Working on the Railroad

After viewing and discussing "The Transportation Revolution" lecture by Peter A. Coclanis, the students will read and respond creatively to brief descriptions of railroad workers and their job responsibilities.

A lesson plan for grades 11–12 Social Studies

By Benjamin Crawford

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Learning outcomes

Students will appreciate how the expansion and growth in the first half of the nineteenth century was made possible by a series of transportation and communications improvements.
Students will learn why the railroad was the most important transporation innovation of the early 19th century.
Students will creatively assume the role of different railroad workers.

Teacher planning

Time required for lesson

90 Minutes

Materials/resources

Students will view the lecture on “The Transporation Revolution” by Peter A. Coclanis. See attachment for script.
Students will need access to the interent in order to read the descriptions.

Technology resources

Television and VCR to broadcast taped lecture.
Computer with internet connection for each student.

Pre-activities

Students will watch the video lecture. The teacher should emphasize the following points from the lecture:
1. The role of transportation improvements and innovations in this period was so great as to lead some historians to say that a “Transportation Revolution” took place in America during the first half of the 19th century.
2. The railroad was the most important transportation innovation of the age.
3. The railroad, along with the other innovations discussed, broadened and tightened the U.S. market significantly in the period before 1860, allowing for much greater levels of individual and regional specialization, division of labor, and economic efficiency.

Activities

1. The class will watch “The Transportation Revolution” lecture and respond to discussion questions. See attachment for discussion questions.
2. Teacher will take students to the computer lab and direct them to the following URL:
http://www.railroadextra.com/workinon.Html
3. Teacher will instruct students to select and read through four or five links which describe railroad workers.
4. Students will select one worker of interest from their readings, create an identity for the worker, and develop a diary entry as if they were an individual working on the railroad.
5. Teacher will collect the creative writing assignment at the end of class.

Assessment

Teacher will grade student participation of the discussion questions as follows:

3: Student actively participates and contributes significant, well-reasoned ideas to the discussion.
2: Student participates, but offers opinions without support.
1: Student does not participate.

Teacher will score the submitted writing assignments with the following rubric:

3: Student answers every question thoroughly.
2: Student answers most questions with sufficient elaboration.
1: Student answers few questions with little elaboration.

Supplemental information

Teacher may wish to view the attached document about railroad websites. This document contains links to information about the early railroad on the internet.

Related websites

http://www.railroadextra.com/workinon.Html

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