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TEACHER'S GUIDE: The Groveland Case

TEACHER'S GUIDE: The Groveland Case

This lesson focuses on two main ideas:

 

  • Violence (or threats of violence) infringed on the civil liberties of African Americans.
  • The Groveland case is an example of the many challenges African Americans faced in the criminal justice system.

 

 

Engaging Students with Sensitive Content

This lesson starter contains very difficult topics, such as accusations of assault, lynching and racial violence. It is recommended that educators review the film clip in advance to determine if the material is appropriate for their students. The media may contain sensitive content, including derogatory language or visual material that could evoke strong emotional reactions in students. 

 

These topics, while painful, can provide important opportunities to strengthen critical thinking skills, recognize prejudice and discrimination, build historical empathy, and consider multiple diverse perspectives.

 

PROCEDURE

Introduction (15 minutes)

  1. To connect to prior learning, teachers may ask students to recall how the convict leasing system negatively impacted African Americans. Teachers will want to connect the criminalization of Black behavior after Reconstruction to the higher rates of incarceration that developed during this time.
  2. Explain that students will be learning about the case of four young men accused of sexual assault in Florida in 1949. Tell students this event is known as the Groveland case. Play the video clip. 
  3. As a class, discuss the lesson’s essential questions and thinking questions. This could be done via a whole-group discussion or using a think-pair-share format.

Extension (30 - 120 minutes)

Complete the supplemental extension activities with students, as you see fit.

Summative Assessment (30 minutes)

Have students apply their newfound knowledge by using the Claim, Evidence, Reasoning (CER) framework to analyze the lesson and support their responses using evidence from the video and activity resources. 

 

  • Option 1: Develop a claim about how the rights of the Groveland defendants were either upheld, violated, or both. Use evidence from the video and lesson activity resources to support your claim, and explain how this evidence shows the extent to which justice was or was not served.

 

  • Option 2: Develop a claim explaining how the Groveland case fits into a broader historical context of the use of violence and intimidation against Black citizens.

 

 

Summative CER Rubric

Use the provided rubric to evaluate students’ work.

 

No Response

Score Point 0

Not There Yet

Score Point 0.5

Beginning To

Score Point 0.75

Yes

Score Point 1.0

The claim is missing.The claim is incorrect or irrelevant.The claim partially takes a position on the topic or issue addressed within the prompt.The claim takes an appropriate position on the topic or issue addressed within the prompt.
There is no type of evidence in the response.The evidence is irrelevant or does not support the claim.The evidence partially supports the claim and demonstrates some understanding of the topic or text, using appropriate sources.The evidence supports the claim and demonstrates a strong understanding of the topic or text, using appropriate sources.
There is no use of words, phrases, and clauses to create cohesion and to clarify the relationship between the claim and evidence.Use of words, phrases, and clauses fails to show or explain any relationship between the claim and evidence.Scientific words, phrases, and clauses used lack cohesion but partially clarify the relationship between the claim and evidence.Appropriate scientific words, phrases, and clauses are used to create cohesion and to clarify the relationship between the claim and evidence.

Reflection (10 minutes)

Have students complete a reflection in response to the following prompts:

  • Why did Marshall and the NAACP’s Legal Defense Fund get involved in the Groveland case?
  • Why is it important to learn about the Groveland case?

STANDARDS

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

Reference

Becoming Thurgood: America’s Social Architect

A film clip from Becoming Thurgood: America’s Social Architect was used in this lesson. Continue to watch the full documentary to hear Thurgood Marshall tell his own story through a rare eight-hour oral history that serves as the documentary’s foundation.

 

Resources