REFLECTION

What I learned from this assignment is that true research and analysis cannot truly be done in ten pages! As I dove into research, I realized that, to do justice to the topic, I could have written an entire book about the connections between the historical gay rights movement and Obergefell, and in the future that will help me to build better research topics for my students to keep their focus narrow. It was also an opportunity to see how important it is for both me and my students to be given the freedom to spend time researching topics about which they have a genuine interest, as I am certain I would not have enjoyed, and thereby spent significant time, on researching a topic that was assigned rather than selected.  My research paper and presentation helped me reflect on the power of choice, and that research and writing does not feel like work if it regards a topic about which we feel passionate. Of all of my primary source work through the graduate certificate program, this essay and presentation best addressed the outcome of reflecting and modifying to best address my professional concerns, needs, and goals.

HIST 581: CIVIL RIGHTS IN THE 20TH CENTURY

Primary Source Artifacts and Reflection

RESEARCH ESSAY

Another primary-source graduate certificate experience involved researching and writing a research paper as well as a presentation about the Supreme Court case Obergefell v. Hodges.  In developing an argument about the factors that led to the case’s success, I researched not only interviews, podcast episodes, personal narratives, and photographs of the plaintiffs in the case, but also examined historical primary sources at the foundation of the gay rights movement in the early twentieth century to provide historical context and draw parallels.

RESEARCH PRESENTATION

Ultimately, my paper and presentation argued that (a) money, (b) standing, and (c) an ideally-palatable plaintiff for both the nine justices and the American people to consider led to the legalization of gay marriage across the United States.  I will assign my students a trimmed-down version of the presentation component of this research, and they will review my work to gain understanding of both the case and the assignment.

CLASSROOM APPLICATION

Advanced Placement United States Government & Politics students work on preparing for three separate writing sections of their exam, one of which is a short essay that utilizes key required documents.  I created a lesson that helps students understand Martin Luther King's Letter from Birmingham Jail and apply it to Civil Rights along with the Articles of the Constitution and Bill of Rights, utilizing up to three of the College Board's Required Documents in their written responses.