Indiana Social Studies USH.2.3
The Standard
Analyze the development of “separate but equal” policies culminating in the Plessy v. Ferguson (1896) case. Explain the historical significance of the denial of African American rights through Jim Crow Laws and the effects of these policies.
2026 Indiana Academic Standards: K-12 Social Studies · Students are expected to trace and analyze chronological periods and examine the significant themes and concepts in U.S. History. Students develop historical thinking and research skills using primary and secondary sources to explore topical issues to understand the cause for changes in the nation over time.
Teacher's field guide
What This Standard Means
What Students Need to Do
- Students trace how segregation laws developed after Reconstruction and how the Supreme Court upheld them in 1896. They explain how Jim Crow laws restricted Black Americans’ rights and daily lives.
What Mastery Looks Like
- Students can place Louisiana’s railcar law before the Court ruling and explain that the ruling upheld segregation rather than creating it. They can use a source to describe a specific effect, such as restricted train travel or unequal schools.
Common Misconceptions
- Students may think the Court created segregation instead of upholding a law already in place. They may assume separate facilities had equal resources. Some think Jim Crow applied only to trains.
How to Assess It
- Ask students to put the end of Reconstruction, Louisiana’s 1890 railcar law, and the 1896 ruling in order. Then have them explain one effect of the ruling on Black Americans.
Lesson moves
Ways to Teach It
Give pairs cards for the end of Reconstruction, Louisiana’s railcar law, and the Court ruling; have them build a cause-and-effect timeline.
Give pairs excerpts from the Court majority and Harlan’s dissent; ask, “How does each view equal treatment for a Black train passenger?”
Run a law-or-ruling sort with cards reading “separate railcars required” and “railcar separation upheld”; have teams explain each choice.
Give students a mock 1890s Louisiana train ticket and the railcar rule; ask how segregation would affect a Black passenger’s trip.
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