Objectives: In this Paper, I examine how high school social studies content standards in the United States address fundamental concepts of American governance, particularly the concept of democracy. Methods: I conducted a qualitative textual analysis of government/civics content standards from all 50 states, Washington DC, and the Advanced…

Convinced of the major advantages and effectiveness of an interdisciplinary approach in teaching, colleagues from American Studies, Economics, and Greek Studies offered a joint seminar for master's degree students on "Individual Goals and the Common Good: Perspectives on Utility Concepts from Ancient Greek Literature, American Studies, and…

This paper uses the author's time as a Fulbright Roving Scholar in American Studies to Norway as an entrée into exploring human rights discourse and Human Rights Education in Norway, a country that is often thought of as one of the centers of human rights work in Europe--and appreciates this association. It begins by situating human rights in…

Purpose: The paper aims to illustrate some of the challenges and outcomes of teaching courses addressing the politics, culture, and history of the US in the Middle East. In doing so, it contextualises an application of Culturally Relevant Pedagogy and describes its implementation. Methodology: A case study method is applied to qualitative records…

Despite decades of formal work with teachers, little is known about what they gain from professional development at and with historic sites. This article presents the first data-set from a 3-year Institute for Museum and Library Services National Leadership Grant project designed to develop a broad-based assessment for understanding what teachers…

Background: The most recent Norwegian educational reform, in force from 2020, was the first to include games alongside more traditional language learning resources (e.g., novels, films, music) in the English curriculum for secondary school. This educational emphasis on games provided a unique opportunity to examine how games are actually used in…

Course-based, service-learning, study-away opportunities for university students can result in transformational learning for students. Within the context of Mezirow's transformative learning theory (2008), this study explored university students' perceptions of a course-based, service-learning, study-away experience in a culture greatly different…

This paper explores the impacts of using Indigenous Young Adult Literature with teacher candidates at a liberal arts university to develop their competence in Indigenous topics and issues. Research on the use of young adult literature for examining race, culture, and equity has shown the efficacy of the genre in supporting student learning in…

Interdisciplinary programs have significantly increased in scope and scale over the past several decades, including those in British Columbia. The nature of these programs creates unique challenges for transfer and articulation processes that rely heavily on disciplinary expertise and review; these challenges are complicated by the fact that…

Despite years of research on effective teaching suggesting that learners must engage actively in the process and that teachers should vary their instructional strategies, direct instruction using lecture continues to dominate in America's college classrooms. The author reviews selected studies focusing on effective instructional practices and…

As the U.S. Supreme Court prepared to rehear for the second time the case of "Brown v. Board of Education" in 1953, the 83rd Congress passed House Concurrent Resolution 108 and Public Law 280--policies that would terminate federal treaty and trust responsibilities to Native Americans. Even as post-"Brown" desegregation went…

American Indian higher education in the United States has evolved within paternalistic, hierarchical decision-making policies and practices based on complex sociopolitical and cultural factors since the 1600s. Indigenous peoples had historically been excluded from most decisions affecting their lives until the 20th century when a deliberate Indian…

In this paper, the author looks closely at two spaces where students engaged in practices and forms of cultural production with transformative possibilities. Specifically, the author sought out spaces where youth came together for one of two important purposes: to cross boundaries of difference or to affirm and re-imagine identities. The two…

Provides an interpretation of survey results of historians by an Italian scholar of American studies. Maintains that U.S. historians and historiography are changing the way Italian and other European scholars view history and its societal role. Concludes that cultural and intellectual pluralism is deeply rooted in U.S. political culture. (CFR)

A stage model of Black adolescent racial identity from the perspective of its use by educational researchers in the United States who employ it to explain the academic and social decisions that Black youth make in secondary schools was examined. Researchers often draw on stage models to explicitly challenge forms of White dominance in studies…