A Rejoinder to Green, Case, Daniels, LaBar, and Franklin

The current study aims to investigate social studies and science teachers’ attitudes and classroom practices associated with controversial issues. The study is a qualitative research based on data collected through interviews and observation. Social studies and Science teachers participated in the current study which was conducted in Kirsehir, a city in the center of Turkey, during the 2012-2013 academic years. Data were collected through classroom observation and interviews with teachers. In this study, teachers' positioning during controversial issues are determined by Kelly's (1986) positioning classification: Exclusive Neutrality, Exclusive Partiality, Neutral Impartiality, and Committed Impartiality. According to results of the research, violence against women, education system, terrorism and nationalism are the leading issues among the controversial issues that both social studies and science teachers listed in Turkey. In relation to their area, social studies teachers stated that the issues such as Kemalism, democracy, military coups, and deep state, which are associated with recent history of Turkey, were among the important controversial issues. Science teachers on the other hand stated issues such as cancer and anti-toxic foods and global warming among the controversial issues in Turkey. Both social studies and science teachers stated that the most frequently encountered problem in discussions was lack of knowledge by students. Whereas social studies teachers stated that their priority goals were particularly to raise active citizens and to set up a democratic classroom environment, science teachers pointed to raising scientifically thinking students and increasing students’ knowledge as their priority goals. During in-class discussions teachers take some positions. The positions stated by the teachers and in-class observations of them conflict. Whereas the teachers stated that they prefer the 4th and 3rd positions, the in-class observations showed that they mainly adopted the 2nd position. Results of observations in social studies classes show that teachers definitely stated their positions about the discussed issue as a priority; they tried to teach the students their positions about the issue; and occasionally about some issues, they told just their positions.

The Elementary School Journal Volume 84, Number 4 S1984 by The University of Chicago. All rights reserved. 001 3-5984/84/8404-0004$01.00 Assumptions, even assumptions that seem logical and reasonable, can make it difficult or impossible for people to understand scientific concepts. Everyone makes assumptions about the way the world works, assumptions like "When the sky is cloudy and dark, it will probably rain" or "Bits of wood float in water." People often use those assumptions to explain how things work: "I can see myself in a mirror because light bounces off me to the mirror and off the mirror to my eyes." Such explanations or conceptions are often based on experience and common sense; however, experience and common sense can sometimes

The study sought to determine the relationship of the perception of Social Studies and Science tutors in the Colleges of Education in Ghana. Many educators have perceived the necessity for a paradigm shift toward interdisciplinary teaching. Knowledge today is becoming more interdisciplinary and integrated, which calls for interdisciplinary and integrated learning in public schools. The main purpose of the study is to explore the relationship of the perception of tutors of science and social studies in integrated curriculum approach to the teaching of Social Studies and Science in the Colleges of Education in the Central region. The study employed the descriptive survey, which is non-experimental. The targeted population for the study was all Social Studies and Science educators in the Colleges of Education in the Central Region. Questionnaire was the main instrument used for data collection and the result from the study indicated that there is positive strong relationship between Social Studies and Science teachers' perception about integrated curriculum in teaching Social Studies with Science. The study recommended that for effective interdisciplinary study of any kind there must be strategies that ought to drive home the desired outcome. And such strategies must endeavour to place the student at the center of the learning process.

This study discusses the commonalities and differences between Social Studies and Science education in Japan, focusing on the curriculum structure, research themes, and educational roles. Both subjects are central to fostering students’ understanding of society and nature, with Social Studies rooted in the social sciences and Science in the natural sciences. The analysis highlights shared elements, such as problem-solving and inquiry- based learning, and the presence of both integrated courses (e.g., “Science and Our Daily Life” and “Modern and Comprehensive History”) and specialized subjects (e.g., “Basic Biology” and “Advanced Japanese History”). Despite certain similarities, these subjects differ in their research focus. Science education often addresses students’ misconceptions and cognitive development, whereas Social Studies research rarely extends beyond lesson-based studies to explore students’ prior knowledge. Examining these subjects in parallel clarifies their distinct methodological approaches and foundational principles, thereby providing insights into the broader positioning of Social Studies and Science education research in Japan.

The aim of this research is to examine the effects of secondary school Social Studies and Science teachers’ interactions with their students in social media and the effects of anxiety in social environments on various variables. The sample of the study, which was conducted using the survey model, consisted of 216 Social Studies and Science teachers. Data were collected according to the gender, age, branch, professional seniority, education level and social media usage time of the sample. The Social Media Teacher Student Interaction Scale developed by Korucu and Usta (2017) and the Liebowitz Social Anxiety Scale developed by Dilbaz (2001) were used as data collection tools. Since the teachers’ responses to the items in the scale showed normal distribution, the data were analysed using parametric tests. Some of the results obtained from the research are as follows: it was determined that there was no significant difference in the opinions of teachers in terms of gender, branch, professional seniority, education level and duration of social media use. However, it was concluded that there was a significant difference in terms of age variable in terms of teachers’ use of social media in student interaction. According to this result, it was determined that teachers between the ages of 21-30 use social media more for student-teacher interaction

CAN THE NEXT GENERATION of American adults survive in ignorance of laws of evolution by natural selection? Perhaps, but it won't be easy. As permanence of our tenure on planet grows increasingly questionable, it is time that we took seriously Alexander Pope's dictum that the proper study of mankind is man. And we will never fully grasp human nature until we are willing to marry findings of evolutionary biology to insights of social science in order to develop a more comprehensive understanding of biological as well as social and cultural forces that influence human behavior. As a longtime observer of poverty of social education in this country, I am increasingly pursuaded that our best hope for saving planet's most endangered species, homo sapiens is to integrate teaching of science and social studies around study of human nature. To achieve this we can no longer avoid teaching human evolution in our schools. Mixing science with social studies is hardly a new idea. The era of educational reform that began with Sputnik-inspired revolution in science and mathematics teaching swept all educators into its wake, and for a time it appeared as if liberal education was to be equated with teachings of science. Most social science reformers of that period accepted without question premise that scientific approaches to learning were better approaches. The rise of inquiry-based teaching, search for Jerome Bruner's structure of and stress upon introduction of quantifiable data into social studies classroom were all influences of science curriculum reform movement, and new approach quickly eclipsed older social studies commitment to political socialization and transmission of values. The humanists, it seemed, were willing to throw over historic distinction between what C.P. Snow called cultures while hardly questioning social implications of new educational reforms. Today we inhabit an entirely different educational environment-one in which tide has turned sharply away from science teaching as core of liberal studies. Indeed, we can sense a disturbing tendency among educators and parents alike to abandon intellectual goals of past two decades in favor of a return to rote learning of skills and teaching of traditional values. This trend sounds ominously reminiscent of abortive life-adjustment movement of 1930s and 1940s. Few educators would argue that science curriculum reform movement of 1960s was sufficiently sensitive to social needs, but new atmosphere threatens to undermine solid intellectual gains of period, and this current mood may limit our opportunities to develop new educational approaches that combine perspectives from both sciences and humanities. As I see it, integration of science and social science teaching has not yet gone far enough. The reforms of 1960s exposed social science educator to substance and methods of science and in so doing brought increased intellectual rigor to social studies classroom. Enormous gains were made in introduction of social science methods and in exposing students to new ways of analyzing social world. The old, narrow focus on history and geography was now broadened to include perspectives drawn from anthropology, sociology, psychology, political science, and economics, and with these new disciplines came an issueoriented and less ethnocentric approach to study of human behavior. With it also came fragmentation and a diffusion of focus to point that it became increasingly difficult to identify a unifying purpose for social studies teaching. The time has now come, therefore, to reintegrate disciplines, not by a return to outworn socializing methods of past, but by reorganizing social studies curriculum around scientific study of human behavior. Only through a further integration of science and social studies teaching can this objective be achieved.

In the development of a science education able to address issues of sustainability in different settings, knowledge about culturally situated science education practices is key. In this chapter we investigate two teaching interventions using the concept “culturally embodied learning” as an interpretive frame. The interventions involve activities in relation to two areas in physics. In a South African context embodied learning and cultural scaffoldings are investigated in the teaching of electricity and magnetism to develop scientific literacy in a rural area. In a Swedish context embodied learning experiences in relation to force and motion are investigated as an activity with student teachers at a children's playground. The two interventions were developed independently after which the interpretive frame was added. The analysis suggests that culturally embodied learning is suitable as one possible interpretive frame enabling discussions and deeper understanding of challenges associated with multicultural science education. By making science relevant to both the learner and his/her environment, we think that culturally embodied learning is a concept useful in the development of multicultural science teacher education able to address issues of sustainability in the contemporary era.

Extended Abstract Problem and Purpose: Critical thinking is one of the most important tools of education in democratic societies. The teachers ,who are expected to have the students' critical thinking developed and supported , are also expected to think critically so that they can be a model to their students in this way and to be open individuals for different ideas and various ways of thinking. In this context, first of all, the teachers must support the students to establish the bond of knowledge with life. The primary classes are, of course, very important to give the students the habit of critical thinking. For this reason; the teachers, who will be a role model for the students at this stage, must also be open individuals to criticism and at the same time must be individuals thinking critically. Particularly, social studies and science and technology studies are of the two subjects which the individual can interrogate the events and the facts. In this research; it is aimed to show how the social studies and science and technology teacher candidates' critical thinking tendency differentiate according to the programmes, sex, and the facilities of free time evaluating. It is thought that this research is important to determine how much critical thinking ability the teacher candidates have before starting to teach. Method and Materials: Descriptive scanning model was used in this study. The California Critical Thinking Disposition Inventory adapted into Turkish by Kokdemir is used with the aim of determining the disposition of critical thinking ability of the participants. This scale was made as a result of the Delphi Project organized by American Philosophy Society in 1990. The scale has 7 sub-dimensions and 75 items determined theoretically and tested psychometrically. Whereas the internal consistency coefficients (alpha) of sub-dimensions of The California Critical Thinking Disposition Inventory consisting of total 7 dimensions and 75 items changes between 60 and 78, the internal consistency coefficient of the scale for total point is 90.The adaptation of the scale into Turkish was made by Kokdemir (2003) over 913 students. The scale was decreased from 75 items to 51 and 7 dimensions to 6 as a result of the item point correlation and basic component analysis. The internal consistency coefficient (alpha) of the new scale consisting of 51 items and 6 dimensions is 88. The total variant declared by the scale was determined as %36.13. When the scale is evaluated as a whole, we can say that if a person has a point less than 240, his critical thinking disposition is low and if a person has a point more than 300, his disposition is high. The sub-dimensions occurring about the scale as a result of Kokdemir's adaptation (2003) are: Truth-Seeking, open-mindedness, analyticity, systematicity, self-confidence, inquisitiveness. Results: In the study, teachers have achieved the highest score in the analyticity subscale and the lowest score inquisitiveness subscale. On the other hand, teachers are seen to have a tendency to think critically low in total. Within the research, there was not a significant difference between the teachers' gender and their critical thinking dispositions. In terms of departments they study in, social sciences teachers' and science and technology teachers' tendency to think critically shows a significant difference in favor of social sciences teachers in “self-confidenceâ€? subscale. On the other hand, among their leisure activities, reading received very little space for both social sciences teachers and science and technology teachers. Keywords: Teacher candidate, critical thinking disposition, social studies, science education.

The learning of Science and Social Sciences (IPAS) in elementary schools currently faces challenges, particularly in the low achievement of students’ scientific literacy and learning outcomes. The learning process is often dominated by teacher-centered methods, lacking the integration of innovative media that fosters active student engagement. This research aims to examine the influence of the Problem-Based Learning (PBL) model supported by “Papan Jelajah Energi” (Energy Exploration Board) media on students’ scientific literacy and learning outcomes. The study employed a quasi-experimental design with a Pretest-Posttest Control Group Design involving 5th-grade students at SDN Kandangtepus 02. The research instruments included scientific literacy tests and cognitive learning outcome tests. Data analysis was conducted using the independent samples t-test. The results showed that the experimental group, which implemented the PBL model with the Papan Jelajah Energi media, achieved significantly higher scores compared to the control group. This indicates that the integration of PBL and interactive game-based media is effective in improving students’ understanding of renewable energy concepts and their scientific literacy skills.

PhotoVoice, which enables students to take an active role, has started to be used in schools byenvironmental, social, and science educators. In this context, this study was conducted to analyze the useof the PhotoVoice method in science, social, and environmental education studies. To collect data, Web ofScience (WoS) was selected as the source. As a database, it is one of the most used resources by allresearchers, including many disciplines. It was tried to reach all the resources related to PhotoVoice. Only“#PhotoVoice” was used as a keyword. But English was selected as the language. As a result, 2690documents were reached. All data was then downloaded as Tab Delimited File and saved in a format of .txtfile. Secondly, the process of selecting documents related to education was followed. For this, the txt filesare transferred into an Excel file and saved. Afterward, documents related to education (science, socialscience and environmental) were selected (N=88). Research finding showed that although PhotoVoice iswidely used in the fields of environmental education (f=38, 43.2%) and social sciences (f=39, 44.3%), ithas been used at a very low rate in science (f=11, 12.5%). However, the majority of the documents werepublished as articles (f=81, 92%). Review studies (f=7, 8%) were published in the fields of environmentaleducation and social sciences. As of 2008, studies in the field of education have started to be published.Between 2008 and 2010, PhotoVoice studies in environmental education were published. The number ofpublications has increased in recent years, especially after 2017. The highest number of publications wasreached in 2020 (f=23, 26.14%) and 2021 (f=19, 21.59), whereas the decrease was determined in 2022(f=11, 12.5%). The distribution of publications by years and fields tends to increase towards environmentaleducation and social sciences. Furthermore, PhotoVoice studies widely used in environmental educationare in sustainability (28.21%), climate change (15.38%), environmental education (10.26%), and ecosystemservices (7.69%), respectively.

Social science plays an important roles in the development of Indonesian educational system. It supports the students to gain the competency of well human being and citizenship.The reconstruction of the curriculum for several times makes the teacher of social science studies think an alternative methodology of teaching. This alternative methodology shoul be constructive and critical. To stimulate the students learning interest, they are needed to be brought closer to the social issues around their environtment. It is expected to construct their critical awareness to their communities. They are not longer dominated by the teacher in the learning process. The teacher just provides the discourse and facilitates them to have some critical pedagogy activities.The aim of this article is to give an overview of Social Science learning process based on the constructivism model. This theory supports a critical pedagogy development which brings the students become a good critically and responsibility citizen. Education , Social Studies, Constructivism , School

This collaborative self-study article explores experiences teaching a cross-curricular undergraduate course that aimed to integrate social studies and science. The course differs from other compulsory components of the teacher candidates’ program of study in that it concentrates on disciplinary structure, as opposed to methods, and it treats two subjects—social studies and science—as opposed to one. For teacher educators charged with instructing curriculum methods courses, particularly elementary social studies and science classes, as well as for administrators planning creative responses to challenges posed by congested teacher education programs, the following study offers reflections on the benefits and pitfalls of cross-curricular courses. Furthermore, it comments on the relative merits of investigating social studies and science as disciplines to be explored rather than as sets of skills or content to be mastered.

A Manual for the Scientific (Teaching) Revolution

A survey study examined how attitudes about professional development (PD) vary among teachers of different subjects. Elementary teachers were more supportive of PD than health and physical education, social studies, and science teachers; special education teachers were more supportive of PD than social studies and science teachers; and five teacher groups (elementary, special education, math, English, and art and music) were more supportive of PD than science teachers. The results show the need for the design, implementation, and evaluation of program innovations aimed to improve both program effectiveness and teachers’ attitudes about PD.

This meta-analysis examined if students writing about content material in science, social studies, and mathematics facilitated learning ( k = 56 experiments). Studies in this review were true or quasi-experiments (with pretests), written in English, and conducted with students in Grades 1 to 12 in which the writing-to-learn activity was part of instruction. Studies were not included if the control condition used writing to support learning (except when treatment students spent more time engaging in writing-to-learn activities), study attrition exceeded 20%, instructional time and content coverage differed between treatment and control conditions, pretest scores approached ceiling levels, letter grades were the learning outcome, and students attended a special school for students with disabilities. As predicted, writing about content reliably enhanced learning (effect size = 0.30). It was equally effective at improving learning in science, social studies, and mathematics as well as the learning of elementary, middle, and high school students. Writing-to-learn effects were not moderated by the features of writing activities, instruction, or assessment. Furthermore, variability in obtained effects were not related to features of study quality. Directions for future research and implications for practice are provided.