While reading Ronald Evans’ “The Social Studies Wars,” I was
intrigued by the development of the social studies field over time. As I read
through the development and gained an understanding of the different forces involved,
I was surprised by the changes that have taken place within the subject area
of social studies over the years. In all honesty, I did not know the field of
social studies went back as far as it did with such depth, but it was
interesting to read the various changes that have taken place over the decades.
I had not thought previously as to the controversies that have arisen, but as I
read about the differing forces, such as the National Council for the Social Studies
and the AHA Commission on Social Studies, I was fascinated by the way in which
issues occurring in society during the time a committee or group met were
reflected in the decisions made for social studies curriculum. As I read through
the history of social studies education, I found this theme reoccurring as what
was being taught (or what was planned to be taught) in social studies
classrooms was reflective of what was happening in our country during that
time. In the conclusion of the book, Evans best put it, “At its heart, this is
a struggle over the nature of social studies and the kind of society in which
we want to live.” (p. 176) There is a struggle, or as I like to think of it, a
working towards a balance of what social studies is and how we can use the
social studies to play a role in our current society.
One aspect that stood out to me as I read Evans’ book was who
was making these decisions. As committees formed to figure out what “social
studies” is and how much of each discipline should be taught, I could not help
but wonder how often teachers were consulted on these decisions. So many
decisions that affect our classrooms seem to be made by policymakers and
interest groups, both without classroom experience. It is hard for me to accept
some of the curriculum changes that are made in social studies, whether at the
national or state level, when certain voices are left out. Students and
teachers are rarely consulted or listened to on issues dealing with standards
and curriculum development. This is a trend I noticed that has been happening
for years and continues to this day.
Evans discussed trends in social studies education that
even though were put in place decades ago, I still find relevant today. I was
surprised in reading the book as to how long certain philosophies have been a part
of social studies education. Inquiry-based approaches to instruction have long
been around, and while Evans argues that the current trend is toward content acquisition,
I think there are changes happening already as educators, like myself, work towards
adopting more inquiry-based instruction into our curriculum. As I reflect on “The
Social Studies Wars” I am walking away with a better understanding of the competing
forces that play a role in social studies education and how that leads us to
where we are today. While I think we will certainly continue to make changes to
social studies over time, I think we will do this to better our instruction for
our students and the society we are living in. I know there will continue to be
competing forces and decisions made that I, and other educators, may not agree
with, but I can continue to make learning meaningful for my students, however
that may look 10, 20, or even 30 years from now.
References
Ronald W. Evans, The Social Studies Wars: What Should We
Teach the Children? (New York: Teachers College, 2004).
Brienne,
ReplyDeleteThanks for your post! You did a great job at summarizing the content and message of the book in a comprehensive manner. I appreciated it!
First, I completely agree with your statement, “In all honesty, I did not know the field of social studies went back as far as it did with such depth…” I had the exact same thought as I read. I was completely oblivious to the amount of time, debate, philosophy, etc. which played a part in creating what we now consider “social studies.” I also found the common theme of cultural or political events such as the Depression, World War II, etc. affecting what became the focus of social studies. Honestly, before this unit, I had not considered that. I always assumed social studies remained the same from decade to decade.
You then made a comment which was super intriguing to me. You mentioned wondering “who” made the decisions as to what constitutes “social studies” considering teachers’ role (or lack thereof) in the process. Ironically, I actually had the opposite thought. Though I did consider the “who” involved, I found myself relieved I was not a part of the committee. The daunting pressure of deciding what is taught in social studies seems incredibly overwhelming to me. However, I was convicted at your opposing approach which took responsibility for what is taught in our classrooms. You are right, often we as teachers have no say in what we teach in our classrooms or what curriculum fad is coming down the pike. Here would be a perfect place for us to have a say in what is taught, at what speed, at what depth, etc. when it comes to social studies in our classrooms. I so appreciate that view point. Though begin a part of the committees would come with a tremendous pressure, who better to carry such a responsibility than teachers.
Thanks for your post!!!
Joy Distler
Hi Brienne,
ReplyDeleteThanks for your work. I enjoyed reading your post!
I'm glad you enjoyed the book--it's cool when fellow "history geeks" can talk about the "history of history (teaching)," or the past that informs our own present work. It is a surprisingly deep field, with lots of continuity. The same ideas about how to teach really have been with us for about the past 100 years. We went through a super efficiency-based/functionalist period, where all that mattered was what got us to the highest test score, for at least the past 20 years. I do think that is ending.
The test score still matters (or whatever outcome we might use), but I think we are getting more realistic about what the big impacts in a child's life are. A bad test can't really give us any confidence that kids are ready to tackle the real problems of our society. So we need other indicators of how we are doing, such as college graduation rates. That's at least a step in a better direction, I think. (Though obvious problems still persist.)
You are right that these competing forces will probably always be around, though I wonder whether or not we are not on the verge of new paradigms that might change the work of teacher. Things like trauma-informed teaching, if some of our current social trends continue (mass shootings, climate crisis) might transform what our work entails. Who knows, as society involves, our work could look more and more like counseling or therapy (that is sort of a dark vision, but it's one example that comes to mind, and doesn't really seem to fit in with the other ones Evans describes).
Regardless, "what's best for the learner," "what's best for learning" or "making learning meaningful" is probably the best way to navigate what is ahead for us as social studies teachers.
Great post!
Kyle