The Impact of Social Studies Class at an Adolescent Level

A Philosophy of a Social Studies Education
Kyle P. O’Brien
Miami University

In consideration of every field in education I believe that there is none more impactful than that of a social studies class at an adolescent level. Whereas other disciplines can also challenge students to think critically and in new, creative ways, a social studies course has the unique opportunity to teach content in a way fundamentally essential to the progression of society. If the next generation is to uphold equality as the standard for human rights and democracy as its respective form of government, then it is positively critical that it learns to do so not through top-down citizenship transmission, but through a less guided and open-minded approach in reflective inquiry. I see a clear connection between reflective inquiry and historical thinking; both require approaching new knowledge with an open mind, the ability to create an individual or cooperative understanding, and when in a democracy to share this newly acquired knowledge to further stimulate the minds of others. It is precisely through a social studies education that, given engaging instruction, high expectations for all, and everyday reflection, students will learn how to build upon their knowledge in their own ways. This love for learning can last a lifetime, but what is truly exceptional is how forever long an open sharing of knowledge can circulate in a free society. The defining light bulb moment of my life came to me during my junior year of high school in my American history class. My entire school life leading up to that course I was the kid who spent more time acting out as a class clown than ever studying for tests. I always found history to be interesting, but in reflection it seems as though I subconsciously blocked out of my mind the notion that it was possible to for me to actually enjoy school. I believe this gives me a unique perspective as I enter the teaching profession, since I know exactly what is going through the minds of disengaged students and how they can overcome this learning block. For me it was the watershed year in my life that my American history teacher, Mr. Doyle, challenged my longstanding belief that I was “too cool for school.” The truth was, just as every student does at heart, I loved learning. Mr. Doyle was not a perfect teacher but he executed a near-perfect instruction to my learning style. His lectures were at a speeding pace and always kept me on the edge of my seat during class. Although he rarely varied up his lesson plans, his everyday energy and passion reverberated with me and kept my interest higher than it ever was in school before. He held us all to high standards, and questioned how we traditionally looked at history. Mr. Doyle was able to prove to me that the acquisition of knowledge, and historical thought and skills specifically, was something truly worthwhile to any human being.
First and foremost I find it valuable to define knowledge as grounded belief (Hunt & Metcalf, 1968). Should a social studies teacher simply relay “facts” assumed to be for certain without student inquiry, that teacher would be doing an injustice to the class. The teacher is not an all-knowing source, and should be judged for credibility just like any other source. It is also of greater use to have students take control in their learning, for when knowledge is generated by students instead of being handed to them by their teacher it can hold a greater meaning by opening up new pathways for analytical thinking. It is absolutely worthless to have students memorize that Christopher Columbus sailed to Haiti in 1492, but it is all the more powerful to have each student create an argument of their own for how Ferdinand and Isabella of Spain came to unite a country and build an intercontinental empire.
Social studies classrooms can even take learning a step further by using historical themes as a lens for the present. “Equity pedagogy creates an environment in which students can acquire, interrogate, and produce knowledge and envision new possibilities for use of that knowledge for social change,” (Banks & Banks, 1995, p. 153). The simple notion that young adolescents can work together to galvanize a community around a present issue is empowering, and I believe communal participation is too often discarded in high school classrooms. Teenagers can make an impact, even just by initiating democratic discussions with their peers at the lunch table.
Educators ought to promote active citizenship at the national and global level. We live in a country fortunate enough to permit protest and opposing opinions, and so students should be encouraged to voice their controversial beliefs (so long as they are grounded in facts). Because every person is not just a citizen of a particular country but also of the world each of us has an obligation to participate in global affairs. Social studies classrooms historically have often taught American centrism, and the “City on the Hill” mentality that our nation was founded on and still holds firmly in the minds of many Americans today. I believe that the reputations and expectations of superpowers in global politics should be taught to understand history but not to boast national egos. To put it bluntly, there are far too many immoral and unjust actions taken by our country to be reason to pride oneself of global power. Citizens of all countries should instead keep a steady interest in world news and issues for the sake of extending human rights for all, environmentalism, the maintenance of peace, or whichever other issue they find of merit to themselves and to the world.
A key part in promoting active citizenship is encouraging students to develop their sense of values and morals. It is not to say that values and morals direct themselves solely from religion; this may be the case for some however in public education I believe it is the educators’ civic responsibility to uphold a clear separation of church and state. Social studies is used to guide students into defining what morality means to them through open-minded learning and civic participation. The conflict then becomes for history teachers how to teach certain dominantly favored values in an unbiased way. One unit in an American history class might be the civil rights movement, from 1954-1965. The teacher may feel mandated to teach the value of equality as an underlying theme in the progression of civil rights, however such a value becomes controversial when discussing current issues of equality such as gay marriage. I believe that a social studies teacher can teach equality as an impartial guide, and the students can then develop their own beliefs of equality for themselves. Whether they believe gay marriage should be legalized in every state or African-Americans never deserved the right to integrate into white schools, they are learning their values through an impartial look at history and are grounding their beliefs in learned facts.
Since discovering my passion for education and for history I have decided upon the exact form of instruction that suits me best as a student. However, much to my earlier dismay, not all students learn in the same manner as I do. I now believe that educators must make an effort to accommodate all learners, for their preferences of instruction as well as their levels of intellectual capability. Every teacher has an obligation to keep every student to high expectations, since setting the bar high is the only way I know to get students to reach for it. I wish for my classes to be more content-driven than the social studies standards may dictate them to be. I see no reason to dilute my own standards for students to study history as a memorization of “facts” they can find within their textbook. I believe that by teaching a more thorough history students will not only remember the “facts” that they need to remember on state testing days but they will also learn to see history in a much broader light. I find a passionate and knowledgeable teacher’s lectures to be far more intellectually stimulating than any simply designed, cooperative lesson plan. With that said, I wish for my lessons to be primarily lecture and discussion based as opposed to any textbook suggested lesson plans. I am confident that as I grow more experienced in teaching I will pick up on some my own ideas and those of my colleagues to vary up my instruction, but for my first few years I plan to stick to what I know I can teach well. There will without a doubt still be opportunities to open the class up for historical debates, storytelling, research projects, and the occasional cooperative exercise (when appropriate). My core belief with instruction is to consistently push students to reach for their unreachable potential, and my concern, which is derived from my own experiences as a student, is that certain group work becomes more recreational than educational for students who do not feel challenged or are more passive with their learning.
In theory I find reflective inquiry to be the form of instruction best suited to accommodate every student’s style of learning, however I also believe that teaching history as a social science can compliment the goals of a reflective classroom. I agree with the approach of student-centered learning in reflective inquiry (Dewey, 1933). “We too often ignore or make little effort to learn about the personal experiences of the student-citizens we meet in our classes,” and so the diversity of students’ own backgrounds should be used to strengthen discussion and to assist constructing their new interpretations of knowledge (Ochoa-Becker, 2007, p. 169). They will subject any ungrounded prejudices they may have to a rational examination and develop new beliefs (Hunt & Metcalf, 1968). Students will draw their own fact-supported conclusions within the curriculum and use their new understandings of history to provoke the minds of others in democratic discussions.
To teach social science in a reflective classroom means to bring about opportunities for students to think analytically about history. Students explore content beyond the textbook and through primary and secondary sources, just as historians would. They critique all new information with a sense of doubt as they learn to judge sources for their authenticity, bias, and merit (Barton, 2005). By creating their own interpretations of history students are at times learning only independently, however in a reflective classroom they are also sharing their newfound knowledge and supported arguments with their classmates. In research assignments their theses are of scholarly topics but are also chosen by the students according to their own interest. Their work can be assigned to correlate with modern issues to further encourage civic participation. Not all students will find a passion in historical research but by integrating social science into the reflective classroom they are learning how to think with an open mind and how to create an argument.
One great caution social studies teachers have is to stray away from making direct historical analogies. Too often teachers try to motivate students into seeing the value in history by using the infamous and anonymous quote, “Those who do not remember history are condemned to repeat it.” However this is an incorrect assessment of history; to assume that any one historical event is a repeat of another is to assume that their circumstances are exactly the same. The tragic simplicity of this has been put to use in international politics as well, as many historians agree that America’s Cold War containment policy was no more than a flawed and failed attempt to prevent the same appeasement to Soviet leaders as was done to Adolf Hitler in Munich, 1938. Social studies teachers can teach how historical analogies controlled the minds of politicians, but to say that there are direct connections between isolated events and even to the present would only create close-minded learners. Students need to see history as a means to understand the present through themes that have shaped our past. In a reflective classroom they must be taught the critical thinking skills to assess for themselves how events may or may not be interconnected and to develop their own themes for understanding history.
When social studies is taught beyond the facts it must be tested accordingly. Teachers can gauge students’ progress in the course by a variety of evaluations, not just by exams. Assessment ought to “… deal with the degree to which issues have been understood, the ability to generate useful interpretations as well as mastery of the intellectual processes, that is verifying truth claims and decision making needed in the resolution of significant and controversial issues,” (Ochoa-Becker, 2007, p. 105). Therefore the best methods of assessment do not reside in multiple-choice questions asking for answers dictated as facts by the teacher. They reside in the extent of students’ demonstration of analytical thought, whether in classroom activities such as developing arguments for a group debate or in essays prompting students to connect themes to create their own understanding of a historical event. Participation should also be a factor, as active citizenship is a primary goal of a social studies education. This can carry as much weight as a teacher chooses it to, it is only important to announce that participation in society begins in the classroom.
While I know at times my overconfidence can overshadow my otherwise open mind, I hold a deep appreciation for learning. Quite simply, I see it as an obligation not only to one’s self but also to society that one actively engages their mind to leave the world a better place than when they found it. In my classroom students will utilize critical thinking skills not just to study history but also for practical use within their own lives. Once applied to their lives it makes no difference to me as a teacher whether or not my students continue on in history. For this means that they have undertaken a lifelong love for learning, which is the ultimate goal of education as well as my personal guarantee for a richer, fuller life. If one chooses not to participate in reflective thought, then he/she is embracing passivity, “… the opposite of thought; that it is not only a sign of failure to call out judgment and personal understanding, but that it also dulls curiosity, generates mind-wandering, and causes learning to be a task instead of a delight,” (Dewey, 1933, p. 261). In my mind of justice, passivity is the greatest crime one can commit against a society. The progression of civilization, and especially that of a democracy, is forever dependent on the availability of new ideas and contradicting thought. As much as opposing beliefs may frustrate others and complicate work, we must strive to protect freedom of speech and embrace compromises that are representative of all viewpoints. As I am completing my final years in education school, I feel honored that I will soon have the privilege to teach social studies to our nation’s youth. I will be teaching the content that I find not only the most interesting but also the most relevant to my students’ lives and our world’s future. The educational philosophies I studied have shaped how I view my career, however my core belief remains the same: Given an engaging teacher, captivating content, and high expectations, any student will come to enjoy their education. After learning how to learn with an open mind and how to stand for an argument, one can successfully participate in society. It is imperative that one does so, as our democracy is entirely reliant on each next generation’s stock of problem solvers. Although as a student myself I have a difficult time yielding any of my own work and responsibilities to others, I acknowledge that cooperation is a fundamental asset to be valued in our society. It is the very concept that I am most enthusiastic about teaching to my students, and it is the very practice that I am most enthusiastic about learning from my students. I may never be a perfect social studies teacher, but I am confident beyond measure that I will never cease to improve. It is my obligation in life that I continue to strive for my own unreachable potential each school year, and I am truly thankful for the opportunity to do so.

Works Cited
1. Banks, C. A., & Banks, J. A. (1995). Equity pedagogy: An essential component of multicultural education. Theory Into Practice, 34(3), 152.
2. Barton, K. (2005). Primary sources in history: Breaking through the myths. Phi Delta Kappan, 86(10), 745-753.
3. Dewey, J. (1933). How we think: A restatement of the relation of reflective thinking to the educative process. Boston: D.C. Heath and Co.
4. Hunt, M. P., & Metcalf, L. E. (1968). Teaching high school social studies: Problems in reflective thinking and social understanding. New York: Harper & Row.
5. Ochoa-Becker, A. (2007). Democratic education for social studies: An issues-centered decision making curriculum. Greenwich, CT: Information Age.

Cited: 1. Banks, C. A., & Banks, J. A. (1995). Equity pedagogy: An essential component of multicultural education. Theory Into Practice, 34(3), 152. 2. Barton, K. (2005). Primary sources in history: Breaking through the myths. Phi Delta Kappan, 86(10), 745-753. 3. Dewey, J. (1933). How we think: A restatement of the relation of reflective thinking to the educative process. Boston: D.C. Heath and Co. 4. Hunt, M. P., & Metcalf, L. E. (1968). Teaching high school social studies: Problems in reflective thinking and social understanding. New York: Harper & Row. 5. Ochoa-Becker, A. (2007). Democratic education for social studies: An issues-centered decision making curriculum. Greenwich, CT: Information Age.