Social Studies in the Classroom by Delaney
Delaney's entry into Varsity Tutor's November 2021 scholarship contest
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Social Studies in the Classroom by Delaney - November 2021 Scholarship Essay
I believe that Social Studies deserves more emphasis in the classroom. Social Studies helps students understand the world they live in. Why wouldn't we put more emphasis on that? We are constantly trying to understand the way the world works, and yet Social Studies is the most looked over subject in the curriculum. Through social studies, we can provide students with the skills to make informed decisions by creating democratic citizens in elementary classrooms. In America today, we have a diverse culture and an everchanging economy. Social Studies allows young learners to explain the relationships with other people, institutions, and the environment, to do this we must equip them with knowledge of the past. Giving them this past knowledge aids in equiping students with skills to productively solve problems and make decisions well within their local, national, and global communities. Allowing students to engage in Social Studies can change the world. If we equip students with the correct tools they could change policies, create new jobs, understand institutions, and become a powerful generation. If we want to create a different world we must start with the young.
We all want the world to change in some way. However, we were never taught how to do it with Social Studies it is possible. By providing students with more than just a textbook and a few keywords, we can change the way Social Studies is looked at. Social Studies is so much more than history. It is a huge umbrella where you can teach students the systems that we use and how they are being used. We can make students more aware of their environment by providing them with information to keep our planet longer, to become citizens that are doers. We can allow students to question "why do we do this?" and "How can it be done differently?".
Social Studies is not just here so we can learn from our mistakes it is here so we can readjust our surroundings and make the world better for all of us.