Changes

== Bias in American History ==

== Bias in American History ==

Every student in the [[United States]] is supposed to take several courses in [[American History]].  As a result, how this subject is taught has a big influence on what Americans believe, and how they vote when they are older.  Someone who is taught and believes that [[Bill Clinton]] or [[Jimmy Carter]] are great [[American]] heroes are more likely to vote [[Democratic]] than someone who learns that [[Ronald Reagan]] had a bigger and better impact than both of them combined.  Going backwards in time, how the textbooks and teachers praise or criticize [[George Washington]] and [[Christopher Columbus]] can shape many students' minds both about America and about Christianity.

Every student in the [[United States]] is supposed to take several courses in [[American History]].  As a result, how this subject is taught has a big influence on what Americans believe, and how they vote when they are older.  Someone who is taught and believes that [[Bill Clinton]] or [[Jimmy Carter]] are great [[American]] heroes is more likely to vote [[Democratic]] than someone who learns that [[Ronald Reagan]] had a bigger and better impact than both of them combined.  Going backwards in time, how the textbooks and teachers praise or criticize [[George Washington]] and [[Christopher Columbus]] can shape many students' minds both about America and about Christianity.

Bias is worth recognizing, and it can even be fun spotting the half-truths and misleading claims that are put in textbooks and exams to try to take students away from Christian truths and American patriotism.  Our Honors track in this course will enable students to address bias they see in textbooks, Wikipedia, and other sources concerning American history.

Bias is worth recognizing, and it can even be fun spotting the half-truths and misleading claims that are put in textbooks and exams to try to take students away from Christian truths and American patriotism.  Our Honors track in this course will enable students to address bias they see in textbooks, Wikipedia, and other sources concerning American history.

== Pre-Columbian Period ==

== Pre-Columbian Period ==

The first settlers in America were paleo-indian peoples.  Historians generally agree that they migrated from Asia via a temporary land bridge, although they disagree as to the precise time of the major influx, which is believed to have occurred primarily between 10,000 and 40,000 B.C.  Some individuals have noted that Paleo-Indians bear little resemblance to Asian Indians, but it should be recognized that an interval of thousands of years probably changed their appearance radically.<ref>http://www.desertusa.com/ind1/du_peo_paleo.html</ref>

The first settlers in America were paleo-indian peoples.  Their origin is not known.  Some claim they migrated from Asia, but that makes little sense because American Indians are very different in many ways from Chinese and Asian Indians.  Even their blood types are typically different.

Some old mounds reflecting Indian settlements in America have been discovered, such as the Adena burial mounds and Mississippian platform towns.<ref>Melissa L. Meyer, Dean R. Snow, Charles L. Cohen, Russell Thornton, Donald A. Grinde Jr., Leah Dilworth "Indian History and Culture"  The Oxford Companion to United States History. Paul S. Boyer, ed. Oxford University Press 2001. Oxford Reference Online. Oxford University Press.  University of Tampa.  4 August 2008  <http://www.oxfordreference.com/views/ENTRY.html?subview=Main&entry=t119.e0758-s0002></ref>  The [[Cahokia Mounds]] in Southern Illinois (just east of [[St. Louis]] also reflect an Indian community dating back as early as 1000 or 1100 A.D..<ref>http://www.cahokiamounds.com/mystery_01.html</ref>

Some old mounds reflecting Indian settlements in America have been discovered, such as the Adena burial mounds and Mississippian platform towns.<ref>Melissa L. Meyer, Dean R. Snow, Charles L. Cohen, Russell Thornton, Donald A. Grinde Jr., Leah Dilworth "Indian History and Culture"  The Oxford Companion to United States History. Paul S. Boyer, ed. Oxford University Press 2001. Oxford Reference Online. Oxford University Press.  University of Tampa.  4 August 2008  <http://www.oxfordreference.com/views/ENTRY.html?subview=Main&entry=t119.e0758-s0002></ref>  For example, the [[Cahokia Mounds]] in Southern Illinois (just east of [[St. Louis]] reflect an Indian community dating back as early as A.D. 1000 or 1100.<ref>http://www.cahokiamounds.com/mystery_01.html</ref> That community practiced human sacrifice, as did the [[Aztecs]] and [[Mayans]] in [[Mesoamerica]] (Mexico and Central America) and the [[Incas]] in [[South America]] prior to the arrival of the Spanish conquerors.

The American Indians, also called Native Americans, were [[nomads]] who traveled across wide areas.  They did not read and write, and they lacked a monetary system.  Some communities, such as the Cohokia in Illinois, the [[Aztecs]] and [[Mayans]] in [[Mesoamerica]] (Mexico and Central America), and the [[Incas]] in [[South America]], practiced human sacrifice prior to the arrival of the Spanish conquerors.

The American Indians, also called Native Americans, were [[nomads]] who traveled across wide areas.  They did not read and write, and they lacked a monetary system.  They were organized by tribes and some had simple forms of government.  There was the [[Iroquois Confederacy]] that united some, but typically there was a lack of unity that led to their easy defeat by Europeans.  The Indians did introduce [[tobacco]] and [[corn]] to Europeans, and they became widely popular back in Europe.

 

The Indians were generally organized by tribes and some had simple forms of government.  The [[Iroquois Confederacy]] was an example of a large united group - that even had a constitution for their government!- but typically there was a lack of unity that contributed to their easy defeat by Europeans (along with disease, steel, and gunpowder, of course).  The Indians introduced [[tobacco]] and [[corn]] to Europeans, and they became widely popular back in Europe.

Textbooks written after 1970 began claiming that around A.D. 1000, the Scandinavian [[Leif Ericson]] established a small colony at [[Vinland]], where the present [[Newfoundland]] is (north of Maine).  But there is very little evidence that such a colony existed, and no explanation for what happened to it.  It did not last long even if it did exist, and there is no sign of any Viking colony in what is now the United States.<ref>"People have been looking hard for hundreds of years and there is no archaeological evidence in this part [New England]— it's certainly possible, the Vikings were incredible boat handlers — '''but there is no evidence'''," observed one university history professor.[http://farshores.org/a04viki.htm]</ref>.

Textbooks written after 1970 began claiming that around A.D. 1000, the Scandinavian [[Leif Ericson]] established a small colony at [[Vinland]], where the present [[Newfoundland]] is (north of Maine).  But there is very little evidence that such a colony existed, and no explanation for what happened to it.  It did not last long even if it did exist, and there is no sign of any Viking colony in what is now the United States.<ref>"People have been looking hard for hundreds of years and there is no archaeological evidence in this part [New England]— it's certainly possible, the Vikings were incredible boat handlers — '''but there is no evidence'''," observed one university history professor.[http://farshores.org/a04viki.htm]</ref>.

''Exam note'': there is no more than one or two questions about the Pre-Columbian period on any American history exam.

''Exam note'': there are no more than one or two questions about the Pre-Columbian period on any American history exam.

== Exploration (Columbian Period) ==

== Exploration (Columbian Period) ==