History and Social Studies Curriculum

The main focus of this study was to explore the role of Social Studies education in mitigating climate challenges. The mixed method approach was employed to carry out this study. All the 154 Social Studies teachers in 79 public Junior High Schools (JHSs) from the Cape Coast Metropolis participated in the study. The researcher used questionnaire and semi-structured interview guide to collect information from these participants. Responses from the questionnaires were analysed using the Statistical Product for Service Solution (version 22.0) software and the outcomes were presented in the form of frequencies, percentages, means and standard deviation. The findings from the study indicate that the Social Studies curriculum at the senior high school level does not adequately cover climate related issues. Although Social Studies education focuses on the physical environment and helps to address environmental challenges, one would expect that the curriculum would make adequate provision for such a critical component of the environment, but this is not the case as the curriculum covers less environmental-related issues. Although Social Studies teachers are the front liners when it comes implementing climate-related issues in the Social Studies curriculum, they are not adequately equipped with the knowledge, skills and competencies required for effective transmission of same to learners. At best, some of the teachers had climate related knowledge from subjects other than social studies, the knowledge they had acquired was not sufficient enough for their effective application in the classroom. It was recommended that integration of more climate-related topics and issues in a transdisciplinary manner into the Social Studies and other related curricula such as science, citizenship education, geography and human rights education, at the various levels of education in Ghana would be of great help. Teacher education institutions that prepare Social Studies teachers at the various levels of higher education in Ghana such as the colleges of education and the universities should adequately include climate change related topics in their curricula. It is crucial to strengthen teachers’ and educators’ capacities to deliver accurate information, integrate local content, promote critical thinking about climate change and take action on climate change mitigation and adaptation. Keywords: Climate Change, Environmental, Integration, Pedagogies, Social Studies. DOI: 10.7176/JEP/12-14-06 Publication date: May 31 st 2021

Background/Context The field of social studies education is hardly lacking in historical investigation. The historiography includes sweeping chronicles of longtime struggles over the curriculum as well as case studies of momentous eras, events, policies, trends, and people, with emphases on aims, subject matter, method, and much more. Curiously, scant attention has been paid to the history of social studies teacher education. This study fills a gap in the literature by considering what effect, if any, teacher education in the social studies has had on the development of the field over time. Specifically, the study focuses on history/social studies teacher education in the decades immediately preceding and following the National Education Association's landmark report, The Social Studies in Secondary Education, which commonly is credited with establishing social studies as a school subject. Purpose A basic premise underlying this study is that stability and change in social studies curriculum and instruction may be someway related to stability and change in social studies teacher education. Because the enterprise of social studies teacher education exists in large part for the sake of supporting the enterprise of social studies in the schools, changes in social studies in the schools may well affect the preparation of teachers to teach the subject, and changes in social studies teacher preparation may well affect the teaching of the subject in schools. This study interrogates how teacher education programs contributed and/or responded (or not) to the emergence of social studies as a school subject in the early part of the twentieth century. Research Design This document-based historical study looks back nearly a century to the origins of the social studies field and considers the interrelationship between social studies as it was envisioned in the schools and social studies as it was configured in teacher education programs. The study is based on published monographs, reports, and articles on the status of history (pre-1916) and social studies (post-1916) teacher preparation programs that largely have been overlooked by social studies historians to date. Findings/Conclusions The story that emerges reinforces some longstanding assumptions about the development of the field: For example, there was little agreement among subject matter and education specialists regarding what constituted the social studies curriculum, so there was little agreement on what social studies teachers and students needed to know. But, it also suggests that disarray in the social studies field may have been as much a function of disorder in the realm of teacher education as it was of conflict among curriculum-makers about the nature of social studies in the schools.

Sosyal bilgiler öğretiminde edebi ürünler ve bu bağlamda ele alınan biyografilerin kullanımı önem arz etmektedir. Bu araştırmanın amacı Sosyal Bilgiler Dersi Öğretim Programı (4-7. Sınıflar) ve ders kitaplarında biyografinin kullanım durumunu ortaya koymaktır. Araştırmada nitel araştırma yöntemlerinden doküman inceleme kullanılmıştır. Araştırmada doküman olarak Milli Eğitim Bakanlığı tarafından hazırlanan İlköğretim Sosyal Bilgiler Dersi Öğretim Programı(4-7. Sınıflar) ve ders kitaplarından yararlanılmıştır. Araştırmadaelde edilen veriler içerik analiziyle çözümlenmiştir. Araştırma sonucunda ilköğretim sosyal bilgiler öğretim programında ve ders kitaplarında genel anlamda biyografinin kullanıldığı tespit edilmiştir.

This study examined the role of Social Studies education in mitigating youth restiveness and its implications for institutional stability, civic responsibility, and student empowerment in public secondary schools in Southwestern Nigeria. A convergent parallel mixed-methods design was adopted. Using a multi-stage sampling technique, data were collected from 930 respondents comprising principals, teachers, and students across Ekiti, Osun, and Oyo States. Quantitative data were obtained through the Social Studies and Youth Restiveness Questionnaire (SSYRQ), while qualitative data were generated through interviews and classroom observations. Descriptive statistics, Pearson product–moment correlation, and regression analysis were used to analyse quantitative data at the 0.05 level of significance, while qualitative data were thematically analysed. Findings revealed that youth restiveness is largely driven by social, moral, and institutional factors and manifests mainly as truancy, disruptive behaviour, and disrespect for school authority. The Social Studies curriculum was found to be moderately effective in addressing restiveness-related themes, with limited emphasis on experiential learning. Regression and correlation analyses showed that Social Studies education significantly influenced students’ civic attitudes and behaviours and had a positive relationship with institutional stability. The study concludes that strengthening Social Studies pedagogy and curriculum implementation can serve as a sustainable strategy for reducing youth restiveness and promoting civic responsibility and school stability in Nigeria.

This conceptual article uses new materialism, and its particular focus on material things, as a lens of analysis in social studies education in order to demonstrate alternative ways in which social studies education researchers and teachers might engage in inquiry. Historically, social studies curriculum and teaching have centered human agency and its domination of the material, natural world. However, this article argues that an attendance to things, and to the relational-material entanglements we find ourselves in, might guide us toward a reconsideration of how particular ideals and concepts are (and ought to be) represented in social studies curriculum, teaching, and learning. This article models how social studies analyses of material things in past and current events might take shape, exploring how natural things like Hurricane Maria and COVID-19, as well as human-made things like statues, parks, and textbooks, are both agentic and capable of impacting—diminishing or enhancing—the agency of human beings. We discuss how social studies teachers and teacher educators might enact such a focus in their classrooms, offering examples of how natural and human-made things might be integrated into social studies curriculum and teaching.

WHEN I was asked to respond to Reinventing Social Studies, I began by considering many points Kevin St. Jarre raises about beginnings of social studies, place of history and other social science disciplines in social studies education, characterization of secondary social studies teaching, and how best to reinvent social studies and put subject area squarely on path of our students to live in a globalized world. While I initially selected my involvement in teacher education programs as primary lens for my analysis, on further reflection, I decided to take a wider view and include my many other experiences in education community. I want to use Mr. St. Jarre's commitment to secondary education and his passion for social studies as a springboard to elaborate on main issues he raises and to describe why reinventing social studies is no easy task. Thus it is unnecessary to devote much space to discussing role of history and other social science disciplines in development of a social studies curriculum. There is no question that in 1916 National Education Association (NEA) viewed history as discipline that should play major role in early development of a social studies curriculum. At turn of 20th century, history was well positioned in schools and universities, and, along with content from geography and political science, was viewed as core subject area in a social studies curriculum for K-12 schools. American historians believed in the value of historical knowledge to strengthen individual, sharpen mind, broaden horizon, and give depth to soul. (1) Social studies proponents also viewed history as providing framework (i.e., chronology) by which to examine events, issues, trends, and personalities in social science contexts. While other social scientists were forming separate organizations (e.g., American Anthropological Association, American Psychological Association) and accurately perceived advantages of playing a role in development of social studies curriculum, they were too inexperienced to counter influence of American Historical Association. As a result, well into late 1900s, social studies/history was one of core subject areas in K-12 curriculum, with few of social science organizations challenging its primacy. After reading Reinventing Social Studies, I believe Mr. St. Jarre and I agree on what is meant by social studies and its intended purpose in curriculum. The definition he quotes, adopted by NEA Committee on Social Studies in 1916, may seem vague--those [disciplines] whose subject matter relates directly to organization and development of human society, and to man as a member of social groups--but it is quite similar to one National Council for Social Studies (NCSS) developed and continues to use: the integrated study of social sciences and humanities to promote civic competence. (2) In NCSS position statements on social studies education, promotion of civic competence refers to nurturing an awareness and understanding of students' immediate communities and many others to which they belong. What I find surprising is that Mr. St. Jarre makes no mention of NCSS, but his notions about creating competent citizens and preparing students to live in a globalized society seem to echo organization's definition and stated purpose for social studies education. However, unlike Mr. St. Jarre, I do not see history as merely a record, not an analysis. In House of War, James Carroll eloquently describes what history means to historians: [it] is not a catalogue of events, not just a knowledge of their chronology .... History is, rather, appreciation of how events relate to each other, if not causally, then mythically. Objectively but also personally .... Our concern is not only with what happened but how it felt, and how it set other things moving in public realm and in human heart. …

The paper examines the challenges for effective implementation of junior secondary schools’ social studies curriculum in Nigeria. The paper discussed the concept of Social Studies, aims and objectives of Social Studies curriculum, and Social Studies curriculum. The paper discussed the concept of curriculum, concept of curriculum implementation, and the challenges for effective implementation of junior secondary schools social studies curriculum in Nigeria which include; inadequate instructional resources, lack of well-trained Social Studies teachers, challenges of national integration, difficult in selecting appropriate methods of teaching, overlapping nature of social studies contents, inflexibility, poor ICT knowledge, policy changes, frequent turnover of teachers, lack of sufficient finance, among others. The concluded that, effective teaching and learning process in Social Studies is not one way process. It is a complex task which needed both parties; teachers, learners, parents, government, and educational stakeholders. The paper recommended that; school supervisors and administrators should ensure that Social Studies teachers use appropriate teaching methods and strategies to meet the demand, instructional resource should be provided, ICT knowledge should be given to Social Studies teachers, Social Studies teachers should be given opportunities to attend seminars, conferences, workshops and in services in order to update their knowledge of subject matter, Social Studies curriculum reviewers should reconstructions of content of the curriculum to align its’ objectives with Social Studies.

His study aims to identify and analyze innovative strategies in social studies (IPS) education that are relevant to the era of artificial intelligence (AI). The research method used is qualitative research with a literature review approach, where data is obtained from various sources such as scientific journals, books, and articles related to Social Studies education and AI. The research results indicate that the application of AI technology in Social Studies education can enhance teaching effectiveness and student engagement through personalized learning, data analysis, and interactive simulations. In conclusion, the use of AI in Social Studies education enables the creation of a more adaptive and dynamic learning environment with the potential to optimize student learning outcomes. The innovative strategies identified include the use of AI platforms for automated assessment, the development of adaptive learning materials, and the integration of AI technology into the Social Studies curriculum. Keywords: Learning Strategies, Innovation, Social Studies, Artificial Intelligence

Social studies education holds significant potential for driving sustainable national development in Nigeria. is study aims to explore the repositioning Social Studies Education as a mechanism for Sustainable National Development in Nigeria. It was discovered that social studies are a veritable instrument for national and economic development. Repositioning social studies education as a mechanism for sustainable national development in Nigeria is crucial for building an informed, active, and responsible citizenry. By emphasizing citizenship education, promoting national unity, and addressing socio-economic challenges, Social Studies education can contribute significantly to Nigeria's sustainable development goals. rough curriculum enhancement, teacher professional development, community engagement, and the integration of technology, Nigeria can ensure the effective repositioning of Social Studies education to shape a beer future for the nation. However, repositioning Social Studies education as a mechanism for sustainable national development is crucial for equipping students with the knowledge, skills, and values needed to actively participate in addressing social, economic, and environmental challenges and contribute to Nigeria's sustainable future. Therefore, government should show positive commitment to the effective implementation of the Social Studies curriculum. Social studies education curriculum should be made to take cognizance of important changes and challenges in the environment and prepares the learners to meet such challenges. e Social Studies curriculum should be revised periodically and updated with critical, national and international issues in economic management.

IntroductionThe primary aim of social studies education is to convey knowledge about cultural and social systems while fostering inquiry, participation, practice, reflection, and innovation. Social studies education plays a pivotal role in raising awareness about various ethnic groups, societies, localities, countries, and the world at large. Furthermore, it instills in students a sense of responsibility, leading them to embrace diversity, value human rights, and promote global sustainability. The current elementary social studies curriculum in Taiwan strongly aligns with these principles and is a vehicle for sustainable development in society.MethodsThe researcher used qualitative research methods and adopted a case study design to review the pedagogical design of the elementary social studies curriculum in Taiwan as a means of sustainability education and enriching children’s cultural learning in the context of sustainability. Children’s learning related to sustainability in an elementary school was investigated, and a social studies teaching design was developed. Finally, the developed teaching approach was implemented in a classroom setting.Results and discussionThe study yielded the following findings: (1) The social studies curriculum development in Taiwan is connected to the pulse of life, a sense of care for local communities, and cultivation of local thinking. (2) This social studies curriculum adopts a child-centered and problem-oriented approach and integrates students’ interests and the local environment into the learning process. (3) It effectively enhances students’ sustainability-related competencies and skills. These findings offer valuable insights for teachers and can enable them to shape the direction of their social studies courses and cultivate children’s concept of sustainable development for their living environment.

Purpose Visual documents (e.g. maps, editorial cartoons, historical photographs, portraits, documentary films, historically-based movies, etc.) are common curriculum resources within social studies classrooms; however, only recently scholars have begun to systematically research ways to more authentically and powerfully center instruction around visual documents. Here, the purpose of this paper is to synthesize relevant lines of inquiry into research-based, wise-practices for selecting and designing visual curriculum materials to help social studies students and teachers think about social phenomenon deeply and in more disciplinary-specific ways. Design/methodology/approach The authors share recent scholarship that has posited explanations for why visual data tend to afford learners especially powerful opportunities to think critically about the world around them. Throughout the discussion, the authors integrate applicable research-based principles that can guide the selection and design of visual curriculum materials. Findings Scholars have suggested that visual documents are rarely introduced in educational settings as a means to develop the thinking skills of decoding, interpreting and evaluating pictorial information. The authors argue that these skills are vital civic competencies because the creation and critique of non-written information often mediates modern public issues and social identities. Research limitations/implications Informed by strong, consistent research into multimodal learning, visual literacy and the cognitive sciences, the wise-practice scaffolding suggestions the authors provide may help professionals with an interest in social studies education to synthesize theory-based suggestions with practice-based implementations as it concerns visual documents. The authors hope the guidance shared here helps teachers, teacher educators and curriculum designers produce high-quality resources that will engage contemporary students and help them develop civic competence. Originality/value First, the authors posit a research-based template, or planning checklist, of wise-practice suggestions to help social studies teachers, teacher educators and curriculum designers select visual documents. The authors then share several digital collection archives that teachers can visit to locate powerful visuals and describe research-based suggestions for designing them for dynamic implementation. Finally, the authors argue for more deliberative space in the social studies curriculum and classroom time for teachers to explore the educative power of centering inquiry-based instruction around visual information.

This study assessed the integration of Social Studies education to tackle socioeconomic challenges in Nigeria. It aims to evaluate the impact of integrating Social Studies education on students' understanding of socioeconomic challenges in selected upper-basic schools in Gusau Metropolis, Zamfara State. The paper also aimed to examine the perceptions of students regarding the effectiveness of Social Studies education in addressing socioeconomic issues in Gusau Metropolis and assess the adequacy of the current Social Studies curriculum in equipping students with the necessary skills and knowledge to tackle socioeconomic challenges in Gusau Metropolis. A descriptive survey research design was adopted with a population of 2,460 social studies students. The researcher used a questionnaire that addressed 353 students who were selected using a random sampling method. The reliability coefficient of 0.79 was obtained using the Cronbach Alpha. Data collected were analysed using mean and standard deviation, which were used to present responses to the research question. One Sample t-test was used to test all the hypotheses at a 0.05 significance level. The findings revealed that Social Studies education positively influenced students' understanding of socioeconomic challenges in selected upper basic schools in Gusau Metropolis, Social Studies education has effectiveness in addressing socioeconomic issues in Gusau Metropolis, and the student's perception of the Social Studies curriculum in equipping the students with skills and knowledge necessary to address socioeconomic challenges in Gusau Metropolis was positive. The study concludes that Social Studies is crucial in increasing students' awareness and understanding of socioeconomic issues, fostering critical thinking, and equipping them with the skills necessary to tackle such challenges.

Development of curriculum is one of the major debates in the developing countries with particular reference to Nigeria but the detail of how the curriculum will be implemented at school level are often neglected. This paper examined curriculum implementation strategies at the junior secondary school level. The study adopted a descriptive survey design which focused on investigating curriculum implementation strategies at the junior secondary school. The target population for the study comprised all the junior secondary schools in Ankpa Local Government Area, Kogi State and the sample for the study consisted of 120 junior secondary school teachers drawn using purposive sampling technique from the selected junior secondary schools in Ankpa Local Government Area, Kogi State. Researchers’ constructed questionnaire titled Curriculum Implementation Strategies at the Junior Secondary School Questionnaire (CISJSSQ) was used to measure teachers’ opinion on curriculum implementation strategies at the junior secondary school. The instrument has 15 items on a four-point Likert-scale of strongly agree (SA), Agree (A), Disagree (D) and strongly disagree (SD). This instrument was validated by three experts in the departments of Social Science Education, and Educational Psychology, Guidance and Counselling Nnamdi Azikiwe University. The researchers distributed and collected the copies of the questionnaire with the help of eight research assistants from the junior secondary schools. The data collected were analyzed using the weighted mean of 2.50 computed as 4+3+2+1=10/4=2.5. Any mean score that is equal to or above 2.50 was considered significant and therefore, accepted while the one that is less than 2.50 was rejected. Findings showed that teachers of social studies are not effective in implementing various curriculum strategies during teaching and learning in junior secondary school, teachers of social studies do not teach appropriate contents in the social studies curriculum during classes and teachers of Social Studies do not employ proper method of teaching social studies and the objectives are not achieved. Based on this, it was recommended that the federal and state ministry of education should encourage the teachers through training and re-training to employ better implementation strategies for social studies curriculum among others. KEYWORDS: Curriculum implementation, strategies, junior secondary school, social studies and Perspectives

This article discusses the implementation of the 2013 curriculum in social studies learning for students at SMP Alkhairaat Tandaigi, Siniu District, Parigi Moutong Regency. The focus of the discussion in this study is how the social science teacher understands at Alkhairaat Tandaigi Middle School, Siniu District, Parigi Moutong Regency about the 2013 Curriculum and How to Implement the 2013 Curriculum in Social Sciences at Alkhairaat Tandaigi Middle School, Siniu District, Parigi Moutong Regency. The method that the author uses in this study is a qualitative research method. With data collection techniques including observation, interviews, and documentation. The results of this study indicate that the social studies teacher's understanding of the 2013 curriculum is that the 2013 curriculum is a follow-up to the previous curriculum. This competency-based 2013 curriculum focuses on the acquisition of certain competencies by students. Therefore, students are required to be more active and skilled at the time of learning. With the 2013 curriculum, it is not only focused on students, but teachers are also required to be more creative in teaching. Because the teacher is one of the human components in the teaching and learning process that plays a role in efforts to shape the behavior of students. And the implementation of the 2013 curriculum in social studies subjects was obtained from interviews with social studies teachers and school principals that had gone well. The implementation of the 2013 curriculum, which means that it has been applied in total using the 2013 curriculum. The obstacles in implementing the 2013 curriculum in social studies lessons at Al Khairaat Tandaigi Junior High School, Siniu District, Parigi Moutong Regency, namely, in implementing the 2013 curriculum, students and teachers need quite a long time to develop the curriculum. understand and adapt to the new model learning system offered by the government in the 2013 curriculum. With this method not all teachers are able to assess using 5M in the learning process, in the 2013 curriculum which is still difficult to apply Package books provided by the government are still lacking and limited facilities and infrastructure as learning media.

The main aim of the research is to explore the views of social studies educator academics, social studies teachers, and social studies novice teachers regarding the Social Studies Curriculum (SSC) published in Turkey between 2005 and 2018 in the light of SWOT analysis dimensions. Thus, the views on the programmes are discussed in the context of their strengths, weaknesses, the opportunities that they offer, and the concerns that they may raise. In the study, which was based on the qualitative approach, the phenomenology model was used. The sampling group of the research consists of 36 participants, who were determined on a voluntary basis from social studies educator academics, social studies teachers, and social studies novice teachers. A data collection tool was prepared in line with expert opinion in order to receive participants’ views, taking into account the four dimensions of the SWOT analysis. The data was analysed through content analysis. As a result of the research, it was concluded that while the participants expressed such views as more detailed explanations about the strengths of 2005 SSC, its student-centeredness, and the adoption of a constructivist approach, their views for the 2018 SSC were about its strengths such as the increase of numbers in values and skills and the inclusion of active citizenship. In addition, they expressed that the weakness of the 2005 SSC was that it had a complex structure and the lack of skill value diversity, whilst for the 2018 SSC it was that it did not include examples of activities for teachers. Participants, who stated that both 2005 and 2018 SSCs offered opportunities for students, teachers, and parents, also claimed that SSCs might cause some concerns such as the inability to complete the curriculum preparation timely, the inability to teach concepts and skills effectively, and the lack of understanding of the content.