Social Studies Teachers

Alabama's K-12 Social Studies curriculum encompasses four program goals that lead toward civic responsibility:  historic literacy, geographic literacy, economic literacy, and political literacy. The program goals are not developed independently, but will be attained as a result of planned, organized instruction that integrates the studies discipline with specific emphasis on information literacy. The integration of the disciplines is necessary to show relationships, to present accurate and meaningful content, to interpret past and present events and conditions, and to plan for the future. Instruction should equip students to retrieve, acquire, think about, organize, and share information.

Students encounter the four program goals through all grade levels. In the early grades, they learn more about themselves and the environment. They participate in activities directed toward developing responsibility, learning cooperation, and participating in decision-making.  Third graders study the settlement of the land and land use by its inhabitants.  The formal study of history begins in the fourth grade with Alabama History and continues with United States and World History in two-year sequences through the eleventh grade.  In the seventh grade, Social Studies instruction includes civics and consumer economics, as well as world geography.  Twelfth graders complete the formal study of Social Studies with courses in government and economics.

MOCK CONGRESSIONAL HEARING

We the People

The Citizen and the Constitution

Students at Minor High School in Ms. Candace Heard’s Honors United States Government and Economics class have studied a curriculum called We the People—The Citizen and the Constitution. This course, established in 1987, is a project of the Center for Civic Education and is funded by the U. S. Department of Education. The primary goal of We the People…the Citizen and the Constitution is to promote civic competence and responsibility among students. The program enhances students’ understanding of the institutions of American constitutional democracy. At the same time, students discover the contemporary relevance of the Constitution and the Bill of Rights.

The culminating activity is a simulated congressional hearing in which students “testify” before a panel of judges. Students demonstrate their knowledge and understanding of constitutional principles and have opportunities to evaluate, take, and defend positions on relevant historical and contemporary issued. The entire class working in cooperative teams, prepares and presents statements in answer to questions furnished prior to the contest for a period of four minutes, usually with each student speaking for one minute each before a panel of community representatives who act as congressional committee members. Following the prepared answers, students then field questions posed to them by the judges for six minutes. After the set time has elapsed, the judges provide feedback to the students.

The competition is organized according to the congressional districts in a state. Alabama, therefore, has seven different competition sites.  The two teams with the highest scores advanced to state level competition in Montgomery in late January or early February. Mrs. Heard’s team begin the study of We the People in August in preparation for the competition. Students spend hours on research, preparation, and practice. One winner from each state will be eligible to compete on the national level in Washington, D.C. in the spring. 

The unit team members have not yet been assigned. Class members are:

 Unit I—What are the philosophical and historical foundations of the American political system?

 Unit II—How did the Framers create the Constitution?

Unit III—How did the values and principles embodied in the Constitution shape American institutions and practices?

Unit IV—How have the protections of the Bill of Rights been developed and expanded?

Unit V—What rights does the Bill of Rights protect?

Unit VI—What are the roles of the citizen in American democracy?