Early on, children learn they can not have everything they desire. In this article, the authors discuss how to teach students to prioritize and help them make better choices. The authors suggest teachers to make a list of items that students desire, and then divide those items into two categories--(1) wants; and (2) needs ("needs" being things…

For the past 60 years, the Census Bureau has enlisted the support of educators to bring to the community the message of the importance of a complete and accurate count of the population. The U.S. Census Bureau will deliver 2010 census questionnaires to every household in the United States in March 2010. The census questionnaire is composed of only…

Like many other teachers, the author always looks for a way to enliven a lesson--a new twist, a different perspective, a novel resource. The slogan of the NCSS convention held in Atlanta, Georgia, in 2009 was, "Dreams and Deeds: The Civic Mission of Schools," and this article provides "how to" ideas, easy, high-interest opportunities to make that…

This article highlights some of the cultural barriers that exist for Hmong people who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ), while placing these barriers in an historical context. It uncovers differences and similarities found between the experiences of queer Hmong youth and the larger population of queer youth living…

Problem Statement: Democracy and education are two concepts that influence, transform, and improve each other in time. In this sense, we could talk about a symbiotic relationship between democracy and education. The social studies teacher himself or herself must primarily be tolerant towards the class, respect both students and fellow teachers,…

A recent trend in developed countries' school curricula has been the transition from disciplinary to generic forms of knowledge, resulting in an emphasis on interdisciplinary organisation and more active forms of learning. Subject specialists are increasingly expected to demonstrate how their subject interconnects and equips pupils with key life…

One of the challenges that social studies educators face daily is how to make student learning relevant. Digital technologies can play an important role by connecting what happens in the classroom to the world beyond. One way to do this is by turning students into producers of information and having them create content rather than simply consume.…

In light of the increasing racial diversity in American schools and the consistently homogenous teacher workforce in the United States, understanding the ways white teachers consider and attend to racial issues is of crucial importance to the educational landscape. This paper, based on a qualitative study, explores five white American teachers'…

This article reports findings from a 3-year study on preservice middle and secondary social studies teachers' common content knowledge of politics and current events. Surveys showed that both groups were generally uninformed about these issues, and on almost all measures, the middle-grades preservice teachers performed worse than those in the…

Mary Ledbetter's fifth grade students at the University of Texas Elementary School know immigration well. Some of them are recent immigrants from Mexico, or they have family members who are. Several of Mary's students are first or second generation Americans. For Mary, immigration is one of the most important units she teaches, one that integrates…

"Sesame Street" is broadcast to millions of children globally, including in some of the world's poorest regions. This meta-analysis examines the effects of children's exposure to international co-productions of "Sesame Street", synthesizing the results of 24 studies, conducted with over 10,000 children in 15 countries. The results indicated…

Social studies has often had a reputation amongst students for being uninteresting due to the teaching strategies and content that educators have utilized. However, in a field as diverse and relevant as social studies, there are opportunities to garner the attention of students and empower them with information to improve and enhance our democracy…

This mixed-methods study investigated the relationship between Advanced Placement (AP) social studies teachers' utilization of academic course blogs and student achievement. Simultaneously, the study examined the participating teachers' perceptions on the use of course blogs and other social media as supplemental learning resources. The…

This study explores how one secondary social studies teacher education program prepares prospective teachers for inclusive education. Drawing on theories of democratic citizenship education and Disability Studies in Education, inclusive social studies envisions a socially democratic educational setting that fosters the development of a community…

In order to revisit Martorella's metaphor of technology as a sleeping giant this paper analyzes data collected over multiple years in order to provide a portrait of how preservice teachers make sense of and choose (if at all) to integrate digital technologies within their internship classrooms. Findings indicate that in the Commonwealth of…