Process

There are a number of different steps that will be involved in completing this assignment.

1. Background: All group members will have to visit the links under background material and answer the questions related to those readings.

2. Research Roles: There are four sets of sites to visit that give information about the lives of Booker T. Washington and W.E.B. DuBois or are links to their writings. Along with each set of readings are questions for you to think and write about. In order for your group to have the information you need to consider how to design your mural, each member of the group must take the time to read carefully the material and address the questions.

3. Share Information in Pairs: One pair of students in the four person group will be responsible for researching Booker T. Washington and one pair will be responsible for researching W.E.B. Dubois. The pair of students who were responsible for researching the life and writings of Booker T. Washington will get together to pool their information and prepare a short presentation/explanation about what they have learned to be shared with the other two group members. The pair of students who completed the readings on DuBois will do the same. Be sure to consider how the person's background may have influenced his position. Discuss what you think about the person's position on education. If you disagree with it, do you think it made sense for that particular time and place? What do you see as the strengths and weaknesses of your person's approach to education.

4. Explain what you have learned to the other pair.

5. Group Discussion:Discuss what you think of each of these men and their ideas. What were the goals of each of these men in regard to education? Do you think the goals of each man were admirable? Why or why not? Why do you think each took the stance he did? How do you think the life experiences of these two men shaped their views on education? How do you think each one should be remembered today? You may find it helpful to take a look at Mary Washington's reflections on Washington and DuBois
(http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/1900/filmmore/reference/interview/washing_bookertdubois.html) if you are having trouble putting Washington and DuBois' disagreements in context.

6. Brainstorm. Generate ideas about the directions your project could take .

7. Project Planning:Set up a tentative timeline for completeing your project. Make decisions on how to best use your time and assign responsibilites.

8. Work on Project:Continue working in your groups. If you assign portions of the project to individuals, be sure that there is enough group communication so that each member has a clear idea of "the big picture." Be sure you get together and step back from your project at several different points and ask yourselves how things are going.

9. Present Your Project

Background

* American Journey: You have probably already talked about Reconstruction and the problems that the nation, and especially freed African-Americans, faced after the Civil War. The following readings from the African American Journey from World Book will help refresh your memory about Reconstruction and will ask you to consider some of the issues faced by the African-American community from Reconstruction to the early 1900s. The following three links are all part of the same reading.

1. The First Years of Freedom http://historicaltextarchive.com/sections.php?op=viewarticle&artid=692

2. Reconstruction http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/ndlpedu/features/timeline/civilwar/recon/ogden.html

3. Forces of Reaction http://www.publicbookshelf.com/public_html/The_Great_Republic_By_the_Master_Historians_Vol_III/americanr_gi.html

* The Obstacles Faced by African Americans (http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/1900/filmmore/reference/interview/washing_obstaclesfaced.html) by Mary Washington. This reading is from the PBS companion site to "The American Experience." Mary Washington provides background about the difficulties faced by African-Americans around 190

* Brief background of Washington-DuBois Debate (http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/race/etc/road.html) :This site provides some context for the readings assigned to your role.
* Timelines: The timelines linked below are from African-American Perspectives(http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/aap/aaphome.html) from the American Memory Collection at the Library of Congress. These timelines will help fill in the gaps about what else was going on at the time of the debate between Booker T. Washington and W.E.B. DuBois. You may also wish to come back to the timelines as you work through the other components of your project.

1. 1852-1880

2. 1881-1900

3. 1901-1925

Additional Resources

The links provided with the roles will provide the basic material you need to design your mural. The following are additional links you may wish to visit.

* The Souls of Black Folk by W.E.B. Du Bois(http://www.bartleby.com/114/)

* Progress of a People from African-American Perspectives(http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/aap/aapexhp.html) from the Library of Congress' American Memory Collection. To learn more about Booker T. Washington's views on industrial education visit Progress of a People Industrial Issues (http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/aap/aapindus.html) .

* The Booker T. Washington Era (http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/aaohtml/exhibit/aopart6.html) . This site is part of the American Memory Collection of the Library of Congress. It contains useful information about African-American history.

* Flashback: Black History (http://faculty.millikin.edu/~rbrooks.hum.faculty.mu/MApoetry/Duboissite.html) , American History from The Atlantic This site contains a number of articles written by W.E.B. DuBois and Booker T. Washington. Some have already been included in your role links, others have not.

* The American Experience (http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/1900/) : America 1900 This site was put together as part of the American Experience by PBS.

These are certainly not the only sites related to W.E.B. DuBois, but you should find them useful sites. If you still feel you need more information, check out your school or local library.

After visiting and reading all of the web sites listed above students should print the corresponding worksheet and answer all of the questions.