Social Studies: Beyond the History

In 1916 the National Education Association (NEA) created the subject of Social Studies. The NEA wanted to ensure that the immigrating youth of America had the necessary skills and knowledge to become participatory citizens of this country. History merely provided details of our past, but Social Studies prepared our nation's youth to make informed and reasoned decisions regarding political, social, and economic matters. Today, social studies is more important than ever, as it prepares are youth to be contributing members of society.

In addition to history, the subject of social studies encompasses economics, sociology, anthropology, civics, and geography. This is a lot of information to be incorporated into one subject that barely receives a full lesson each day. Social studies is one of the most important subjects because it teaches our youth the knowledge, skills, and values essential to making important decisions. It is imperative that teachers take the time to create and implement meaningful, well-planned lessons so our youth can be prepared to enter the world with this arsenal of knowledge that will help them be competent and competitive in our world.

So what are the attributes of a meaningful, well-planned social studies lesson? The lesson will be something that students remember for the rest of their lives. It will be interesting and applicable. It will make students think about how social studies is a part of our daily lives. It will connect the past and present. It will provide students with the knowledge or skills that can be used to reason and justify their decisions.

A teacher must first think about what she wants her students to learn or gain from a lesson; she must develop a well-thought out objective that will be accomplished by the planned activities. The planned activities must be exciting, yet meaningful. Lectures and note-taking are not the most effective way to teach social studies. Social studies can be explored and analyzed in a similar manner to science and mathematics. If you allow students to explore social studies and encourage open discussions, students can personally relate to the information and make meaning out of complex concepts. Social studies should be integrated across the curriculum. Since social studies is such a broad subject that teaches essential decision making skills, it needs to be part of all areas of the curriculum.

Teachers need to think beyond the history aspect of social studies. Envision social studies as a social science that can be investigated and evaluated. Allow students to explore and discover so that they can make meaning out of social studies!