Nathan Brandsma

Student Teaching
Unit Topic and Rationale
The unit covers the enlightenment and the French Revolution. Within the enlightenment
portion of the unit, students will learn about the philosophes and philosophers of the
enlightenment, and their ideas about human nature, government and society. The ideas of the
social contract, rights, liberty and democracy will be emphasized. The French revolution follows
the enlightenment, both chronologically and influentially and will cover the various stages of the
revolution, from the Ancien Regime, through the Estates-General, the Storming of the Bastille,
the Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen, The revolutionary wars, The Reign of Terror,
and the rise and fall of Napoleon.
This unit covers many of the Colorado history content standards. Regarding Standard one
b, students will gather and analyze historical information to support or reject hypotheses by
researching and presenting on enlightenment thinkers and researching the rise and fall of
Napoleon. For standard one c, students will construct and defend a written historical argument
using relevant primary and secondary sources by looking at sources regarding the reign of terror
and constructing an argument on whether the reign of terror was justified to maintain the
revolution.
For Standard two b, students will investigate the causes and effects of significant events
in world history by looking at the causes of both the enlightenment as well as the French
revolution, and how one relates to the other. They will also look at the effects of the
enlightenment and French Revolution both in the short and long term, including today and our
thinking and democracy is influenced by these events. For standard Two c, students will analyze
the complexity of events by writing arguments for and against killing the king and debating the
subject, as well as looking at the reign of terror and determining why it happened and whether it
was justified in the context of the time and circumstances.
Standard three a mentions the enlightenment specifically, as it asks students to be able to
discuss the historical development and impact of major world religions and philosophies,
including the enlightenment. Students traced not only the development of the enlightenment, but
also its impact, especially on the French and American Revolutions. Standard three c is also
addressed in the unit. The standard asks students to evaluate the development and impact of
political thought theory and actions, which they will do by looking at the enlightenment thinkers
and their influence on political thought and theory, as well as the different stages of the French
revolution and how the actions of political actors in that revolution has affected our outlook
today.

The unit fits in the curricular sequence following the scientific revolution and absolute
monarchies. The unit precedes the study of the industrial revolution. The unit gives students
grounding in the development of political theory as well as in understanding of political action.
The enlightenment and the French revolution are both critically important in the development of
democracy not only in France, but throughout the world. The ideas and actins of these two
developments are with us today, not only in America, but on a global scale. Revolutions around
the globe have been influenced by both the ideas of the enlightenment as well as the actions of
the French revolutionaries.
The topics in this unit are of particular importance for me, as I see the enlightenment as
foundational for notions not only of democracy, but of effective governance as well. I want
students not only to know about the different philosophers, but to grapple with the ideas that
these thinkers explored. I also think that the French Revolution is crucial to examine, for while
the ideas behind the revolution were similar to the American Revolution, the outcome and results
were much different. It is important to examine what values are most important when governing.
As the students at Fossil Ridge are living in the United States, they have a compelling
interest in knowing about the enlightenment, which deeply influenced the founding of this
country and its democratic institutions. Additionally, the questions the enlightenment
philosophers sought to answer are questions that any student can think about. For example,
whether human nature is moral or selfish, what government is supposed to do, and whether
humanity can make progress. Students should also learn about the potential consequences of
revolutions through their examinations of the French revolution. Students will be tasked with the
responsibility of voting at all levels of American democracy, if not actually becoming political
actors themselves. Knowing about how political change takes place, and the potential pitfalls that
can occur is crucially important for all members of a democratic society to be aware of.