Social Studies Signal

Social Studies Signal

January/February 2023- Social Studies Signal Newsletter

1/10/2023

Updates from the Ohio Department of Education

Update on Student Interactions with Peace Officers Model Curriculum Development

The Student Interactions with Peace Officers Model Curriculum Working Group is finalizing the next draft of the model curriculum. The draft will be posted for a second round of public comment this spring. The draft of the model curriculum and public comment information will be shared via the Department’s EdConnection newsletter.

District teachers needed to serve on Ohio Educator Standards Board

The Department is accepting nomination applications for teachers in a school district to serve on the Ohio Educator Standards Board for the September 2023 through June 2025 term. Applications are due Feb. 19.

Office Hours with Ohio Department of Education Consultants

Ohio educators can schedule office hours directly with Ohio's Social Studies and Financial Literacy consultants, Justin Leach and Linda McKean, using the Microsoft Teams Bookings links below: 

Register now for Feb. 14-16 Ohio Educational Technology Conference

Registration is open now for the 25th Ohio Educational Technology Conference scheduled for Feb. 14-16 at the Greater Columbus Convention Center.

$5 million awarded to Ohio libraries to expand learning opportunities for students.

The Ohio Department of Education recently awarded $5 million to libraries across the state to expand learning opportunities for students in preK-grade 12. Awardees will use the funding for programming that supports student learning, particularly in literacy, with the goal of accelerating learning for students who have been most impacted by the pandemic.

News from Education Organizations

Come Judge for Ohio History Day

Are you interested in adding Ohio History Day to your Social Studies curriculum but not ready to commit? Then the Ohio History Connection invites you to register to be a judge at one of the ten regional Ohio History Day contests. As a judge, you get a first-hand look at the impact History Day has on developing student voice and historical thinking skills, all while supporting your community and learning about history.

Ohio Awardees at the National Council for the Social Studies Annual Conference

Congratulations to the following Ohio educators honored at the 2022 National Council for the Social Studies Conference in December: 
 
  • 2022 Secondary Teacher of the Year: Kimberly Huffman, Wayne County Schools Career Center (Smithville, Ohio)
  • 2021 Award for Global Understanding Given in Honor of James M. Becker: Dr. Brad Maguth, University of Akron, LeBron James Family Foundation School of Education (Akron, Ohio) 

103rd Annual National Council for the Social Studies (NCSS) Conference Call for Proposals    

National Council for the Social Studies invites social studies educators to submit a proposal to present at the 103rd NCSS Annual Conference on December 1-3, 2023, in Nashville, TN. The deadline for submitting proposals is February 27, 2023. Interested educators can learn more and submit a proposal on the NCSS website. 

American Civic Education Teacher Awards

The Center for Civic Education, the Center on Representative Government at Indiana University and the National Education Association conducts an annual program to honor American teachers of civics, government and related fields. Titled the American Civic Education Teacher Awards (ACETA), the program promotes national recognition and respect for the teaching profession as a whole and teachers of civic education. The awards honor elementary and secondary civic education teachers who have demonstrated special expertise in teaching about the U.S. Constitution, the U.S. Congress, and public policy at the state and local levels. Educators can apply and find more information on the Center for Civic Education website

Professional Learning Opportunities

Ohio Council for the Social Studies (OCSS) Spring Workshop

Educators interested in learning more about the Black settlements and cultures of Southeastern Ohio, mark your calendar for a history workshop in Chesterhill, Ohio, on March 25, 2023. The Multicultural Genealogical Society of Chesterhill, a village settled by Quakers in 1843 in Morgan County and a sanctuary for freedom seekers along the Underground Railroad, supports this OCSS-sponsored workshop. Email Jennifer Hinkle, OCSS Southeast Ohio representative, at jhinkle@athenscsd.org

Register Today for the 2023 Teaching Financial Literacy Conference

Registration is open for the H.K. Barker Center for Economic Education's 2023 Teaching Financial Literacy Conference scheduled for July 6-7, 2023, in Akron, Ohio. Sub-themes for the conference include: 
  • Credit & Debt
  • Insurance & Risk Management
  • Budget & Financial Planning
  • Investing 
  • Informed Consumer 
  • Entrepreneurship 
  • Economic Education 
  • Ohio's New Financial Literacy Graduation Requirement
  • Educator Licensure 

Benjamin Franklin Transatlantic Fellowship

The U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs sponsors the  Benjamin Franklin Transatlantic Fellowship (BFTF). The Institute offers interactive classes, seminars, workshops, webinars, and teleconferences by prominent scholars and specialists in international relations, diplomacy, communication, media and civic education.
 
The program will consist of four modules, each representing a component of Benjamin Franklin’s legacy:
  1. International Relations & Diplomacy Module
  2. Media & Communication Module
  3. Civic Education & Democratic Citizenship Module
  4. Service & Volunteerism Module

Street Law’s 2023 Supreme Court Summer Institute      

The application period for the Street Law 2023 Supreme Court Summer Institute for Teachers is open until March 1, 2023. 
 
Each year Street Law selects 60 teachers from a pool of applicants to come to Washington for six days of educational activities that strengthen and expand instruction about the U.S. Supreme Court.

2023 Echoes & Reflections Advanced Learning Seminar at Yad Vasem

Echoes & Reflections offers two outstanding international advanced learning programs for educators seeking to deepen their learning and understanding of the Holocaust and strengthen their knowledge and skills to teach this history to their students effectively. These programs are open to U.S. middle and high school teachers who are actively teaching with Echoes & Reflections in their classrooms, and they are now accepting applications for the 2023 Advanced Program in Israel. The application deadline is January 29, 2023.  

Gilder Lehrman Institute’s Self-Paced Courses and Summer Professional Development

The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History now offers fifty-two Self-Paced Courses on a wide range of historical topics. Each Self-Paced Course includes: 
  • Video lectures by renowned and award-winning scholars
  • Primary sources and supplemental readings
  • Audio recordings of each lecture
  • Quizzes to review your knowledge
  • A certificate of completion for the course
The Gilder Lehrman Institute has several professional development offerings scheduled for Summer 2023

2023 Fulbright-Hays Seminars Abroad

The Fulbright-Hays Seminar Abroad provides short-term study and travel seminars abroad for U.S. educators in the social sciences and humanities to improve their understanding and knowledge of the peoples and cultures of other countries. Interested educators can learn more on the U.S. Department of Education's website.

Shine a Light: Countering Antisemitism Educator Micro-Credential

Earn a Shine a Light Educator Countering Antisemitism certification by completing five micro-credentials that help demonstrate expertise in teaching K-12 students (or fellow educators) to develop responsive discussion and instructional protocols for addressing antisemitism and antisemitic incidents in school environments. Open to all K-12 educators in all subjects, administrators, teachers on special assignments, coaches and librarians. Interested educators can learn more about the program on the USC Shoah Foundation website

Professional Learning Programs at George Washington’s Mount Vernon

The George Washington Teacher Institute Summer Residential Program is a 5-day immersive professional development experience designed to support educators who value the importance of inclusive history content. 
 
The Fred W. Smith National Library for the Study of George Washington Teacher Fellowship Program is a three-week onsite, immersive professional development experience designed to invite current educators to create classroom materials that will enhance and expand the teaching of George Washington, his legacies, and the founding era. 

Library of Congress Onsite Summer Workshops

The Library of Congress in Washington, D.C. invites educators to apply to attend a free three-day professional development workshop, where they will learn and practice strategies for using primary sources with K-12 students. The Library of Congress will offer three sessions this summer:
  • July 5-7
  • July 12-14
  • July 17-19
Interested educators can learn more on the Library of Congress website

Other Resources, News and Information

February is Black History Month

February is Black History Month. Several institutions provide free resources and programs supporting Black History Month and Black History throughout U.S. History instruction.

Free-Market Capitalism Resources  

The Ohio State Board of Education convened a work group to review and share resources with educators on the topic of free-market capitalism. The workgroup comprised members from the State Board of Education, the business community and Ohio educators. Interested educators can find the list of resources shared by the work group and a description of each resource in this summary document

New Gilder-Lehrman history course for high school students: Capitalism in American History

The Gilder Lehrman Institute's History U lets high school students explore American history with top scholars—free of charge. 
 
Capitalism in American History, led by David Sicilia of the University of Maryland, examines the trajectory of capitalism from its emergence in British North America to the erosion of US global competitiveness in the 1970s and the rise of neoliberalism and financialization since the 1980s. Students will also learn about the role of slavery, the state, and corporations in nineteenth-century capitalist expansion; the rise of big business and its impact on US politics, society, and industrial work; the Second Industrial Revolution; causes of the Great Depression; how the New Deal and World War II created a mixed economy; and the predominance of consumerism in postwar America.

Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Financial Literacy Resources

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has a framework for building youth financial knowledge, skills, and habits as an important stepping stone on young people’s path to adult financial well-being. CFPB has free tools and resources that support K–12 financial education. 
 
CFPB offers many other free tools and resources specifically for social studies teachers who support K-12 financial education. Interested educators can use a filtering tool on the CFPB website that will assist in sorting resources based on various criteria.

Teach Economics Podcast Series

The Teach Economics podcast series, created by the Economic Education team at the St. Louis Fed, is for educators in elementary, middle and high schools and colleges. The series includes conversations with leading economic educators on innovative and effective teaching strategies and insight into why it’s crucial to teach economics at all levels. 

Kids Voting Ohio Teacher Resources

The Kids Voting Ohio Program Curriculum includes lessons and activities for 3rd - 12th grade around voting, civics, government and history. All the provided lessons and activities aligned with Ohio's Social Studies Learning Standards and Model Curriculum. The curriculum is free to anyone, even if a school has not registered for Kids Voting Ohio. 

Virtually Transport Students to Historic Presidential Sites with the Presidential Primary Sources Project

The Presidential Primary Sources Project presents live, interactive discussions and uses primary source documents to understand our nation's presidents. The programs are free and provided through a partnership between Internet2, the National Park Service and the National Archives.

Bill of Rights Institute Free Classroom Resources

The Bill of Rights Institute provides quality, primary-source-based resources to civics educators for U.S. history, civics, and government teachers. All resources are free of charge. 
 
The resources in this newsletter are free and have been reviewed using the Department’s Social Studies resource filter against established criteria. Copies of the completed filter forms are available upon request. Inclusion in this newsletter does not represent a recommendation to use a resource. Many quality resources are available beyond those included here. Educators should use their professional expertise to determine the suitability of any particular resources for use in their districts, schools or classrooms.

Send comments/questions to:

Justin Leach, Social Studies Consultant, Office of Learning and Instructional Strategies justin.leach@education.ohio.gov.

Linda McKean, Social Studies Consultant, Office of Learning and Instructional Strategies linda.mckean@education.ohio.gov.