Constructivist Methods in Social Studies
Kaiser, C. (2010, February). Redrawing the boundaries: A constructivist approach to combating student apathy in the secondary history classroom. The History Teacher, 43(2), 223-232.
Kaiser argues that there is really nothing terribly tidy or accurate about the divisions that teachers use to teach and study history. The author suggests that teachers need to know both why and how the divisions in the study of history occur -- this lends a level of self-consciousness to history as a discipline. Kaiser proposes using alternative perspectives for the study of history that capitalize on the individual interests of adolescent students. Kaiser suggests that each student should select a unique perspective -- a stand-alone thematic approach -- for the study of history for the duration of the coursework. Being able to unpack the traditional divisions in history will help me explain to my history students what my assignment is asking of them with regard to having a unique perspective for studying history -- I won't feel that I have violated anything sacrosanct by diverging from the traditional divisions used in the study of history.
The key to engaging more students in an active study of history, according to Kaiser (2010), is to guide them "to find relevance in the events of the past, and finally to analyze the effects of change over time" (p. 223). Kaiser concedes that this is not an easy task for a history teacher to accomplish. But the task is made easier through the influence of human physiology which suggests that the divisions in history support learning,...
For Movement, using a field trip to a manufacturing company to see how goods are made from parts and then moved to other locations for sale. The book also approaches learning from a multitude of learning styles, from class discussions to small groups and independent learning. For example, when reading an article or story and an issue comes up, the class can be divided into two groups with each portraying
classroom atmosphere which encourages all students to take on the desire to become lifelong learners is a challenging task. The task is even more daunting when the context of the assignment takes place within the walls of a 7th grade social studies classroom. Middle school students are progressively less interested in social history, and increasingly more interested in what the latest top 40 music group did on their last
Classroom Media Citizens in Twenty-first century find the technological advancements as an inexorable support. Justified access; connectivity to technological advancement along with adequate training need to be provided to teachers in order to make them capable of utilizing the available technology to the fullest possible utilization of skills. Naisbitt states that Computers provide a cost effective method of personalizing education even though its capital intensive nature cannot be denied. Simplifications of
Integrating Technology in My High School Social Studies Classroom The utilization of technology in education has gained a lot of popularity in the recent years. Great enhancements in computer software and hardware in the past decades have been noted and this has resulted to the increase of computer integration in education. The employment of computers in education unlocks a fresh area of knowledge in addition to providing a means which has
..control the environment by implementing a logical system (the teacher's, of course) of conditioning." (Tauber, 1999, p. 19) in this context the teacher is seen as an "interventionist" in that he or she has to control and dictate the learning and behavioral environment. "By accepting a position as a teacher, a person has not only the right but an 'obligation' to modify student behavior" (Axelrod, 1977, p. 158). In essence
Good researchers tend to pull methods out of a tool kit as they are needed" (2006, p. 54). Notwithstanding these criticisms and constraints, though, most social researchers seem to agree that classification by some type of research paradigm is a useful approach based on the need to determine which approach is best suited for a given research enterprise. In this regard, Corby concludes that, "The contested nature of research
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