By Kari Newell As the D’Evelyn founding document states, “We must prepare students for roles as active, informed citizens, to do otherwise is to disenfranchise them of their birthright.” A key component of the social studies department is creating informed and engaged citizens. Students are expected to read daily from their textbooks and participate in class discussions to further their knowledge and understanding of historical and current events. As stated in the Founding Document, “An understanding of history, geography, economics, and government is fundamental to becoming an effective citizen. We believe each student must study world history as well as the history and government of the United States, in order to be able to understand and evaluate our place in the world.” D’Evelyn course standards require four years of social studies at the high school level including Eastern Civilization/Geography, Western Civilization, American History, American Government, and Economics. At the junior high level, students take a Geography and US History course to prepare them for their high school studies. Our department consists of three junior high teachers and six senior high teachers. We work closely throughout the year within our department to align our curriculum and hold our students to common and consistent high expectations. Furthermore, a cornerstone of the history department is the term paper students are required to write all four years of their high school experience. The term paper offers students the practice of learning to write a lengthy research-based paper in high school to further prepare them for writing and research in college. The term paper writing process includes many elements such as: notecards, an outline, an annotated bibliography, a first draft and a final draft to equip students with the necessary skills they will need in order to be successful in their future writing endeavors. The social studies department also believes in engaging, first-hand experience to expand students’ knowledge of the world. In June 2019, the 9th grade social studies team took a group of students to Japan where students immersed themselves in the rich culture and history of the country. In 2021, members of the department are planning a trip to Eastern Europe to visit the countries of Germany, Czech Republic, Poland and Hungary. These experiences provide students an opportunity to gain insight into other countries' history, as well as their culture and current events. We appreciate the hard work of our students and look forward to another successful year at D’Evelyn. Comments are closed.
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April 2023
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