# Resource Units on
Intergroup Relations

## DESEGREGATION IN PUBLIC SCHOOLS

As school teachers on all grade levels approach the problem of desegregation, they wonder what can be done to prepare themselves, the pupils and the parents for the changing pattern of school life. This resource unit is offered as an aid to help them to plan for the necessary learning experiences. From it the teacher must make his own daily and weekly plans for classroom work.

Like other resource units, this one includes a maximum amount of content and activities. A teacher must, therefore, select from it that which is suitable and possible of accomplishment in the particular situation in which he is at work. Selection of content, materials and activities must be done in terms of age and maturity levels and the specific conditions of community life which surround the school and relate to the problem.

The processes to be used to set up the learning experiences and to achieve the desired outcomes in this unit are:

- pupil-teacher planning

- the group process — to give opportunity for sharing

- thought, information and experience

- critical thinking

- evaluation

The words to be studied can best be determined as they come into use during preliminary discussion periods and as they are encountered in scanning newspaper headlines and browsing through other printed materials. Nevertheless, some preliminary word study is advisable as preparation for reading that material.

The content to be included under the general heading of "race" should be determined by the questions which pupils ask and by other evidence of their need for information. The parts of the country to be surveyed in order to find out what is happening as school systems and communities move toward compliance with the law will, of necessity, be determined by the geographical location of the school.

The materials included in this resource unit are representative of the large amount of material that is available. Suggestions for all grade levels are listed in the ADL Program Service Bulletin on Desegregation which accompanies this unit. Additional copies of the unit and the reference bulletin can be obtained from ADL Regional offices or from the National office at 212 Fifth Avenue, New York 10, N. Y.

<table><thead><tr><th>CONTENT</th><th>MATERIALS</th><th>TEACHER ACTIVITIES</th><th>PUPIL ACTIVITIES</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td><strong>Word Study and Clarification of Terms such as:</strong><br>discrimination<br>emancipation<br>hostility<br>integration<br>intercultural<br>minority group<br>prejudice<br>segregation<br>slavery<br>Supreme Court<br>tension</td><td>Specific resource materials, on all grade levels are listed in the ADL Program Service Bulletin, "Programmatic and Reference Materials Relating to Desegregation"<br>Newspapers<br>Books<br>Dictionaries</td><td>teaching spelling and meaning<br>accumulating books, pictures<br>inspecting unit record-book work<br>directing committee to secure needed materials and films<br>giving spelling tests<br>directing committee activities</td><td>dictionary work<br>recording spelling words in unit-record book<br>writing in unit-record book, sentences for words in listening to spell them<br>taking spelling tests<br>recognizing words in newspaper articles and books<br>letter writing to secure printed materials and films — by selected committee</td></tr><tr><td><strong>Establishing Such Concepts as:</strong><br>civil rights<br>civil liberties<br>freedom<br>equality</td><td>Books and pamphlets such as:<br>President's Report on Civil Rights<br>ADL Freedom Pamphlet: "Civil Rights—Barometer of Democracy"<br>Cartoons</td><td>making materials available<br>assisting pupils with committee work<br>reading and criticizing written work<br>explaining<br>arranging for speakers on civil rights</td><td>collecting, mounting, pasting of cartoons by selected committee<br>cataloguing of books for class use by selected committee of librarians<br>writing brief paragraphs about concepts in unit-record book<br>organizing questions to be sent to speaker — selected committee<br>listening to speaker<br>writing letters of thanks to people from whom films were obtained, and to speaker</td></tr><tr><td><strong>Great Democratic Documents such as:</strong><br>The Constitution<br>The Bill of Rights<br>The Emancipation Proclamation<br>The Declaration of Human Rights<br>Lincoln's Gettysburg Address<br>Washington's Letter to Jewish Congregation of Newport, 1790.</td><td>Books containing the documents<br>Replicas of the documents<br>Films such as:<br>"Of Human Rights" — UNESCO<br>"Heritage" — ADL</td><td>making books available and helping pupils to find and read documents<br>explaining documents<br>leading discussions<br>securing and showing films</td><td>copying into unit-record books names and significant parts of important documents<br>memorizing significant passages by those who can and want to do so<br>research by selected committee to get historical facts<br>recording historical facts surrounding the creation of the documents, in unit-record books<br>panel discussions by selected participants, following show-of-films<br>organizing a file box for clippings by selected committee — continuous filing of clippings<br>clipping articles appropriate to the unit, for filing</td></tr></tbody></table>

<table><thead><tr><th>CONTENT</th><th>MATERIALS</th><th>TEACHER ACTIVITIES</th><th>PUPIL ACTIVITIES</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td><strong>Democratic Principles</strong><br>Worth and integrity of every human being<br>Each person plays a significant role in a democracy<br>Every person has the possibility of rising to a position of importance in a democracy<br>Every person has the right to share in making decisions and determining policies that affect his life</td><td>Copies of the democratic documents:<br>Declaration of Independence<br>Declaration of Human Rights<br>Lincoln's Gettysburg Address<br>The Constitution<br>Bill of Rights<br>Books:<br>Social studies text-books<br>"The Democratic Way of Life" — T. V. Smith & E. C. Lindeman (Mentor Book)</td><td>explaining principles<br>explaining methods of work used in classroom in terms of principles being studied<br>pupil-teacher planning<br>distributing recognition and reward in terms of quality of job done<br>using committees and subgroups which give opportunity to develop leadership and followership skills and abilities<br>providing for evaluation discussions in which pupils recognize individual strength and weakness and values of group work</td><td>participating in pupil-teacher planning<br>participating in group work<br>participating in discussion<br>evaluating group work, leaders, self<br>reading of documents<br>recording the principles in unit-record books<br>preparing and acting out a dramatization to contrast a classroom in which democratic principles are used as a basis for activity, and one in which autocracy is used</td></tr><tr><td><strong>Race</strong><br>Factual study to learn what race is and is not<br>Names and locations of major races of mankind<br>Facts about relative size of racial groups in the world, in the United States, in the city, in the locality, in the school<br>Stereotypes<br>Anti-Negro prejudices and discriminations</td><td>Books such as:<br>"All About Us" — Evans<br>"Bill and His Neighbors" — Fisher<br>"People Are Important" — Evans<br>Pamphlets such as:<br>"Sense & Nonsense About Race" — Alpenfels<br>"What is Race"—UNESCO<br>Pictographs — The Races of Mankind<br>Films such as:<br>"To Live Together"<br>"Toymaker"<br>"Picture in Your Mind"<br>Recording — "Little Songs on Big Subjects"</td><td>pupil-teacher planning of content and activities<br>securing necessary books, pamphlets, films, filmstrips, recordings<br>organizing sub-groups to read specific materials and report to class about them<br>showing films, filmstrips<br>arranging for recordings<br>conducting discussion on filmstrips, films, recordings, readings<br>inspecting unit-record books<br>using evaluation tools: tests, inventories, discussions — to measure command of facts and attitude changes<br>setting up role-playing experiences</td><td>participating in pupil-teacher planning<br>reading material according to committee assignments<br>reporting to class on reading<br>discussing films<br>making and/or copying charts and pictographs on large posters—selected committee<br>recording of factual material in unit-record book<br>singing appropriate songs<br>taking tests<br>participation in discussion<br>self and group evaluation<br>role playing</td></tr><tr><td><strong>Supreme Court Decision</strong><br>Facts about the Supreme Court and how it works<br>What segregation laws exist in the South, in the North<br>How laws get made and enforced<br>How law gets changed —</td><td>Issues of "Southern News" to be obtained from P.O. Box 6156, Acklen Station, Nashville 5, Tenn.<br>Pamphlets, such as:<br>"New South" and<br>"Schools in the South" — Southern Regional Council, Atlanta, Ga.<br>"Working Together" — American Friends Service Committee, Philadelphia, Pa.<br>Chart showing the structure of the government<br>Newspapers<br>Speakers</td><td>securing books, pamphlets and newspapers<br>organizing sub-groups to do reading and reporting<br>explaining<br>inspecting unit-record books<br>arranging for speakers<br>conducting discussions</td><td>clipping, mounting, filing appropriate newspaper articles and other materials — selected committee<br>copying charts on large posters — committee selected<br>reading and reporting according to committee assignments<br>recording of factual material in unit-record books<br>organizing questions to be sent to speaker — selected subgroup<br>writing thank-you letters to speaker</td></tr></tbody></table>

<table><thead><tr><th>CONTENT</th><th>MATERIALS</th><th>TEACHER ACTIVITIES</th><th>PUPIL ACTIVITIES</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>What Is Happening As Result of Supreme Court Decision<br>in the North<br>in the Border States<br>in the South</td><td>"Southern News"<br>Newspapers<br>Reprints of articles<br>Magazines<br>Collier's—10/29/54<br>Red Book—10/1954<br>Sat. Eve. Post—6/19/54<br>Harpers—9/19/54<br>Pamphlets such as:<br>"A Community In Transition" — Grambs, NCCJ<br>Public Affairs—"The Negro in the South"<br>Books such as:<br>"The Negro and the Schools"—Ashmore<br>"Schools In Transition"—Williams & Ryan</td><td>securing materials<br>organizing sub-groups to do reading and reporting</td><td>reading<br>reporting on reading<br>recording factual material<br>planning, conducting and reporting on interviews by sub-group<br>making maps</td></tr><tr><td>What Does This All Mean for Democracy? for Us?</td><td></td><td>organizing sub-groups to interview specific persons with respect to meaning of the desegregation movement for America<br>arranging for evaluation discussions:<br>what were the strengths, the weaknesses?<br>what do we still need to know, to do?</td><td>interviewing<br>discussing the meaning of the unit evaluating group work, products, leaders, self</td></tr><tr><td>Should We Tell Others? How?</td><td></td><td>pupil-teacher planning of culminating activity such as:<br>panel discussion in assembly and at PTA meeting<br>writing letters to parents and friends<br>dramatization or other kind of assembly program<br>presentation of accumulated materials to library</td><td>making plans for culminating activity<br>carrying out plans</td></tr></tbody></table>

ANTI-DEFAMATION LEAGUE OF B'NAI B'RITH

212 FIFTH AVENUE, NEW YORK 10, N. Y.

RESOURCE UNITS
ON INTERGROUP
RELATIONS

published by the Anti-Defamation League of B'nai B'rith, 212 Fifth Avenue, New York 10, N. Y.

Officers: Henry Edward Schultz, chairman; Jacob Alson, treasurer; Benjamin R. Epstein, secretary and national director; chairman, National Program Committee—Henry Epstein; chairman, National Education and Research Committee—Harold Lachman; National Program Director—Oscar Cohen.

Education Department—Gertrude Noar, Director; Saal D. Lesser, Assistant.

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