Ever since national legislation has become involved in the testing of our students, the face of social studies education in elementary school classrooms has changed drastically. With the passage of Goals 2000 in 1993, social studies instruction in elementary school classrooms has seen a steep decline in the time allotted. Also, the attitude of administrators and teachers in elementary schools has taken away the importance of social studies in the classroom. While social studies has seen a big change in the amount of time dedicated to instruction in the past 20 years, there is still hope for the important topics that are taught in elementary social studies classes. The results of 69 preservice elementary teachers who responded to my survey regarding time allotted to social studies education revealed that more than half had only observed social studies in the elementary classroom even once. In my research, I have concluded that teachers have been making up for time lost in social studies by adding it to the other core subjects taught throughout the day.

Due to the demands of federal legislation, the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) in particular, social studies instruction has become increasingly marginalized in elementary classrooms (Bollick, Adams, & Willox, 2010; Heafner, Lipscomb, & Fitchett, 2014; Holloway & Chiodo, 2009; Jones & Thomas, 2006; Morton & Dalton, 2007). One possible solution to this problem is to integrate social studies and reading instruction. This qualitative case study examined six third grade teachers’ perceptions of and experiences with social studies and reading as they attempted to integrate the two subjects through the use of economics book clubs in their classrooms over six weeks. The primary research question under investigation was: What impact does integrating economics with reading through book clubs have on six third grade teachers’ perceptions of social studies? The researcher prepared for and led professional development, split into two sessions, to teach the participants about integrating curriculum and book clubs. Then, data was triangulated (Stakes, 1995; Yin, 2003) by using multiple sources which included three focus group interviews, anecdotal notes from weekly planning meetings, two professional development sessions, weekly written reflections from each participant, and weekly lesson plans. The analysis of multiple data sets over time revealed that the participating teachers considered integrating economics and reading through book clubs a positive experience, an effective use of instruction time for both social studies and reading, and a meaningful approach to students’ active learning. While the teachers initially struggled to adjust to an integrated instructional method and many students being pulled out for special need services, upon observing students being highly engaged in learning, the teachers started to develop positive attitudes toward the curriculum integration and perceived the integrated book clubs as a worthwhile strategy to prioritize social studies instruction. The current study contributes to the field of social studies by providing empirical research on elementary teachers’ struggles and efforts with improving the state of elementary social studies instruction through innovative and integrated practices, specifically through the use of book clubs. The study also contributes to the field of social studies and reading content integration by focusing specifically on integrating economics with reading comprehension.

The purpose of this interpretive, qualitative multi-case study (Merriam, 2001; Stake, 1995) was to describe the experiences of three elementary classroom teachers as they integrated literacy and social studies during their literacy instruction. This study was grounded in an interpretivist paradigm and a theoretical lens of symbolic interactionism. The guiding questions were: What are the experiences of three elementary teachers when integrating literacy and social studies instruction? What information do teachers use when making decisions about integrated instruction? How do teachers’ beliefs align with their practices? How do teachers organize, plan for, and provide integrated instruction, including how they use the core English/Language Arts programs and core social studies programs? In what ways, if any, do teachers use disciplinary literacy strategies to support social studies instruction? I collected data from teachers in kindergarten, third grade, and fifth grade classrooms in a K-8 Title One school. Data included audio-recorded one-on-one semi-structured interviews, classroom observations, lesson plans, photographs, and my researcher journal. I began data analysis through inductive coding of each interview and observation, and then coded each through deductive analysis using Cunningham and Allington’s (2011) pillars of effective literacy instruction. I deductively coded the data using the six proven practices for effective civic learning based on the National Center for Learning and Civic Engagement (NCLCE, Guilfoile & Delander, 2014). Data analysis then moved to the crosswalk I created using the pillars of effective literacy instruction and the NCLCE proven practices. Data analysis concluded with the cross-case analysis. During the data analysis, member checks and three meetings with a peer reviewer occurred. Findings from this study indicate teachers continue to experience conflict between their beliefs and practices, often due to state, district, and school mandates. Additionally, the study findings indicate a desire for focused professional development, both face-to-face and through digital tools, on how to effectively integrate literacy and social studies. Moreover, professional development is needed to support teachers in their use of critical literacy. Findings also indicate that the teachers in this study experienced censorship, imposed by others and themselves. The study concluded with my interpretation of the findings based on the reviewed literature, suggestions for future research, and a crosswalk for professional development to support teachers in planning for effective integrated literacy and social studies instruction. Keywords: elementary social studies, censorship, integrated curriculum, professional development, effective instruction.

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The EL (English learner) population is rapidly growing in the United States. ELs most often are finding themselves placed in classrooms without ESOL trained teachers. In the social studies curriculum, United States History often is regarded as one of the hardest courses for newly arrived immigrants due to the unfamiliarity of the content (Dunne & Martell, 2013). The absence of culturally relevant instruction also contributes to the potentially overwhelming nature of the social studies curriculum for ELs. The purpose of this study is to determine the extent teachers’ and tutors’ use of culturally relevant biographies during social studies instruction fosters engagement in social studies instruction among Latino English language learners. The research study was inspired by the work of Margaret Peters, retired Dayton, Ohio United States History teacher and author. In 1969 Peters wrote a book entitled, Striving to Overcome, Negro Achievers. The book featured twenty-one short biographies and pictures of African Americans who had impacted the history of the United States. Peters’ purpose for creating the book was to “free” young Americans from prejudice (Watras, 2012). In significance to this study, eight culturally relevant biographies were available to the participants. The purpose of this research is to evaluate the value of incorporating culturally and linguistically relevant biographies into ESOL social studies instruction. The study answered two questions: (1) How do ESOL teachers and tutors perceive culturally relevant biography integration during United States History instruction? and (2) How does the use of culturally relevant biographies impact teacher and tutor reported student engagement with EL Latino students? The following research methods were employed: participant interviews, field notes, observations, and participant reported student engagement questionnaires. The findings of this study showed benefit for student engagement among Latino ELs. The participant base largely echoed that studying historical individuals relatable to students was better than studying historical events. Participants all said they would use culturally relevant biographies in future instruction.

No description available.