I first decided I wanted to be a professor in an undergraduate history classroom, as I was introduced to the revolutionary potential of film. Lights dimmed in the small room, my history professor was teaching the class about the incendiary The Birth of the Nation(1915) and the massive protests against it. In addition to references to local and national fights for censorship, he mentioned Emmett J. Scott and others’ attempts to mount a filmic challenge to Griffith’s racist epic. Though the resulting enterprise, The Birth of a Race (1918), was a financial failure and national attempts at banning the film were unsuccessful, these endeavors symbolized some of the first by African Americans to resist, revise, and (re)present the black image in film. My professor’s passion was critical in this defining moment. It was clear that he cared about the topic at hand and, more generally, the significance of film history. I engaged with what he was saying not only as a student, but also as a scholar in the making. The power of protest within black film and black engagement with cinema remain at the center of my scholarly work and teaching. Therefore, one of the most important aspects teaching, I believe, is that the classroom should function as a space for developing and encouraging every students’ curiosity, opening them up to the significance of historical knowledge and understanding. This is only possible when an inclusive and safe environment exists through trust and respect.
Fostering students’ inquisitiveness in the classroom starts with teaching them the skill sets necessary to find out more information. In today’s world of instantaneous google results and bipartisan media, it is essential that students learn how to seek evidence and facts so they can construct their own opinions and conclusions. In my role as graduate assistant in the Lab for the Education and Advancement in Digital Research (LEADR), I have instructed lower and upper level history undergraduates on how to locate, evaluate, and cite historical sources. A typical lesson plan starts with showing the students where to find material, such as newspaper databases or digital repositories, and how to evaluate a website’s trustworthy. Then, we discuss how facts and data can be used for an argument, while also discussing the ethics behind building a historical argument with proper citation. In upper level courses, these conversations also include the importance of historiographical knowledge. Students then practice these skills as they write papers, build and curate digital essays, and create digital history projects on platforms such as kepler.gl, Voyant, Omeka, and Flourish.
To get the most out of their education, students must actually enjoy the material they are learning about. Therefore, my final assignments often allow students to explore particular themes or topics from the course at large that they found appealing. While teaching an interdisciplinary online course on black film and history, I gave students the option of choosing the film and theme for their final paper. Some students expanded on themes that the course already introduced them to such as gender, religion, and respectability. Others, though, chose films that pushed them beyond the boundaries of the course to explore sexuality, masculinity, or color within film. I also aim to provide students with online spaces for reflection, sharing, and communication. While a facilitator for a group of undergraduate honors students, I had the students first engage with the course material through an online blog. Because race and film can evoke strong feelings and reactions, I felt that an online space appears less formal and intimidating than in-class and also gives students more time to consider their responses to the material and their peers and how they might continue the dialogue in the classroom. I have also used online discussion boards, such as Padlet, where students share movie recommendations, ask questions about the course material, and pose thought-provoking opinions on film and race.
In addition to these online spaces, I endeavor to create inclusivity within the classroom in a variety of ways. First, I strive to incorporate a diverse array of voices in the course material so that students recognize the importance of multiple perspectives. My syllabi always include scholarship produced by men and women of color that address queerness, class issues, and race. My research, too, allows for this as I make deep connections between history and current struggles for equality while teaching. Second, I vary my lesson plans between lectures, group work, and hands-on exercises so that students of various learning styles have a chance to participate and engage. Third, I cultivate an atmosphere of respect in the classroom by setting the tone early. From the start, students are expected to listen carefully and courteously, challenge ideas not people, and use evidence for their arguments. And, finally, I enter each course with compassion and an open mind. As someone who had to work to help her single mother pay the bills and as someone who has taught adult learners with children and undergraduates who are caretakers or sole providers, I recognize that life outside of the classroom often takes precedent.
Every new classroom is a space to grow as an educator as I learn more effective ways to teach all of my students. In the future, I plan to start introducing myself with my pronouns and to establish agreed upon, firm guidelines for class participation in all of my courses. As I continue my research in black film history and African American history, I look forward to continuing to incorporate marginalized voices and perspectives into my teaching. Ultimately, I aim to be a better teacher for my students so that they may be armed with the tools to explore all possible avenues of their intellectual pursuits, feeling comfortable and confident in their ability to do so in and beyond my classroom.