Des Moines Register
02-01-07
For a healthy democracy, teach social studies
By JASON FOLLETT
SPECIAL TO THE REGISTER
The narrowing of the curriculum as an inadvertent consequence of the federal No
Child Left Behind law warrants the attention of educators, policymakers and
parents in Iowa as the discussion on rigorous statewide standards heats up and
as the debate begins on the federal law's reauthorization.
My field, social studies, has been narrowed. I believe social studies is an
invaluable discipline that should be included in conversations about priorities and
investments in education.
Within the school program, social studies provides a 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. In essence, social studies is a discipline that facilitates the
teaching of a number of subjects. It arms students with the knowledge and skills
they need to be effective and responsible citizens.
However, in our current climate, social-studies instruction across Iowa and the
nation has been cut and even eliminated. In addition, some schools are not using
the social-studies assessments on standardized tests such as the Iowa Tests of
Basic Skills because it is not required for their No Child Left Behind reports.
These developments are scary for several reasons. First, our nation depends on
a well-informed and civic-minded citizenry to sustain our democratic traditions.
Civic efficacy, the readiness and willingness to assume citizenship
responsibilities, is rooted in social-studies knowledge and skills, along with
related values such as concern for the common good and attitudes such as an
orientation toward participation in civic affairs.
Second, as we adjust to our heterogeneous society, civic issues such as health
care, crime, immigration and foreign policy are multidisciplinary in nature.
Understanding these issues and developing resolutions to them requires a solid
background in social studies.
Finally, our shifting roles in an increasingly interdependent and changing world
require integrated knowledge of social aspects of the human condition, which
solid social-studies instruction provides. Examples include how the world's
people, places and ideals have evolved over time, the variations that occur in
physical environments and cultural settings, and the emerging trends that appear
likely to shape the future.
What would I suggest? First, require all schools at all grade levels to provide a
social-studies curriculum on a regular basis. Second, incorporate the socialstudies curriculum into the school day to help meet skills goals in other subjects.
Recent research has shown that a rigorous and relevant social-studies
curriculum can enhance reading, science and math skills. Third, establish and
maintain accountability measures for social studies at the school, district, state
and national levels. Finally, fund and support the human and financial resources
required to provide social-studies programming.
As Robert A. Taft, a former Republican senator from Ohio and presidential
candidate, has said, "The consideration which ought to determine almost every
decision of policy today is the necessity of preserving, maintaining, and
increasing the liberty of the people of our country, as a fundamental to every
other progressive purpose."
For social studies to perform its mission of helping students fulfill the duties of
citizenship in a participatory democracy, it must be welcomed to today's
conversations about priorities and investments in education and be given at least
an equal importance in the final recommendations when compared to other
disciplines.
Our future depends on it.
JASON FOLLETT is a social-studies coordinator for the Department of
Curriculum and Instruction at Iowa State University and vice chair of the
State Historical Society of Iowa Board of Trustees.