An Evaluation Of The Preparation Of Home Economics Education Graduates To Teach Clothing Construcion Ie Construction In The Public Schools

Author : Cathy Una Maguire
Publisher :
ISBN 13 :
Total Pages : 146 pages
Book Rating : 4.:/5 (114 download)

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Download or read book Alexa! Sew My Button on written by Cathy Una Maguire and published by . This book was released on 2020 with total page 146 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In this thesis I will argue for the rebranding of home economics sewing, clothing, and textile subjects in the kindergarten through 12th grade public school curriculum. I will review the history of the field - the pioneers and their successors - as they grappled with a gendered ideology that, finally in the 1960s, spelled the demise of the field. Home economics was perceived by its pioneers as a means of enlarging educational and professional opportunities for women but by identifying the field fundamentally with white "housewives", its appeal began to seem very limited. To begin, this paper will elaborate on the recent scholarship and media interest and includes a synopsis of the main ideas behind the recently published books, and a selection of articles and reports that address the urgent need for teaching home economics now. Then, it will address the reasons why children will benefit from learning some of the skills that other generations took for granted. The paper will provide a bridge where contemporary scholars meet the "mother of home economics," Ellen Richards to find common ground. After that, it will examine the forerunners of the home economics movement to explicitly outline the respective influence that Sara J. Hale, Catharine Beecher, and various philanthropic organizations had on advocacy for domestic education. Next, this paper will establish the factors that went into the establishment of home economics in public schools and will then trace the development and history of sewing, clothing, and textiles in the public-school curriculum. The teaching procedures and the text books developed by key women such as Dulcie Godlove Donovan, Mary Schenck Woolman, and Mary Brooks Picken will be used to highlight the changing role of sewing in the curriculum. An explanation of the effects of second wave feminism will bring my research up to date and shows why sewing completely disappeared from the curriculum. Before suggesting building blocks to incentivize a new curriculum, by means of the spirit of reparation, this paper will briefly recognize a previously unacknowledged exemplary role model, Carrie A. Lyford, an African American home economist. Furthermore, this paper will submit how Sloyd, a Swedish educational system that was taught in the United States around the early nineteenth century, and interdisciplinary problem-based instruction, a contemporary teaching method, could be combined to engage a new engendered student body. By examining recent scholarship, primary source material, articles, textbooks, sewing examples, clothing samples, textile examples, design and artwork, this thesis will endeavor to understand what benefits children could gain from new curricula. I will argue for the development of a new curriculum that allows students to think through ideas about gender, race, and the critical issue of material resources sustainability. I will use the subjects of sewing, clothing, and textiles to examine whether creating a revamped curriculum that teaches students to wardrobe plan, sew, make and repair clothing, and other soft goods could be useful and if not, then propose something more contemporary. By rebranding the skill set and by adapting the curriculum to contemporary needs and concerns, home economics can again become a vital component of K-12 public school education.