Civic Education in the
Preparation of Social Studies Teachers:
Research-Based Recommendations for the Improvement
of Teaching Methods Courses
By Patricia G. Avery
December 2003
Recent research in civic education suggests much for shaping and
focusing secondary social studies methods course work. This Digest (1)
provides an overview of selected findings from recent studies of young
people's civic understanding and engagement, and (2) offers five
research-based suggestions for social studies methods
instructors.
YOUNG PEOPLE'S POLITICAL ENGAGEMENT AND ENLIGHTENMENT
A pattern emerging across the research on youth and citizenship in the
United States of America is the limited nature of young people's
understandings and commitments. A recent international study indicated
that American 14-year-olds are likely to have a good grasp of the basic
principles of democracy; they recognize what is good for a democracy
(e.g., "Everyone has the right to express their opinions freely"), and
what might not bode as well (e.g., "One company owns all the
newspapers")
(Torney-Purta, Lehmann, Oswald, and Schulz 2001). When pressed,
however, they are unlikely either to know profoundly the basic
democratic principles or to understand how those principles relate to
one another (e.g., "How is freedom of speech related to the public
good?") (Sinatra, Beck, and McKeown 1992).
Some researchers characterize students' conception of citizenship as
"minimalist" (Conover and Searing 2001, 103). Young people believe that
voting is an important part of being a good citizen, but they are
unlikely to envision themselves participating in some of the more
difficult political activities, such as writing a letter to the editor
or joining a political party. They demonstrate a fair amount of
knowledge about the rights associated with citizenship in a democracy,
but often personalize those rights ("I can say what I want") and have
little appreciation for the responsibilities associated with
them.
Studies have long suggested that American adolescents, similar to
adults, are significantly less likely to read about, express an
interest in, discuss, and be knowledgeable about international issues
than national issues. A particularly important finding in recent
research, however, is that when students do discuss international
issues, they are more likely to discuss them with their teachers than
with their parents or peers (Baldi and Others 2001, 87).
Finally, studies suggest that when students can voice their opinions
and discuss controversial issues in an open and supportive classroom
climate they are more likely to exhibit higher levels of political
knowledge, tolerance, efficacy, and interest (Hahn 1998; Torney-Purta
and Others 2001). But one of the most disturbing findings from the
recent research is the persistent gap between the opportunities that
minority students and students in the majority have to develop their
"social capital," resources that enhance one's ability to participate
in political and civic activities. Students from urban and immigrant
communities are
less likely than other Americans to experience controversial issues
discussions and to develop skills in responding effectively and
responsibly to public issues.
What are some of the implications of the research for the nature and
content of university courses in social studies teaching methods? The
following suggestions are purposefully specific, and most methods
instructors could implement parts or all of each suggestion without
significantly revising their syllabi.
ASSIGN INTERVIEWS WITH YOUNG PEOPLE
Preservice teachers should complete assignments that help them
understand how young people think about social and political concepts
and issues. Joseph Adelson's classic interviews with adolescents,
conducted more than 40 years ago, still stand as a model for
understanding young people's thinking about social and political
concepts. He posed hypothetical situations such as the following:
"Imagine that a thousand people venture to an island in the Pacific to
form a new society; once there they must compose a political order,
devise a legal system, and in general confront the myriad problems of
government" (1971, 1014). Based on the scenario, hypothetical laws and
potential conflicts within the community were presented to the youth.
For example, should a law be passed to prohibit smoking? Should a
dissenting religious group be vaccinated? Other scenarios pertaining to
global warming and homelessness have been developed by Torney-Purta
(1989, 1990). Preservice teachers could learn much about young people's
political thinking by posing these and similar situations to
students.
Preservice teachers could also interview young people about specific
democratic practices. For example, students are quick to associate
democracy with the concept of "freedom of expression," but gentle
probing about its role in sustaining a democracy will likely
demonstrate students' superficial understandings of this principle. By
talking with young people about their understanding of basic democratic
concepts and issues, preservice teachers can learn the limits of
students' understandings and
discuss how teachers can deepen those understandings.
TEACH METHODS FOR CONNECTING CONCEPTS
Preservice teachers should become familiar with basic methods and tools
that help students see connections among concepts. Study after study
has shown that students are familiar with the terms associated with
democracy, but have difficulty putting them together in a coherent
framework. Schema theory suggests that strategies such as concept
mapping and graphic organizers can help students link existing
knowledge with new knowledge. Additionally, research indicates that
teachers should make
explicit connections between political concepts (e.g., freedom of
expression) and institutions (e.g., courts, media).
TEACH METHODS TO DEVELOP SKILLS IN TAKING PERSPECTIVES ON PUBLIC ISSUES
The preservice teacher should develop a repertoire of methods for
enhancing students' perspective-taking skills about controversial
public issues. They should experience methods such as role-play,
simulations, dialogue poems, seminars, scored discussions, and public
issues discussions. Leading class discussions about controversial
issues and helping students to see multiple perspectives are two very
complex teaching skills. For preservice teachers, who are
typically concerned
about classroom management, leading class discussions is a daunting
task. But some strategies, such as structured academic controversy,
developed by David Johnson and Roger Johnson, afford beginning teachers
the control they may initially lack to conduct discussions. At the same
time, extensive research on the effects of structured controversy
suggests that
participants develop more positive attitudes toward conflict,
demonstrate higher levels of moral reasoning and perspective-taking,
and develop more positive attitudes toward working with individuals
from different racial
and ethnic groups (Johnson and Johnson 1989).
INTEGRATE INTERNATIONAL PERSPECTIVES AND ISSUES INTO LESSONS
Demonstration lessons are a standard part of methods classes. Teacher
educators can use the subject of international issues to demonstrate
various teaching methods. Students can also learn about and practice
integrating global perspectives into their lesson plans. Most
important, preservice teachers need to understand that the classroom is
the primary place in which students talk about international issues; if
teachers ignore international issues and perspectives in their
teaching, many students will not be exposed to them.
TEACH ABOUT STUDENTS' ACCESS TO SOCIAL CAPITAL
Methods instructors should help beginning teachers understand that the
development of civic identity and social capital is a dynamic process
that takes place in a social and cultural context. This is particularly
apparent in the consistent differences in students' political knowledge
and attitudes as well as differences in students' school experiences.
For example, students from lower socioeconomic backgrounds
consistently demonstrate lower levels of civic knowledge; these same
students also
report a less open and supportive classroom climate and fewer
opportunities to discuss social and political issues than do their
counterparts. Can this be changed? Over the past 35 years, important
strides have been made to improve the school and classroom environment
for females, suggesting that change is possible. But our preservice
teachers need to be aware of the problem before they can work together
to address it.
Finally, although methods courses are an important part of the
beginning teacher's preparation, research on teachers' professional
development emphasizes that teachers must continually develop their
teaching knowledge and skills. Teacher educators can play a major role
in helping teachers periodically reflect on the ways in which their
teaching methods, classroom climate, and school culture impact young
citizens. There is a critical need for more research on the ways
in which teacher
education can enable preservice and experienced teachers to develop a
more engaged and enlightened citizenry.
Patricia Avery is a Professor in the College of Education of the
University of Minnesota.
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