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Titanic

Podcast Notes (from TechTalk4Teachers)

March 31, 2012

Episode 130 TechTalk4Teachers

NOTES: INTRO
In April 2012, one hundred years will have passed since the sinking of the Titanic.  According to information presented in Today in History for April 14 

"the R.M.S. Titanic struck an iceberg off the coast of Newfoundland and sank to the bottom of the sea at about 2:20 a.m. the next morning, taking the lives of more than 1,500 people.
The Titanic was on its maiden voyage from Southampton to New York when the tragedy occurred. A later investigation showed that the ship had failed to follow all safety procedures. Besides traveling through dangerous waters at high speed (after receiving repeated warnings concerning the presence of icebergs), the Titanic also had aboard an insufficient number of lifeboats for the passengers and crew."

Below you will find links to resources available at the Library of Congress website that you may want to adapt for your classroom.

Web Guide for Researching the Wreck of the RMS Titanic  (Compiled by Mark Hall, Library of Congress Digital Reference Specialist)

Lesson Plan:  
The Titanic: Shifting Responses to Its Sinking
Overview:  In 1912, popular media headlined the sinking of the world’s largest luxury passenger ocean liner while on its maiden voyage. Newspapers captivated the world’s attention with stories from survivors and about victims who did not survive. Students will examine responses to the disaster and evaluate bias and different ways information is presented, and then apply what they learn to interpreting a political cartoon about the sinking of the Titanic.

From the "Unsinkable" to the Unthinkable: Analyzing Historic News Coverage of the Titanic
Students activate their background knowledge of the Titanic disaster before analyzing the front page of The New York Evening World newspaper’s April 15, 1912 final edition. Using this historic newspaper’s subsequent front page coverage of the tragedy, students consider, “Which is more important to the Evening World in 1912: selling newspapers or reporting accurate information?” They discuss their findings and the historical context before writing letters to the editor from a reader’s perspective in 1912 to explain why they would or would not continue to buy the Evening World based on its Titanic front page coverage. 

Examples of Primary Sources

New York Herald
New York Herald,
April 15, 1912



 

Lifeboat from Titanic is lifted aboard rescue vessel Carpathia

Lifeboat from Titanic is lifted aboard rescue vessel Carpathia

 

 

[The Titanic sailing in ocean]

[The Titanic sailing in ocean]

 

 

One of the Titanic lifeboats as seen from a rescuing liner

One of the Titanic lifeboats as seen from a rescuing liner

 

 

[Crowd gathered in front of the White Star liner office in New York's lower Broadway to get the latest news of the sinking of the liner Titanic on April 14, 1912]

[Crowd gathered in front of the White Star liner office in New York's lower Broadway to get the latest news of the sinking of the liner Titanic on April 14, 1912]

 

The veranda cafe and palm court of the Titanic

The veranda cafe and palm court of the Titanic

 

 

Main dining room on the salon deck of the Titanic

[Main dining room on the salon deck of the Titanic]

 

 

 

 

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Contact Information

Teaching with Primary Sources
Eastern Illinois University
600 Lincoln Ave.
Charleston, IL 61920
217-581-7857

Director: Cindy Rich, Ph.D.  


 

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