ABSTRACT
Social studies teachers face the challenge of finding ways to engage students in wanting to learn the things that we believe are important for them to know. We need to become teachers who can inspire students to care about social studies and history the way we do. Part of our task is connecting social studies to the lives of our students: what has been called “culturally relevant pedagogy.” This chapter introduces the author; reasons to become a social studies teacher; the cultural, social, and historical nature of individual and group identity; philosophical influences on curriculum and teaching; and the political nature of the curriculum. It discusses student teaching, explores development as a teacher, and introduces the idea of reflective practice. This chapter, and every chapter, include sample classroom practices that illustrate how to implement ideas about history and social studies in the classroom. Key concepts include change, competence, culture, curriculum, experience, experimentation, and identity.
