Eastern Illinois University EC ELE MLE Department ELE 3340 SOCIAL STUDIES FOR ELEMENTARY SCHOOL CHILDREN Generic SYLLABUS UNIT THEME Educator as Creator of Effective Educational Environments Integrating diverse students subjects strategies societies and technologies Spring 2008 Linda Loy Phone 581 7862 O 217 536 5269 H Office 2208 Buzzard Building Office Hours T TR 11 12 30 Wed 10 1 00 E Mail lwloy eiu edu and jhl effingham net Catalog Description ELE 3340 Social Studies for the Elementary School Children 3 0 3 Planning and organizing for instruction material selection and evaluation in social studies Field based activities will be provided in Elementary Education 4000 Prerequisites Elementary Education 3000 and concurrent enrollment in Elementary Education 3290 Elementary Education 4000 and Elementary Education 4880 or permission of department chair Course Purpose The primary purpose of social studies is to help young people develop the ability to make informed and reasoned decisions for the public good as citizens of a culturally diverse democratic society in an interdependent world NCSS Expectations of Excellence p vii ELE 3340 is structured to assist in preparing preservice teachers to teach social studies in elementary and middle schools Course goals include helping preservice teachers to develop a confidence in their teaching abilities b knowledge of social studies content and sequences and c the ability to select and utilize developmentally and age appropriate materials and techniques ELE 3340 is essential in helping preservice teachers acquire knowledge interactive and informational processing skills attitudes and commitments necessary for effective teaching of the social studies in elementary and middle schools Supplemental materials Livetext account required NOTE For those classes with Live Text or Practicum If the portfolio or Live Text requirements are rated by the instructor to have been completed in less than a satisfactory manner then no more than a D may be earned in the class regardless of the number of points earned Dispositions Teacher candidates in the Department of EC ELE MLE will exhibit professional ethical practices effective communication sensitivity to diversity the ability to provide varied teaching practices evidenced in a supportive and encouraging environment Purpose of Generic Syllabus To provide the framework from which individual instructors can assure common outcomes for all certification candidates enrolled in ELE3340 Grading scales and instructional sequence will be determined by individual instructors Course requirements and demonstrated competencies are aligned with the following standards Illinois Professional Teaching Standards IPTS http www isbe il us profprep PDFs ipts pdf 1 Association for Childhood Education International ACEI http www acei org Synopsis htm Illinois Core Language Arts Standards ICLAS http www isbe net profprep CASCDvr pdfs 24110 corelangarts std pdf Illinois Core Technology Standards ICTS http www isbe net profprep CASCDvr pdfs 24100 coretechnology pdf Texts Welton David A Children and their World Strategies for teaching social studies 8th Edition Boston Houghton Mifflin Company 2004 National Council for the Social Studies Expectations of excellence Curriculum standards for the social studies Upper Saddle River NJ Prentice Hall Inc 1994 ELE3340 Competencies for all candidates Demonstrate commitment to continuing enhancement of knowledge bases in the Social Studies and in best practice pedagogy Search evaluate and apply appropriate resources including primary sources Develop conceptually connected themed curriculum Ground pedagogy in democratic beliefs and values NCSS Utilize inquiry and critical thinking in curriculum development Place emphasis on reasoned and informed decision making for the common good in a diverse and interdependent world the NCSS definition of competent citizenship the goal of the Social Studies Learning Model Social Systems This model is constructed to take advantage of the collective energy people generate when working together by building learning communities Learning is viewed as an interaction between the student and critical aspects of the school and home environment and focuses on the whole ecosystem not just the learner The model is designed to lead students to define problems explore various perspectives of the problems and study together to master information ideas and skills The teacher organizes the group process and disciplines it helps the students find and organize information and ensures a vigorous level of activity and discourse Joyce B Weil M Showers B 1992 Models of teaching 5th ed Boston Allyn and Bacon Course Requirements Participation Projects Units Guides Demonstrated Competencies Performance includes discussion volunteer input engagement with others and cooperative learning situations that relate to social issues and social concerns Focus is on critical citizenship education that results in constructive social action Performance includes application of technology skills in researching topics and development activities reflecting creativity higher order thinking skills different learning styles and multiple assessments Focus is on the design of integrated and themed curriculum for comprehensive social studies and Aligned Standards ACEI 5 3 IPTS 7 9 10 ISTE 1 ACEI 2 8 3 1 3 2 3 3 3 4 3 5 IPTS 1 3 4 5 6 8 2 Group Presentations Journal Internet Reviews Selected Assignments Final Exam citizenship in a global village including the creation of learning ISTE 2 3 environments that invite development of healthy self concept and pro social behaviors Performance includes demonstration of effective ACEI 3 5 5 4 communication skills application of technology tools and IPTS 7 9 utilization of productivity tools such as Power Point or ISTE 2 5 LiveText Focus is on dissemination of social studies content knowledge Performance may include reading an article provided by the instructor and submitting a reaction paper based on that article and or locating relevant social studies sources topics issues and providing a reflection paper Focus is on utilization of vital social issues current events enhancement of the concept and experience of thoughtful democratic citizenship Performance includes demonstration of content knowledge research skills multiple perspectives and creativity Diverse and appropriate technology tools will be utilized Focus is on the promotion of higher order thinking skills