James A. Duplass

Professional Dispositions: What's a Social Studies Education Professor to Do?.

Recent changes in accreditation standards now require professors to systematically assess whether a teacher candidate actually possesses a “disposition” appropriate to the profession. This new mandate from accreditation bodies is controversial on a number of fronts. As social studies educators in particular, we like to think of ourselves as especially attentive to issues such as individual differences and rights, indoctrination, prejudice, intolerance, freedom of expression, maturation, and the worth of the individual—all of which are potentially raised by the NCATE and NCSS mandates. And as a practical matter, it places new stresses on the role of professors as both mentors and gatekeepers. In this article, two social studies teacher educators provide an overview of current theory and debate regarding dispositions, an assessment of practical problems associated with the accreditation accountability mandates, and—in spite of the persistent problems associated with defining and assessing dispositions—offer one successful model for evaluating teacher candidates’ professional dispositions that has been implemented in a social studies education program.

Elementary Social Studies: Trite, Disjointed, and in Need of Reform?

Elementary social studies has used the same scope and sequence for more than a half century despite significant changes in society. Efforts to reform the curriculum are adversely impacted by inertia, tradition, the culture wars, traditional state autonomy in setting curriculum, publishers, and competition between disciplines for space within the curriculum. The pressure exerted on teachers and schools by the No Child Left Behind Act to emphasize basic skills can result in the further marginalization of social studies at the elementary level unless a consensus can be built around a new curriculum. By including all social studies disciplines, drawing on the time-honored conceptual structures of individual social studies disciplines, and relying on the current standards of social studies learned societies, educators could frame a new social studies curriculum that addresses the interests of most stakeholders and offers meaningful social studies education to elementary students.

Teaching History: Strategies for Dealing with Breadth and Depth in the Standards and Accountability Age

In the age of accountability, there is increased pressure to deliver high-quality education in a limited time period is greater than ever before. Teachers are often left to struggle with issue of determining what knowledge is necessary, and to what depth it may be explored in the classroom. There is a need for strategies to both incorporate the best forms of historical knowledge and to cope with the increased demands on our teachers. The purpose of this article is to examine the idea of what constitutes “historical knowledge,” the issues of breadth and depth, and to suggest strategies for history teachers on how to deal with the challenge of finding the “right” balance between breadth and depth in their history courses.

Teaching software: is the supervised laboratory effective?

Abstract This paper details an empirical study and its results dealing with the need or wisdom of universities and colleges to include laboratory sections of courses that are offered to teach contemporary software. There was no significant difference found in the knowledge gained for those students who participated in a laboratory in addition to a lecture/demonstration, but the students who participated in the laboratory completed their projects more quickly. The study is important for universities and colleges who are under significant pressure to reduce cost by pedagogical options while still maintaining the quality of personal attention and effectiveness demanded by the American public.