Presented is an issue analysis technique that allows learners to organize information about an issue in a conceptual framework. Examples of issues and value descriptors, components of issue analysis, and an example of an analysis are given. (CW)

Presents social studies' dichotomous two faces in its goals, content, and methods: the declarative versus hypothetical modes. Delineates the problem of education to produce good citizens or critical thinkers. Argues that the National Commission on Social Studies report, "Charting A Course," fails to provide a social studies program…

Outlines and discusses a series of activities using puppet theater to explore social community issues. Draws inspiration from the street theater of the 1960s that used puppetry and engaged the audience in lively conversations during productions. Includes instructions for building puppets and suggestions for plays and performance material. (MJP)

Examines the narrative and propositional approaches to teaching about tolerance in relation to moral and political controversial issues. Indicates that students gave the teacher higher approval ratings, perceived the teacher as more attractive, and remembered more when the teacher used the narrative approach to explain conflicting positions on an…

Presents a lesson plan based on the instructional practice of "Academic Controversy.""Academic Controversy" involves using student research and classroom debate to decide issues with clearly defined positions. Uses a civil rights case as source material and includes lesson procedures and a student handout. (MJP)

Notes that there is a rich literature within social studies education promoting the teaching of controversial issues. Observes that, despite this, teachers continue to be cautious, only giving controversies a token nod in curricula. Suggests four reasons why controversial content continues to be difficult for teachers to implement. (DSK)

Provides historical information on Harold Rugg and the Social Reconstructionist movement. Contends the social issues-centered method should be used within social studies education. Discusses a social issues model that exposes preservice teachers to the social issues-centered model and focuses on a case study on California Proposition 187. (CMK)

This study examined the teaching of controversial public issues (CPI) in middle and high school social studies classes. I sought to better understand the instruction and conceptions undergirding the instruction of secondary social studies teachers who were nominated by discussion experts as especially skillful at teaching their students to…

Given the varied backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives among students and faculty in management education and organizational studies programs, often teachable moments present themselves around differing perceptions. Seizing these moments to talk about difficult, controversial issues--or undiscussables--can catalyze and deepen learning. This…

The literary works surveyed here were written by authors who, as children, witnessed apartheid, holocaust, imprisonment, escape, genocide, ethnic cleansing, and other horrors that marked their lives. In each case, the selected texts are rendered as diaries or as first-person narratives describing disturbing situations which are resolved either…

This document suggests that the main purpose of the study of current affairs in the social studies program in Alberta, Canada, is to add relevance, interest, and immediacy. It defines current affairs as the study of news events presented by the media. Because the study of current affairs must be tied to the achievement of social studies…

This article describes a teaching experiment in Finland to develop critical thinking and argumentation skills in a university course using both face-to-face and e-mail settings. Subjects (n=49) were advanced students of education and three faculty members. All students received two lectures on argumentation and packages of argumentative writings…

This study was conducted to identify bioethical topics of possible interest for a high school science curriculum, focusing on advantages and disadvantages of bioethical education and emphasizing the procedure to incorporate bioethics instruction into the secondary school science curriculum. Researched material is presented as an annotated…

This document was prepared to inform teachers about their academic freedom rights and to assist teachers who are confronted with a potential academic freedom issue. It provides (1) an essay which outlines the issues, (2) a list of significant decisions of the U.S. Courts of Appeals and their implications, (3) steps to follow when academic freedom…

Argues against using neutrality as a method for teaching multicultural, antiracist education on the grounds that taking a neutral stance allows the stronger force to prevail over the weaker. States that teachers should alert students to the major alternatives available, allowing them to reflect on and modify their moral framework. (GEA)