South Carolina History Day Teacher selected for national program
October 21, 2015
MYRTLE BEACH, SC – Ine Marion Touzel is one of 18 middle and high school educators selected by National History Day (NHD) to participate in Understanding Sacrifice, a highly competitive, year-long professional development program sponsored by the American Battle Monuments Commission (ABMC). During this program educators learn about America’s involvement during World War II in the Mediterranean region. To drive home a deeper understanding of the personal sacrifice experienced at the front lines, each teacher will select one American service member who is buried or memorialized at an ABMC cemetery in southern Europe or North Africa.
Participants then spend a year conducting in-depth research on the life of this fallen hero using both local and archival historical resources. Throughout the program, teachers attend lectures, study historical books about the conflict, and collaborate with staff at National History Day to begin forming ideas for lesson plans from their experience. The program pays for European travel, supplies, courses, and much more. Teachers are only responsible for travel to and from Washington, D.C., passport fees, and any personal expenses.
Mrs. Touzel has a deep connection to World War II. She grew up listening to her father tell stories of the war and of being a prisoner of the Japanese. His brother, her uncle, did not survive the experience. As a result of these stories she maintains a strong interest in World War II history and those Americans who made the ultimate sacrifice. As an instructor she encourages her students to find answers for themselves. In her application she writes, “I believe we as teachers have a duty to teach independence, to equip students with the knowledge that it is not the knowing of answers, but the process of finding answers that is important.” Through this program, Touzel will have the opportunity to live out her philosophy as she works to uncover the story of a forgotten hero from World War II and brings her experience back to her South Carolina classroom.
Each participant presents a eulogy at the grave or memorial of a service member from their home state. Upon returning home, the teachers use their research and experience to create a lesson plan to reinvigorate World War II education in American classrooms. The created lesson plans will be made available to teachers worldwide through a website created by the Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media at George Mason University.
“National History Day wants students to connect with the past and one of the primary points of contact with students is their teachers,” said NHD Executive Director Dr. Cathy Gorn. “Through this program Mrs. Touzel can practice her research skills in such a way that not only uncovers the story of a forgotten hero, but also provides her a basis for helping her students understand the sacrifice of World War II.”
The lesson plans teachers develop will make use of the extensive educational and interpretive materials of the ABMC. The plans will also comply with Common Core Standards and will be free to access online at ABMCeducation.org.
NHD is a non-profit education organization in College Park, MD. Established in 1974, NHD offers year-long academic programs that engage over half a million middle- and high-school students around the world annually in conducting original research on historical topics of interest. These research-based projects are entered into contests at the local and affiliate levels, where the top student projects have the opportunity to advance to the National Contest at the University of Maryland at College Park. NHD also seeks to improve the quality of history education by providing professional development opportunities and curriculum materials for educators. NHD is sponsored in part by Kenneth E. Behring, Patricia Behring, HISTORY®, Jostens, the National Endowment for the Humanities, the National Park Service, Southwest Airlines, the Joe Weider Foundation, and the WEM 2000 Foundation of the Dorsey & Whitney Foundation. For more information, visit nhd.org.
