Two-Column Notes

Date:
Name:
9/7/2016 Erin Bramley

Class/Subject:
EDTL2760: Introduction to Teaching Social
Studies

Title(s):
Ohios New Learning Standards: Social Studies Standards
What is Social Studies?
Source(s):
Ohio Department of Education. (2010). Ohio's new learning standards: Social studies
standards. Retrieved from
http://education.ohio.gov/getattachment/Topics/Ohio-s-NewLearning-Standards/Social-Studies/SS-Standards.pdf.aspx.
National Council for the Social Studies. (1994). What is Social Studies? Expectations of
Excellence: Curriculum Standards for Social Studies. Washington, DC: NCSS, 1-3.
Page #

The Text Says

I Say

Notes (key concepts, direct quotes, etc.)

My notes, commentary

Philosophy of New Learning Standard:

Prepares students for their role as citizens
and decision makers in a diverse,
democratic society (pg. 4)

Although there is a lot that I have learned from

my social studies classes, I believe that a
combination of my knowledge from my
collective educational experience is the driving
force behind my decision making process and
role as a citizen.
Also, I appreciate that, while this may be an
important philosophy of education in social
studies, it is not the entire picture. If we go into
teaching with the sole purpose of creating
citizens then the education provided to the
students will be flat and ineffective.
Additionally, we are flawed if we only approach

history through the lens of the US. It wasnt until

I reached college level courses that I learned
about many of the black stains on Americas
history (ex: Internment Camps).

Guiding Assumptions for Learning

Standards:
Represent the social studies knowledge
and skills needed to make a successful
transition to post-secondary education, the
workplace, and civic life (pg. 4)

This is such an important aspect to address

within the learning standards. Education should
prepare students for the real world and for the
next levels of education. Too many times,
students ask teachers when they will use this
information in their lives outside of academia
and the teacher cannot find an answer to
provide the students. Connecting the curriculum
to real world situations, world issues, current
events, work force situations, college
requirements, etc. helps to ground the lessons
and place them in context of the world in which
the students live.

What is Social Studies?:

[] social studies provides coordinated,
systematic study drawing upon such
disciplines as anthropology, archaeology,
economics, geography, history, law,
philosophy, political science, psychology,
religion, and sociology, as well as
appropriate content from the humanities,
mathematics, and natural sciences (pg. 1).

It is so interesting to see how many disciplines

or thought perspectives are incorporated into
one social studies course. Many of these areas
can be full-blown college courses that take
months to cover even the basics. In the social
studies classroom, students need to have just
enough information on all of these areas to
begin forming their critical thinking methods to
analyze the topics brought forward by the class.
The goal is to have students carry these
methods and perspectives into the real world.

What is Social Studies?:

Students in social studies programs must
study the development of social
phenomena and concepts over time; must
have a sense of place and interrelationships
among places across time and space; must
understand institutions and processes that
define our democratic republic; must draw
from other disciplines appropriate to a more
complete understanding of an idea or
phenomenon; and must experience
concepts reflectively and actively, through
reading, thinking, discussing, and writing
(pg. 2).

This quote alludes back to my thoughts on

developing a real world context in which to
frame the content of social studies. In my
opinion, this statement is important enough to
adopt into a teaching philosophy of social
studies or into a set of learning objectives for
the course.

Connections to previous reflection:

There is a sense of discrepancy between what was addressed in these readings and what was
researching in the previous article (Why Kids Dont Like Social Studies). Somewhere along the way, it
seems like the theory of what social studies should be is getting overshadowed by what social studies is
currently. There are important aspects of the social studies classes (described in these readings; see
above) that need to be conveyed to students to ensure that they become more informed students and
citizens (with critical thinking skills, proper background knowledge, and critical lenses to assess the

world around them), but those aspects of the class are being lost if students are not engaged in the
content.