Teacher Talk: Minding the Civics Learning Gap
<p><em>By Marcee Hinds</em></p>
<p>This school year, I made a bold jump. </p>
<p>I moved from the high school world, where I taught for 10 years, to take a position as a middle school social studies teacher. </p>
<p>I knew I had my work cut out for me. I was dealing with a new school, new grade level and new subjects. I understood there would be challenges, but I did not know exactly what those challenges would look like until the semester began. </p>
<p>As with most educators around the country, I saw evidence of what many call “COVID deficiencies” in my seventh graders. These are educational and behavioral gaps created by online learning during the 2019-2020 and 2020-2021 school years. </p>
<p>Many students had not been in a physical classroom for over a year and struggled to transition back to face-to-face learning. </p>
<p>But I began to witness deficiencies that stemmed now only from the impact of COVID, but from a lack of interest in social studies. I was having a clear impact on the skills these students possessed. </p>
<p>Many of my former high school colleagues and I would assume that social studies skills that should have been taught in elementary school were simply not reinforced in middle school classrooms. </p>
<p>Now that I am a middle school educator, I had assumed many students would come into my classroom with basic social studies skills such as the difference between primary and secondary sources or even how to evaluate a map. </p>
<p>To say I was wrong was an understatement. Having taught high school for so long, I would notice the lack of social studies skills my high school students possessed and wondered where the gap began. </p>
<p>I became more dismayed as my students’ lack of social studies skills and interest in the subject became evident over this last semester. </p>
<p>As a social studies educator, I was aware that less emphasis had been put on the importance of social studies at the elementary school level. I began speaking with fellow educators who have taught elementary school. Many confirmed that even with required social studies learning standards as part of their curriculum, these lessons were often put on the back burner while STEM-based lessons took precedence. </p>
<p>While these subjects are vitally important for our students’ future job prospects, the lack of social studies education early on in students’ lives creates a mindset that social studies courses are not as important as those promoting STEM education. </p>
<p>Many of our Founders warned that our democracy was doomed to fail without a proper education system. All the elements that make up a civilization — such as politics, religion, economics, culture, and ideologies — are learned within social studies courses. </p>
<p>By lessening the amount of social studies education students receive in elementary school, the American education system is deemphasizing the importance of understanding socially how our world works.</p>
<p>My biggest fear as a social studies educator is that this deemphasized mindset towards social studies education, especially in primary schools, will morph the American education system into a pipeline specifically for STEM-based jobs with little emphasis on jobs pertaining to the social sciences. </p>
<p>Yes, STEM-based jobs are vital in our modern age, but who are we as a country without careers in history, economics, and politics? Students need to know their place in the world and how it functions. </p>
<p>Simply put, without effective social studies education at all levels, we will slowly begin to lose our identity as Americans and where we fit in this vastly modern global society.</p>
<p><em>Marcee Hinds is a middle school civics and history teacher in Mobile, AL. She is also a member of the Bill of Rights Institute Teacher Council. </em></p>