This study examined uses of adolescent literature included secondary teacher preparation in English, math, science, and social studies education at 12 institutions. Analyses revealed programs emphasized adolescent literature in a variety of ways and most often in courses for English majors. Only two institutions required that prospective math,…

Social studies documents were collected from teachers in the Tucson, Arizona area and examined using three theories of culture as a way to explore the interrelationships between social studies curriculum and United States society. Malinowski's functionalist position suggests that culture is composed of traits each of which provide a specific…

There has been increasing pressure in recent years for a more realistic portrayal of societal complexities and problems in elementary and secondary social studies materials--especially textbooks. The author discusses in this paper a research project in which a large sample of social studies texts in wide use in grades three, five, and seven are…

States that World War I served as a catalyst for rapid change in the teaching of history, geography, and current events. Indicators of change were found in professional journals such as THE HISTORY TEACHER'S MAGAZINE. Concludes that post-World War I social studies was more like our current curriculum than that which existed prior to the War.…

A study investigated the role of the Saudi Arabian social studies curriculum in helping Saudi students to understand other cultures. Analysis of the content of social studies textbooks revealed that they cover a wide range of cultural information related to countries from around the world. Saudi students start their cultural education in grade 5…

This content analysis study explored the impact of recent decades on the appearance, content, content emphasis and textbook features of 1970 edition and the 1992 edition of "Magruder's American Government." This volume has been the leading high school government textbook ever since it was first published in 1917. The study pre-selected…

This document examines contextual variables and how they affect instructional processes and educational outcomes. One contextual variable which has not received enough attention is the curriculum-material package. Curriculum packages represent potential experimental treatments. Possible research questions are whether these materials and…

One of seven review/synthesis papers prepared to help frame the research program of the Center for the Learning and Teaching of Elementary Subjects, this paper describes historical developments and current issues in curriculum, instruction, and evaluation in elementary social studies, with emphasis on teaching for understanding and higher order…

The purposes of this study are to describe and evaluate the ways in which social conflict associated with racial, economic, political and ecological policies and practices are presented in social studies textbooks for grades three, five and nine. Using a five-step content analysis scheme fifty-eight textbooks adopted for 1971-72 by eight states…

Educational reformers have been concerned about an apparent lack of depth in most social studies curricula with the traditional pressure to "cover" vast amounts of content leading to limited student retention of knowledge. Observational studies have analyzed numerous high school social studies classrooms in which teacher-led…

The paper discusses the theoretical basis of elementary social studies curriculum. Using a categorization tool developed by Eisner and Vallance, the author examines recent elementary school social studies literature in order to determine the underlying of curriculum philosophies. Five philosophical positions are revealed. The first, academic…