These are the contours of the battle over patriotism in the curriculum: Should students learn of their country’s virtues or shortcomings? Similarly, the point of U.S. history isn’t to have students revere or reject the country but to help them understand it. The second reason is that, by imagining history class as a pep rally or a gripe session, we squeeze the history out of it. Students learn that different people had irreconcilable dreams, clashing understandings of what made their country “great.” They learn that history is messy. The aim of history class isn’t to get students to love or loathe their country.

Source: Washington Post December 23, 2020 15:12 UTC