The workshop is the most convenient and frequent means of inservice education. The purposes and types of social studies inservice workshops are examined, guidelines for effective planning and implementation are provided, and helpful hints and areas of caution designed to assist in conducting successful workshops are suggested. Six typical formats…

Given the global significance of Soviet-U.S. relations, elementary and secondary school students should learn about the Soviet Union, but most students graduate from high school with little knowledge and many misconceptions about this country. It is important to teach about the Soviet Union because of: (1) its emphasis in the U.S. media; (2) its…

The document presents an annotated bibliography of resources in the Educational Resources Information Center (ERIC) for teaching social studies skills to elementary and secondary students. It is one of four bibliographies in volume 1 of the TeachERIC Resource Series. The objective of this bibliography is to offer teachers resources which would be…

Civic education "means explicit and continuing study of the basic concepts and values underlying our democratic political community and constitutional order" (Butts 1988, 184). It draws its content chiefly from four disciplines: political science, jurisprudence, history, and economics. Political science and jurisprudence provide an…

Examines (1) the meaning of the term Pacific Rim, (2) the reasons for emphasizing the Pacific Rim in the social studies curriculum, and (3) useful strategies for teaching about this part of the world. Provides a list of reference and ERIC resources dealing with this subject. (GEA)

A brief summary of social studies research from 1976 to 1983 is divided into five parts. "Cognitive Thinking and Cognitive Process Research" presents a definition of critical thinking, recommendations for cognitive process instruction, and results of cognitive process research concerning the relationship between learning style and…

This collection of essays presents a rationale for incorporating teaching about Japan in the K-12 curriculum. The volume provides practical examples and guidelines about how to achieve this goal. The essays are organized into three main categories--professional development, curriculum design and enhancement, and exchange. The essays include:…

Aids for developing social studies curricula is the topic of this annotated bibliography. The following kinds and amounts of materials are cited: (1) 19 citations from "Resources in Education" (RIE); (2) 10 citations from "Current Index to Journals in Education" (CIJE); (3) 15 commercially available "Resource…

History instruction must serve, above all else, to develop critically important citizenship knowledge, skills, and values. This book aims to blend recent scholarship on teaching U.S. history for citizenship with ideas on how to achieve this mission in grades K-5. Chapters in the book are: (1) "Teaching History for Citizenship in the Elementary…

This ERIC Digest discusses: (1) reasons for learning about Inner Asia; (2) how to include Inner Asia in the curriculum; and (3) strategies for teaching about Inner Asia. U.S. students have difficulties in interpreting current events that occur in this region, because they lack knowledge of the history, geography, and cultures of Inner Asia. This…

This ERIC Digest considers: (1) why U.S. students should learn about Canada; (2) where course content on Canada belongs in the curriculum; and (3) useful strategies and resources to improve the teaching of Canadian studies. The United States and Canada share the world's largest undefended border, and the United States trades more with Canada than…

Focuses on a variety of materials on US/USSR relations available from the ERIC Document Reproduction Service. Includes documents relating to Soviet viewpoints, a scholarly discussion of the future of superpower relations, a booklet on arms control, a course outline on human rights, and a secondary unit on US/USSR ideologies, world views, and…

Talking with others, especially people with different viewpoints, about matters of public and common concern is a basic pro-democracy skill and act. For that reason, teaching young people how to participate more effectively in discussions of controversial public issues (CPI) has long been a major goal of social studies educators. In most social…

Labor studies are often not included or underemphasized in the elementary and secondary school curricula. This ERIC Digest examines major themes of labor studies; inclusion of these themes in the curriculum; likely positive outcomes of labor studies in the curriculum; and available resources for teachers and students. Key historical events, the…

A project is described which identifies essential social studies skills and presents information to high school classroom teachers on how to inculcate skills in students. Four major categories of skills are discussed--locating information, evaluating information, using time and place concepts, and analyzing social problems. Specific project goals…