Web Quest Student Page

Jim Crow South

A WebQuest for 9th Grade English

Tanya Mijajlovic
mijajt@lfc.edu

Introduction

In the novel, Black Boy, you were briefly introduced to Jim Crow Laws. You will now investigate further on these laws and the people who were affected by the laws. You will work in teams of three to explore various website that will help you gain a better understanding of the Jim Crow. Each one of you will take on the role of a historical detective searching for information on the Jim Crow South. You will be examining actual Jim Crow Laws, listening to interviews of African-Americans who were directly affected by the restriction set on African Americans, and reading the stories of individuals who overcame the odds and resisted Jim Crow Laws. Your mission as historical detectives is to uncover what it was really like to be black during a time of extreme racism and segregation, and to make an emotional connection to the lives of African Americans.

The Mission

As junior historical detectives, you will be required to complete mission before reporting back to your supervisor. Here is a description of what you must complete:

· Complete a detailed investigation log

· Individually write a personal response that reflects your investigation and illustrates connects to Richard Wright’s Black Boy

· In a mini-press conference, you will share you team’s findings

The Process

To accomplish the task, what steps should the learners go through? Use the numbered list format in your web editor to automatically number the steps in the procedure. Describing this section well will help other teachers to see how your lesson flows and how they might adapt it for their own use, so the more detail and care you put into this, the better. Remember that this whole document is addressed to the student, however, so describe the steps using the second person.

1. Once you are assigned to your teams, you must choose roles: a) Navigator: this person will be responsible for navigating the web, b) Secretary: this person will be the recorder for the team and is responsible for making sure that the investigation log is completed, and c) Speaker: this person will be the spokesperson for your team during the mini-press conference.

2. Each team must visit http://www.toptags.com/aama/docs/jcrow.htm to get background information on Jim Crow Laws. Your investigation log will begin once you enter this site. Make sure that you are keeping a detailed log; otherwise your mission will not be complete.

3. After investigating some basic information on Jim Crow Laws, your team must visit the following site: http://academic.udayton.edu/race/02rights/jcrow02.htm

4. Here each team member will need to take individual notes. Each team member will choose 3 different laws (each law must come from a different state). As you take notes on these laws, consider the Richard Wright’s life. Can you give examples of how the characters in Black Boy were affected and restricted by these laws? Make sure to record your ideas.

5. After investigating specific laws, each group must go to the next investigation site: http://www.pbs.org/wnet/jimcrow/stories.html

6. You should now see a screen that will allow you to meet PEOPLE and investigate PERSONAL NARRATIVES. First click on PEOPLE.

7. There will be a list of 20 people and their profile. Each team will choose one person to investigate. Before you begin your investigation, you must get your choice approved by the teacher. Groups will be approved on a first-come, first-serve basis.

8. Each group member is now expected to take personalized notes on the individual. You should include the following information in your notes: name, date of birth, place of origin, major cause this person fought for, and major accomplishments.

9. After each team member has completed his/her personal notes, make sure that you have completed the investigation log for this part of the assignment.

10. Your next step is to go back to this site: http://www.pbs.org/wnet/jimcrow/stories.html. This time click on PERSONAL NARRATIVES.

11. You will see a list of 15 people and a brief summary of their interview. Read the summary of each person and choose one that interests your team the most.

12. You will now listen to a recording of this persona’s interview, which discusses how the Jim Crow South affected his/her life.

13. While you are listening to the recording, each team member should take personal notes and record specific details from the interview. After you listen to the interview, you should take a minute or two to record your personal response to the interview. How did you feel while listening to this person’s story? What effect did hearing the person’s voice have on you? As you listened to the interview, could you hear emotions that were similar to Richard Wright’s? If so, describe what emotions you heard and how you know.

14. Before you complete your investigation, make sure that your entire investigation log has been filled in and submitted to the teacher.

15. After completing these steps, you are encouraged to explore some other Jim Crow sites that are provided.

Homework

Tonight each student must write a response paper. The paper should be approximately 3-4 pages, double-spaced. No late papers will be accepted. Focus your personal response paper on the following:

· Give a brief summary of what Jim Crow Laws are and how it affected Americans.

· Mention at least 2 Jim Crow Laws, and give examples from Black Boy of how these laws affected Wright’s characters.

· Describe the person you investigated and what impact they had on the African-American community.

· Discuss the interview you listened to and what affect it had on you.

You should also try to incorporate your reactions to what you investigated. How did you feel while learning about the restrictions created by Jim Crow Laws? What effect did listening to the interview have on you? How were you affected by images on the various sites?

Mini-Press Conference

In class you will be asked to share your investigations with the class. You should view this session as a press conference where all the teams have come together to share their findings. Each group should be prepared to briefly summarize the person that was investigated, the laws discussed within your groups, and share your personal reaction to the findings.

Evaluation

Describe to the learners how their performance will be evaluated. Specify whether there will be a common grade for group work vs. individual grades.


	Beginning 1	Developing 2	Accomplished 3	Exemplary 4	Score
Group Performance	Students illustrated little to no group collaboration. Individual effort was unequal and one student took on the majority of the tasks.	Efforts for student collaboration were visible. Each student gave input, but group work did not yet come together as one unit.	All team members contributed and stayed on task. Each student performed his/her assigned role.	All team members contributed and stayed on task. Each student performed his/her assigned role. Students worked together as one complete unit to complete the mission.
Investigation Log	Student attempted to complete the investigation log, but majority of the worksheet is incomplete.	Student completed the investigation log, but some responses do not answer the question, and/or examples are not provided.	Student answered all questions and provided examples for each question. Examples were appropriately connected to the internet sites and to the novel.	Each question was addressed with at least one example when needed. Student connected emotions when necessary and backed up personal responses with textual evidence.
Response Paper	Student did not address the required questions. Personal response paper was completed, but turned in late.	Student addressed the required questions, but not all of them. Paper was well organized and coherent.	Student addressed the required questions in a well-organized paper. Student discussed the historical importance and emotional affects of the assignment.	Student addressed all required elements of the paper, and included information from additional sites. Student included historical importance, emotional affects, and textual evidence from Black Boy.

Conclusion

After investigation a number of sites related to the Jim Crow Laws, you should have a better understanding of the hardships that Richard was faced with throughout his life. Jim Crow Laws affected all Americans, but African-Americans experienced the brutalities of segregation for many years. The goal of this assignment was to help you make an emotional connection to what Richard Wright and other black people experienced, as well as gain historical knowledge of the Jim Crow South.

Credits & References

Examples of Jim Crow Laws http://academic.udayton.edu/race/02rights/jcrow02.htm

The History of Jim Crow http://www.jimcrowhistory.org/resources/narratives.htm

The Rise and Fall of Jim Crow http://www.pbs.org/wnet/jimcrow/stories.html

IMAGES

Behind the Veil http://cds.aas.duke.edu/btv/btvindex.html

Remembering Jim Crow http://americanradioworks.publicradio.org/features/remembering/bitter.html

Last updated on December 2, 2004.. Based on a template from The WebQuest Page