ECI 435 Methods and Materials for Teaching Social Studies in the Middle Grades Fall 2009 Dr. John Lee LEAD and SERVE constitute the conceptual framework for all programs for professional educators in the College of Education at NC State. They are the touchstones that assure that our students graduate with the following:
LEAD: LEAD four forms of knowledge; general pedagogy, content-specific pedagogical strategies, content or discipline knowledge, as well as knowledge of the context of education, including foundations, historical perspectives and school settings.
SERVE: SERVE elements that show the range of skills and dispositions developed in our candidates; scholarly, ethical, reflective, valuing diversity and experienced in practical application of knowledge.
Course Prefix and Title: ECI 435 Methods and Materials for Teaching Social Studies in the Middle Grades Course Catalog Description: This course is designed for preservice middle school social studies teachers. The focus of the course is on teaching and evaluation skills, adaptation of instruction to individual learner differences, identification and creation of instructional materials appropriate for use in social studies teaching. Number of Credits: 4 semester hours Date Syllabus Was Last Revised by Course Action: Course Pre-requisites/Co-requisites: Admission to professional semester Meeting Time: Tuesday 9:00 – 12:15 (originally Tuesday / Thursday 10:15 – 12:05) Class Location: Friday Institute, Discovery Classroom Instructor Information: Name: Dr. John Lee Email:
[email protected] Office location: Poe Hall 402D Office phone and/or other contact information: 919-515-0126 Office Hours: Monday, 10:00-4:00; Wed 10:00 – 12:00 and 1:00 – 2:30 Required Course Materials: • Martorell, P. H., Beal, C. M., Bolick, C. M. (2008). Teaching social studies in the middle and secondary schools. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Person Merrill Prentice Hall. • Horwitz, T. (2009). A voyage long and strange: On the trail of Vikings, Conquistadors, Lost Colonists, and other adventurers in early America. New York: Macmillan Picador • Course websites include a variety of resources including
o http://teachingndigitalhistory.ning.com o 430/435 WolfWiki:
http://wikis.lib.ncsu.edu/index.php/ECI_430/435_Middle_Grades_ELA/SS_2009
o NLC ECI 430/435 Group Ning http://newlit.org (also http://newlitcollaborative.ning.com/group/msl)
Course Objectives: Linked to Lead and Serve (L&S) Standards; Interstate New Teacher Assessment and Support Consortium (INTASC) Standards; North Carolina Department of Public Instruction (NCDPI) Standards; and National Council for the Social Studies (NCSS) Standards, North Carolina Professional Teaching Standards (NCPTS) Note: The NCPTS will be effective rolling out 2008 through 2010, more information online at http://www.ncptsc.org. • Candidates will develop an understanding of the central concepts, tools of inquiry, and structures of social studies disciplines including history, geography, political science, economics, and the behavioral sciences (L&S 3,5; INTASC 1; NCDPI-C 1; NCDPE-MG 5; NCDPI –SS 1; NCSS 1-10; NCPTS 3).
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Candidates will integrate subject matter content knowledge and pedagogical content knowledge components through planning and teaching experiences (L&S 2,3,5; INTASC 1,2,5; NCDPI-C 1,2; NCDPE-MG 1,2,5; NCDPI –SS 1; NCSS 1-10; NCPTS 3, 4).
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Candidates will create learning experiences that make aspects of social studies meaningful to their students (L&S 1,2; INTASC 5; NCDPI-C 2; NCDPE-MG 2,5,7; NCDPI –SS 4; NCSS 1-10, NCPTS 3, 4).
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Candidates will integrate knowledge, skills, attitudes, and technologies, grounded in theory and documented within current pedagogical and content literature (L&S 1,2; INTASC 6; NCDPI-C 2; NCDPI-T 1-6; NCDPE-MG 7; NCDPI –SS 4; NCSS 1-10, NCPTS 3, 4).
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Candidates will develop and implement an evolving knowledge about learning and teaching in community-based dynamic contexts (L&S 4; INTASC 10; NCDPI-C 1; NCDPI-D 3; NCDPE-MG 2,4,6; NCDPI –SS 4, NCPTS 2, 3, 4).
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Candidates will incorporate specific social studies related technologies through planning and teaching experiences (L&S 1,2; INTASC 6; NCDPI-C 2; NCDPI-T 1-6; NCDPE-MG 5,6; NCDPI –SS 3,4; NCSS 1-10, NCPTS 4).
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Candidates will inquiry into the social, historical, and philosophical foundations of social studies education (L&S 4,5,7,9; INTASC 1,2; NCDPI-C 5; NCDPI-D 2,4,5; NCDPE-MG 2,3,9; NCDPI –SS 1; NCSS 1-10; NCPTS 3).
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Candidates will reflect on instructional practice and evaluate choices and actions concerning the needs of students and professional responsibilities (L&S 4,9; INTASC 9,10; NCDPI-C 4,5; NCDPI-D 1-6; NCDPE-MG 9; NCDPI –SS 4, NCPTS 1, 5).
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Candidates will understand how students differ in their approaches to learning and create instructional opportunities that are adapted to diverse learners (L&S 8; INTASC 10; NCDPI-C 3; NCDPI-D 1-6; NCDPE-MG 1,7,9; NCDPI –SS 1,4; NCSS 1-10, NCPTS 2).
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Candidates will demonstrate the knowledge, capabilities, and dispositions needed to organize and provide instruction at the appropriate school level for the study of culture and cultural diversity (L&S 8; INTASC 10; NCDPI-C 3; NCDPI-D 1-6; NCDPE-MG 1,7,9; NCDPI –SS 1,4; NCSS 1-10; NCPTS 2, 4).
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Candidates will understand and use a variety of instructional strategies to encourage the development of critical thinking, problem solving, and performance skills (L&S 2; INTASC 4; NCDPIC 1; NCDPI-D 1; NCDPE-MG 6,7; NCDPI –SS 3, NCPTS 2, 4).
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Candidates will demonstrate the knowledge, capabilities, and dispositions to organize and provide instruction at the appropriate school level for the study of interactions among individuals, groups,
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and institutions (L&S 8; INTASC 10; NCDPI-C 3; NCDPI-D 1-6; NCDPE-MG 1,7,9; NCDPI –SS 1,4; NCSS 110, NCPTS 2, 4).
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Candidates will identify and apply various ideas from assessment theory to their knowledge of content and pedagogy (L&S 1,5; INTASC 8; NCDPI-C 5; NCDPI-D 2; NCDPE-MG 8; NCDPI –SS 4; NCSS 110; NCPTS 4).
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Candidates will consider how their teaching impacts student learning and how as teachers they can determine whether their students have achieved instructional goals (L&S 1,5; INTASC 8; NCDPI-C 5; NCDPI-D 2; NCDPE-MG 8; NCDPI –SS 4; NCSS 1-10, NCPTS 4).
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Candidates reflect on their knowledge of pedagogy and their teaching (L&S 7; INTASC 9; NCDPI-C 5; NCDPI-D 2; NCDPE-MG 2,7; NCDPI –SS 4; NCSS 1-10, NCPTS 5).
Teaching strategies: This course will include a variety of teaching strategies. Everyone in the course will participate in whole class and individual direct learning activities as well as cooperative learning activities. Students in the class will also be given an opportunity to practice instruction. The instructor for the course will facilitate these activities and will provide formative assessment feedback for each student. There will be discussion-related activities in most class sessions. Each discussion-related activity will open with instructor comments, designed to summarize as well as open a critical group dialogue about important issues in the readings. Several class sessions will also feature a highlighted social studies instructional method. The instructor will present the method along with a brief summary of a lesson or lesson idea that makes use of the method. The instructor will facilitate student work on individual class projects via email communication and if necessary additional meeting time. Course requirements: Attendance - Attendance is expected for all classes. Participation grades will reflect attendance. Unexcused absences can result in up a 10 point or one letter grade deduction for each unexcused absence from the final grade. Participation – Participation in whole class and individual class activities is required. These activities are briefly described in the major assignments portion of this syllabus. More information will be made available in class about course activities. Missed assignments / make-up policy – Any regular in-class assignment which is missed due to an unexcused or excused absence must be made up. Details on the procedure for making up missed work will be provided on a case-by-case basis. Points may be deducted for work missed due to an unexcused absence. All regular out of class assignments must be turned in on time. If you are absent the day an assignment is due, you may turn the work in via email. If the absence is unexcused and is in not turned in on or before the due date, points may be deducted. Major Assignments/Projects: (More information on each assignment will be provided in class) •
ClassWorks includes an activity for each class session that will involve you completing some task related to a course objective or goal. Most if not all of these activities will be completed after class and submitted online. Details about these activities are on the Daily Activity and Homework Schedule. [L/S 1-4, 7, 650; points]
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An Inquiry-Based Learning Project / Assignment* which demonstrates your understanding of and competency with inquiry and technology as tools for authentic learning. This will be comprised of three parts: a) an introduction to various questions-based strategies you might consider using with middle school students (e.g., WebQuest, I-Search, Place-Based Inquiry or Oral History Project, Digital Storytelling, etc.); b) a focused investigation resulting in a well-written research paper on some aspect of local, state, or national history, or some aspect of the English language arts of interest to you and that is aligned with the standard course of study; and c) a transformation of your research paper that is
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modeled after Paul Harvey’s Rest of the Story format that will reflect content understanding of irony and the media, in addition to your own inquiry-based research. The final product of your inquiry and writing process will take the form of a vidcast that we will post to iTunesU; and d) designing your own instruction for use in the field (this fall, next spring, or in the future) that builds upon your experience as a scholarly teacher researcher and incorporates a developmentally appropriate approach to inquirybased learning for your middle school students. Ideally, the project will serve as a catalyst including some aspect of inquiry-based learning in your instructional unit. [L/S 1, 2, 3, 5, 9; 150 points] • •
An Interdisciplinary/Integrated Thematic Instructional Unit* which builds upon and extends the unit and lesson planning skills utilized in your previous education courses. While the Reinvention Mini-Project is designed to focus specifically on reinventing language instruction, the thematic unit project is designed to give you an opportunity to craft an instructional unit and related lesson plans focusing on literature and history instruction that a) demonstrates your competency with content knowledge, b) demonstrates your competency with a best practices approach to teaching the language arts and social studies content areas, c) is designed specifically with your student teaching internship, cooperating teacher, and students in mind, and d) reflects your ability to plan instruction informed by local, state, and national standards. Note: This will be completed in conjunction with the social studies methods course and may include microteaching sessions. Students should start thinking about possibilities for your unit immediately even though we won’t actually begin formally until the mid-point of the semester. This is the culminating project for both methods courses. [L/S 1-9; 150 points]
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Field Log which should take the form of a marble composition book (not a spiral notebook) and serve as a place to document your observations and reflections while in the field. All entries should include a heading/title and the date. Your field log should include at least one entry for every visit you make to your school, and each entry should include both a simple description of the events of the day and a more focused, reflective entry on something that was of interest or concern for you. Entries should demonstrate how you have carefully observed and considered activities in the field, as well as your thoughts about how you might take actions in the future relative to these interests or concerns. Some entries may be cued by the instructors and even result in a more formal product (e.g., mini-ethnography of the community and culture of your placement, interview with teacher, reflection on technology resources, etc.). In the back of your log, please keep a list of the dates and times of your school visits. Your cooperating teacher will need to sign off on your hours. A minimum of 20 hrs. in the field is required for the semester. NOTE: We may have an electronic option as well [L/S 1-4, 7, 9; 50 points]
*These activities will count for both the ELA and SS methods courses and, as such, the quality and quantity of preparation, process, and product should be representative of this. Evaluation: This course includes numerous required assignments that will be completed out of class, turned in, and graded. Each assignment will count a number of points toward a total of 1000 points for the course. Additional class activities will be required and points will be earned for participating and completing these in class activities. Grading scale 1000 – 968 = A+ / 967 – 934 = A / 933 – 901 = A900 – 868 = B+ / 867 – 834 = B / 833 – 801 = B800 – 768 = C+ / 767 – 734 = C / 733 – 701 = C700 – 668 = D+ / 667 – 634 = D / 633 – 601 = D599 or below = F
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Note: Failure to turn in a major project (any listed above) will automatically result in an F grade for the course.
ClassWorks Schedule Each class period will follow a similar structure that will involve the following activities. Opening Act – This will be a 15-20 minute activity or presentation on some social studies content topic. Dialogues – A 20 minute discussion about featured social studies methods. Each dialogue will be informed by a blog posting that you will read prior to the class session. Main Event – This part of the class will feature a 45-60 minute activity that is jointly taught. The Work Out – Time for you to work on class projects with support from your peers and professor. Coda – A short closing activity that will recap work from the day’s activities or highlight upcoming material. August 25 • Featured social studies method is Lecture
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Social Studies Planning Project (DUE SEPT 1) - Each student will complete a planning project using the North Carolina Standard Course of Study, Social Studies grades 6-8 http://www.dpi.state.nc.us/curriculum/socialstudies/scos/ [L/S 1-4, 7, 9; 100 points]
September 1 • Textbook reading for this class Chapter 1 - Alternative Perspectives on the Social Studies
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Featured social studies method is Discussion Raleigh Stories (DUE SEPT 22) – In this activity we will construct an illustrated [L/S 3-5; 100 points]
September 8 • Textbook reading for this class Chapter 2 - Contemporary Social Studies
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Featured social studies method is Seminar Raleigh Stories continued
September 15 • Textbook reading for this class Chapter 3 - Teaching and Learning Social Studies • Featured social studies method is ?? • Raleigh Stories continued September 22 • Textbook reading for this class Chapter 4 - Organizing and Planning for Teaching Social Studies • Featured social studies method is ?? • Interactive Visual Inquiry (DUE OCT 6) – You will use visual content from the Library of Congress and the New York Public Library and technology tools called VoiceThread.com and Primaryaccess.org to create an interactive visual inquiry [L/S 3-5; 100 points] September 29 • Textbook reading for this class Chapter 5 - Engaging Students in Learning Through Small Groups, Questions, Role Playing, and Simulations • Featured social studies method is Simulation
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Interactive Visual Inquiry continued
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October 6 (Assignments from this class are due on October 12 or before)
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Textbook reading for this class Chapter 6 - Promoting Reflective Inquiry: Developing and Applying Concepts, Generalizations, and Hypotheses Featured social studies method is Inquiry Stagville and slavery in North Carolina – You will read a collection of letters written by 19th century North Carolina slave owner Paul Cameron and his white slave overseers and then write a commentary on slave life from the perspective of these letters. You will think about how you might use these letters with 8th grade students in NC studies. We will use the class wiki to complete this project. [L/S 3-5; 100 points]
October 13 (Assignments from this class are due on October 19 or before)
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Textbook reading for this class Chapter 7 - Fostering Citizenship Competency Featured social studies method is Debate Stagville and slavery in North Carolina continued
October 20 (Assignments from this class are due on October 26 or before) • • •
Textbook reading for this class Chapter 8 - Social Concern in a Globally and Culturally Diverse World Featured social studies method is ?? Adventurers in Early America (DUE November 3) - [L/S 3-7; 100 points]
October 27 (Assignments from this class are due on November 2 or before)
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Textbook reading for this class Chapter 9 - Comprehending, Communicating, and Remembering Subject Matter Featured social studies method is Reading Adventurers in Early America continued
November 3 (Assignments from this class are due on November 9 or before)
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Textbook reading for this class Chapter 10 - Using Technology to Enhance Social Studies Instruction Featured social studies method is Participatory Media Talking democracy – Using our class discussion site on Ning, you will post a personal philosophy about democracy and politics. This may include your specific views on current politics and the general election of 2008. [L/S 3-7; 50 points]
November 10 (Assignments from this class are due on November 16 or before)
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Textbook reading for this class Chapter 11 - Adapting Social Studies Instruction to Individual Needs Featured social studies method is ??
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Wikipedia Project – This activity is focused on the discipline of history, historical thinking, and contemporary processes for creating historical knowledge. In this activity you will think and write about the process of historical thinking and then investigate historical documents and Wikipedia articles as you learn about the discipline of history. [L/S 3-5; 50 points]
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November 17 (Assignments from this class are due on November 23 or before) •
Textbook reading for this class Chapter 12 - Evaluating and Assessing Student Learning
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Featured social studies method is ??
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Fiction and film in social studies – This activity will involve you thinking about fiction and film resources you might use in the social studies classroom. Think of books and/or movies you could use in middle grades social studies and describe how you might use these resources. We will complete this assignment using the class wiki. [L/S 3-7; 50 points]
November 24 • •
Featured social studies method is ?? Curriculum Unit planning
December 1 • • •
Featured social studies method is ?? Curriculum Unit planning Field Log DUE
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IMPORTANT ADDITIONAL INFORMATION Course Evaluation Information Schedule: Online class evaluations will be available for students to complete during the last two weeks of class (November 26-December 9). Students will receive an email message directing them to a website where they can login using their Unity ID and complete evaluations. All evaluations are confidential; instructors will never know how any one student responded to any question, and students will never know the ratings for any particular instructors. Evaluation website: https://classeval.ncsu.edu Student help desk:
[email protected] More information about ClassEval: http://www2.acs.ncsu.edu/UPA/classeval/index.htm A complete list of reminders for the beginning of the semester can be found at http://www.ncsu.edu/provost/academic_regulations/beg_of_semester.html University policy dictates that the following be included in the course syllabus: University policies on attendance, (excused and unexcused) absences, and scheduling makeup work please see: http://www.ncsu.edu/policies/academic_affairs/courses_undergrad/REG02.20.3.php Students are bound by the academic integrity policy as stated in the code of student conduct. Therefore, students are required to uphold the university pledge of honor and exercise honesty in completing any assignment. See the website for a full explanation: http://www.ncsu.edu/policies/student_services/student_discipline/POL11.35.1.php Reasonable accommodations will be made for students with verifiable disabilities. In order to take advantage of available accommodations, students must register with Disability Services for Students at 1900 Student Health Center, Campus Box 7509, 515-7653. http://www.ncsu.edu/provost/offices/affirm_action/dss/ For more information on NC State's policy on working with students with disabilities, please see http://www.ncsu.edu/policies/academic_affairs/courses_undergrad/REG02.20.1.php Help for taking and passing PRAXIS I and II is available in the College of Education Media Center located in room 400 of Poe Hall. PRAXIS registration information, study guides, etc. are found at www.ets.org/praxis Information on CED Teacher Education is found at http://ced.ncsu.edu/teachered The College of Education’s Conceptual Framework may be found in its entirety at http://ced.ncsu.edu/about/conceptual_framework.htm * Underlined items are required in listed order. Once program assessments are in place, objectives and other relevant course outcomes should not be changed without reviewing the impact on program outcomes and candidate assessments. Syllabus changes that required a course action should include course action approval date.
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