Welcome to the Texas Teachers Teaching American History (T3AH) website!

The Houston Independent School District (HISD), in collaboration with the 26 school districts in Harris County, provides a comprehensive American history education program: 1) to increase student achievement in American history at targeted priority campuses (defined as schools identified for improvement, corrective action, or total restructuring based on No Child Left Behind [NCLB] and/or Texas Education Agency [TEA] guidelines); 2) to provide a systematic approach to increase teacher content knowledge and the quality of American history instruction at those priority campuses; and 3) to create strong vertical teams of teachers to support rigorous American history standards.

The T3AH project intends to increase student achievement in American history at targeted priority campuses; to provide a systematic approach to increase teacher content knowledge and the quality of American history instruction at those priority campuses; and to create strong vertical teams of teachers to support rigorous American history standards. Ten vertical teams of six American history teachers from priority schools/feeder patterns in both HISD and Harris County schools will form the grant cohort. This teacher cohort and assigned mentors will engage in systematic, on-going programs to improve teacher history content knowledge and instructional methods.

Partners

A primary collaboration with HISD and the University of Houston supports the T3AH grant initiatives.

The Bill of Rights Institute, the Museum of Fine Arts Houston, the National Archives and Records Administration, and the American history online library resource, Digital History, are additional project partners.

About HISD

The Houston Independent School District (HISD) is recognized as one of the leading urban school districts in the nation. HISD, with more than 200,000 students and encompassing 301 square miles of greater Houston, is the seventh largest public school system in the nation and the largest in Texas. The ethnic composition of the HISD student body is 59% Hispanic, 29% African-American, and 11% White and Asian/Pacific Islander. Seventy-eight percent (78%) is economically disadvantaged and 93% qualify for Title I funds. In addition, many teachers on the low-performing campuses lack background knowledge and certification to be highly qualified American history teachers.

Core Ideas

T3AH proposes to develop teacher-leaders to “generate needed solutions” in priority schools by providing rigorous American history content and effective teaching and literacy strategies through:

• Improved content knowledge,
• Improved pedagogy using Lesson Study,
• Improved professional development,
• Improved support for teachers, and
• Improved use of technology as a tool for communication in the 21st century