Historians often present their interpretation of the past in written accounts. In order to gain deeper knowledge of the discipline of history, students must learn how to read and write historical accounts. In this experimental pretest--posttest study, we investigated the impact of a domain-specific reading instruction followed by domain-specific…

Source-based writing is a common but difficult task in history and philosophy. Students are usually taught how to write a good text in language classes. However, it is also important to address discipline-specificity in writing, a topic likely to be taught by content teachers. In order to design discipline-specific writing instruction, research…

Analytical reading and writing are embedded in a disciplinary approach to history instruction and present opportunities to extend students' literacy practices. U.S. educators and researchers have come to rely on the Document-Based Question (DBQ) to assess and develop students' historical knowledge and argument writing. However, this task has been…

The "college readiness" movement of the past decade coupled with the widespread adoption of Common Core State Standards (CCSS) has generated pressure on content area teachers to develop disciplinary thinking skills while also providing more opportunities for student writing. The purpose of this three-article dissertation is to understand…

Every teacher knows the challenge of trying to engage reluctant readers and struggling writers--students whose typical response to a writing prompt is a few sentence fragments scribbled on a sheet of paper followed by an elaborate shrug of the shoulders. The best way to engage less confident readers and writers is to give them something powerful…

This article describes 10 recommendations for creativity, higher-order thinking, and meaningful learning activities that can be used to guide teachers in constructing an engaging AP course: (1) Be on the committee that decides how students will be selected for AP; (2) Maximize time and connections through blocks of time with an English colleague;…

Evidence shows that the skills and dispositions that lead to thoughtful and effective participation in civic life can be developed and promoted through participation in assigned advocacy, argumentation, and debate. We argue that debate and argumentation are uniquely well suited to be implemented across the curriculum, which means that students…

The digital environment has had an immense effect on American society, learning, and education: we have more sources available at our fingertips than any previous generation. Teaching and learning with these new sources, however, has been a challenging transition. Students are confronted with an ocean of digital objects and need skills to navigate…

Students are entering a workforce that demands competency in writing both for explicit communication through e-mail as well as in products in the company's day-to-day dealings. Strategies for teaching students to communicate in writing have been evaluated extensively in a face-to-face environment. Many of those successful strategies have been…

This study was aimed at finding effective ways of organising peer assessment of written assignments in the context of teaching history at university level. To discover features yielding optimal results, several peer assessment designs were developed, implemented in courses and their learning outcomes evaluated. Outcomes were defined in terms of…

Outlines letter writing exercises for fifth grade social studies units on the U.S. Revolutionary War period. Students write letters as fictional and nonfictional historical characters from trade books described in article. Objectives include understanding viewpoints and historical events, writing to persuade, and share or seek information.…

An effective essay assignment in an introductory college history course should: (1) acquaint the student with the problematical nature of historical evidence; (2) challenge the student to interpret evidence; (3) facilitate critical skill acquisition; and (4) encourage formulation of further questions. History course evaluations are presented.…

Explores how social-studies student teachers think about and write about history through an examination of their historical thinking, use of sources, and writing. Focuses on constructing historical accounts from multiple sources. Discusses common patterns in thinking and writing. Suggests way to improve student teachers' engagement with historical…

Contends that teachers often demand creative and concise writing but do not provide students with concrete suggestions. Presents an approach to writing instruction using geometric figures as models for essay writing. Includes 10 examples of models with essay questions derived from each model's conceptual base. (CFR)

Argues that the introductory history course should focus on teaching students to find, evaluate, and present information in a coherent manner rather than merely present a cluster of facts to be memorized. Suggests an article review assignment which teaches students to effectively evaluate and communicate knowledge. (LS)