Recent technological advances have enhanced the accessibility of rephotography, a visual research method and project-based approach valued by social studies educators for engaging students in historical inquiry and place-based exploration. Rephotography projects capture photos from the vantage point of an old image to explore change over time.…

Jamestown is at the heart of any teaching and learning of colonial American history. Stories of John Smith and Pocahontas are learned by elementary and secondary students across the United States. In Virginia, Jamestown is first taught in third grade and revisited five more times from historical, political, economic, and geographic perspectives.…

There is no better site for political or democratic action than the school itself and the students' own community, according to educational philosopher John Dewey (1859-1952). Learning about local government provides students with authentic examples of democratic processes and institutions that shape their daily lives. Getting involved in local…

This article illustrates how to integrate mathematics with social issues. Social issues discussed in the newspaper provide a rich context for connecting mathematical activities to the real world. The sample activities focus on measurement concepts. (Contains 2 figures.)

A publication designed to help primary school teachers teach geography is critically reviewed. An integrated approach for studying the local environment to learn about issues and distant places is presented. Discusses a spiral approach for teaching which indicates what to teach at what age. (DC)

Describes activities that can be adapted for students in elementary to high school grade levels that link teaching about local government to the concept of community and provide starting points for project ideas centering on the active involvement of students, teachers, and local government officials. (CMK)

Demonstrates the connections among authenticity, technology, and geography by discussing the use of the Internet and a Geographic Information System (GIS). Describes an online community-based project in a three-step process (research a local issue, create a Web site, and submit the site to an online community). (CMK)

This case study concerns the forming of a Marietta, Ohio unity committee, entitled Citizens for Social and Racial Justice, in response to the local Ku Klux Klan's (KKK) request for a parade permit in order to demonstrate against blacks in this city. Marietta, the county seat of Washington County, Ohio, has a population composed of both white and…

Global Trends Workshops for secondary science and social studies teachers and supervisors conducted collaboratively by the Center for Environmental/Energy Education and the Tennessee Valley Authority's Environmental/Energy Education Program are described. The workshops helped teachers learn how to merge global trends with local concerns. (RM)

Asserts that students have little knowledge about the operation of local government. Discusses a three-day interdisciplinary lesson about water management and local government for the elementary grades. Includes descriptions of laboratory exercises, homework assignments, and class discussions. (CFR)

Warns of the limitations of educational reform via standards and standardization as seen in New York, NY. Focuses on "culturally responsive pedagogy," which is needed to build a system sensitive to the backgrounds and contexts of students and schooling. (CMK)

Describes the development of "The South Carolina Atlas of Environmental Risks and Hazards," a digital atlas that provides people with information on environmental hazards in South Carolina. Discusses the content and navigation of the atlas and considers its utility for classroom instruction and public resource. (CMK)

Social studies in the 1980s must shift from a focus on citizenship and career education to an emphasis on conceptual knowledge, skills, and active learning. Student investigations of the urban environment would be an effective means of achieving this transition. (DC)

Compares three cases in Atlanta, GA, New York state, and Washington, DC, in which advocates fought to have an Afrocentric curriculum implemented in public schools' social studies and history classes. Examines the influences of six local organizational factors on the proposed curricular changes. (CMK)

Describes a lesson consisting of activities such as a mock town hall meeting, forming a lobby group, and attending a town hall meeting. Focuses on community-based issues and the role of citizens in bringing about change at the local level. (CMK)