Keeping a reading-response log may help them clarify their thoughts in preparation for discussion. Have students read Reporting Vietnam, by William M. Hammond. Assign the learning log questions below. Then lead a discussion of the ways Presidents Johnson and Nixon reacted to media coverage of the war. Invite a journalist who reported during the Vietnam War to your class.
Most journalists are terrific with students.
Give one team the assignment of helping classmates understand the conflict that existed in our country surrounding U.S. participation in the Vietnam War. The war divided this nation as no other event since the Civil War. Throughout the Vietnam War era, there was a full spectrum of arguments about why the United States should or should not commit troops and resources to fighting in Vietnam. Help your students gain a better understanding of the complexity of the issues surrounding U.S. involvement in Vietnam and the depth of passions on both sides of the issue. Here are some suggestions on how you might do this.