When Do Students “Do” Social Studies?
Every day, we experience social studies whether it is intentional or not. We engage in social interactions when we walk to class or go to work, when we shop at the grocery store or eat in a dining hall. These daily interactions shape our being, and our ability to communicate with people in our world. But what does it mean to actively engage in, or do social studies? I believe that social studies goes beyond just engaging in social interaction. It is the ability to immerse yourself into a debate, collaborate with peers, learn about social injustices, or participate in a meaningful classroom discussion. Engaging in social studies means to learn about, analyze and act on social issues, and then to apply that knowledge in the real world.
At school21 in London, elementary school students do social studies through discussion and collaboration. They discuss current social issues like racism and gender norms, and they are given the opportunity to problem solve and talk about complex emotions. Through a well-being course, students can learn about each other’s emotions and engage in meaningful discussions. It is discussions like these that help facilitate learning in the classroom, and can later be transformed into useful skills in the real world.
Another way students can do social studies is through service learning. Service learning combines what students are learning in the classroom with helping the broader community and world in which they live. It allows students to expand their knowledge outside of the classroom and apply what they have learned about emotions and well being in real life situations. We must prepare students to live in a diverse democracy by teaching them about relevant social issues.
The students at Woodbury Middle School do social studies by participating in a service day each year. They use recycled materials to create shoe making kits and send them to shoemakers in an impoverished community in Africa, who can then sew them together and give them out to their community. Although this particular example was for a community in Africa, students can participate in service projects to benefit their own communities, even their own school. In the book Black Ants and Buddhists, Mary Cowhey writes about a “giving tree” in her school where students can leave extra winter clothes or non-perishable foods under a tree in the school lobby. Members of the school community can take items from the giving tree if they need, and the rest is donated to a nearby survival center. The giving tree is an important reminder of how impactful giving back can be. Such an activity does not only benefit the larger community but fellow classmates as well.
How do we assess doing social studies?
The best way to assess how well children are doing social studies is to plan lessons by backwards design, or planning lessons based off of the desired outcome. According to Wiggins, “Our lessons, units and courses should be logically inferred from the results sought, not derived from the methods, books, and activities with which we are most comfortable” (Wiggins 14). In order to assess children doing social studies, they need to be able to understand and embody the material and not just memorize it. They should be able to take the information they have learned, synthesize it, and apply it to real life situations.
Sources
“Compassion Action and Change.” Black Ants and Buddhists: Thinking Critically and Teaching Differently in the Primary Grades, by Mary Cowhey, Stenhouse, 2006.
Wiggins, Grant P. and Jay McTighe. Understanding by Design. vol. Expanded 2nd ed, Assoc. for Supervision and Curriculum Development, 2005. Gale Virtual Reference Library.
