Anecdotal evidence has long lamented the status of social studies in elementary classrooms as observed by preservice teachers. As standardized testing has risen for mathematics and language arts, social studies has been pushed aside. In the aftermath of accountability legislation such as No Child Left Behind, research indicates that social studies is less visible in elementary classrooms due to an instructional focus on tested content areas (e.g. math, language arts, reading). In this study, approximately 90 elementary preservice teachers enrolled in (...) a social studies methods course responded to a survey and indicated the frequency and quality of lessons they observed over the course of a single semester. Findings report that preservice elementary teachers witnessed few, if any, lessons in social studies in the elementary classroom. Implications for teacher education are discussed. (shrink)

Using a framework of conceptual and practical tools ( Grossman et al., 2000 ), this study explores ways in which a social studies methods course affected beginning teachers’ beliefs and pedagogical approaches for meaningful social studies instruction in elementary grades. Participants included 75 preservice teachers who completed open-ended questionnaires before and after the course, and again one year later as student teachers. Three participants were observed teaching social studies lessons during student teaching to determine how the methods course impacted their (...) nascent instructional practices. The study adds to our understanding about “what sticks” in teacher education and offers insights to researchers and to teacher educators who aim to equip future teachers for “powerful and purposeful” ( NCSS, 2009 ) social studies instruction. (shrink)

By means of data from the most comprehensive source of teacher data in the nation, Schools and Public School Teacher Staffing Survey (SASS), we designeda follow-up quantitative study to test the effects of two decades of national policy mandates on instructional time allotments for core academic subjects. We used data from the SASS data from National Center for Educational Statistics (NCES) (1993/1994, 1999/2000, 2003/2004, 2007/2008) to examine national trends of continued marginalization of social studies by exploring the influence of recent (...) educational policy on defining elementary curricula in the 21st Century. With the reauthorization of NCLB in 2007 and newly mandated science testing in grades 3 through 5, we sought to understand statistically how this policy change has affected instructional decisions regarding time allocated to core academic subjects (ELA, mathematics, science and social studies) in elementary schools. Findings provide evidence of the national trend of the declining role of social studies in an era in which testing is associated with importance. Moreover, grade level disparities unique to social studies intensified the effects of 2007 NCLB policy mandates of science testing for 3rd through 5th grade students. Results provide a broader and nationally generalizable understanding of the declining role of social studies in elementary schools and the reduction of time practitioners spend teaching social studies. Thus, the growing imbalance in instructional time distributions for social studies and the tipping of the time distribution scales in favor of science document teacher responses to the expansion of testing mandates and the continued absence of studies from the national testing landscape. (shrink)

This interpretative case study examined the beliefs and practices of eight preservice elementary teachers as they learned to teach race in social studies. Using critical race theory as the lens, the researcher analyzed interview, observation, classroom artifact, and teacher preparation course data. The results showed that there was a division between those teachers who saw their role as working against racial prejudice (tolerance-oriented) and those who were working against racial inequity (equity-oriented). In practice, the teachers used three approaches to race-related (...) topics in their classroom: avoiding, diminishing, and embracing. Furthermore, the teachers expressed the importance of courses on urban education, social studies methods, and student teaching in preparing them to teach about race. This study highlights the need for increased attention to teaching about race in teacher preparation programs. (shrink)

Social studies scholars consider the role that schools, and in particular teachers, play in preparing young students to be active participatory citizens in a democracy. Yet, the research on teachers learning to be democratic teachers overwhelmingly focuses on the social studies methods course rather than field experiences. This study examines how teacher candidates experienced, conceptualized, and enacted democratic education while immersed in a semester-long elementary field experience in a democratic classroom. In particular, this paper focuses on two case studies which (...) represent the most clear, as well as disparate, conceptions and enactments of democratic education; one engaged in a critical examination of society through curriculum, while the other focused on the inculcation of particular discussion and deliberation skills necessary to be an engaged democrat. While each classroom afforded the teacher candidates a thick conception of democratic education that drew on critical curriculum and pedagogy, as well as democratic skills, the teacher candidates' lived experiences and prior conceptions of democracy shaded their learning and created missed learning opportunities. Classrooms as sites of knowledge about democratic education provide robust learning opportunities for teacher candidates; however, like any transformative learning experience, those opportunities need mediation to realize their full potential. (shrink)

In a context of high-stakes accountability in teacher education, concerns are emerging about challenges to the already tenuous position of elementary social studies teacher education. In this case study, the author administered a survey to elementary social studies teacher educators in Georgia and conducted follow-up interviews focusing on the impact of edTPA on elementary social studies teacher education and the ways in which they are navigating the new context of teaching elementary social studies methods. The findings reveal the possibility of (...) further decline of social studies in elementary teacher education programs due to elementary edTPA's singular focus on literacy and math content pedagogy along with the high-stakes nature of edTPA process. Implications for future research on edTPA and elementary social studies education are discussed. (shrink)

The consequences of a trend to marginalize social studies in the early grades are complex and widespread, as a new wave of novice teachers and K-6 students are receiving a message clearly implying that social studies education is unimportant. Convincing them of the value in teaching and learning social studies is progressively becoming more difficult for social studies methods instructors. The purpose of this study was to examine pre-service teachers’ observations of the extent to which social studies is being marginalized, (...) possible barriers involved, and the impact that this phenomenon has on pre-service teachers and K-6 students in the classroom. Through a mixed-method design, 88 pre-service teachers were asked to report their classroom observations. Over half observed social studies instruction. Of those who observed social studies instruction, about a third indicated that teachers taught 5–15 min per day. Pre-service teachers reported personal success in planning and teaching social studies lessons during their practicum experiences; likewise, K-6 students were motivated by pre-service teachers’ student-centered activities in the lessons. The results of this study provide one form of current documentation regarding the effects of social studies marginalization in K-6 schools. (shrink)

This descriptive case study explores how on cohort of 17 White elementary preservice teachers examined counter-narratives of racism and Whiteness in selected documentary films using a historical inquiry approach. Findings indicate that by joining documentary film and historical inquiry in elementary social studies education, teacher educators can foster preservice teachers' engagement with perspective recognition while developing historical content knowledge. This study also documents White preservice teachers' acceptance of racism and resistance towards unpacking their White privilege and racism as status quo. (...) Implications for using this approach with preservice teachers and the dilemma of White avoidance in social studies education are discussed. (shrink)