athena_rising on Nostr: While I have always been in a similar position when teaching history, Liza, one of ...

While I have always been in a similar position when teaching history, Liza, one of the best things that ever happened to me was teaching an Asian-American student at my school who is known to have a dislike for much that is American. It was my job to teach U.S. History to a person who had zero interest in learning it. (Note: my private school does 1-to-1 instruction.) Several teachers mentioned they weren't sure how someone could teach a student with this attitude.

I began by telling the student that while we would be learning the history of the U.S., we would be learning it through the eyes of others (other countries, Native Americans, immigrants). It was quite the challenge, let me tell you, finding resources for all the topics that fit that criteria, but I managed.

They still weren't happy that they had to learn it, but they admitted that my efforts made it better than it would have been. I am truly grateful that I had the opportunity to face that challenge. It pushed me to dig deeper, to reach out to teachers in other countries, to see things that were new to me, too. I incorporated several of those lessons into my regular curriculum, so I feel my other students benefited also.