Primary sources are tricky documents. They can be excellent texts to use in the classroom to improve content knowledge and build skills, but care must be taken so they promote rather than thwart learning (Eicher, 2007; Newman, 2014). A couple of preliminary steps can eliminate pitfalls and help a primary source fulfill its promise. Traditionally,…

The study aimed to evaluate what the underlying reasons were for the low level of interest among lower secondary school pupils in the social studies course. The phenomenology was adopted in the research. The study group of the research consisted of academics, teachers, and parents of lower secondary school pupils. Pareto analysis was used to…

One justification given by social studies teachers for avoiding teaching or incorporating race into their lessons is the absence of race from textbooks. Given that textbooks continue to play a significant role in social studies instruction, the authors analyzed how Dr. Carter Godwin Woodson, a Black scholar of the early twentieth century,…

Artists have long addressed social injustices within popular music. As teachers consider how to deconstruct and teach the events of 2020 (and beyond) with an eye toward the future, we offer a novel pedagogical approach to incorporating music into the social studies classroom: the set-list. The set-list can be understood as containing temporal…

Until the beginning of the 21st century, the Tulsa Race Massacre was omitted mainly from the social studies curriculum and state-mandated standards in the United States. However, the featured lesson provides a valuable springboard to explore the historical perspectives and injustices against the Black community in Tulsa, Oklahoma, on May 31, 1921.…

This paper analyzes the imaginings of sustainable futures and possibilities for action toward these imaginings articulated by social studies teachers. Participant stories about a day in the life of an imagined future largely leave intact major systems and discourses including those which have actively contributed to problems they identify…

In this study, I used a critical analysis approach to identify and examine the perpetrator- and victim-centered perspectives within the Holocaust narrative of the "2019 South Carolina Social Studies College- and Career-Ready Standards." Given the recent revision of the standards, I compared the 2019 standards to the "2011 South…

In this article, the authors discuss a month-long research study where sixth grade students researched three women for the half-century after the U.S. Civil War War that worked to change their respective communities to address public issues: Jane Addams, Clara Lemlich, and Ida B. Wells. The sixth graders read a picture book for each of the three…

Social studies educators have long advocated using history and the social sciences for the development of citizens. However, vigorous debate continues over what kinds of citizens are needed and who should decide. Where does this leave us as social studies teachers and scholars? And where does it leave our students? In this paper, I argue that…

In addition to the continuing need for citizens who can address the challenges of "human" communities, growing concerns have arisen regarding "all" life on the planet. Indeed, one of our most urgent conditions is the decline of the environment upon which all life depends. Yet, despite our concerns, there remain vastly differing…

The American Civil Rights Movement has often been misrepresented in textbooks, children's literature, and other curricular materials. With knowledge of the ongoing curricular distortion around Black history in P-12 curricula in mind, this article explores how a commonly used social studies curriculum, "Studies Weekly"®, represents the…

Social studies preservice teachers will start their career with the aim of raising "good person-good citizen" for the ideal society. Believing in this important purpose and being aware of the field will contribute to the realization of the ideal society objective. Yet, it is necessary to try to raise this awareness in the most enjoyable…

Students learned to perform first-person presentation to display information researched through an inquiry process. Teachers helped students learn inquiry during instructional time. Teachers, parents, and guardians worked together to support student learning in a high poverty and low educational attainment Appalachian community. The character the…

In this study, we investigate how a third-grade teacher enacted controversial issues discussion about the use of Indigenous people as sports mascots. We highlight how the teacher supported eight students' sensemaking about the issue during small-group instruction. We provide suggestions for controversial issues teaching in elementary social…

This article uses critical media literacy to approach themes of sexism and gender inequality depicted in the 2023 film "Barbie." Teachers cognizant of the need to address women's rights issues in American history often struggle to find resources that are accessible and meaningful for their students. Furthermore, the use of film in social…