My Progressivist Social Studies Classroom

RUNNING HEAD: MY PROGRESSIVIST SOCIAL STUDIES CLASSROOM

My Progressivist Social Studies Classroom

David P. Lawson

Augsburg College

MY PROGRESSIVIST SOCIAL STUDIES CLASSROOM2

My Progressivist Social studies Classroom

Abstract

I will examine progressivism’s main ideas and connect its central

tenets to my own background and experience. I will explore my

comfort with the progressive tradition as an organizing principle

for my nascent teaching practice. Constructivism serves as an

important functional corollary of the progressive philosophy—and

as a theoretical framework for turning progressive theory into

practical application. I will look into three learning

activities which put theory into practice and make social studies

meaningful to my students: cooperative learning, concept maps,

and problem-based learning. Lastly, I will discuss the paradox

of holding a progressive orientation while teaching in a largely

traditional system. I conclude that the progressivist

educational philosophy is well-suited to the teaching of

secondary social studies because of its emphasis on authentic and

experiential learning, and because it promotes a hands-on

aesthetic that may well foster intrinsic motivation and an


increased interest in subjects that students often find

irrelevant.

Introduction

I will examine the ideas which underlie the progressive

philosophy of education, including its functional corollary,

constructivism, and relate some of my own background and what I

believe is my affinity for the progressive tradition. I will

discuss some important progressivist instructional methods which

illustrate the practical application of this philosophy, and

which I anticipate using in my own secondary social studies


classroom. I will also address the paradox of holding a

progressive philosophy while teaching in a system still in thrall

to traditional means and methods of education. As a social

studies teacher whose purview includes U.S and world history,

economics, and the behavioral sciences, I am disheartened by the

finding that of all the subjects tested by the federal

government, U.S. history is the one in which American students

register the worst performance, even though almost all students

are required to study it. (Ravitch, 2010) One might conclude

that students are neither retaining facts nor they “hate history

class.”

An educational challenge to which progressivism might be well

suited

Why is it that an important and potentially fascinating

subject such as U.S. history is being taught with so little

success? My recent experience in secondary classrooms suggests

that the traditional public school curriculum still remains

largely answer-dominated, asking students only to memorize a

definition or regurgitate a textbook interpretation. With some


exceptions, there seems to be lacking the “creative dissonance”

that drives successful learning, obscured by “a pedagogy of

simple knowledge and its transmission.” (Liss, 2003) Contrast

this with history taught in a progressivist classroom, where

students are put into contact with others (as in cooperative

learning groups) to confront historical concepts fully by

engaging in thought-provoking activities which augment their

reading. A game like Monopoly might be used to illustrate the

principles of capitalism versus socialism (Sadker, 2006); a panel

might explore the conflicts facing the delegates at the

Constitutional Convention; a problem-solving cohort might

research mass-transit options available to local planners. The

teacher in a progressivist classroom is seen walking around the

room, talking with individual students, asking questions and

providing guidance. Content is crucial, as in a traditional

classroom, but only to the extent that the teacher can use it to

lead students to critical and thoughtful responses. (Liss, 2003)

I believe that social studies subjects, history included, contain

topics, material and issues that are vitally important to


students, and if presented well can excite student motivation and

be a major driver of overall educational objectives. My

background, experience, abilities and teacher preparation will

help me to elevate my students’ learning in social studies and

elsewhere. But to succeed at this, I must take care to build a

student-focused teaching practice supported by sound pedagogy and

a thorough understanding of my students’ cognitive and affective

demands. The progressivist educational tradition offers the

epistemological foundation to create such a learning environment—

and for this reason, I want to associate my teaching practice

with its core beliefs.

The roots of progressivism

An evidence-supported progressive orientation has the

potential to inform my teaching as I seek to foster student

engagement beyond the confines of proscribed curricula and mere

content knowledge. Wary of dogmatic ideology, but mindful of the

importance of sound pedagogical foundation, I find appealing the

fact that contemporary progressive education is the product of a

dynamic philosophy and school of educational thought which has


its roots in the Progressive era of early 20th Century America.

Progressivism as a political movement was allied with populist,

reformist and left-leaning social agendas; its foundational ideas

included abolitionism, woman suffrage, trust-busting and other

causes which sought to promote justice and equality in a rapidly

growing nation. (Gow, 2005) Progressivism as an educational

philosophy is a student-centered orientation synonymous with

Pragmatism, a doctrine which assigns merit to ideas that are

tested in the real-world and found to work. (Sadker, 2006)

Progressivism holds efficacy for me because out of the four

classic educational traditions (including essentialism,

perennialism, and existentialism), it seems to offer the best

potential for introducing students to authentic learning

experiences and enabling them to produce school work that is

intrinsically meaningful and that has value beyond the classroom.

(Green Acres School)

How has my personal history and experience led me to embrace the

progressivist philosophy?


My affinity for progressivism is rooted in my development

and background. My father was a trial lawyer disposed to

discussing his law cases at the family dinner table with his two

young sons; my mother was a home economics teacher and excellent

cook. At our table the conversation was mostly about law,

politics and current events; we also spoke passionately about

food and cooking—the provenance of ingredients and dishes, the

culinary connection to our family’s Italian, German and Scots-

Irish roots, and the techniques used in preparing recipes. From

this developed my love of food and social studies-related topics

and issues. We lived in Madison, Wisconsin at the height of the

late-sixties Vietnam War protests and I remember seeing

protesters and campus police in pitched conflict around the time

that Sterling Hall was blown up. The bombers had intended to

destroy an Army Math research facility on campus and killed a

physics researcher instead. This was a few months after the Kent

State shootings and a time of turmoil for our country. Dramatic

current events compelled my attention and I developed a lifelong

interest in politics and social justice.


Learning about cooking stoked my interest in process—how

things are conceived and how they come together; the detailed

steps that combine to make a satisfying whole. After a sound

undergraduate education, I eventually demurred from law school

and trained to be a cook instead, pursuing a traditional

apprenticeship at a cooking school accredited by the French

Ministry of Education. This culinary journey would take me to

Washington, D.C., England, France and Italy, and then to the east

coast for two decades. Returning now to my academic roots in

pre-law and political science as I prepare to teach, I have rich

life experiences to draw upon and hope to use these to help my

students make connections in their lives. Professional cooking

is concerned with both process and product, and with this I can

understand the logic behind learning methods such as scaffolded

instruction, cooperative learning, problem-solving and even

authentic assessment. (“Chef, table 12 hates your halibut.”)

Consistent with the progressivist tradition, I maintain a

strong belief in the efficacy of the liberal arts curriculum in

preparation for the responsibilities of citizenship in a


democracy. I appreciate the value of a school curriculum steeped

in language arts, history and the other social sciences. To read

with comprehension, write with purpose and clarity, and navigate

our complex society by first understanding our shared human

history are essential competencies which students must possess if

they are to be educated and not just trained. Students will

respond to these imperatives and lead their own learning if

materials and prompts are chosen for their high quality and

relevance. I don’t name the texts, (so don’t call me an

essentialist,) but as a teacher I have to possess content mastery

and wide-ranging editorial vision in selecting first-rate

materials for my students to use. Diane Ravitch has wisely

written, “A well-educated person has a well-furnished mind,

shaped by reading and thinking about history, science,

literature, the arts, and politics. The well-educated person has

learned how to explain ideas and listen respectfully to others.”

(Ravitch, 2010)

What are the central theoretical concepts in progressive

education?


John Dewey is the person most strongly associated with the

American progressive education movement since its inception early

in the 1920’s. Dewey was a liberal social reformer with a

background in philosophy and psychology. (Cohen) His innovative

ideas about education and the nature of social learning can be

seen as a reaction to the encroachment of laissez-faire capitalism

into the educational sphere. Dewey regarded the traditional

autocratic approach to education as both undemocratic and the

antithesis of student learning, and advanced a concept of

experiential learning, contending that people are social animals

who learn well through active participation. Dewey held that

school should be less about preparation for life and more like

life itself. (Wolfe, 2001)

Through its many iterations, the progressivist movement has

brought lasting innovations to education: stimulating schools to

broaden their curricula, resisting factory-model standardization,

embracing hands-on learning, and helping children become not only

good learners but good people. (Kohn, 2008) Progressivism has

come in and out of fashion over the decades, as competing school


reform ideas have battled for primacy. “The values of

progressivism—including skepticism, questioning, challenging,

openness, and seeking alternate possibilities—have long struggled

for acceptance in American society. That they did not come to

dominate schools is not surprising.” (Perrone, quoted in Kohn,

2008) Similarly, Alfie Kohn observed that “all schools can be

located on a continuum between the poles of totally progressive

and totally traditional,” and that progressive education is the

exception, not the rule, largely, he maintains, because it is so

hard to do well. (Kohn, 2008) It does not serve my purposes to

join the philosophical food fight within the education community

about what is and isn’t “pure progressivism”—I leave that to

education historians and public intellectuals. What is

actionable for me, however, is the practical connection between

contemporary brain science and the learning gained by strategies

such as hands-on learning, authentic problem solving, guided

writing, peer teaching, and even mnemonics. These learning

techniques are supported by the theory that our strongest neural

networks are formed by actual experience. (Wolfe, 2001) By any


other name, powerful student-centered teaching tools such as

these are consistent with John Dewey’s progressivist philosophy

and should rightly be deployed in any school serious about

preparing students for a diverse, globalized and complex world.

Theory to practice: Constructivism

Among the most profound and practical influences of

progressivist reforms on American public schools can be found the

theoretical framework of constructivist learning theory.

Constructivism holds that learning always builds upon knowledge

that a student already possesses—a schema—and that because all

knowledge is filtered through pre-existing schemata, active

hands-on learning and student engagement in the learning process

is more effective than passive, instructor-dependent teaching.

(Vermette, 2001) A variety of conceptions of constructivism

exist both in the literature and in practice, but all have their

roots in the work of Piaget, Vygotsky, Gardner and Bruner—and

ultimately link back to Dewey-inspired ideas regarding a

democratic learning environment, active involvement by students,

and teacher facilitation of the learning process. Jean Piaget's


cognitive constructivism, for example, was based on his view of

the psychological development of children and he implored

teachers to understand the steps in the development of the

child's mind. The fundamental basis of learning, he believed,

was discovery: "To understand is to discover, or reconstruct by

rediscovery, and such conditions must be complied with if in the

future individuals are to be formed who are capable of production

and creativity and not simply repetition." (SEDL, 1995) This

theory helps me to think about how my students might accommodate

new ideas and concepts—and reminds me to provide rich

opportunities for students to make their own discoveries.

Lev Vygotsky’s social constructivism indicates a teaching

model where collaboration and social interaction are incorporated

—and reminds me to provide substantive guidance until each

student “gets it.” Students have a lot to offer each other, as

well, and working together can provide a social context where new

learning is more effectively internalized. (Powell, 2009) I

have to continually assess where students are after working with

new ideas, formally through testing and informally through


discussion, by analyzing their writing samples and listening

carefully to student dialogue. Question and answer periods are a

vital part of the process, with the goal being to promote an

inquiring and accepting atmosphere where students develop their

knowledge, cooperative skills and sense of self-efficacy.

My interest in the constructivist approach extends to

teaching tools such as scaffolding, rubrics, modeling,

cooperative problem-solving, and a heavy emphasis on formative

assessments; the latter necessary to better understand students’

prior knowledge and accurately calibrate instructional activities

and content. Thinking again of the student bored with U. S.

history, I am inspired by William Glasser’s dictum that,

“education is about using knowledge, not acquiring it.” (Glasser,

quoted in SEDL, 1995) Teaching about the concept of American

federalism, for example, I would first present a problem relevant

to contemporary life, with the intention of arousing student

curiosity. This might start with a guiding question such as,

“Why is it necessary that the federal government conduct a

decennial census?”—and continue to an account of a census worker


who was killed and had the word “fed” inked on his body.

Subsequent student research might culminate in a panel discussion

where the states’ rights vs. strong federal government positions

are debated, with students responsible for tracing the history

and contrasting views of federalism and applying the concepts to

contemporary concerns related to the census (such as privacy,

federal and state’s rights, policy implications, and

immigration.) The operational imperative here, rooted in the

progressivist philosophy, is that students inhabit roles, know

and defend positions, and work collaboratively to discover new

meanings.

A constructivist classroom requires a flexible approach to

methods—there is no one-size-fits-all; lessons and activities are

at once a response to student interest and abilities and a driver

of curriculum. My role as a teacher is to help students

interpret, decode and respond to their world, and I can best do

this by asking good questions, using interesting sources and

providing sound structure to a student-centered environment.

(Wiersma, 2008) As their guide I can help them to understand the


“dangers of settling for the binary of either/or and

right/wrong.” (Liss, 2003) Resolved to ignite student

motivation and press the relevancy argument within the social

studies, I will offer lessons where questions are raised, debates

are provoked, and controversies explored. Inputs will include

primary documents (James Madison’s Federalist # 10, for example,)

biographies, and historian-written history, as well as video clips,

letters, speeches and political cartoons. Questions that require

students to think more deeply are essential to this process. A

skilled teacher will ask why questions, prompting students to

practice history as historians do by sifting through details in

primary documents, making connections to the past and future, and

piecing together information to form logical conclusions.

(Wiersma, 2008) These are teacher-guided activities which

nonetheless encourage autonomous learning and account for the

affective as well as the intellectual component of learning. A

progressivist philosophy acknowledges that personal thoughts and

emotions have a crucial place alongside the learning of facts,

dates and themes.


Student input and feedback is intrinsic to the

constructivist classroom: research indicates that where students

help direct their own learning and spend more time thinking about

ideas rather than memorizing facts and practicing skills—they are

not only more likely to enjoy what they’re doing but do it

better. (Kohn, 2008) Student “resiliency” is now discussed in

the context of healthy social and emotional development, but I

also understand it to describe the characteristic of persistence

in learning about complex issues, in making persuasive arguments

and in a desire to continue learning. School dean Nadine Nelson

speaks of the “all-terrain kid, a student prepared to engage with new

issues and challenges and quick to understand and accommodate to

new situations and cultural norms.” (quoted in Gow, 2008) My

all-terrain social-studies students will come to know that their

own experiences will be the starting point on the “process of

consent, dissent and understanding that comes as a responsibility

of citizenship.” (Liss, 2003) I like the idea of engendering

versatile, open-minded, multi-disciplnary learners who are ready

to bring their curisoity, skills, and stick-to-it-iveness to


problems which they encounter. I will have to become a four-wheel

drive teacher, capable of surmounting entrenched habits and a

resistance to risk taking.

What are some progressivist / constructivist teaching methods

that will help me to make the social studies curriculum

meaningful to my students?

Where students remain impervious to history education, for

example, the likely culprit is a teacher still bound to

traditional, objective methods in his or her classroom.

“Secondary social studies teachers tend to teach the way they

were taught—by lecturing.” (Coke, quoted by Nagel, 2008) It

follows that as the majority of history teachers have been taught

by lecture and rote memorization, few have revised their methods

to stimulate more learning in their classrooms. However, some

teachers have made changes in their pedagogy and aligned them

with contemporary research and best practices because they

believe it will effect improvements in the quality of student

motivation and learning. (Wiersma, 2008) Some of these methods

are summarized here:


1. Cooperative learning is a learning strategy that promotes a

variety of positive cognitive, affective, and social

outcomes and has been demonstrated to yield “significant

gains in academic achievement.” (Nagel, 2008) It goes

beyond merely working together and requires five essential

elements to be successful in the secondary social studies

classroom: 1. Positive interdependence; 2. Face-to face

interaction; 3. Individual and group accountability; 4.

Interpersonal skills; and 5. Group processing. (Kagan,

quoted in Nagel, 2008) The goal is to maintain the student

interest and attention lost so easily in a traditional

lecture format. In cooperative learning activities such as

Jigsaw, Think-Pair-Share and Numbered Heads Together, the

learning process is accounted for as much as is the product of

learning; students build their knowledge in a social context

which demands that they verbalize much of their thinking and

thereby gain reinforcing feedback for their efforts.

(Vermette, 2001) Cooperative learning activities require


that I share control of the classroom with my students and

invite them to help direct their own learning.

2. Concept maps are born of the contention that “until children

can name a process they cannot control it,” (Keene and

Zimmermann, quoted in Ritchhart, 2008) and can be described

as a graphic organizing technique designed to help students

explore their knowledge or understanding of topics that are

otherwise difficult to explain. They offer a structure on

which to hang one’s ideas, even if those ideas are not quite

fully formed or as yet elude description. Concept mapping

has a learner first write her ideas in text boxes arranged

hierarchically on a page; meaning and links between concepts

are indicated by directional arrows; lastly, concepts are

listed only once but multiple meanings can be indicated

between concepts. (Hay & Kinchin, quoted in Richhart, 2008).

Concept maps illuminate the thinking process for teacher and

student, and can lead to more self-directed learners and

better thinkers. Research has shown that “teachers with


well-elaborated conceptions of thinking comprised of

specific thinking strategies were more able to support and

scaffold thinking in their students.” (Richhart, 2008) This

is what I understand to be the central benefit of reflective

practice and of continuing professional development. It is

empowering to know that I can help change students’

conceptions of their own thinking to the better by modeling

effective thinking processes and providing rich

opportunities for thinking.

3. Problem-based learning (PBL) is an instructional strategy based

in the constructivist perspective whereby students are

presented with authentic and meaningful problems in their

own school, community and society, and by struggling to

understand and discover solutions, learn both content and

critical thinking. Authentic problems are not simple

hypothetical cases with neat, convergent outcomes, but are

more abstract, relate to clearly defined objectives and are

designed to enhance learning. (Wolfe, 2001) Problem-based

instruction promotes higher-level thinking and depends on


the teacher to help pose problems, ask guiding questions and

facilitate investigation and dialogue. PBL is characterized

by student collaboration (pairs or small groups) and

provides motivation for sustained involvement in complex

tasks, developing both thinking and social skills. (Arends,

1996) PBL is premised on the idea that a puzzling and ill-

defined problem situation will arouse students’ curiosity

and intrinsic motivation. The resources available to plan

PBL projects are extensive; the fit with social studies is

near perfect, so long as my students and I understand

clearly the purposes of the lesson.

By embracing student-centered learning strategies like those

described above, so-called “synapse strengtheners,” I will hope

to facilitate elaboration on information and an increase in

meaning, as well as the probability of its retention. (Wolfe,

2001) From the progressivist perspective, these activities are

closer to the experiential learning and social interaction with

the real world envisioned by John Dewey, and it falls to me to

bring students as close as I can to actually doing things.


The paradox of holding to a progressivist paradigm in a

traditional school world

In contrast to the student-centered pedagogy envisioned by

progessivists, there are those for whom education is a means to

an end, where knowledge is simplified and atomized into neat

packets, which after digestion by students, is quantified and

tested—a measurable product. The inherent assumption in this

argument (the argument of the No Child Left Behind camp) is that

higher test scores on standardized tests of basic skills are

synonymous with good education. (Ravitch, 2010) I accept that

NCLB is the law of the land for now and will continue for some

time to be a dominant force in shaping public education. I also

understand that part of my job, teaching philosophy

notwithstanding, is to prepare students to succeed on

standardized tests. This seeming contradiction will provide me a

form of “creative dissonance,” a professional challenge and

paradox to be continually examined and negotiated. If “thinking

is messy,” then teaching, too, has its untidy aspects: frontlines

where ideologies clash; confrontations between well-intentioned


reforms and intractable old habits; and, partisan debates where

progressives and traditionalists battle for primacy. Working my

way through this thicket, I have to remember that my

effectiveness as a teacher will vary as my experience grows. It

will vary with class sizes and makeup, with different school

settings and with a multitude of other factors. Rigid loyalty to

particular teaching methods will hasten my obsolescence. Better

that I base my work in a dynamic and oft-reflected upon teaching

philosophy—seasoned with a good measure of pragmatism. This will

likely prove a better practice over time. I don’t understand

progressivism to be an absolutist philosophy. Yes, we do need

facts, dates, and other forms of didactic knowledge, as “the

engagement with world and human issues does need facts and data

but only in their relation to the context of learning. Knowledge

should not be a commodity; it should provide help to those making

meaning out of their lives.” (Liss, 2003) Imagining a

pedagogical continuum whose opposite poles are purist traditional

and progressive teaching, the vicissitudes of daily classroom


teaching will likely drive me, like many other experienced

teachers, to “hug the middle.” (Cuban, 2009)

Conclusion

Experience in secondary education has made clear to me that

students are strongly disinclined toward school work which they

find irrelevant or boring and that I am little interested in

becoming a teacher so that I might exhort students to choose the

correct option from four bubbles on a multiple choice test. The

argument against the way in which history is traditionally taught

in our schools is bolstered by an examination of typical

secondary U.S. history textbooks. Chester Finn, Jr., writing in

a forward to such an examination, identified the “irresponsible

impersonal voice,” a colorless recitation of sanitized, judgment-

free history where neither admiration nor contempt are accorded,

else some person or group might be offended. “The result: fat,

dull, boring books that mention everything but explain

practically nothing; plenty of information but no sorting,

prioritizing, or evaluating; and a collective loss of American

memory.” (Ravitch, 2004) Combine boring input, traditional


teacher-centered instruction and lockstep fealty to multiple

choice tests and it’s no wonder that students are immune to

history (and it seems, to other subjects.) The central ideas

within the progressivist philosophy support my inclinations

toward a hands-on classroom where authentic learning experiences

and the fostering of intrinsic motivation offer the best hope for

student success. My mandate will be to marry an informed and

intentional teaching practice to exciting and relevant content.

This inquiry into the progressive education tradition has

revealed to me that there are many excellent resources available

to fortify my teaching practice. I will proceed with an

increased dedication to soliciting active student participation

in designing curriculum, formulating questions and engaging in

“messy” thinking. Thinking of the “fat, dull, boring books”

cited above, I recall that the great majority of my culinary

training was hands-on, usually working side-by-side an instructor

or senior cook who explained, modeled , guided and then turned me

loose to apply new knowledge and technique, checking my work

often to see that I’d “gotten it.” I retained new learning


because I was able to put it into practice—and see my results.

Poor work or a misunderstanding of theory was addressed quickly

and always in context. Granted, learning to cook is less

abstract than learning about demand curves in economics or

cultural borrowing in anthropology, but a progressivist approach

at least gives me the impetus and some important tools to get

students out of their seats and into a variety of learning

situations where those concepts might be engaged and understood

in real time.

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