Highlighting the PBB 2019 Summer Institute
Among the tourists who traveled hundreds of miles to visit Boston’s iconic historic sites this summer, you would also find a group who were right in their own backyard. Eleven Boston Public School teachers, grades 1-12, participated in Place-Based Boston’s Summer Institute. Over the course of a week, they turned to their own city to learn how place-based experiences can bring their curriculum to life.
Their experiences were tailored to the Institute’s theme this year, “In Pursuit of the American Promise: Women as Agents of Change.” With the 100th anniversary of women’s suffrage in 2020, now was the time for BPS teachers to discover the women both embedded, and forgotten, in Boston’s history. At each place-based site, teachers heard a new story, often far different from pervasive well-known narratives. For example, at the Paul Revere House, the spotlight wasn’t on Paul but instead his wife Rachel and their children. At Old North Church, teachers didn’t hear of the famous lanterns, but instead, analyzed church records to reveal clues about female congregants’ social standing.
Throughout the week, stories of resilient women continued in creative ways. At the Old State House, teachers saw the play Cato & Dolly, which profiles the relationship between John Hancock’s wife Dolly and their enslaved butler, Cato. At the Museum of African American History, teachers learned of Harriet Jacobs, who made a home in Boston after freeing herself from slavery by hiding in a crawl space for seven years.
Of course, place-based experiences don’t have to be within the brick walls of a historic building. During the Institute, teachers also took to the streets of the South End on the Women’s Heritage Trail, exploring stories found in statues, memorials, and businesses. Even listening to the people in the community can be a form of place-based education, so at the USS Constitution Museum, teachers heard from a panel of female active-duty US Navy sailors.
After such a full engaging week, teachers were primed to create a place-based lesson plan, which they presented to the group in late September. It was clear that these teachers had become confident ambassadors of place-based teaching, and their students will greatly benefit. “I enjoyed the program and highly recommend it,” wrote one teacher. “It transformed the way I see the city…Thank you for providing a catalyst to be his/herstorians of the city we born, live and/or work in.”
