Meet the New Middle School Social Studies Content Expectations

1
Meet the New Middle School Social Studies Content
Expectations

• David Klemm
• Social Studies/School Improvement Consultant

2
A General Introduction

• 1. The New Content Expectations are a product
  of political and pedagogical conflict.

3
Conflict

• Political
• Social Studies, particularly history and
  government and to a lesser extent geography and
  economics, are subjects that require perspective
  and produce strong opinions.
• Interest groups play a role in the passage of any
  political document.

4
Conflict

• Pedagogical
• Social Studies is a combination of four
  different disciplines, each of which thinks it is
  the most important.
• Delicate balance between specific content
  knowledge and thinking skills.
• Scope and Sequence question must be faced in a
  K-12 document.

5
A General Introduction

• 1. The new content expectations are a product
  of political and pedagogical conflict.
• 2. The new content expectations are the result
  of an extensive, complicated, exhaustive (and
  exhausting!) process.

6
Complicated Process

• Every available document was on the table
• National Standards in the four core social
  science disciplines provide the overall structure
• All of the teacher review comments were
  considered
• Received extensive national review

7
A General Introduction

• 1. The new content expectations are a product
  of political and pedagogical conflict.
• 2. The new content expectations are the result
  of an extensive, complicated, exhaustive (and
  exhausting!) process.
• 3. The new content expectations seem familiar
  and brand new.

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Familiar and New A Quiz

• 1. What is the purpose of Social Studies?
• 2. What disciplines make up Social Studies in
  Michigan?
• 3. What is the name for the model that starts
  with self and gradually expands to larger and
  larger fields of social studies inquiry?
• 4. What does the acronym HOTS mean (from the old
  curriculum framework?)

9
Familiar and New

• Familiar
• Same purpose produce active, responsible
  citizens
• Same core disciplines History, Geography, Civics
  and Economics
• Same expanding horizons model through fourth
  grade
• Same emphasis on higher order thinking skills
  analyze, explain, describe, apply

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Familiar and New

• New
• New purpose develop digital-age proficiencies
• Includes foundational expectations
• Has intentional redundancies
• Combines chronological and spatial organization
  in History/Geography courses
• Blends thinking skills with specificity

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A General Introduction

• 1. The new content expectations are a product
  of political and pedagogical conflict.
• 2. The new content expectations are the result
  of an extensive, complicated, exhaustive (and
  exhausting!) process.
• 3. The new content expectations seem familiar
  and brand new.
• 4. The new content expectations are finished,
  but much needs to still be done.

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Finished but more to do

• Outlines what to do but not how to do it
• Not intended as a pacing guide
• Require structural choices in several areas
  before constructing curriculum
• Make cross grade discussions absolutely necessary
• Require our best assessment thinking and unit
  design thinking

13
A General Introduction

• 1. The new content expectations are a product
  of political and pedagogical conflict.
• 2. The new content expectations are the result
  of an extensive, complicated, exhaustive (and
  exhausting!) process.
• 3. The new content expectations seem familiar
  and brand new.
• 4. The new content expectations are finished,
  but much needs to still be done.

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Thinking Deeper About the Purpose

• For Districts, Schools and Teachers
• For Teachers and Students

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Thinking Deeper About the Purpose

• For Districts, Schools and Teachers
• Designing an Aligned Curriculum
• Incorporating the Policy on Learning Expectations
• For Teachers and Students
• Prepare students to be active, responsible
  citizens
• Develop digital-age proficiencies

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Four Tips and Tricks

• 1. Use social studies thinking
• 2. Inquiry is essential
• 3. Organization is not a state decision
• 4. There is required content and exemplar content

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Some additional Tips and Tricks

• National Standard Organization (p. 5)
• Michigan Coding (p.6)
• Knowledge and Process Skills are Identical for
  every grade, 5-8 (p. 35) and an expanded set is
  part of every HS credit (HS p. 20)
• Every grade requires students to , Act
  constructively to further the public good. (e.g.
  p.13, 33, 79)

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Some additional Tips and Tricks

• Grade 5 and 8 lead to U.S. History courses with
  embedded perspectives from other disciplines (p.
  34, e.g. p. 75)
• Grades 6 and 7 are open to an integrated Social
  Studies approach to the Western and Eastern
  Hemispheres or content specific courses with
  embedded perspectives or a combination (p. 34,
  43)

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Some additional Tips and Tricks

• Foundational Expectations present unique
  opportunities ( p.73, HS p. 21, 40)
• Combined Temporal Thinking and Spatial Thinking
  in 6th (p. 47, 50) and 7th (p. 59, 63) grades
  presents unique opportunities
• Capstone projects in 6th (p. 54) and 7th (p.
  67) grade present unique opportunities

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Grade Level Activities

• Grade 6 Review and discuss p. 43-46
• Grade 7 Review and discuss p. 43-45, 58
• Describe Temporal Terms
• Describe Spatial Terms
• What is a Capstone Project? Why do one?
• What structural options make the most sense?

21
Grade Level Activities

• Grade 8 Review p. 72-73, 78 HS p. 40
• How do I review the Foundational Expectations?
• How can I integrate current affairs?
• What seems to be most important for high school
  preparation?

22
Grade Level Activities

• All groups
• What expectations am I already teaching?

23
Small Group Work

• Foundations from Earlier Grades

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Building and District Work

• Mapping and Unit Design

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Whats Next?

• What will your next steps be?
• What do you need? How will you meet those needs?
• David KlemmSocial Studies/School Improvement
  ConsultantMuskegon Area ISDphone
  231-767-7255dklemm_at_muskegonisd.orgwww.socialstud
  ies.muskegonisd.org