One of the most persistent and controversial issues facing the global community is climate change. With the creation of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in 1992 and the Kyoto Protocol (1997), the global community established some common ground on how to address this issue. However, the last several climate summits have failed…

Today's schools and teachers are challenged with meeting the demands of specific content standards, high stakes assessment, and developing students from diverse backgrounds to be capable of competing in a global market. These twenty-first century students must not only possess critical thinking skills and the ability to process information, but…

A study of human rights prepares students for their role as global citizens and their study of practices in the world's countries that relate to the rights of human beings. Today, when one talks of human rights it is usually with reference to the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR). It is the task of teachers to give students the…

Social studies teachers live with the unintended consequences of the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act every day. They understand that the law has created flawed incentives for states and school districts to narrow their curricula to English and math. This fundamentally misguided practice leaves out core disciplines that are essential to a…

The forceful induction of children as child soldiers is an abhorrent violation of human rights. It is very disturbing that while many children are forcibly recruited into armed conflicts, others actually volunteer, due to their nightmarish alternatives. Although the practice has recently gained worldwide attention, awareness alone will not end the…

Teaching economics at the preK-12 level has always been one of the most difficult aspects of social studies education notes C. Frederick Risinger, yet, throughout his teaching career economic issues and events were the drivers of most historical, political, and sociological trends and topics and even human slavery was driven and maintained by…

The study of human rights is inseparable from social studies. Beyond the basic political, economic, and social freedoms and rights spelled out in The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, hundreds of specialized topics have developed that demonstrate the complex nature of human rights in the twenty-first-century world--environmental exploitation…

This NCSS position statement is intended for all audiences who are committed to preparing students for active and engaged citizenship in the 21st century. This includes the general public, the elementary, middle, and high school communities, social studies supervisors and directors, higher education, and all educators, pre-Kindergarten through…

According to "A Report on the State of U.S. History Education, State Policies and National Programs as of September 2008," "Forty-eight states and the District of Columbia have established academic standards to address academic achievement in history, the social sciences, or social studies. The sole exceptions are Iowa and Rhode…

If the mission of the social studies is to educate global citizens for the twenty-first century, then students must learn how to engage in the type of systematic and sophisticated literacy work that recognizes the power of images as well as texts. In an era of high stakes testing, it is not easy for teachers to find time to locate appropriate art,…

In South Carolina, the children of farmworkers were found to be getting 800 calories of food a day. This case study describes the lifestyle of one of these families and examines problems associated with underemployment and poverty. Study questions and activities are included. (DE)

The South Pacific island of Bali is used as a case study of overpopulation and food shortage. A brief description of the resources, the typical lifestyle of the Balinese farmer, and possible teaching techniques are given. (DE)

Sahel is the Arabic word for "shore" and is applied to the Southern belt of the Sahara Desert now undergoing a severe drought. This article describes the lifestyle of a Tuareg herder as he and his family fight for survival. Discussion questions and possible solution to the problems are provided in the case study. (Author/DE)

The city of Salvador, Brazil, is growing rapidly; yet 100,000 people still live in the slums and unemployment is high. This article examines the lifestyle of one of these slum dwellers and his family focusing on their poverty. Discussion questions and activities are provided. (DE)

Four pitfalls in using case studies to teach global issues are described. These include, bias in choosing cases, overgeneralization from the case, finding interesting cases, and letting the case become an end in itself. (DE)