Eastern
College of Arts and
Sciences
NCSS/Social Studies
Education
XI. Matrix
Matrix Item 1.3 Theme
Three: People, Places, and Environment
Social Studies
teachers should possess the knowledge, capabilities, and dispositions to organize
and provide instruction at the appropriate school level for the study of
People, Places, and Environment.
Indicators of
Capabilities for Teaching Social Studies
Teachers of Social Studies at all school levels should provide
developmentally appropriate experiences as they guide learners in the study of
people, places, and environments. They should:
* enable learners to
construct, use, and refine mental maps of locales, regions, and the world that
demonstrate their understanding of relative location, direction, size, and
shape;
* have learners
create, interpret, use, and distinguish various representations of Earth, such
as maps, globes and photographs, and use appropriate geographic tools such as
atlases, data bases, systems, charts, graphs, and maps to generate, manipulate,
and interpret information;
* teach students to
estimate and calculate distance, scale, area, and density, and to distinguish
spatial distribution patterns;
* help learners to
locate, distinguish, and describe the relationships among varying regional and
global patterns of geographic phenomena such as landforms, climate, and natural
resources;
* challenge learners
to speculate about and explain physical system changes, such as seasons,
climate, and weather;
* ask learners to
describe how people create places that reflect culture, human needs, current
values and ideals, and government policies;
* challenge learners
to examine, interpret, and analyze the interactions of human beings and their
physical environments;
* have learners explore
the ways Earth’s physical features have changed over time; and to describe and
assess the ways historical events have influenced and have been influenced by
physical and human geographic features;
* provide learners
with opportunities to observe and analyze social and economic effects of
environmental changes and crises;
* challenge learners
to consider, compare, and evaluate existing alternative uses of resources and
land in communities, regions, nations, and the world.
1.3
Theme Three: People, Places, and Environment
The program prepares
Social Studies teachers who possess the knowledge, capabilities, and
dispositions to organize and provide instruction at the appropriate school
level for the study of people, places, and environment.
1.3.1 Programmatic
Evidence
EMU Social Studies majors meet this theme in four ways. They are
required to take three geography classes that address this theme:
These are GEOG 107, Introduction to Geography, GEOG 110, World
Regions, and GEOG 320, the Geography of the
Objectives for these classes include:
1. GEOG 107
Introduction to Geography
I. Introduction
A. Students will be able to analyze the spatial information about
people, places, and environments in a spatial context.
B. Students will be able to describe the physical and human
characteristics of places.
C. Students will be able to interpret the past, present, and
to plan for the future.
D. Students will be able to ask questions and to acquire,
organize, and analyze geographic information so they can answer geographic
questions as they engage in the study of substantive geographic content.
E. Students will be able to describe and apply basic
geographic concepts.
II. Maps
A. Students will be able to use maps and other geographic
representations, tools, and technologies to acquire, process, and report
information from a spatial perspective;
B. Students will be able to use Geographic Information
Systems (GIS).
III. Physical Geography - Landforms
A. Students will be able to describe and analyze the physical
processes that shape the earth’s surface.
i. Geologic time
ii. Movements of continents
iii.
Earth materials
iv. Tectonic
forces
v.
Gradational/erosional processes
B. Students will be able to describe how human actions modify
the physical environment.
C. Students will be able to analyze how physical systems
affect human systems.
IV. Physical Geography - Weather and Climate
A. Students will be able to analyze processes that affect
weather and climate.
B. Students will be able to analyze how weather and climate
affect human systems.
V. Physical Geography - Environmental Geography
A. Students will be able to describe the characteristics and
spatial distribution of ecosystems on the earth’s surface.
B. Students will be able to describe how human interactions
modify the environment.
C. Students will be able to examine the changes that occur in
the meaning, use, distribution, and importance of resources.
VI. Human Geography - Population Geography
A. Students will be able to describe the characteristics,
distribution, and migration of human population on the earth’s surface.
VII. Human Geography - Cultural Geography
A. Students will be able to describe the processes, patterns,
and functions of human settlement.
B. Students will be able to describe and analyze the
characteristics, distribution, and complexity of the earth’s cultural mosaics.
C. Students will be able to describe how culture and experience
influence people’s perceptions of places and regions.
VIII. Human Geography -
Geography of Spatial Behavior
A. Students will be able to use mental maps to organize
information about people, places, and environments in a spatial content.
IX. Human Geography - Political Geography
A. Students will be able to describe and analyze world political
systems.
B. Students will be able to describe how the forces of
cooperation and conflict among people influence political division and control.
X. Human Geography - Economic Geography
A. Students will be able to describe world economic systems.
B. Students will be able to describe the patterns and
networks of economic interdependence on the earth’s surface.
XI. Human Geography - Geography of Natural Resources Use
A. Students will be able to describe the changes that occur in the
meaning, use, distribution, and importance of resources.
XII. Human Geography - Urban Geography
A. Students will be able to describe and analyze urban
settlement patterns on the earth’s surface.
B. Students will be able to describe the processes, patterns,
and functions of human settlement.
C. Students will be able to describe and analyze the
characteristics, distribution, and complexity of the earth’s urban settlements.
XIII. Regional Geography. Students will be able to apply the
concept of regions as a means to interpret the earth’s complexity.
2. GEOG 110 World
Regions
The following outcomes/objectives are sought for each of the world realms specified in
the course outline below:
I. Students will be able to describe and analyze the concepts of
realms and regions as means to geographically interpret the earth's complexity.
II. Students will be able to describe and analyze how physical
systems affect human systems.
III. Students will be able to describe and analyze the physical
and human characteristics of places.
IV. Students will be able to describe and analyze how culture and
experience influence people's perceptions of places and regions.
V. Students will be able to describe and analyze the
characteristics, distribution, and complexity of global cultural mosaics.
VI. Students will be able to describe and analyze patterns and
networks of economic interdependence on Earth's surface.
VII. Students will be able to describe and analyze how the forces
of cooperation and conflict among people influence the division and control of
the earth's surface.
VIII. Students will be able to describe and analyze how geography
can be used to interpret the past and present and to plan for the future.
The World Regions include:
3. GEOG 320
Geography of the
The course objectives for the students are to:
I. Students will be able to define regions as a means to interpret
the complexity of the
II. Students will be able to describe the various regions of the
III. Students will be able to describe and analyze the physical
and human characteristics of the regions of the
IV. Students will be able to describe and analyze the concept of
site and situation in relation to human settlement, especially cities with
their characteristics, distribution, and complexity.
V. Students will be able to describe and analyze the economic,
political and social processes in relation to physiography, thereby enabling
learners to analyze how physical systems affect human systems.
VI. Students will be able to describe and analyze how regions
compare and contrast with other regions, and with the
4. All Social Studies majors must take HIST 481, which includes examples,
methods and resources for teaching geography as part of the class. All students
must include at least one geographically-oriented lesson in their HIST 481
unit.
Students in the history major meet the requirements of this theme
in the following ways:
I. History majors are required to take GEOG 107 or GEOG 110
in order to give them a grounding in geography to
complement their historical understanding. The objectives for these two classes
are found above.
II. All history majors must take HIST 481, which includes
examples, methods and resources for teaching geography as part of the class.
All students must include at least one geography lesson in their HIST 481 unit.
Students in the Geography program meet the requirements of this
theme in the following ways.
I. All majors must take a series of required and elective courses
in Geography. There are found in the appendix.
II. All geography majors must take HIST 481, which includes
examples, methods, and resources for teaching geography as part of the class.
All students must include at least one geography lesson in their HIST 481 unit.
Students in the Political Science, Economics and Psychology
Program meet the requirements of this strand in the following ways:
All students in
these programs must take either GEOG 107 or GEOG 110 as a requirement of their
major. These courses each introduce students to the study of world geography.
Their objectives can be found above.
All political science and psychology
majors must take HIST 481,
which includes examples, methods, and resources for
teaching geography as part of the class. All students must include at least one
geography lesson in their HIST 481 unit.
1.3.2 Test Evidence
Class evidence for social studies majors:
|
Grade |
Geo 320 |
Geo 107 |
Geo 110 |
|
A |
16 |
6 |
13 |
|
B |
5 |
10 |
5 |
|
C |
2 |
5 |
2 |
|
D |
0 |
0 |
1 |
|
E |
0 |
0 |
0 |
|
Transfer Credit (A-C) |
2 |
4 |
4 |
Class evidence for Geography majors:
|
Class |
|
Student 1 |
Student 2 |
Student 3 |
|
GEO 235 |
|
A- |
A |
CR |
|
Geo 110 |
|
B- |
C+ |
A |
Class evidence for History majors:
|
Class |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Geo 107 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Geo 110 |
C |
cr |
a |
cr |
cr |
b- |
b- |
b |
cr |
cr |
cr |
Class evidence for political science majors:
|
Class |
Student 1 |
Student 2 |
|
Geo 107 |
|
B |
|
Geo 110 |
CR |
|
Class evidence for psychology majors
|
Class |
Student |
|
Geo 110 |
Cr |
Test evidence for geography majors:
Geography:
Of the three graduates with a major in Geography for Secondary
Education, one student took the Geography MTTC, and received a score of 274.
The passing score for the MTTC is 220. The pass rate is therefore 100%, while
the state pass rate is currently 55%.
Test evidence for Social Studies majors:
Social Studies
Of the twenty two 2002-3 graduates with a major in History for
Secondary Education, seventeen student took the Social Studies MTTC, and
received a scores of 217, 220, 228, 228, 236, 241, 247, 255, 257, 263, 267,
268, 271, 271, 276, 276, 276. The passing score for the MTTC is 220. This
equals a pass rate of 94% for the exam, as compared to a state rate of 78%.
1.3.3 Performance
Evidence
Students scored as follows on the supplemental evaluation form on
this strand:
|
Score |
Social Studies |
History |
Political Science |
Geography |
|
5- Excellent |
3 |
2 |
0 |
2 |
|
4 – Very Good |
8 |
4 |
1 |
1 |
|
3 Average |
3 |
2 |
1 |
0 |
|
2 Minimally acceptable |
0 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
|
1 Inadequate |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
|
N Not applicable to this student |
3 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
Note: Neither psychology nor economics had any students complete
student teaching in Winter 2003 when the supplemental
form was instituted.