Working with schools and communities across the United States, the Education Commission of the States has learned that people want to express their opinions about schools in their communities. This guide was designed to help engage all sectors of the community in conversations about education. It is suggested that holding a series of meetings…

Kindergarten teachers do not view social studies as an important part of the preschool curriculum. This was the finding of a survey of kindergarten teachers in two midwestern states. The questionnaires used in the survey were designed to determine the emphasis teachers placed on specific social studies topics, skills, and values. Teachers…

One's conceptions define what is worth learning about war and peace and why. Educators must make important choices of content. Three conceptions of peace education are discussed: those that focus on information, those that center on issues, and those dealing with attitudes. (RM)

Discusses former Soviet schools' inadequacy in promoting students' political involvement. Reports that students can be grouped according to their social attitudes as (1) conformists; (2) negativists or nihilists; and (3) those with critical, creative attitudes toward majority opinion. Argues that schools can promote independent thinking by…

This paper explores the limitations of empathy for the formation of community, particularly within social justice education. I begin with a discussion of the major tension within the idea of community--that it is founded at once on commonality and difference. Building in particular upon the work of Emmanuel Levinas, the paper articulates an…

Designed to accompany an audiovisual filmstrip series devoted to presenting a visual history of life in America, this guide helps secondary school teachers supplement social studies materials dealing with wars over the past 200 years. Using authentic visuals including paintings, drawings, engravings, posters, photographs, songsheets, and cartoons,…

Using primary source documents, this teaching unit focuses on the problems Chinese immigrants had in the United States during the late 19th century. Each of three lessons presents issues regarding the decision of Chinese immigrants to come to the United States and their subsequent exclusion from and struggles to assimilate into the U.S. society.…

Discusses the issue of society-controlled science. Analyzes the present state of science with respect to society, including moral issues, attitude differences between nineteenth century scientists and contemporary ones, risk management, and reductionism. (YP)

Argues that social justice is a legitimate goal of schooling and should be included in the curriculum. Discusses aspects of social justice including distributive justice and equality of educational opportunity. Maintains that Western educational systems have many possibilities for achieving social justice through the curriculum. (CFR)

Aging is often thought of as an essentially biological process and therefore a matter for the natural sciences, but that notion constitutes a very narrow view of aging. The longevity revolution of the past century and how it affects each individual and all societies can only be understood if we also draw on the social sciences. When the young…

The booklet is part of a grade 10-12 social studies series produced for bilingual education. The series consists of six major thematic modules, with four to five booklets in each. The interdisciplinary modules are based on major ideas and designed to help students understand some major human problems and make sound, responsive decisions to improve…

This handbook includes numerous activities to help teachers discuss prejudice and discrimination, and to help elementary students create an environment in which all people can develop to their full potential. Each activity aims to raise children's level of awareness, understanding, and tolerance of differences. In order to make this handbook…

In June 1998, news of a horrific murder outraged the nation and the world. Three white men chained James Byrd, Jr., a black man, to the back of a truck and dragged him to his death just outside Jasper, Texas. The crime took place at a time when many people believed that "America was moving beyond race." The crime shattered that notion. Or did it?…

Tries to make explicit race/class/gender connections in an undergraduate seminar on stratification. Students learn about models of social class and mobility and ideas of inequality. Attempts to balance the syllabus by including material about different groups and a representative group of scholars. Describes classroom discussions and experiences.…

In this article, the author shares how he has attempted to carry on the critique and analysis of colorblindness in education in his work as a teacher educator. In working with in- and pre-service teachers, the author has found that some teachers who claim to be colorblind tend to enact practices that betray their beliefs about race. As a white…