In your own words, how does too much emphasis on American exceptionalism hinder our understanding of American history?
Sounds like the teacher has already made up his/her mind that American exceptionalism has hindered our understanding of American history.
I told me daughter to say that we don't have enough emphasis on American exceptionalism.
The schools, K through post graduate I assume, need to be ridden of all these liberal Marxists.
Answer: Our American history is by definition American exceptionalism. No other nation fought and lost so much to gain so much more, eventually becoming a beacon of light for the entire world. It was not perfect and it was not easy, but it moved, not just our nation forward, but our entire civilization, species and planet. Looking at this any other way is call revisionist history, not American history.