Elementary Social Studies: Chapters 1-3

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SOCIAL STUDIES BOOK TALK

     For the Book Talk in Social Studies for Junior Intermediate students, our group did a summary of chapters one through three from the "Elementary Social Studies: A Practical Approach to Teaching and Learning" textbook. These chapters emphasized the importance of taking a “child-centered” or progressive approach to education through the ideologies of John Dewey. Not only should students be engaged in their learning, but they should be responsible for their own learning by making decisions the teacher can prompt in the classroom. To increase engagement, teachers should not only create a classroom that fosters safe, collective learning but also incorporates a variety of current, applicable events. Using the “Expanding Horizons Model” students should explore topics by starting with relatable information, and traveling outward to gain a family, community, provincial, country and later a world perspective. By using this approach, students are able to understand and contextualize the new information at an increased rate which therefore, creates higher-order thinking in the classroom. Something to consider that was also important in this chapter was the concept of nationalism and diversity. The demographic of Canada is ever-changing and as teacher, we must adapt to these changes. Topics that we discuss should reflect the issues that our students could be exposed to from various cultures around the world as our national make-up is highly composed of these cultures. The biggest take away message from these chapters was to create social studies curricula that reflect the needs of the students as well as the events that are occurring in our lives every day. Content needs to be current, relatable and enjoyable in order for students to gain a sufficient understanding.  

Photo from: Elementary Social Studies: A Practical Approach to Teaching & Learning by Wright and Hutchison

Integrating Social Justice Issues with Social Studies

                

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           Our Group Inquiry Project is focused on the theme of sustainability. As outlined, we aim to educate our students on the various components of sustainability in order to encourage sustainable choices in their own lives. With this being said, the focus of sustainability can also encompass a variety of other subtopics, and cross-curricular integration. The remainder of this blog post will discuss how the sustainability theme can correlate with themes within Social Injustice by integrating the Language, Art and Science curriculum documents.

According to the Pachamama Alliance, Social Injustice Issues can be broken down into two categories, inter-social treatment (which includes racism, heterosexism, sexism etc.) and unequal government regulation (which includes access to healthcare, access to education, environmental right etc.). When incorporating a Social Injustice Issues into a Sustainability unit, poverty or access to education could easily be integrated. Once students have gathered an understanding of sustainability from a communal perspective, we can begin to look at sustainability from a national, then international level. By first introducing students to the new topic at the community level, we are allowing them to relate a new topic to something familiar and relatable. From this point, we can build on their knowledge until they are able to apply their knowledge of sustainability to a global perspective. This method follows the Expanding Horizons Model (see below). 

Expanding Horizons Model, Elementary Social Studies 7th ed. 

In groups, or individually, students can investigate the various sustainability initiatives Canada has implemented. Following this, students can again, individually or in groups, research a country of their choice and identify the various sustainability features within that country. Based on their findings, they can begin to explore other aspects of the social studies unit, such as population density, population distribution and economics. However, this would also be a great way to introduce social justice issues. If students find that their country does not have sustainable features implemented, we can begin to have them critically examine why this may be the case, do they not have equal access to education? Is there insufficient funding throughout the country? By looking at the sustainability, students are able to look deeper into other issues. Working backwards from this point, students can then begin to look at the social issue they have chosen and its relation to Canada. Does this issue occur in Canada? Does it occur in our community? As a culminating activity, students can write a report and present a project that highlights their country and the social injustice issue they have explored based on their initial research. We are introducing a social issue with a familiar topic, sustainability, and then providing students with the opportunity to develop a national and community perspective through inquiry-based learning.

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When looking at social injustice through a broad social studies lens, teachers can easily integrate topics in both geography and history. Though some social injustice issues have developed over the last century, many started centuries ago, allowing students to see the progression, or digression of the issue. Allowing students to explore these topics provides them with ownership over their own learning as they are motivated and interested in the topic. Moreover, the information they are learning is applicable to current issues, and often, issues that are occurring in our own communities that students may not be aware of. Something to keep in mind, though it is important to allow students to choose their own topics, it is also important be prepare yourself as the teacher to answer difficult questions or controversial viewpoints as every student offers a different perspective based on their knowledge and prior experiences. It is important for teachers to prepare for this in order to be effective in managing these issues if they occur in the classroom.

For ideas, and more information about integrating social injustice issues into the classroom, visit these links:  

Pachamama Alliance

Teaching Tolerance

Edutopia

University of Missouri