Critically Engaging Students with Historical Narratives in the “History Wars”

In their fall 2024 FSEM “History Wars: Schools, Museums, and Monuments”–taught by Assistant Professor of Education Dr. Alex Honold–Tyler Crockett (Historic Preservation ’28), Nick Thodal (History ’28), and Sarah Yatzeck (History ’28) conducted original research on distinct historical or contemporary representations of the past as they appear in schools, public spaces, or popular media.

Sarah analyzed the shifting representation of women in Virginia’s state history standards over several decades, tracing how curricular focus both reflects and shapes broader societal expectations. She found that while attention to women’s history in Virginia has significantly improved, women remain substantially underrepresented.

Nick examined the legacy of UMW’s desegregation through the lens of the university’s interpretive plaques, evaluating how institutional memory is constructed and communicated. He found the university’s efforts to be surprisingly transparent and accurate to the historical record. He also uncovered evidence suggesting that UMW’s gender integration may have drawn attention away from its racial integration.

Tyler explored the evolving meanings of Confederate symbology, highlighting tensions between heritage, history, and identity across different eras. He found that the landscape of Confederate memory is incredibly complex, blending white supremacist ideology with political expediency and Southern identity.

Taken together, these projects demonstrate the central role of historical memory in education and civic life and illustrate how public narratives about the past influence what communities value, question, or forget.

The three students continued their work with Dr. Honold in the fall of 2025 to hone their research and prepare to present their findings collaboratively on a shared poster titled “Teaching the ‘History Wars’: Equipping Students to Critically Engage with Historical Narratives” at the 2025 National Council for the Social Studies Annual Conference, held in December in Washington, D.C. In conversations with conference attendees, they articulated the implications of their research for history teachers and education researchers—especially the need to help students critically examine whose stories are amplified, whose are marginalized, and how representations of the past shape contemporary debates.

The students agreed that presenting their research to a wider audience than their classroom was a formative experience:

“It was a great opportunity to practice my presentation skills and get feedback on my research from the broader professional community.” (Sarah Yatzeck)

“It was a great experience not only to present my own research, but to get to hear some very interesting presentations from others that will no doubt serve me well in my future classroom.” (Nick Thodal)

“It was a really enlightening experience. I’d never been to a professional conference like that before. To have the first one I’d ever been to also be one I was presenting at was a particularly unique experience. It was an invaluable networking experience. I was able to speak to and make connections with multiple representatives from various museums and got information on future internship possibilities.” (Tyler Crockett)