M.S. Lesson Activity no. 6
Observations on the Importance of Brown v. Board of Education Decision
Application
Students- Grades 7 and 8
Lesson Time
One class period
Objectives
At the end of this lesson, students should be able to:
- Identify the attorneys, judges and others who made legal history by their involvement and leadership in the Brown v. Board of Education decision and other related litigation
- Discuss the long-term, significant impacts of the Brown v. Board of Education decision on the civil rights movement and on American society
- Evaluate the extent to which the lessons from the Brown decision are still relevant today in terms of the extension of civil rights to all Americans
New York State Social Studies Learning Standards
Students will describe how ordinary people and famous historic figures in the local community, State, and the United States have advanced the fundamental democratic values, beliefs, and traditions expressed in the Declaration of Independence, the New York State and United States Constitutions, the Bill of Rights, and other important historic documents
Materials
Handout:
- Quotations
from Remembering Brown v. Board of Education and
Related Litigation: A Tribute to the New York Attorneys Who Made Legal
History- May 25, 2005.
- Mr. Conrad K. Harper, ESQ. (pp. 21-24)
- Hon. George Bundy Smith and Hon. John A. Sandifer (pp. 24-27)
- Hon. George Bundy Smith and Hon. Constance Baker Motley (pp. 39-44)
- Hon. George Bundy Smith and Mr. Jeff L. Greenup, ESQ. (pp. 62-67)
Activity
- Divide the class into groups of five students. Give each group a different
speaker who is discussing his or her involvement in either the Brown
decision or related litigation. After groups have finished reading their
speaker’s comments, ask students to answer the following questions:
- Who is the speaker talking about and what was that individual’s role in the Brown decision or the civil rights movement?
- What actions did this individual take that related to the Brown decision or the advancement of civil rights?
- If they could interview the speaker or the individual he or she spoke about, what questions would they ask them about their involvement in the Brown decision or the civil rights movement?
- After students have answered these questions, have each group select a spokesperson to report on the individual they read about and how that individual contributed to the Brown decision or the civil rights movement.
- Ask students to discuss how the issues related to the Brown decision and other civil rights cases are still relevant today. Ask them to propose ways to continue the desegregation of public education. Students might investigate the effects of school vouchers and charter schools on school integration and the achievement of minority students.
