recorded and unrecorded ways.S The
resolutions notes that women have been important in the Restablishment of
early charitable, philanthropic, and cultural institutions, in the
forefront of every major progressive social change movement. . . [Women]
have been leaders, not only in securing their own rights of suffrage and
equal opportunity, but also in the abolitionist movement, the
emancipation movement, the industrial labor movement, the civil rights
movement, and other movements, especially the peace movement, which
create a more fair and just society for all.S
Despite this somewhat recent attention, we have a largely forgotten
heritage. Traditional history texts also forget to remember the ladies.
The areas of life to which women have contributed the most are not their
areas of focus. RBattles, generals and economic conquests. In these
areas women were rather specifically kept from participating,S said
Ruthsdotter. RWhen we expand our focus women populate all the other
areas with their achievements and accomplishments.S
We also forget to remember that half our students are young women. I
found history interesting as a student. But it was historical fiction
and biographies with strong female characters that swept me into the
Harlem Renaissance, the Civil War, the Zionist movement and the Russian
Revolution. This need to identify to understand history is certainly
behind the current popularity of the American Girls book series. History
becomes more compelling when you can identify with stories and
characters. And it speaks to a greater need: "Every time a girl reads a
womanless history she learns she is worth
less." say Myra and David Sadker, in Failing at Fairness: How America's
Schools Cheat Girls.
RIt is sad that students listen only to the stories of great men,S says
history teacher Paula McLaughlin. RIt puts young women in a secondary
position suggesting that they aspire to be the mother or the wife of . .
. It is not enough to just have those interested in the area examine the
issue through independent research. These projects seldom involve boys.S
It seems so logical. Why then are many wonderful history teachers having
problems weaving women into the tapestry?
Indeed, womenUs history is a relatively new area of study. Universities
now have well-established womenUs studies departments. But Rthe biggest
barrier to integrating womenUs history into the K12 curricula are the
lack of resources and access to information on women,S says Lisa
Mangiafico, Archivist of Soroptimist international of the Americas.
REven where there are educational materials available, do our school
districts have the financial resources to acquire them and our educators
the expertise and understanding to use them?S Older history texts do not
include the stories of women. History textbooks are around many years
before they are replaced. If the study of women is not a priority to
the chair, or the members of a social studies department, the focus is
not likely to change.
There are other issues. Time is a big one. A narrow definition of
history is another.
RIn the Advanced Placement course, for instance, the content is
programmed,S says McLaughlin. RStudents too have been programmed to
think that womenUs history or black history is not as important.S She
notes that we may devote a day or a week to a few famous individuals
because we are told itUs politically correct. RNewer texts are just
beginning to address a fuller history by including stories of ordinary
people. Students relate to the everyday. To understand what a culture is
about you need to look at the women. Not just the big names but the
wives and mothers who lived ordinary lives but contributed. Not every
student is going to be Susan B. Anthony. Ordinary women are the
imparters of culture--they determine the cultural values; they decide
what gets passed on.S
Is an expanded curriculum important to our children? I asked a group of
students. All the students noted that womenUs history is more of a
priority with female teachers than male teachers. Almost all the girls
felt that expanding the curriculum to include some focus on women would
make their studies more interesting. The boys did not feel there was an
real need to examine the contributions of women. RWhy include women when
they really werenUt doing as much? If you made time to include less
significant achievements, there wouldnUt be enough time for the really
important stuff--the battles, the generals the heroes.S
SThe Web offer students hundreds more possibilities for expanding the
concept of the American hero,S says Ruthsdotter. RA hero is not only
someone who has reeked havoc through brawn and money power, but person
who stood strong for principle and brought public around to seeing her
position.S
There is no need to abandon the curriculum. Weave the women in. It
shouldnUt just happen in March. ThereUs room in any period of history,
thereUs room in studies of other cultures. And thereUs room in subjects
other than social studies. WomenUs history is science and art and music
and math and literature. It is half the wealth of our culture and
deserves focus throughout the year.
Ruthsdotter offers advice for teachers. RAsk yourself, whenever you
introduce a topic, What were the women doing? It is all right to admit
you donUt know, but you should begin to explore this question with
students.S To help you and your students answer that question, to
supplement and fill in the gaps in your texts, the Web comes once again
to the rescue!
And once again, the best place to start is with the rich resources of the
Library of Congress collections of documents and photographs. RSpanning
all time periods, classes, races, and occupations, the Library's sources
for the study of women's history are among the finest and most
comprehensive anywhere,S boasts the WomenUs History page
(http://lcweb2.loc.gov/ammem/mcchtml/womhm.html), off which searchers can
link to the writings of Elizabeth Blackwell, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Mary
Todd Lincoln, Clare Booth Luce, Margaret Mead and Helen Keller. To find
the materials to match your current need, the collections are easily
searchable by keyword. RThere are images, documents, books, films, and
sound recordings, all of which document the history of these women, both
famous and ordinary, in the American Memory collections,S says Judy
Graves *Instructional Technology Designer* RTwo collections seem
especially pertinent:S Votes for Women: National American WomenUs
Suffrage Association 1848-1921
(http://lcweb2.loc.gov/ammem/naw/nawshome.html)
Votes for Women Suffrage Pictures, 1850-1920
(http://lcweb2.loc.gov/ammem/vfwhtml/vfwhome.html)
RThese two collections work in tandem to tell the story of the women's
movement during the fight for the right to vote,S says Graves. RThe
collections include
speeches, pamphlets, letters, and photographs, many of which highlight
the leaders of the movement.S
Graves also recommends:
Women Come to the Front: Journalists, Photographers, and Broadcasters
During World War II (http://lcweb/exhibits/wcf/wcf0001.html)
California as I Saw It: First Person Narratives of California's Early
Years 1849-1900 (http://lcweb2.loc.gov/ammem/cbhtml/cbhome.html)
Color Photographs from the FSA and OWI, ca. 1938-1944
(http://lcweb2.loc.gov/ammem/fsowhome.html)
Creative Americans: Portraits by Carl Van Vechten, 1932-1964
(http://lcweb2.loc.gov/ammem/vvhome.html)
American Life Histories: Manuscripts from the Federal Writers' Project,
1936-1940
(http://lcweb2.loc.gov/ammem/wpaintro/wpahome.html)
A new feature presentation on the LibraryUs Learning Page is:
Pioneering Women in American Memory
(http://lcweb2.loc.gov/ammem/ndlpedu/features/women.html) Its opening
paragraph notes, RThroughout U.S. history, there have been pioneering
women - women who forged ahead in some way to make a better life for
themselves, their families, and society. These include not only the
literal pioneers who journeyed across the country into the unknown
western territories, but the women who struggled for recognition as
equals in politics, on the job, and in their communities."
For information about National Women's History Month
The National Women's History Project
(707) 838-6000
http://www.nwhp.org/
E-mail: nwhp@aol.com
Joyce Kasman Valenza
<jvalenza@mciunix.mciu.k12.pa.us> or joyce.valenza@phillynews.com
Wissahickon High School Library Philadelphia Inquirer tech.k12
521 Houston Road http://gopher.mciu.k12.pa.us/~jvweb
Ambler, PA 19002 http://mciunix.mciu.k12.pa.us/~whsweb
Phone: 215-628-1735
Fax: 215-643-2920
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