Brenda Trofanenko | Acadia University (original) (raw)

Papers by Brenda Trofanenko

Research paper thumbnail of Images of History in Middle-Grade Social Studies Trade Books

Research paper thumbnail of Book Review: Review of the National Museum of African American History and Culture

The Journal of Social Studies Research, 2018

Research paper thumbnail of More Than a Single Best Narrative: Collective History and the Transformation of Historical Consciousness

Curriculum Inquiry, Dec 1, 2008

In establishing a collective history, past events are utilized to celebrate a nation's origins. W... more In establishing a collective history, past events are utilized to celebrate a nation's origins. While analysis of these events is often framed in knowing the single best narrative, the events themselves become of interest when examining how the interpretations remain the same or change over time. The recent bicentennial celebration of the Lewis and Clark expedition of 1804 offers an opportunity to examine such a change. This article investigates how students revealed a historical consciousness in realizing what purpose the expedition serves to a national identity. After analyzing conversations occurring among three eighth-grade students, this article explores the student responses to three interpretations, which bears important educational consequences and implications for the teaching and learning of history. In a presidential proclamation issued on June 28, 2002, President George W. Bush delivered a call to citizens of the United States, henceforth referred to as Americans, to "commend [the] resourcefulness, determination, and bravery" of Meriwether Lewis, William Clark and the members of the Corps of Discovery. Their involvement in what came to be known as the Lewis and Clark expedition, 1 he continued, set "courageous Americans on a remarkable voyage that changed our nation" (Lewis and Clark Bicentennial, 2002). Declaring 2003 through 2006 as the official Lewis and Clark bicentennial celebration, the proclamation championed the spirit of hard work for which the United States is renowned. This proclamation is only one indication of the significance the expedition continues to hold in defining the U.S. nation and its continuous presence in the American consciousness. At the most general level, the proclamation indicates the significance the Lewis and Clark expedition holds in the American consciousness about how the United States developed as a nation. Although

Research paper thumbnail of The Educational Promise of Public History Museum Exhibits

Theory and Research in Social Education, Apr 1, 2010

EJ885690 - The Educational Promise of Public History Museum Exhibits.

Research paper thumbnail of Public Pedagogy and the Museum: The Canadian Museum of Immigration at Pier 21, for Example

University of British Columbia Press eBooks, Mar 7, 2016

Research paper thumbnail of Playing into the Past

University of Michigan Press eBooks, Sep 28, 2018

Research paper thumbnail of Epilogue Part II

Research paper thumbnail of Raymond B. Blake and Matthew Hayday, eds., Celebrating Canada, Volume 2: Commemorations, Anniversaries, and National Symbols

Historical studies in education, Nov 18, 2019

"perhaps this was because the trend of women living longer than men was already well established"... more "perhaps this was because the trend of women living longer than men was already well established" or "it probably also had to do with the fact that women...were not generally seen to be productive" (137). Contextualization could provide a more substantial interpretation. Without any indication of whether menopause was being discussed in health literature of the time, the authors miss an opportunity to give a sense of the limits to women's health information. Perhaps these two discussions of menopause were the only discussions of the topic in any popular health literature, which would make the league innovative, however guardedly so. Be Wise! Be Healthy! presents an interesting look at the persistence of a specific view of health through much of the twentieth century. The history it examines connects to several major issues in health in the industrialized world, including sexually transmitted infections, nutritional campaigns, and early population health innovations such as fluoridation and national health insurance. The inability of the Health League of Canada to adapt to the times, and to escape entrenched ideas about health, can be taken beyond this single story and into further analyses of bias and black box thinking in ideas of public and individualized health. The morality in health exhortations needs more critical historical work and this book contributes to that emerging literature.

Research paper thumbnail of Critical Theory and History Education

Research paper thumbnail of Beyond Pedagogy

SensePublishers eBooks, 2014

professor of Education and Jewish Studies and former fellow at the Holocaust Memorial Museum in W... more professor of Education and Jewish Studies and former fellow at the Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, DC, recalls in Beyond Pedagogy: Reconsidering the Public Purpose of Museums how difficult it was to reach her working space: "You get [there] by walking through an almost-invisible passageway [near the gift shop]. The passage seems purposely obscured from the Museum's main entrance as though to suggest that the land of scholarship is meant only for the knowledgeable … "(p. 110). Schweber's anecdote neatly illustrates the traditional divide between public and academic history. She and other contributors to this collection, edited by Brenda Trofanenko and Avner Segall, question that disconnect and consider the shortcomings of the museum as a teaching institution. Though few authors offer practical methods to close the (perhaps growing) gap, their critical perspectives should nonetheless influence good practice for teachers, curriculum designers, curators, and public historians. In an introduction, Trofanenko and Segall establish their working assumption that pedagogy, the theory of education, no longer applies to the classroom alone. Educators and curators make conscious instructive decisions, thus museums should deliberately function as teaching spaces, an effort the editors package as "public pedagogy" (p. 3). The initial essays discuss changing the way teachers use museums and history more broadly. In the first piece, After the Critiques, Margaret Lindauer describes her experience teaching the predicament of curatorial authority to students at Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, Virginia. Students received largely positive feedback from visitors (and their instructor) by employing schools of museum theory that emphasize the educational role of museums. Christine Baron also considers the instruction of future teachers in her contribution, Historic Sites' Role in Teacher Education. She notes that while science teachers learn lab techniques as part of their training, history teachers receive no similar experience. However, Baron advises avoiding museum internships, given that their focus is not necessarily education. Mallory Allison Richard also cautions against relying on museums for public education in The Colonial Past as 'Usable History'. Richard acknowledges it is difficult to impart critical themes like colonialism in public spaces, but, as museums are widely-trusted institutions, chastises the Canadian Museum of History in Gatineau, Quebec, for minimizing Aboriginals' historical roles. In their joint essay, Encountering Pedagogy at the National Museum of the American Indian, Trofanenko and Segall similarly lament the portrayal of Indigenous peoples at that institution. No explicit

Research paper thumbnail of On Defense of the Nation

The social studies, Sep 1, 2005

Research paper thumbnail of Affective Emotions: The Pedagogical Challenges of Knowing War

Review of Education, Pedagogy, and Cultural Studies, 2014

Research paper thumbnail of Interrupting the gaze: on reconsidering authority in the museum

Journal of Curriculum Studies, Feb 1, 2006

Taylor and Francis Ltd TCUS103834.sgm 10.1080/00220270500038511 Journal of Curriculum Studies 000... more Taylor and Francis Ltd TCUS103834.sgm 10.1080/00220270500038511 Journal of Curriculum Studies 0000-0000 (print)/0000-0000 (online) Original Article 2005Taylor & Francis Group Ltd 0000002005 BrendaTrofanenko Department of Curriculum and InstructionUniversity of ...

Research paper thumbnail of Reconciling Colonization: Witnessing, Art, Indigeneity

Proceedings of the 2019 AERA Annual Meeting, 2019

Research paper thumbnail of Amy K. Levin. Defining Memory: Local Museums and the Construction of History in America's Changing Communities. Lanham, MD: AltaMira Press, 2007. 298 pp. Cloth <span class="katex"><span class="katex-mathml"><math xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML"><semantics><mrow><mn>75.00</mn><mo separator="true">,</mo><mi>p</mi><mi>a</mi><mi>p</mi><mi>e</mi><mi>r</mi></mrow><annotation encoding="application/x-tex">75.00, paper </annotation></semantics></math></span><span class="katex-html" aria-hidden="true"><span class="base"><span class="strut" style="height:0.8389em;vertical-align:-0.1944em;"></span><span class="mord">75.00</span><span class="mpunct">,</span><span class="mspace" style="margin-right:0.1667em;"></span><span class="mord mathnormal">p</span><span class="mord mathnormal">a</span><span class="mord mathnormal">p</span><span class="mord mathnormal" style="margin-right:0.02778em;">er</span></span></span></span>27.95

History of Education Quarterly, Aug 1, 2008

Research paper thumbnail of Displayed Objects, Indigenous Identities, and Public Pedagogy

Anthropology & Education Quarterly, Dec 1, 2006

In this article, I describe how one group of student examines indigenous identity formation as dy... more In this article, I describe how one group of student examines indigenous identity formation as dynamic and open to reinterpretation. Drawing on field observations and interviews with students in a 16-month ethnographic study, I examine how one group of students worked toward understanding how indigenous identity was determined by curatorial authority and historically defined museum practices. I argue that students can question the traditional pedagogical conceptions of indigenous culture that ought to be reconsidered within the public museum, and that working to historicize such conceptions makes more explicit student knowledge production of identity. [Indigenous, identity formation, pedagogy, public museums]

Research paper thumbnail of On difficult history displayed: the pedagogical challenges of interminable learning

Museum Management and Curatorship, Dec 1, 2011

The pedagogical purposes of public museums focus largely on the factual knowledge to be gained by... more The pedagogical purposes of public museums focus largely on the factual knowledge to be gained by attending an exhibit. What is often ignored are the affective and emotional responses prompted by the exhibit. The emotional response to difficult events may prompt youth to leave an exhibit with unintended, or interminable, knowing about the event itself. This article presents the results

Research paper thumbnail of An Absent Presence: The Curricular and Pedagogical Construction of Memory

Proceedings of the 2019 AERA Annual Meeting, 2019

Research paper thumbnail of Indigenizing and Reconciling Colonization, or, Witnessing Art and Indigeneity Off the Reserve

Proceedings of the 2019 AERA Annual Meeting, 2019

Research paper thumbnail of “We Tell Stories”: Oral History as a Pedagogical Encounter

This chapter argues the emotional implication of oral history and the educational considerations ... more This chapter argues the emotional implication of oral history and the educational considerations necessary to ensure youth involvement without issue. While there seems to be a growing utilization of oral history in public school history/social studies classrooms, they remain poorly understood by many educators who see the inclusion of such activities as a method to engage youth, prompt interest in history, and gain a knowledge base. This chapter further argues that it is essential for educators engaged in oral history projects to understand the broader emotional contexts of oral history. There is a need to recognize that there can be many motives behind oral history, that such engagement is sometimes taken primarily to achieve pedagogical goals, and that it can undermine rather than strengthen knowledge attainment. Such a reorientation is necessary to understand oral history as a complex cultural practice.

Research paper thumbnail of Images of History in Middle-Grade Social Studies Trade Books

Research paper thumbnail of Book Review: Review of the National Museum of African American History and Culture

The Journal of Social Studies Research, 2018

Research paper thumbnail of More Than a Single Best Narrative: Collective History and the Transformation of Historical Consciousness

Curriculum Inquiry, Dec 1, 2008

In establishing a collective history, past events are utilized to celebrate a nation's origins. W... more In establishing a collective history, past events are utilized to celebrate a nation's origins. While analysis of these events is often framed in knowing the single best narrative, the events themselves become of interest when examining how the interpretations remain the same or change over time. The recent bicentennial celebration of the Lewis and Clark expedition of 1804 offers an opportunity to examine such a change. This article investigates how students revealed a historical consciousness in realizing what purpose the expedition serves to a national identity. After analyzing conversations occurring among three eighth-grade students, this article explores the student responses to three interpretations, which bears important educational consequences and implications for the teaching and learning of history. In a presidential proclamation issued on June 28, 2002, President George W. Bush delivered a call to citizens of the United States, henceforth referred to as Americans, to "commend [the] resourcefulness, determination, and bravery" of Meriwether Lewis, William Clark and the members of the Corps of Discovery. Their involvement in what came to be known as the Lewis and Clark expedition, 1 he continued, set "courageous Americans on a remarkable voyage that changed our nation" (Lewis and Clark Bicentennial, 2002). Declaring 2003 through 2006 as the official Lewis and Clark bicentennial celebration, the proclamation championed the spirit of hard work for which the United States is renowned. This proclamation is only one indication of the significance the expedition continues to hold in defining the U.S. nation and its continuous presence in the American consciousness. At the most general level, the proclamation indicates the significance the Lewis and Clark expedition holds in the American consciousness about how the United States developed as a nation. Although

Research paper thumbnail of The Educational Promise of Public History Museum Exhibits

Theory and Research in Social Education, Apr 1, 2010

EJ885690 - The Educational Promise of Public History Museum Exhibits.

Research paper thumbnail of Public Pedagogy and the Museum: The Canadian Museum of Immigration at Pier 21, for Example

University of British Columbia Press eBooks, Mar 7, 2016

Research paper thumbnail of Playing into the Past

University of Michigan Press eBooks, Sep 28, 2018

Research paper thumbnail of Epilogue Part II

Research paper thumbnail of Raymond B. Blake and Matthew Hayday, eds., Celebrating Canada, Volume 2: Commemorations, Anniversaries, and National Symbols

Historical studies in education, Nov 18, 2019

"perhaps this was because the trend of women living longer than men was already well established"... more "perhaps this was because the trend of women living longer than men was already well established" or "it probably also had to do with the fact that women...were not generally seen to be productive" (137). Contextualization could provide a more substantial interpretation. Without any indication of whether menopause was being discussed in health literature of the time, the authors miss an opportunity to give a sense of the limits to women's health information. Perhaps these two discussions of menopause were the only discussions of the topic in any popular health literature, which would make the league innovative, however guardedly so. Be Wise! Be Healthy! presents an interesting look at the persistence of a specific view of health through much of the twentieth century. The history it examines connects to several major issues in health in the industrialized world, including sexually transmitted infections, nutritional campaigns, and early population health innovations such as fluoridation and national health insurance. The inability of the Health League of Canada to adapt to the times, and to escape entrenched ideas about health, can be taken beyond this single story and into further analyses of bias and black box thinking in ideas of public and individualized health. The morality in health exhortations needs more critical historical work and this book contributes to that emerging literature.

Research paper thumbnail of Critical Theory and History Education

Research paper thumbnail of Beyond Pedagogy

SensePublishers eBooks, 2014

professor of Education and Jewish Studies and former fellow at the Holocaust Memorial Museum in W... more professor of Education and Jewish Studies and former fellow at the Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, DC, recalls in Beyond Pedagogy: Reconsidering the Public Purpose of Museums how difficult it was to reach her working space: "You get [there] by walking through an almost-invisible passageway [near the gift shop]. The passage seems purposely obscured from the Museum's main entrance as though to suggest that the land of scholarship is meant only for the knowledgeable … "(p. 110). Schweber's anecdote neatly illustrates the traditional divide between public and academic history. She and other contributors to this collection, edited by Brenda Trofanenko and Avner Segall, question that disconnect and consider the shortcomings of the museum as a teaching institution. Though few authors offer practical methods to close the (perhaps growing) gap, their critical perspectives should nonetheless influence good practice for teachers, curriculum designers, curators, and public historians. In an introduction, Trofanenko and Segall establish their working assumption that pedagogy, the theory of education, no longer applies to the classroom alone. Educators and curators make conscious instructive decisions, thus museums should deliberately function as teaching spaces, an effort the editors package as "public pedagogy" (p. 3). The initial essays discuss changing the way teachers use museums and history more broadly. In the first piece, After the Critiques, Margaret Lindauer describes her experience teaching the predicament of curatorial authority to students at Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, Virginia. Students received largely positive feedback from visitors (and their instructor) by employing schools of museum theory that emphasize the educational role of museums. Christine Baron also considers the instruction of future teachers in her contribution, Historic Sites' Role in Teacher Education. She notes that while science teachers learn lab techniques as part of their training, history teachers receive no similar experience. However, Baron advises avoiding museum internships, given that their focus is not necessarily education. Mallory Allison Richard also cautions against relying on museums for public education in The Colonial Past as 'Usable History'. Richard acknowledges it is difficult to impart critical themes like colonialism in public spaces, but, as museums are widely-trusted institutions, chastises the Canadian Museum of History in Gatineau, Quebec, for minimizing Aboriginals' historical roles. In their joint essay, Encountering Pedagogy at the National Museum of the American Indian, Trofanenko and Segall similarly lament the portrayal of Indigenous peoples at that institution. No explicit

Research paper thumbnail of On Defense of the Nation

The social studies, Sep 1, 2005

Research paper thumbnail of Affective Emotions: The Pedagogical Challenges of Knowing War

Review of Education, Pedagogy, and Cultural Studies, 2014

Research paper thumbnail of Interrupting the gaze: on reconsidering authority in the museum

Journal of Curriculum Studies, Feb 1, 2006

Taylor and Francis Ltd TCUS103834.sgm 10.1080/00220270500038511 Journal of Curriculum Studies 000... more Taylor and Francis Ltd TCUS103834.sgm 10.1080/00220270500038511 Journal of Curriculum Studies 0000-0000 (print)/0000-0000 (online) Original Article 2005Taylor &amp; Francis Group Ltd 0000002005 BrendaTrofanenko Department of Curriculum and InstructionUniversity of ...

Research paper thumbnail of Reconciling Colonization: Witnessing, Art, Indigeneity

Proceedings of the 2019 AERA Annual Meeting, 2019

Research paper thumbnail of Amy K. Levin. Defining Memory: Local Museums and the Construction of History in America's Changing Communities. Lanham, MD: AltaMira Press, 2007. 298 pp. Cloth <span class="katex"><span class="katex-mathml"><math xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML"><semantics><mrow><mn>75.00</mn><mo separator="true">,</mo><mi>p</mi><mi>a</mi><mi>p</mi><mi>e</mi><mi>r</mi></mrow><annotation encoding="application/x-tex">75.00, paper </annotation></semantics></math></span><span class="katex-html" aria-hidden="true"><span class="base"><span class="strut" style="height:0.8389em;vertical-align:-0.1944em;"></span><span class="mord">75.00</span><span class="mpunct">,</span><span class="mspace" style="margin-right:0.1667em;"></span><span class="mord mathnormal">p</span><span class="mord mathnormal">a</span><span class="mord mathnormal">p</span><span class="mord mathnormal" style="margin-right:0.02778em;">er</span></span></span></span>27.95

History of Education Quarterly, Aug 1, 2008

Research paper thumbnail of Displayed Objects, Indigenous Identities, and Public Pedagogy

Anthropology & Education Quarterly, Dec 1, 2006

In this article, I describe how one group of student examines indigenous identity formation as dy... more In this article, I describe how one group of student examines indigenous identity formation as dynamic and open to reinterpretation. Drawing on field observations and interviews with students in a 16-month ethnographic study, I examine how one group of students worked toward understanding how indigenous identity was determined by curatorial authority and historically defined museum practices. I argue that students can question the traditional pedagogical conceptions of indigenous culture that ought to be reconsidered within the public museum, and that working to historicize such conceptions makes more explicit student knowledge production of identity. [Indigenous, identity formation, pedagogy, public museums]

Research paper thumbnail of On difficult history displayed: the pedagogical challenges of interminable learning

Museum Management and Curatorship, Dec 1, 2011

The pedagogical purposes of public museums focus largely on the factual knowledge to be gained by... more The pedagogical purposes of public museums focus largely on the factual knowledge to be gained by attending an exhibit. What is often ignored are the affective and emotional responses prompted by the exhibit. The emotional response to difficult events may prompt youth to leave an exhibit with unintended, or interminable, knowing about the event itself. This article presents the results

Research paper thumbnail of An Absent Presence: The Curricular and Pedagogical Construction of Memory

Proceedings of the 2019 AERA Annual Meeting, 2019

Research paper thumbnail of Indigenizing and Reconciling Colonization, or, Witnessing Art and Indigeneity Off the Reserve

Proceedings of the 2019 AERA Annual Meeting, 2019

Research paper thumbnail of “We Tell Stories”: Oral History as a Pedagogical Encounter

This chapter argues the emotional implication of oral history and the educational considerations ... more This chapter argues the emotional implication of oral history and the educational considerations necessary to ensure youth involvement without issue. While there seems to be a growing utilization of oral history in public school history/social studies classrooms, they remain poorly understood by many educators who see the inclusion of such activities as a method to engage youth, prompt interest in history, and gain a knowledge base. This chapter further argues that it is essential for educators engaged in oral history projects to understand the broader emotional contexts of oral history. There is a need to recognize that there can be many motives behind oral history, that such engagement is sometimes taken primarily to achieve pedagogical goals, and that it can undermine rather than strengthen knowledge attainment. Such a reorientation is necessary to understand oral history as a complex cultural practice.