Politically neutral pedagogy is often the subject of both praise and condemnation. But treating political neutrality as a principle to be either embraced or rejected confuses the issue, because the permissibility of neutrality actually varies across educational contexts. Educational practice should not be evaluated on the basis of whether or not…

The polarizing nature of many science-based topics often causes people to engage in a hostile manner with those who have differing perspectives. As the next generation of scientists and industry professionals, students studying in science-based disciplines must understand the value of civil discourse. Additionally, they need the skills necessary…

The Civil War was concluded over 150 years ago but recently, monuments erected to commemorate the Civil War and its participants have been the site of civil unrest (e.g., Charlottesville, VA in 2018) and calls for removal of such monuments. The Confederate monuments debate has been going strong for decades, and it seems to have been picking up…

Teacher educators who seek to advance social justice perspectives and promote equity-oriented dispositions often engage with challenging and controversial issues relevant to schooling, the lives of students, and the work of teachers. Addressing equity issues and controversial topics can be challenging and fraught with tensions for both students…

In this report, the authors present findings from their analysis of social studies state standards. The following questions guided their work: (1) To what extent do middle and high school (grades 8-12) history and civics state standards support teaching about political parties? For the states that do include language about political parties, what…

A class assignment administered by the author in her Research Methods in Education class resulted in the question of whether there is any sort of pedagogical advantage to introducing social justice issues as if you aren't really intending to teach students about them. This article describes an investigation of the author's teaching experience in…

Teachers find it difficult to conduct political controversial conversations in the social science classroom and due to an increased use of social media in educational settings new challenges and possibilities are raised. The use of social media causes fundamental changes to the role of the learner who becomes a producer and consumer--a…

The current study aims to investigate social studies and science teachers' attitudes and classroom practices associated with controversial issues. The study is a qualitative research based on data collected through interviews and observation. Social studies and Science teachers participated in the current study which was conducted in Kirsehir, a…

In the present STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics)-driven society, socioscientific issues (SSI) have become a focus globally and SSI research has grown into an important area of study in science education. Since students attending the social and science programs have a different focus in their studies and research has shown…

In recent years, it increasingly has been recognized that schools must change in basic ways if children are to be educated so that they are prepared to live in a peaceful world. This recognition has been expressed in a number of interrelated movements: "cooperative learning,""conflict resolution," and "education for…

Presents social studies' dichotomous two faces in its goals, content, and methods: the declarative versus hypothetical modes. Delineates the problem of education to produce good citizens or critical thinkers. Argues that the National Commission on Social Studies report, "Charting A Course," fails to provide a social studies program…

The theme of this conference was "Critical Thinking: The Thinking that Masters the Content." This "proceedings" volume is essentially a conference program. It is composed primarily of abstracts of presentations made at the conference. An introduction examines the history of the conference, the organization of the conference, and the conference…

Social studies education in the United States has been viewed by many as a forum in which to socialize new citizens, to ensure that people of differing backgrounds have a history and ideals that they can share. Social studies also is perceived by some as a vehicle through which students can learn the value of conflict and difference, in the…

This task force report is designed to focus attention on the young adolescent learner and provide direction for developing appropriate and meaningful social studies instruction for the middle school. Schools at the middle level characteristically focus on the unique developmental needs of young adolescents. A number of these needs are listed, in…

Traces historical trends in social studies education, examining pressures that have both produced and inhibited change. Analyzes differences between discipline-based and issue-centered approaches. Presents pessimistic, optimistic, and realistic scenarios of the next 100 years of social studies education. Advocates developing issue-centered social…