Reviews "Standards for the Preparation of Social Studies Teachers," published by the National Council for the Social Studies (NCSS). Maintains that the document does not vary far from current practice and that it bases teacher preparation on content from history and social science courses. Argues that more emphasis on learning theory and…

Comments on several biographies of and articles about Pope John Paul II. Argues that he has been the most ecclesiastically consequential pontiff in centuries, revitalizing the church by crafting an evangelical Catholic response to the 21st century crisis of modernity. Suggests that the Pope should be the "man of the century." (DSK)

Presents an overview of ethnohistory, a relatively new area of historical investigation that draws on anthropology, geography, and linguistics, as well as history, to document the pasts of predominantly indigenous peoples. Encourages social studies teachers to take notice of a major body of work being produced by Canadian ethnohistorians. (DSK)

Continues a discussion of the state of secondary social studies in Saudi Arabia. Discusses the preparation of textbooks and their use by Saudi teachers. Notes problems with the texts and teachers' use of nontext materials in their teaching. Offers conclusions and recommendations for improving social studies education in Saudi Arabia. (DSK)

Recommends a social studies activity that combines geography and history within a current events framework to make the curriculum more interesting and challenging to the students. Explains that students investigate natural disasters from around the world and determine the effect humans have on these "natural" occurrences. (CMK)

Presents an eclectic crossword puzzle that includes references to many faiths, religious personalities, and specific historical events with religious significance. Finds that this puzzle could be an interesting indicator of religious and historical knowledge (or lack of knowledge) of the average high school student. Includes the clues and word…

Discusses the Essentials Project that began in 1994 involving 20 teachers in creating standards for history and social science in secondary education in Ontario (Canada). Provides the standards, learning outcomes, and performance tasks focusing on why the particular learning outcomes were chosen and issues for social studies teachers. (CMK)

Introduces the articles and topics featured in this special theme issue. The articles revolve around two major developments: the cognitive revolution in psychology and the historiographic revolution in history. Reviews the history of these two revolutions and notes articles relevant to each. (DSK)

Argues that the idea of school history as learning the best version of the past, or even learning one or more versions, is inadequate practice. Contends that history education not only must teach about passages of the past, but also develop students' understanding of the nature and status of historical claims. (DSK)

Argues that social studies in Saudi Arabia has gone through three periods since the 1920s. Reviews the first two periods as an introduction to contemporary developments. Notes the goals of social studies in Saudi Arabia. Reviews the results of a series of studies on the social studies curriculum and instruction. (DSK)

Presents an annotated bibliography of educational resources from the ERIC database related to history for Canadian educators. The materials include digests, monographs, journal articles, and academic papers. The citations include all relevant bibliographic information and a short abstract, as well as information on locating and ordering the…

Reviews the Global Telecommunications Helping Inquiry, Negotiation and Knowledge (T.H.I.N.K.) simulation project developed by Lloyd Christopherson. Interviews Christopherson about the development, goals, and use of Global T.H.I.N.K. Provides a World Wide Web address for finding the project and teachers' guidebooks for running the simulation. (DSK)