In the 1980s, media reports o f the state of geography in United States schools and national asse... more In the 1980s, media reports o f the state of geography in United States schools and national assessments documenting the failing grades of American students resulted in a campaign to eradicate geographic illiteracy. As a result, there have been many reforms made in geography education, including the development of national geography standards. The National Geographic Society developed a Geography Education Foundation to introduce a grassroots movement for curricula change through teacher inservice institutes. Furthermore, geography was recognized as a core subject in the curriculum designated by President George Bush and the governors of the United States of America as part of the competency requirements of Goals 2000. The purpose of this study was to conduct a survey to determine the relationship between various independent variables and the implementation of national geography standards in the curriculum of PK-12 classrooms. The population consisted of Teacher Consultants (TCs) wh...
AN ELECTION YEAR provides the perfect opportunity for teachers to incorporate civics into the cur... more AN ELECTION YEAR provides the perfect opportunity for teachers to incorporate civics into the curriculum. Through the election process, teachers can implement citizenship lessons and at the same time provide a model for the democratic system in the classroom. (1) In the 2000 election year, I created and used the below lessons with my fifth grade students. For the month of October, my classroom was inundated with campaign memorabilia. Students diligently watched campaign speeches, brought in articles, marked maps, and even attended rallies. We held a school-wide election the day before the real presidential election, and in our election George W. Bush won. The book we used, The Kid Who Ran for President by Dan Gutman, created the illusion that it might be possible for an ordinary kid to become president. (2) In the book, Judson is elected president but realizes that he is not the right "man" for the job, so he resigns. My students loved the book, and after our election study, many expressed the wish to be president themselves someday. The following ten lessons and culminating activity on the election process teach students about political parties and campaigns, about how citizens can shape politics, about the powers of local, state, and national governments, and about the rights and responsibilities of citizens. Gutman's book is written for ages nine to twelve and fits well into a fifth grade American history classroom. In the story, which takes place in the 2000 election year, a young boy named Lane convinces his best friend, Judson, to run for president of the United States. My students found the hilarious antics of the two boys--with their creation of the Lemonade Party and promise to abolish homework--very appealing. Aside from its comical aspect, the book is informational, presents the steps to the presidency, and ties in well with the daily lessons. Although these lessons can be taught anytime, I believe they work best in an election year--whether it be the year of a presidential, congressional, or even school district election. The culminating activity allows teachers to parallel the election process with the election of class officers. In addition, teachers implement a strategy plan for classroom management by establishing officer responsibilities. Class officers can handle many of the daily tasks of a teacher, such as checking attendance or checking homework. The teacher is then able to spend more time on planning and implementing instruction. The lessons are easily adaptable to state mandated standards and would fit well into any American history classroom for grade levels five through eight. The officer responsibilities presented here work well in a self-contained classroom; however, they could easily be adapted for multiple classes. Because these lessons integrate language arts, math, and social studies, extended time is expected for the presentation of each lesson. Assessment activities are included with each lesson plan and the unit ends with ideas for a mock campaign. Teaching the Election Process in Ten Days Objectives The student will: 1. explain how the powers of the government are distributed, shared, and limited by the U.S. Constitution; 2. identify the rights and responsibilities of citizens and explain their importance to the individual and to society; 3. communicate the importance of knowledge for competent and responsible political participation and leadership; 4. describe the organization and major responsibilities of local, state, and national governments; 5. analyze the importance of political parties, campaigns, and elections in the American political system; 6. explain the essential ideas and historical origins of American constitutional government as well as describe the many ways by which citizens can organize, monitor, and help to shape politics and government at local, state, and national levels. …
The Digital Age is revolutionizing education. Educators need to be well-trained on the variety of... more The Digital Age is revolutionizing education. Educators need to be well-trained on the variety of technology tools available. Technology tools captivate the interest of students and encourage high-levels of engagement. Often, the daily lives of students are rich in technology, while teachers lack the knowledge or skills to integrate technology into the curriculum. Two university teacher education professors will share innovative technology tools to enhance instruction. The tools were modeled in education courses for preservice teachers and transferred into K-12 classrooms. Technology tools included: Skype, PhotoPeach, Prezi, Blabberize, Xtranormal, Poll Everywhere (voting with cellphones), Tagxedo, GPS, and GIS. For example, Skype was used to connect to a local weather broadcaster, a foreign student, and classroom to classroom conversations. Poll Everywhere was utilized as a formative assessment to determine students\u27 understandings of concepts discussed in class. Xtranormal intr...
A significant number of inventions and innovations appeared during the time known as the Industri... more A significant number of inventions and innovations appeared during the time known as the Industrial Revolution. Changes in technology quickly transformed American life in the past and continue to impact businesses, communities, and schools today. Technologies like Skype™, Prezi®, and Poll Everywhere™ provide new methods for engaging students in learning and assess their understanding of content. Each of these technologies is free and can be used in one-computer classrooms or computer labs. These technologies can enhance the learning experience by engaging students in critical thinking and collaboration, allowing real-world applications of the content, and profiling various perspectives while utilizing digital tools that captivate students’ interests. We showcase a myriad of ways that these technologies can be seamlessly integrated into a social studies unit on Industrialization.
ABSTRACT Teacher candidates conducted field hours in the nation's first net zero school, whic... more ABSTRACT Teacher candidates conducted field hours in the nation's first net zero school, which uses the same amount of energy, measured annually, as it produces. These teacher candidates saw firsthand integration of the net zero advantages by completing a Collaborative Research Project and a Net Zero Lesson, which incorporated the use of the net zero building features as part of the lesson plan criteria. As a result, teacher candidates experienced how students can learn from their constructed environment and how that learning could contribute to a more sustainable world.
... Studies by NAEP and Gallup poll reports highlighted American geographic illiteracy (Peterson ... more ... Studies by NAEP and Gallup poll reports highlighted American geographic illiteracy (Peterson 1987; Petersen et al. 1994). ... This 28-page document for geography learning outcomes introduced the five fundamental themes of geography (Boehm and Petersen 1994). ...
In the 1980s, media reports o f the state of geography in United States schools and national asse... more In the 1980s, media reports o f the state of geography in United States schools and national assessments documenting the failing grades of American students resulted in a campaign to eradicate geographic illiteracy. As a result, there have been many reforms made in geography education, including the development of national geography standards. The National Geographic Society developed a Geography Education Foundation to introduce a grassroots movement for curricula change through teacher inservice institutes. Furthermore, geography was recognized as a core subject in the curriculum designated by President George Bush and the governors of the United States of America as part of the competency requirements of Goals 2000. The purpose of this study was to conduct a survey to determine the relationship between various independent variables and the implementation of national geography standards in the curriculum of PK-12 classrooms. The population consisted of Teacher Consultants (TCs) wh...
AN ELECTION YEAR provides the perfect opportunity for teachers to incorporate civics into the cur... more AN ELECTION YEAR provides the perfect opportunity for teachers to incorporate civics into the curriculum. Through the election process, teachers can implement citizenship lessons and at the same time provide a model for the democratic system in the classroom. (1) In the 2000 election year, I created and used the below lessons with my fifth grade students. For the month of October, my classroom was inundated with campaign memorabilia. Students diligently watched campaign speeches, brought in articles, marked maps, and even attended rallies. We held a school-wide election the day before the real presidential election, and in our election George W. Bush won. The book we used, The Kid Who Ran for President by Dan Gutman, created the illusion that it might be possible for an ordinary kid to become president. (2) In the book, Judson is elected president but realizes that he is not the right "man" for the job, so he resigns. My students loved the book, and after our election study, many expressed the wish to be president themselves someday. The following ten lessons and culminating activity on the election process teach students about political parties and campaigns, about how citizens can shape politics, about the powers of local, state, and national governments, and about the rights and responsibilities of citizens. Gutman's book is written for ages nine to twelve and fits well into a fifth grade American history classroom. In the story, which takes place in the 2000 election year, a young boy named Lane convinces his best friend, Judson, to run for president of the United States. My students found the hilarious antics of the two boys--with their creation of the Lemonade Party and promise to abolish homework--very appealing. Aside from its comical aspect, the book is informational, presents the steps to the presidency, and ties in well with the daily lessons. Although these lessons can be taught anytime, I believe they work best in an election year--whether it be the year of a presidential, congressional, or even school district election. The culminating activity allows teachers to parallel the election process with the election of class officers. In addition, teachers implement a strategy plan for classroom management by establishing officer responsibilities. Class officers can handle many of the daily tasks of a teacher, such as checking attendance or checking homework. The teacher is then able to spend more time on planning and implementing instruction. The lessons are easily adaptable to state mandated standards and would fit well into any American history classroom for grade levels five through eight. The officer responsibilities presented here work well in a self-contained classroom; however, they could easily be adapted for multiple classes. Because these lessons integrate language arts, math, and social studies, extended time is expected for the presentation of each lesson. Assessment activities are included with each lesson plan and the unit ends with ideas for a mock campaign. Teaching the Election Process in Ten Days Objectives The student will: 1. explain how the powers of the government are distributed, shared, and limited by the U.S. Constitution; 2. identify the rights and responsibilities of citizens and explain their importance to the individual and to society; 3. communicate the importance of knowledge for competent and responsible political participation and leadership; 4. describe the organization and major responsibilities of local, state, and national governments; 5. analyze the importance of political parties, campaigns, and elections in the American political system; 6. explain the essential ideas and historical origins of American constitutional government as well as describe the many ways by which citizens can organize, monitor, and help to shape politics and government at local, state, and national levels. …
The Digital Age is revolutionizing education. Educators need to be well-trained on the variety of... more The Digital Age is revolutionizing education. Educators need to be well-trained on the variety of technology tools available. Technology tools captivate the interest of students and encourage high-levels of engagement. Often, the daily lives of students are rich in technology, while teachers lack the knowledge or skills to integrate technology into the curriculum. Two university teacher education professors will share innovative technology tools to enhance instruction. The tools were modeled in education courses for preservice teachers and transferred into K-12 classrooms. Technology tools included: Skype, PhotoPeach, Prezi, Blabberize, Xtranormal, Poll Everywhere (voting with cellphones), Tagxedo, GPS, and GIS. For example, Skype was used to connect to a local weather broadcaster, a foreign student, and classroom to classroom conversations. Poll Everywhere was utilized as a formative assessment to determine students\u27 understandings of concepts discussed in class. Xtranormal intr...
A significant number of inventions and innovations appeared during the time known as the Industri... more A significant number of inventions and innovations appeared during the time known as the Industrial Revolution. Changes in technology quickly transformed American life in the past and continue to impact businesses, communities, and schools today. Technologies like Skype™, Prezi®, and Poll Everywhere™ provide new methods for engaging students in learning and assess their understanding of content. Each of these technologies is free and can be used in one-computer classrooms or computer labs. These technologies can enhance the learning experience by engaging students in critical thinking and collaboration, allowing real-world applications of the content, and profiling various perspectives while utilizing digital tools that captivate students’ interests. We showcase a myriad of ways that these technologies can be seamlessly integrated into a social studies unit on Industrialization.
ABSTRACT Teacher candidates conducted field hours in the nation's first net zero school, whic... more ABSTRACT Teacher candidates conducted field hours in the nation's first net zero school, which uses the same amount of energy, measured annually, as it produces. These teacher candidates saw firsthand integration of the net zero advantages by completing a Collaborative Research Project and a Net Zero Lesson, which incorporated the use of the net zero building features as part of the lesson plan criteria. As a result, teacher candidates experienced how students can learn from their constructed environment and how that learning could contribute to a more sustainable world.
... Studies by NAEP and Gallup poll reports highlighted American geographic illiteracy (Peterson ... more ... Studies by NAEP and Gallup poll reports highlighted American geographic illiteracy (Peterson 1987; Petersen et al. 1994). ... This 28-page document for geography learning outcomes introduced the five fundamental themes of geography (Boehm and Petersen 1994). ...
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