SEED 415                              
SPECIAL METHODS                      
       
CLASS SYLLABUS--FALL 2014

Welcome to SEED 415, the most wonderful, the most exciting, and the most interesting methods course mentioned in this particular paragraph!  The broad goal of this course is to help you to become the best social sciences teacher you can be.  Unfortunately, our numbers are way down this semester, and I’ll have to convert the class into an independent study for you—less than ideal.

TECHNOLOGICAL EMPHASIS:
   
Portions of this course have been redesigned in order to better prepare our prospective social science teachers to make full use of technology in the classroom.  Your suggestions on this aspect of the course will be particularly appreciated.

This course syllabus and all other class materials are available on-line. My home page is www3.northern.edu/marmorsa.  Click on "current courses," and go to the SEED 415 link.  Some online portions of the course require you to log in to Desire to Learn, a somewhat buggy program. Please send me an e-mail right away if you encounter problems.

TEXT:

I have prepared a brief textbook, Teaching Social Studies for Fun and Profit (TSSFFAP), for use in the methods class.  In addition to chapters on teaching philosophy and technique, the text contains many creative teaching ideas from students in previous methods classes
  
ON-LINE QUIZZES:

In order to make sure that students are keeping up with the reading, I have incorporated on-line quizzes for each chapter of TSSFFAP.  These quizzes are often very short and they are intended to be easy. But please do each of the quizzes on time! The quizzes are delivered via D2L, and you *should* get immediate feedback on each quiz.  Please let me know if you run in to any problems.

CLASS BLOG:

Please login to the class blog (http://2012seed415.blogspot.com/) each week and respond to the prompt.  Please read the comments of any earlier posters and respond to their thoughts as well.

GRADING:

Your grade for this course will be based primarily on your weekly quizzes, your blog entries, your final exam, your lesson plan, and the game/activity you prepare and present to the class. In addition, we will take into account attendance and participation in figuring your final grade. 

Note that a primary goal of this class is to figure out a way to make social sciences seem interesting and important to junior/senior high students. The more you contribute toward this goal, the higher your grade will be.

IMPORTANT NSU POLICIES THAT MAY AFFECT YOU.  PLEASE READ!!!

1.  REGISTRATION CONFIRMATION POLICY:

All students are required to complete Registration Confirmation and pay their tuition and fee charges no later than the third day of the semester.  To do this, log in to WebAdvisor, click on "Fall 2011 Registration Confirmation", and follow the steps indicated.  Financial aid refunds will not be processed until the Registration Confirmation has been completed.  Failure to pay your bill and complete the Registration Confirmation by August 31, 2010 will result in the cancellation of your enrollment. Contact the Finance Office in the Krikac Administration Building, email nsustudentaccount@northern.edu, or call 626-2566 with any questions concerning this. 

2.  NSU DISABILITY POLICY:

Northern State University recognizes its responsibility for creating an institutional climate in which students with disabilities can thrive.  If you have any type of disability for which you require accommodations, please contact Karen Gerety at the NSU Office of Disability Services (626-2371, Student Center 217) as soon as possible to discuss your particular needs.

3.  BOARD OF REGENTS ACADEMIC FREEDOM POLICY:

Under Board of Regents and University policy student academic performance may be evaluated solely on an academic basis, not on opinions or conduct in matters unrelated to academic standards. Students should be free to take reasoned exception to the data or views offered in any course of study and to reserve judgment about matters of opinion, but they are responsible for learning the content of any course of study for which they are enrolled. Students who believe that an academic evaluation reflects prejudiced or capricious consideration of student opinions or conduct unrelated to academic standards should contact the academic dean administratively in charge of the class to initiate a review of the evaluation.

SCHEDULE OF CLASSES AND ASSIGNMENTS

     August 26--INTRODUCTION--WHY TEACH SOCIAL STUDIES?

Class meets in MJ 101 with Art Marmorstein for introductions and an overview of course. Class will move to the downstairs to the NSU Computer Center for an introduction to the online portion of the class.  During class, you will create a personal social science blog, a blog you should maintain throughout the semester and that (I hope) you will continue even after the class is complete.

     September 2--RELATING TO STUDENTS--THE IDEAL SS TEACHER

 Before class: Read Chapter 2 of Teaching Social Studies for Fun and Profit (Who We Are/Who We Teach: Building Effective Classroom Relationships) and do "on-line" quiz

After class: Add your reflections to the class blog.

    September 9--TECHNOLOGY IN THE CLASSROOM I

Before class: Read Chapter 1 of Teaching Social Studies for Fun and Profit (Everybody's Favorite Subject) and do Desire2Learn quiz online. Respond to the prompt on the class blog.

Class will meet in the computer center. We’ll talk about blogs, rss feeds, wikis, Twitter, and other tools that might prove useful in the social science classroom.

September 16--TECHNOLOGY IN THE CLASSROOM II

Class meets at the NSU computer center. Class will include a discussion of internet resources available for the social sciences and an exploration of sites particularly suited to social studies. In class assignment: Assignment: Register for MERLOT (www.merlot.org) and review one Merlot site. Continue to work on your personal social science blog.

 After class: Add your reflections to the class blog.

September 23--THEATER GAMES

October 1--PLANNING AND ORGANIZING*

Read TSSFFAP Chapter 3 (Once Around the Race Course:  Developing Effective Social Sciences Curriculum) and do on-line quiz.  The look at the South Dakota State Social Studies Standards and the National Council of Social Studies Teachers standards in any one social studies area of your choice.

http://doe.sd.gov/contentstandards/documents/SocialStudies_9-12.pdf
http://www.socialstudies.org/standards

 
Do you find the material here helpful in clarifying what/how you should teach?  In what ways do the materials here go along with the suggestions for good curriculum planning suggested in TSSFFAP?  What problems do you see with these standards?  Add your reflections to the class blog.

October 8--CLASSROOM ENVIRONMENT/MANAGEMENT*

Read TSSFFAP Chapter 4 (Shtick and Tricks, the Easy Road to Teaching Stardom--and to Creating an Effective Classroom Environment) and do on-line quiz. Please also add your reflections to the class blog.

October 15--GAMES AND ACTIVITIES*

Read TSSFFAP Chapter 5 (Gluing Students to Their Seats and Other Fun Social Science Games and Activities) and do on-line quiz. Also, look through the games on the “Gluing Students to Their Seats” blog socialstudiesgames.blogspot.com.

Prepare a learning game/activity and play the game with any group of students you choose.  It would be great if you could have a game for my IDL 190 students.  That class meets at 2:00 p.m. on Monday and Wednesday.  Please make your game suitable for posting on the “Gluing Students to Their Seats” blog.  Add your comments to the learning games prompt on the regular class blog.

October 22--EFFECTIVE LECTURES

Read TSSFFAP Chapter 7 (Herodotus Had it Right: From Lecturer to Story Teller) and do online quiz.  Attend any lecture at NSU and analyze it in terms of the TSSFFAP “good lecture” suggestions.  To what extent did the lecture reflect the TSSFFAP “Keys to a Good Lecture” standards?  What kind of things did the teacher do to make sure that students paid attention, enjoyed the lecture, and learned something from it?  What did you think went particularly well?  What would you have done differently?  Post your comments on the blog.

October 29--LEADING GOOD DISCUSSIONS

Before class: Read TSSFFAP Chapter 8 (How to Get from Chicago to New York without Going through San Francisco: Leading Good Discussions) and do the on-line quiz. 

Attend any discussion at NSU and analyze it in terms of the TSSFFAP “good discussion” suggestions.  To what extent did the lecture reflect the TSSFFAP “Keys to a Good Lecture” standards?  What kind of things did the teacher do to make sure that students paid attention, enjoyed the discussion, and learned something from it?  What did you think went particularly well?  What would you have done differently?  Post your comments on the class blog.

November 2—ASSESSMENT DAY—NO CLASS

November 9—VETERAN’S DAY: NO CLASS

November 16—DAYS TO REMEMBER: CONSTITUTION DAY/HISTORY DAY

Glance through the material on the Constitution Day and National History Day sites (www.constitutionday.com, www.nationalhistoryday.org) and think about how events like Constitution Day and National History Day might enrich the curriculum and stimulate increased student interest in history and government.  Add your reflections to the class blog.

November 25—HAPPY THANKSGIVING (no face-to-face class)

Before and after class: Drive Safely. Read TSSFFAP Chapter 11 (A Madness in Their Methods: New Trends in Education) and do on-line quiz.

December 2—PUTTING IT ALL TOGETHER:  EFFECTIVE LESSON PLANNING

Choose a social science/history topic suitable for a high school lecture, and prepare a “rough draft” lesson plan for that lecture.  Make sure your plan indicates the general purpose of your lecture, the logical structure of your lecture, and some ideas for keeping students’ minds engaged.  Include also any ideas you might have for visual aids, an introductory “hook,” or any of the other elements TSSFFAP says are important to a good lecture. Submit your lesson plan as an e-mail attachment (marmorsa@northern.edu)

December 9—IN CLASS ESSAY EXAM

Class meets back in MJ 101 for the in-class portion of the final.  See the syllabus for study questions.

December 16-- ONLINE FINAL EXAM

This is the “regularly scheduled” date for Tuesday evening finals. Please be sure your online final is completed by this date. 

WRITTEN FINAL INSTRUCTIONS AND STUDY GUIDE:

    For the essay portion of the final exam, I will choose four of the prompts below and ask you for essay responses to three (3) those prompts. In evaluating your exams, I will be looking primarily for evidence that you are familiar with *both* with the material presented in TSSFFAP and with the material presented in class by me and the Aberdeen Central teachers. I am looking also for evidence you are likely to be able to apply that material when you are actually in the classroom.
   

    POTENTIAL EXAM QUESTIONS:

1.  What are the keys to a good lecture?  What kind of things can a teacher do to make sure that students pay attention to the lecture, enjoy the lecture, and learn something from it?  Include in your answer reference to the lecture you gave at Central High.  Note both what you did right, and what you would do differently next time.

2.  What are the keys to an effective discussion?  What kind of things can a teacher do to make sure students participate in discussion, enjoy discussion, and learn something from it?  Include in your answer reference to the discussion you led at Central High.  Note both what you did right, and what you would do differently next time.

3.  What are some of the things a teacher can/must do to create and maintain an effective learning environment in the classroom?  What can be done to make students want to do their best work?  What can be done to avoid/correct discipline problems?

4.  What methods/activities other than lecture and discussion would you use in the classroom?  Note the advantages/disadvantages of each method you mention.

5.  Suppose a prospective employer asks you why you want to be a social studies teacher and why you think social studies is important.  How would you respond?

6.  What are some of the most important "new trends" in education?  In what ways might some of these "new trends" improve classroom education? In what ways are these new trends dangerous?

GRADING STANDARDS FOR PRESENTATIONS/ASSIGNMENTS:

In this class, you are preparing yourself, not just as an instructor, but as a model for students.  One thing you will see very quickly is that students do model your behavior.

The problem here is that this amplifies mistakes.  Your errors, whether errors about historical facts or errors in spelling and grammar, will be absorbed by at least some of your students.

As a result, it is important to strive for perfection.  Your work should be thorough, interesting, correct, and complete.  Written work and should be as polished as possible.  Actual teaching sessions will be evaluated according to the following standards:     

90-100:      Exceptionally good teaching.  Teacher not only does a good job with all the essentials of a good lesson (clear objectives, well organized material, etc.) but adds to this extra enthusiasm and energy.  Students are not only attentive but enjoying the lesson.

80-89:        Above average teaching.  Material well organized and clearly presented.  Student interest level remains high throughout presentation.  Lesson has clear objectives, and those objectives are achieve

70-79:        Meets basic requirements.  Covers the appropriate material, but does not show any special creativity or effort.

60-69:        Presentation falls short of basic requirements in some way.  Possible problems include low student interest and involvement, unclear objectives, and lack of solid content.

Below 60:   Presentation needs much improvement, fails to meet several of the above standards.