Presents a lesson plan integrating fifth language arts and social studies. Students wrote letters to the editors of newspapers in the 50 states and received hundreds of postcards and letters that were displayed throughout the classroom. Includes photographs of the students and postcards. Suggests that the activity teaches history and geography…

Advocates teaching constitutional history and principles to middle school students in accordance with the 1988 California History-Social Science Framework. Reports findings of a survey of 118 California middle school and high school teachers that revealed a need for improved teacher knowledge about the U.S. Constitution. Recommends steps to ensure…

Suggests that students with limited English proficiency (LEP) can learn intellectually demanding material and acquire English skills simultaneously. Provides suggestions for structuring a course in U.S. history for this purpose. Includes instructional activities, materials, and references. Activities focus on textbook reading, text visuals, music…

Encourages the use of narratives and literature to teach social studies and develop students' cultural literacy as suggested by the 1988 California History-Social Science Framework. Applies these ideas to a second grade unit in which students read selected stories and conduct family history research projects. (NL)

Surveys teachers and guidance counselors in eight large urban and suburban high schools and measures frequency of dialogue with one another. Argues that organizational solutions are needed to promote contact between teachers and counselors. Concludes that teachers' perceptions of the counselor role creates incongruence between counselor cognition…

Surveys attitudes of 450 youths in 6 high schools and 10 teacher training colleges in India. Finds positive attitudes expressed about the United States. Includes questions raised by students in the survey and suggests how they can be utilized in the classroom to teach about India and other cultures. (NL)

Uses data from the California Basic Educational Data System (CBEDS) to analyze course listings in history and the social sciences in California secondary schools from 1981 to 1990. Uses three variables: enrollment, number of sections, and number of full-time faculty assigned to social studies courses. Reviews course offerings and recommends…

Examines the rationale for critical, rather than didactic, instructional approaches. Delineates activities of the Center for Critical Thinking and Moral Critique at Sonoma State University (California), a leading institute in the critical thinking movement. These activities include preparing teaching guides, conducting annual international…

Urges social studies teachers to help students understand and identify sociocentric, national bias in the news media. Illustrates how the media fosters "us versus them" thinking and how word choice often reflects bias. Outlines activities to help students recognize bias. Provides weak and strong examples of students' analyses of bias in news…

Presents several lesson plans using newspapers to develop critical thinking skills that the author has used in critical thinking, English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL), and English composition classes. Examines news writing, the inverted pyramid, organization and language usage, letters to the editor, and how to critically analyze survey results. (CH)

Outlines an inservice-teacher workshop, used in the San Francisco Bay Area, California, intended for high school teachers who focus on the modern Middle East. Defines the critical thinking process it recommends: questioning assumptions, gathering information, and evaluating material. Describes small-group sessions that evaluate textbooks and news…

Argues that secondary economics teachers must help students learn to apply fundamental economics concepts to real problems. Advocates the critical thinking approach. Outlines goals, objectives, content, and procedures for an inquiry lesson that teaches the concepts land, labor, and capital through a problem-solving, hypothesis-testing method.…

Recommends that secondary social studies teachers help students recognize their own thought processes to develop critical thinking skills. Provides examples of applying the Social Studies Strategies Survey's cognitive strategies to case studies dealing with first amendment issues. Contends that teachers must understand their own cognitive…

Distinguishes weak forms of critical thinking (restricted to logical thinking) from strong forms of critical pedagogy (incorporating a moral component into critical thinking). Sees evidence of weak forms in the 1987 California History-Social Science Framework. Contends that social studies must be interdisciplinary, global in perspective,…

Stipulates that critical thinking requires classroom environments mutually created by social studies students and teachers. Suggests empowerment and cooperative learning become more than buzz words in environments conducive to critical thinking. Provides a list of questions for students and teachers to examine their roles in creating democratic…