Educational Methods Commons^™

Voices Of Cooperating Teachers And Preservice Teachers: Implications For Elementary Social Studies Education, Mary Beth Henning, Eiu-Kyung Shin

The Councilor: A National Journal of the Social Studies

Examining the current beliefs and practices of elementary social studies teachers and preservice teachers suggests that there are similarities and differences between how they perceive their roles as curricular-instructional gatekeepers (Thornton, 1991). Using both survey data and focus groups, cooperating teachers describe their contemporary elementary social studies teaching practices as a blend of stand-alone activities and integrated instruction. Elementary teachers recommend more hands-on activities and literacy development strategies be taught in social studies methods classes. Preservice teachers also reported their preferred teaching practices and rationales in social studies, showing some significant differences from cooperating teachers.

Boosting Chicago: Bird’S-­‐Eye Views As Maps Of Progress, Mark Newman

The Councilor: A National Journal of the Social Studies

Boosting Chicago explores the nature of bird's-eye views, the public face of Chicago views depicted between 1857 and 1916, and offers ideas on using these unique documents in the classroom. Bird's-eye views were popular lithographs of urban communities in the nineteenth and early twentieth century. Subjective and incomplete documents, they were artifacts of civic pride. Though little studied by scholars or used by teachers, they offer unique windows into the perceptions of residents regarding their community. Boosting Chicago suggests that views of this city consistently pictured it as a bustling, growing metropolis that acted as a hub and tied its …

Using Historical Court Cases To Explore Prohibition, Kristina Maldre

The Councilor: A National Journal of the Social Studies

The intrigue of prohibition tales and the intricacy of court records present a unique opportunity for classroom use. Integrating historic court records into your social studies curriculum can help strengthen students’ literacy skill set and build historical understanding of social tensions and cultural conflicts of the 1920s.

Rethinking The Social In Social Studies, Jeffrey Manuel

The Councilor: A National Journal of the Social Studies

This article reviews new approaches in history, social sciences, and science studies that suggest a rethinking of the social. The article begins by situating the social within a long history of social thinking throughout the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. It then examines how these new critical approaches to the social offer useful insights into current intellectual problems in the social studies curriculum.

Review Of "Why School?: Reclaiming Education For All Of Us", Susan Breck

The Councilor: A National Journal of the Social Studies

No abstract provided.

Review Of "Cahokia: Ancient America's Great City On The Mississippi", Rowena Mcclinton

The Councilor: A National Journal of the Social Studies

No abstract provided.

Teaching Students To Challenge The Status Quo: Recognizing Oppression In African Film, Roberta Di Carmine

The Councilor: A National Journal of the Social Studies

The purpose of this paper is twofold: to share experiences and strategies about teaching race and oppression with African films and promote the use of non-Western films in the classroom. By referring to bell hooks' and Richard Dyer's works, the paper discusses how teachers have a responsibility to create a learning environment in which students learn to be open minded and to challenge the status quo.

African films offer an opportunity to achieve this goal. Films such as Black Girl demand students’ attention but also require in-depth discussions if we want to raise students’ awareness of films as political weapons …

Ten Illinois Oral History Projects Waiting To Be Assigned, Lindon Ratliff

The Councilor: A National Journal of the Social Studies

The article presents ten oral history projects which could be taught by a high school social studies teacher in Illinois. The author discusses the importance of oral histories as well as teaching strategies which can be used.

Review Of "The Making Of Americans: Democracy And Our Schools", Lauren Seghi

The Councilor: A National Journal of the Social Studies

This is a review of education advocate, E.D. Hirsch, Jr's latest book, The Making of Americans: Democracy and our Schools. It provides an analysis of his thesis and content (ie. sources) with a look at each individual chapter. In addition, I provide both praise and criticism for the work and suggest who might benefit from reading this book.

Review Of "Catching Fire: How Cooking Made Us Human", Jennifer Rehg

The Councilor: A National Journal of the Social Studies

No abstract provided.

Grooming Tomorrow’S Advocates: Preparing Elementary Social Studies Teachers Today, Rachel Finley-Bowman

The Councilor: A National Journal of the Social Studies

The effects of No Child Left Behind (NCLB) upon teaching and learning social studies at the elementary level are already well known. In light of the discipline’s increasing marginalization in the schools, the methods used to prepare elementary educators for teaching social studies and developing professional advocacy must be reexamined. This article, with reference to relevant scholarship, discusses eight key strategies to promote more effective teacher preparation, including a pledge of advocacy, meaningful pedagogy, pre-service professional development, knowledge of curriculum standards, content expertise, curriculum integration, significant field experience before student teaching, and reevaluation of NCLB.

Power, Politics And Pedagogy: Teaching About Law As A Structure Of Inequality, Matthew Petrocelli, Erin Heil, Trish Oberweis

The Councilor: A National Journal of the Social Studies

The purpose of this article is to explore ways to integrate into the classroom the Marxist perspective of law. The paper discusses ways to apply the tenets of Marxism to areas of contemporary social debate; namely, the economic, racial, and gender inequalities of the American legal system and the institution of university speech codes for the purpose of exploring these issues in the classroom, particularly with regard to legal apparatuses as tools of oppression.

Review Of "Education And The Cold War: The Battle For The American School", Mary Lopez

The Councilor: A National Journal of the Social Studies

No abstract provided.

Differing Voices: Stories Of The Holocaust From Various Perspectives A Lesson Plan And Personal Memorial, Lauren Seghi

The Councilor: A National Journal of the Social Studies

This lesson provides students with the opportunity to analyze varying perspectives of the Holocaust. The students will come to understand that the racism and discrimination of the Nazis extended past the Jewish population during the Holocaust. In fact, they will learn that it affected groups such as Polish Catholics, prisoners of war, and the handicapped as well. This will be done by the analysis of photographs, maps and graphs as well as the students' reading and discussion of Holocaust memoirs written by three separate individuals with different.

Review Of "The Magna Carta Manifesto: Liberty And Commons For All", James Sabathne

The Councilor: A National Journal of the Social Studies

No abstract provided.

Review Of "The Long Pursuit: Abraham Lincoln's Thirty-Year Struggle With Stephen Douglas For The Heart And Soul Of America", Jon Parkin

The Councilor: A National Journal of the Social Studies

No abstract provided.

Review Of "On Deep History And The Brain", James Sabathne

The Councilor: A National Journal of the Social Studies

No abstract provided.

A Virtual Tour Of Shiloh, Lindon Ratliff

The Councilor: A National Journal of the Social Studies

In this article the author discusses a virtual field trip lesson created to assist his high school history students. By using pictures, videos hosted via youtube, and actual battlefield artifacts, the teacher was allowed to better explore the history surrounding the Civil War battle.

Learning With Lincoln: A Teacher Institute Highlighting Abraham Lincoln, Amy Wilkinson

The Councilor: A National Journal of the Social Studies

Southern Illinois University Edwardsville (SIUE) is one of many educational consortiums that house a national grant program, The Library of Congress Teaching with Primary Sources (TPS), formerly Adventure of the American Mind. The SIUE TPS program began serving K-12 educators in 2002 by offering various professional development opportunities to promote the use of digital primary source collections found at the Library of Congress Web site. This article will offer information and resources about a professional development initiative which highlights President Abraham Lincoln using the digital collections found at the Library of Congress Web site.

The Enemy Within (The Ivory Tower): How Conservatives Came To Despise The Academy, Andrew Hartman

The Councilor: A National Journal of the Social Studies

This article gives historical perspective to the recent phenomenon of conservative opposition to the academic liberal arts, demonstrating how anti-relativism shifted from an elitist position to a conservative-populist one.

The Transnational Turn And Trickle Down Disturbances, Tim Lacy

The Councilor: A National Journal of the Social Studies

This is an extended review/review essay of *America on the World Stage*. It begins by briefly analyzing the historiography and theoretical background of the "Transnational Turn." The piece then moves to the book, providing the nuts and bolts, positives, and negatives. I conclude with some larger philosophical issues and suggestions for improvement.

How Can We Teach “Western Civilization” If It Doesn’T Exist? Rethinking The European History Survey Model, Jennifer Miller

The Councilor: A National Journal of the Social Studies

Teaching "Western Civilization" survey courses presents a dilemma to teachers and scholars who find themselves teaching with models, categories, and narratives that they would not only not use in their research, but also actively counter with their research. This article proposes that bringing our research into the classroom means fundamentally rethinking how we teach survey courses, from their conceptualization to the sources used.

Social Studies/History Curricula In Ghana, Razak Dwomoh

2018 Awards for Excellence in Student Research and Creative Activity – Documents

Abstract

This research will examine how social studies developed within the curricula within Ghana. I will report this in USA and juxtapose with Ghana and other post-colonial African countries. The study assesses the quantity of the content of history as it is merged with social studies curricula, its implications on students, economy, and educational sectors in Ghana. It is noted that majority of students at tertiary levels in Ghana would find it difficult to give detail information about Ghana’s history and Ghana’s historical place in the world when probed. Six post-colonial African countries’ social studies/history curricula are examined on the …

Student And Instructor Attitudes Toward 21st Century Writing Technologies In The Rural Secondary English Classroom, Casey Crowhurst

Masters Theses

This thesis focuses on how students and teachers feel about the current use of technologies like Chromebooks and laptops in the rural secondary English classroom. Chapter one describes my personal journey as a student and educator using various technologies in the classroom, and how I came upon the idea for this study while observing one of the first high schools to implement full 1:1 Chromebook technology in the United States. Then, I discuss my review of the current literature on the subject, and find that there is a lack of knowledge about the emergence of these types of technologies, and …

The Curriculum Development Of Experienced Teachers Who Are Inexperienced With History-Based Pedagogy, John Bickford

Faculty Research and Creative Activity

Contemporary American education initiatives mandate half of all English language arts content is non-fiction. History topics, therefore, will increase within all elementary and English language arts middle level classrooms. The education initiatives have rigorous expectations for students’ close readings of, and written argumentation about, numerous texts representing multiple perspectives about the same historical event, era, or figure. Practicing English language arts teachers must adjust pedagogy accordingly. They cannot utilize a single, whole-class novel with comprehension questions as an assessment. With teaching experience but not formal training in history-based pedagogy, they are adaptive experts. This qualitative study explores how English language …

An Examination Into The Instruction Of The Alphabet During Preschool Years, Amanda Titus

Masters Theses

Instruction of the letters of the alphabet is a controversial topic among early childhood educators. Not only is it debated whether letter instruction is developmentally appropriate but there is then the discussion concerning how the letters are best taught once a program deems it is developmentally appropriate. In this study, 87 children were assessed at two separate times during the school year to determine a method of instruction that proved most effective. The study took place over three consecutive school years. The first year, 27 students were exposed to alphabetic instruction through a combination of music and mnemonic device assisted …

Examining The Effects Of Student-Centered, Project Based Teaching On Students With And Without Special Needs In An Elementary General Music Classroom, Charity J. Ozier

Masters Theses

The purpose of this action research is to study the effects of student-centered learning as compared to teacher-led instruction in an elementary general music classroom. This research study is framed by the conjunction of the lenses of sociology, specifically constructivism, in a music classroom with special learners. Students in fifth and sixth grade general music classes study the musical concepts of composition and reading notation in one of two manners. One group of students is instructed in a traditional format of teacher-led lectures and discussions, with guided practice following. The other group is instructed using a student-centered approach, in which …

Evaluating Student Responses To Young Adult Literature Based On Group Dynamic Within The Literature Circle Setting, Abigail J. Schmitz

Masters Theses

The push of the Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) standards encourages teachers to assist students with overcoming personal obstacles in the classroom. In the middle grades, young adult literature can be an outlet for students by allowing them to connect with characters similar to themselves and their life experiences. Within the middle level classroom, literature circles can address SEL needs and state standards while allowing students to work closely with their peers sharing in a discussion format in response to the same young adult novel. This research analyzed two groups of students and their oral and written responses to the …

Dynamic Online Discussions That Work, Lauri Deruiter-Willems, Kathleen Phillips

Faculty Research and Creative Activity

Tired of short, insignificant discussion posts? We will share our tips and suggestions for developing meaningful interactions between your students in online discussion boards in lower and upper division courses. Our system allows for active learning through instructor-led or student-led conversations by incorporating procedures to ensure that dialogue is related to the course content, empowers students to engage in critical thinking and persuasive writing, and also provides a manageable system of evaluation for instructors.

Evoking Students’ Curiosity And Complicating Their Historical Thinking Through Manageable, Engaging Confusion, John Bickford, Molly Bickford

Faculty Research and Creative Activity

STATE AND NATIONAL educational initiatives have increasedexpectations for students’ historical thinking and civic involvement. 1Guidance for relevant, purposeful classroom experiences with ageappropriate, rigorous content has never been clearer, 2 yet teachersstill feel unprepared.3 Towards these ends, we direct attention to theantecedent of discovery: confusion. Confusion sparks the motivationto explore and solve mysteries. Manageable, engaging mysteriesprovide students the space and incentive to explore for answers theyknow are discoverable. Teachers can position students to identifythe enigma as they scrutinize the documents; educators shouldrecognize, and ease, students’ emergent frustration with clues. UsingLev Vygotsky’s zone o f proximal development as a guide,4 educatorsshould provide …