Teaching Trump: Critical Issues in History and Civics Education

This book makes the case for teaching and engaging with the Trump presidency as US political history.

Asking questions about how and when Trump’s presidency should be studied posits that history teachers must engage with this history now. The author points to the events that the January 6th Commission called a “stain on our history” and makes the argument that these events, if ignored, could stain the idea of history itself, shrouding it in a mythical haze and relegating history teachers to merely marginalized storytellers. As such, it offers ideas on engaging students with the facts and sources of the Trump presidency and placing Trump in the larger context of American political history. It specifically centers the notion of “historical thinking” as a guiding principle for the teaching of history and the study of the Trump presidency in particular.

This book bridges the gap between the controversial events and rhetoric of Donald Trump’s first administration and the importance of contextualizing his presidency in the history classroom. It will appeal to educators, scholars, and researchers with interests in history education and teaching, those interested in civic education and social studies, as well as anyone interested in the future of teaching history and civics.

Fritz Fischer is Professor of History and History Education at the University of Northern Colorado, USA, and Chair of the Board of Distinguished Scholars of the National Council for History Education.