March 1 2024- The white paper commissioned by Thinking Nation, titled “A Second-Class Subject?” highlights the widespread neglect of social studies in K-12 education, despite its critical role in providing explicit education for citizenship. The study reveals that social studies lacks priority in terms of resources, curricular alignment, and professional development, despite teachers and administrators recognizing its importance. The paper attributes this neglect to various reasons but fails to address a crucial one – the lack of clarity on essential civics content within social studies education. The author argues that social studies should define the core civics knowledge necessary for students, emphasizing the responsibility to engage them in conversations about freedom, equality, and justice, which form our shared political tradition. The paper calls for a more specific understanding of the knowledge required for active citizenship and the role of schools in teaching these essential concepts.
https://thefulcrum.us/civic-engagment-education/social-studies
