Social Studies

 

There are many commonalties that mark successful teaching in Social Studies courses. Competencies for success include:

A. Student Competencies -

• Students must be exposed to the political, social, economic, diplomatic, intellectual, and cultural history through the development of effective lessons that enhance the students' critical thinking, writing and reading skills.

• Students need to write frequently. Students can be assigned a writing assignment at the beginning of a unit, at the end, or simultaneously for the reinforcement and enrichment of the information learned. For example, writing can in the form of journals, analytical and research papers, essays, or editorials. Students should justify and support all writing assignments.

• Students should be encouraged to write to express an opinion, plead for a cause, or for publication. Students should write to public officials, editorials for newspapers, and submit articles for publication in local school or professional journals that publish student articles, e.g., The Concord Review and the Organization of American Historians.

• Students must be allowed to do independent research, using the library, Internet, interviews, periodicals, government publications, The National Archives, and other such research sources or manuals. Students should be required to provide a bibliography, citing all sources and giving credit for phrases and ideas used.

• Students must be exposed to a variety of experiences and opportunities; such as, field trips to museums, memorials, organizations and businesses, county, state, and national government offices, and conventions of professional associations (teachers, doctors, lawyers, dentist, historians, etc.).

• Guest speakers need to be embedded with the unit of study. The use of guest speakers allows students to hone their interview and communication skills, along with hearing from an "expert" within his/her field.

• Students should be reading complete novels and short stories pertaining to the course of study.

• Students must be allowed to analyze primary source documents,

• documentary material, political cartoons, and interpret maps, tables, charts and pictorial and graphic evidence on a continues basis.

• Students should be debating and learning opposing sides to an argument, along with different perspectives and points of view.

• Students should be familiar with and comfortable using all types of technology for use with their projects and presentations.

B. Teacher Competencies -

• Teachers need to develop a timeline for their courses well in advance to the beginning of the school year and follow the timeline. This would require long-range planning, preparation and pacing on the part of the teachers.

• Teachers will need time to consult with students and read and score students' written assignments.

• Teachers must continuously increase their professional growth through graduate classes, lecture series, travel, professional conventions, and personal reading.

• Teachers must keep abreast of the latest materials (core and supplementary) and approaches to teaching for their particular courses.

• Teachers must subscribe to scholarly periodicals such as, American Historical Review, The History Teacher, Journal of African American History, Journal of Economic History, Presidential Studies Quarterly, and Journal of Women's History. Both teachers and students should keep these journals in the classroom for reference use.

• Teachers should also be reading complete narratives. Such readings include Common Sense by Tom Paine; Narrative of the Life of Frederick DougIass by Frederick Douglass; Killer Angels by Michael Shaara; The Jungle by Upton Sinclair; Elizabeth Cady Stanton by Lois Banner; and John F. Kennedy and a New Generation by David Burner.

• An in class library reference section is essential for regular use by the teacher and students. It should include textbooks, encyclopedias, atlases, collections of historical documents, statistical abstracts, novels, short stories, scholarly periodicals and other works.

• Classrooms should be equipped with the latest technology and audiovisuals aids: computers, laser disc players, televisions, VCRs, slide projectors, etc.

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