SOCIAL STUDIES
The pourpose of social studies is to give students the required knowledge, skills, and competencies to become active and informed members of society who can think critically, understand, and explain perspectives of other people to make decisions and effectively communicate.
The curriculum studies historical events to help students an understanding on the people, places, events, and problems, that model the modern society. Studying these points develops a deep understanding of the differences between peoples and creates a sense of appreciation of the human experience. The curriculum also shows students’ place in the world and the connections between humans and the environment. Interconnections between societies and the growing awareness of environmental sustainability make geographical understandings a critical section in the curriculum. Lastly, the social studies curriculum also explains the modern economy, the interdependence of economies, and how economic decisions can create impacts at international levels.
Compared to other subjects, social studies are the least prescriptive and allows teachers to go in specific interests. The goal is to allow teachers to spend time in key topics, rather than rushing through factual ideas. Social studies also has a greater emphasis on disciplinary thinking skills and inquiries, helping students develop individual understanding of certain concepts. Rather that receiving knowledge from textbooks.
The curricular competencies are how students are expected to demonstrate their learning.
In social studies:
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Students in kindergarten are expected to explain the significance of personal/local events, objects, people, or places,
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Grade threes are to explain why people events, or places are important to individuals or groups,
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Constructing arguments defending the significance of individuals/groups, places, events, or developments is for grade sixes,
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And Grade nines are expected to assess the significance of people, places, events, or developments, and compare varying perspectives on their historical significance at specific times and places, and from group to group.
The Big ideas of social studies are very loose, as teachers can opt to teach other ideas, but the curriculum states that:
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Kindergarten teaches that communities are diverse and made of individuals with many common points,
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Grade three teaches that people from diverse cultures and societies share common experiences and aspects of life,
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Economic self-interest is a significant cause of conflict among governments in grade six,
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And disparities in power alter balance of relationships between individuals and societies during grade 9.
The Content represents the “Know” of the model. It identifies what students are expected to learn at specific grade levels.
The “knows” of Social Studies are:
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Rights, Roles and Responsibilities of individuals in kindergarten,
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Governance and social organization in local and global indigenous societies in grade three,
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Roles of individuals, organizations, ad NGOs, including indigenous groups in grade six,
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And nationalism and the development of modern nation-states, including Canada in grade nine.
Goals and Rationale
The main purpose of Social Studies is to develop skills and knowledge that enables students to be active and always informed.
An informed student should understand historical, geographical, political, economic, and societal concepts, and the relationships and interactions between said concepts. Students must build deep understandings and create their own knowledge through investigations into open-ended questions, debates and discussions, and developing their own hypotheses, solutions, and conclusions.
Social Studies helps students build those understandings by drawing on topics like history, geography, political science, and economics, with help from other disciplines.
While social studies draws on topics from many disciplines, the curriculum places greater emphasis on developing skills through six thinking concepts: significance, evidence, continuity & change, cause & consequence, perspective, and ethical judgement. These six concepts were originally designed to outline historical thinking, but were adapted to include methods geographers, economists, and political scientists think about topics.
Students can apply social studies skills to a wide range of post-secondary programmes or careers. The disciplines develop students’ abilities to think analytically and solve problems. Students will have opportunities to conduct quantitative and qualitative research and learn how to collect and interpret data. They also lean to communicate their learnings through various methods.
The Curricular Competencies are linked with the core competencies – Communication, Thinking, and Personal/Social Awareness (C, T, PS). The Core Competencies represent a collection of skills that contribute to a lifelong learning path.
Such skills include:
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Persisting in tasks and goals
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Taking responsible risks
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Thinking interdependently in groups and teams
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Creating, imagining, and innovating new ways to accomplish tasks
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Applying past knowledge and experiences to new situations
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Managing impulses and emotions
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Striving for accuracy and setting high standards
The BC Social Studies Curriculum shapes students’ futures through achieving the following goals:
Students are expected to:
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Develop the competencies needed for participation in a democratic society: considering multiple perspectives, respecting different values and points of view, gathering and critically analyzing information, making informed decisions, and effectively communicating their views
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Develop an understanding of the connections between the past, present, and future and the people, events, and trends that have shaped the development and evolution of societies, especially our own. A complete understanding of Canada’s past and present includes developing an understanding of the history and culture of Canada’s Indigenous peoples,
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Develop an understanding of the interaction between humans and the environment, the impact of the physical environment on the development of human societies and cultures, and the impact of humans on the environment — understanding these interactions involves developing spatial awareness about geophysical features and human impacts,
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Develop an understanding of the rights and responsibilities of citizenship and the democratic system of government, including how decisions are made at the individual, group, local, provincial, and national levels, and how to get involved in the political process and express their opinions effectively,
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Develop an understanding of how economic systems work and their place in an interconnected global economy so they are aware of the interactions between political, environmental, and economic decisions, and the trade-offs involved in balancing different interests.
The First Peoples Principles of Learning and Working with the First Peoples Community.
The first peoples’ principles of learning have been affirmed within indigenous communities to guide the teaching and learning of the curriculum. Because these principles are attempts to identify common teaching and learning approaches, so it should be known that they do not enclose the full reality used in any single community.
The First Peoples’ Principles of Learning greatly influences the curriculum by promoting experimental learning, introducing new competencies, like comparing different perspectives, which helps students learn about local communities.