American Exceptionalism Is it Ethnocentrism or Reality? BME 210, Week 5-2

1. American ExceptionalismIs it Ethnocentrism or Reality?BME 210, Week 5-2 Jon Reyhner, Professor of Education

2. What Makes America Exceptional? What makes the United States different from and/or better than other countries? In small groups brainstorm 5 things that make America Exceptional and then write those things on the classroom chalk board.

10. 2016 Republican Platform We believe in American exceptionalism. We believe the United States of America is unlike any other nation on earth. We believe America is exceptional because of our historic role — first as refuge, then as defender, and now as exemplar of liberty for the world to see.

11. The Washington Post explains “America Exceptionalism” as an ideology based on five ideas: Liberty, individualism, the belief in equality of all men, the philosophy that appeals to the common man rather appealing to a traditional party or partisan ideologies, and an attitude of letting things take their own course, without interfering [laissez faire].

12. In 2014, the Republican National Committee condemned the new AP US History framework as “a radically revisionist view of American history that emphasizes negative aspects of our nation’s history while omitting or minimizing positive aspects.”   The framework is about “teaching kids to see complexity and draw their own conclusions,” says Fritz Fischer, a history professor at the University of Colorado and author of “The Memory Hole: The U.S. History Curriculum Under Siege.”

13. The problem with people pushing “American exceptionalism” in the curriculum, Professor Fischer says, is that theywant to teach“that America was always right.… They believe the US is the best country now and therefore it has always been the best country.” Fischer agrees there are many examples of shining moments for the nation, but worries that some backers of exceptionalism don’t want students to be exposed to anything negative. Some have objected to letting students know about some founders of the country being slaveholders, while others have said America’s expansion westward can only be called expansionism, not imperialism. “It’s much too simplistic for the classroom, where you want to teach critical thinking,” according to Fischer.

19. Global Trends: Economic Percentage of World GDP 2004 2025 2050 India India India China Other Other Japan Other China Japan China US EU US US EU Japan EU China, India, Japan are expected to be 50% of world GDP within 30 years -- up from 18% in 2006. Source: Keystone India

20. US Population by Race US Prison Population by Race

21. Prison Population by Country

22. Why are so manyAmericans in Prison? In small groups brainstorm 5 reasons that the U.S. prison population is exceptionally high/

26. School Suspension Rates over Time by Race/Ethnicity, K-12

27. Current U.S. Senate Representation Red= 2 Republicans Purple= 1 Each Blue= Democrat Green=Independent

30. Federal Spending 2005

33. AZ General Fund Spending FY ‘11, total= $9,524.3 million

35. Time Magazine 11/14/11

36. Time Magazine 11/14/11

38. A Pew survey of U.S. and Western European societal values found that fewer people in the U.S. Are now convinced of their nation’s exceptionalism. The percentage of Americans who agreed with the statement “Our people are not perfect, but our culture is superior to others” has dropped from 60% in 2002. Time Magazine 12/5/2011

42. Resident population of the United States, by race/ethncity and sex: 2008Figure Updated: February 2011

44. Racial and Ethnic Composi-tion of the Poor, 2010Data from DeNavas-Walt, C., Proctor, B. D., & Smith, J. C. (2011). Washing-ton, DC: US Census Bureau.

45. Arizona Demographics2016 Arizona Total Population 2014-2015 Arizona Student Population

46. 2015 Arizona Teacher Demographics

47. Impact of AZ Teacher Demographics • Building relationships is foundational for providing an education that is culturally responsive and relevant for increased student engagement leading to increased achievement. Knowing and understanding the intricacies of our students’ communities is an essential for our teachers. • Our teachers are role models for our students at various levels. Students from all races and backgrounds should view the education profession as a viable career choice. Seeing someone from a similar cultural background and experience will positively impact our state’s ability to build a strong teaching cadre. • Students in rural areas, especially those in tribal lands, are at an educational resource disadvantage as teacher turnover is high and leads to inconsistency in learning for students.