Exploring American Studies With PolyEnriched

When Laura Marion and Kristen Osborne-Bartucca joined forces to teach PolyEnriched American Studies, each only knew the other in passing. Kristen called the pairing “a blind date for teachers that worked out beautifully.”

The course is a rigorous honors-level seminar, considered more challenging than the A.P. curriculum, that blends American history and literature with college-level discussion that is not constrained by a standardized test.

“We are so intellectually invested in each other’s material and doing it at the same time, not just side by side,” said Kristen. “We respect each other’s intellect and curiosity. It’s easy to be excited about the other’s class.”

The class allows for free-form discussion, guided by student input and interest. At the start of the school year, students brainstormed 30 topics they wanted to discuss throughout the course including education, healthcare, mass incarceration, LGBTQ+ issues, and the political divide, all creating jumping-off points for major course themes. The first unit was about land and environment with lots of Ralph Waldo Emerson and tangible ties to Poly’s Outdoor Ed program.

One of the class’s hallmark units is the City Project, which allows students to delve into civic level discourse versus federal, thus learning about America as a whole. Kristen used her scholarly interest in New Orleans to investigate the failure of Hurricane Katrina’s government response as a model to explore art, literature, and governance. Students will pick out other cities to explore, perhaps including Tusla and examining the events leading up to the destruction of Black Wall Street.

“By understanding one city in more depth, we can see how government is mimicked in cities across America,” said Laura. Despite the sometimes polarizing topics in the class, Laura and Kristen note that there is respect for differing opinions in the room.

The duo also comments they are a good pair in the sense that Laura is more spontaneous and free-form while Kristen is more rigid to her materials. Their go-with-the-flow style of honoring student interest has created an organic teaching method that students enjoy.

 

“For me, the most appealing thing about the class is exploration,” said Sammie Y. ’23. “American Studies made it possible to dissect and analyze the most fundamental issues of our country's history. The possibility of discussing something like human nature with classmates for hours is something I had always wanted to do but never got the chance to do until this class.”

Students share that they love the thematic approach to the class, modeling more “community discussion” than a teacher-student dynamic. PolyEnriched American Studies is two back-to-back blocks allowing for greater closeness among the class.

“I’m grateful that Poly let us propose the class and gave us autonomy with the curriculum,” said Kristen. “The Enriched program is really special at Poly.”