Data on age and sex composition are some of the most basic statistics a nation can collect about its people. They are determined by births, deaths, and migration and, in turn, affect other demographic characteristics such as fertility rates and regional changes in population (increases or decreases). In fact, both of these are the two constants…

In this article, the author discusses how it is more important than ever for today's students to excel in social studies. This excellence can occur when every student in grades K-12 has equal access to deep, engaging, thoughtful social studies instruction on a daily basis. With social studies excellence, teachers broaden their students' horizons,…

In this article, the author uses several primary sources to demonstrate that George Washington, Samuel Cabble, Franklin D. Roosevelt, and John F. Kennedy stated their awareness of contemporary challenges, but looked to the future with hope and optimism. When they envisioned the future, their words indicated that they did not just imagine it, but…

Students need more than the facts. They need a basic understanding of history--where people came from or how civilizations have evolved and interacted. But they also need to understand why this knowledge is important and how it relates to their present. History doesn't just happen; it is made--made by real people who faced real challenges, who had…

The Partnership for 21st Century Skills places an important emphasis on fundamental social science subjects including history, geography, government and civics, and economics as well as a stress on other important subjects such as English, foreign languages, arts, and science in the school curriculum. It has also identified what it calls 21st…

This article describes the Frank Reade dime novels, published in 1882, that are now recognized as the beginnings of the modern science fiction novel in the United States. They illustrate the hope that Americans of the time held for the future that newly invented technology could offer. Although the Frank Reade stories highlighted the promise of…

This speech by James Michener analyzes causes for anti-science attitudes prevalent in the United States. Concludes that the scientific world must keep the general public abreast of what it is doing and continue to pursue goals proven to be sound bases for a free society. (Author/KC)

Presents a wide spectrum of views by scholars of Soviet Affairs regarding recent American policy and predictions for the future course of international relations between the two super powers. Experts are Adam B. Ulam (Harvard University), Robert F. Byrnes (Indiana University), Stephen F. Cohen (Princeton University), Alexander Yanov (University of…

Presents views by the following educators on social studies education in elementary schools: Harold Howe II (former vice-president for education and public policy, The Ford Foundation); Barbara Jordan (professor, University of Texas); James A. Perkins (chairperson, International Council for Educational Development); and Arthur W. Foshay (teacher…

In the future, videodiscs will be used in social studies classrooms as teaching tools, tutors, and storage devices or data banks. Although the videodisc is now available, educational materials using the medium are just beginning to become available. (RM)

Presents answers of Alvin Toffler (author of "Future Shock") to questions about a variety of issues, including problems of schools today, the role of formal education in the future, forms of community participation in schooling in the future, and ways in which social studies teachers can help prepare their students for the future. (DB)

Four essays in honor of the International Year of the Child present the authors' feelings about future possibilities of the world, emphasizing current positive and negative aspects and their meaning for the future. (CK)

Describes how most groups that have settled in the United States came to fulfill their dreams. We can be optimistic about the future and the American dream if we accept the fact that we will have to live with fewer material goods and share more of what we now have. (RM)

Examines what the American dream means to ethnic Americans. Specifically discussed are: (1) how official documents of the dream have dealt with ethnicity; (2) how ethnic groups have interpreted the dream; (3) how the 1960s redefined the dream; and (4) the future of the dream in terms of changing American ethnicity. (RM)

Presented at the National Council for the Social Studies annual meeting in Dallas on November 16, 1987, this article discusses issues such as military spending, peaceful competition with other nations, and minority group affairs, which face the United States and its students as the year 2000 approaches. (GEA)