What is future ability and how? Student teachers’ intended and implemented social science curriculum

Abstract

Future ability is a missing competence in the social studies curriculum in Taiwan. The aim of this study was to explore the possibility of infusing future ability into social studies education in terms of intended and implemented curricula created by undergraduate student teachers. The research participants were 27 student teachers enrolling on a social studies method course. In the course, the student teachers had to complete two major tasks: (1) to construct their intended curricula and (2) to complete their implemented curricula of infusing future ability into social studies education. The role of the course teacher was scaffolding students to complete these tasks using a constructivist approach. The constructivism-based scaffolding system includes lectures, provision of a variety of internet resources such as digital databases, interaction through an internet-based course website, observation of experienced teachers’ teaching, and field teaching. The results indicated that the student teachers constructed four lines of intended curricula: time, space, knowledge, and humanity. The implemented curricula were successfully constructed and fit the intended curricula. Suggestions for infusing future ability into social studies education, global education, and teacher education are posited based on the features of the intended and implemented curricula constructed.