On August 9, Michael Brown, a college-bound black male, was fatally shot by a white police officer in the streets of Ferguson, Missouri. For several days, jarring images of tear gas, militarized police, and unrest in Ferguson flickered on screens across the world. Undoubtedly, what brought Ferguson to the national consciousness--the death of a…

Just three years since it broke away from Sudan, the new country of South Sudan is embroiled in a violent civil war. This article examines what went wrong and why, by discussing the incredible difficulty of building a new nation from scratch following years of conflict, war, suspicion, and great expectations. How this tragedy will end is anyone's…

What happens if Americans fundamental freedoms are denied or deferred? What is the ideal of freedom? Boston, Massachusetts, has long been a crucible for social, cultural, and political change. Here was the shot heard 'round the world, stronghold of abolition, home to the U.S. Colored Troops, the birthplace of American literature.... Boston is also…

Weather phenomena across the United States have provided heightened attention to climate change in headlines such as "Heavy Rain and Floods: The 'New Normal' with Climate Change?" ("Christian Science Monitor," Aug. 14, 2014); "Delay Action on Climate Change by 10 Years and Costs Rocket 40%"…

2015 marks the 800th anniversary of Magna Carta. For Americans, this iconic document is a formative element of our own legal and political heritage. This "Lessons on the Law" column offers an overview of the "Great Charter," why it is significant, and what students and teachers should know about it. The article also highlights…

Every iconic document owes a debt to a document that came before it, just as its creators were influenced by the thinkers and writers who came before them. The Declaration of Independence, U.S. Constitution, and Bill of Rights were revolutionary works, and have become powerful symbols of democracy worldwide. Behind them stands an even older…

On Tuesday, November 8, 1864, voters in 25 states--including Kansas, West Virginia, and Nevada for the first time--cast their ballots for president of the United States; voters in the 11 states that had seceded did not participate. Incumbent Abraham Lincoln ran as the Republican nominee (called the National Union Party in the 1864 election), and…

If there is one thing that teenagers like to talk about when it comes to the law, it's who does and does not have the right to search their "stuff." And in the world of "stuff," there is nothing more important to average American teenagers than their cell phones. So when, in the waning days of its 2013-2014 term, the U.S.…

Civic learning for all students seems like a reasonable and important aim for all schools to achieve. If we believe that the future of our American democracy depends on a citizenry that is informed, engaged, and responsible, what better place to create future citizens than in schools? The Campaign for the Civic Mission of Schools…

Though poetry can be used to examine a number of topics, this author feels that it is especially illuminating when exploring war. On its surface, war is a ludicrous spectacle of human failings. The fact that countries allow disputes to be settled by a demonstration of each nation's ability to kill citizens of the other nation defies logic. In…

"Insults, lies, and whale blood" should be the title for the latest international dispute involving the icy waters of Antarctica. Although this placid and remote area of the world seems to be the last place one might expect to encounter an intense debate between opposing cultures, the dispute is creating a worldwide legal stir that…

Educators have been increasingly sensitized to the role of schools in developing students' cyberethics, cybercitizenship, and cybersafety, which have emerged as one of the most pressing and yet unexplored areas of education. The Department of Defense has identified challenges to cybersecurity infrastructure as a significant risk for the…

Social studies teachers have the principal responsibility for developing competent citizens who can reason together about the challenges of democratic life. Always complicated, informed reflective citizenship is even more difficult in an age of exploding information, often from sources whose credibility has not been subject to editorial review.…

The death of Nelson Mandela on December 5, 2013, prompted a global outpouring of tributes and opened up important teachable moments for social studies educators. Some news commentators noted that effusive media coverage ran the risk of turning Mandela retrospectively into such a saintly figure as to airbrush away his humanity and his struggles.…

The October 2013 special issue of "Social Education" dealt with almost all AP social studies subjects, but omitted AP European History. This is one of the most fascinating AP subjects for students and teachers alike. In this article, the author shares his experiences since hewas given the responsibility of building his school's Advanced…