Innovative Methods And Practices Of Teaching Social Studies In Secondary Schools

Abstract

Teaching plays a vital role in the teaching-learning process, fostering the skills of social, cultural, and economic development among children and young people. It is the responsibility of our teachers to instill in the young minds the fundamental social values, including democracy, equality, tolerance, cultural understanding, and respect for fundamental freedom. Social studies is a core subject in the education system as it gives students the tools to understand the world around them. This subject encompasses various disciplines, including history, geography, economics, political science, and sociology. In teaching this subject, effective teaching strategies are crucial to help the students develop their critical and creative thinking skills, historical empathy, and global awareness, which are necessary to lead their lives successfully in today's complex world. The subject, ‘Social studies’ remains very crucial in the education system; and recent research highlights the need for innovative teaching strategies that enhance students' learning outcomes at secondary level. The teachers of social studies working in secondary schools should have a positive outlook towards using innovative methods and practices in teaching social studies. The present study explores the attitude of secondary school teachers towards innovative methods and practices in teaching social studies. The researchers used a well-developed and standardized questionnaire as the tool for collection of data from the respondents. The sample of the study comprises of 100 teachers (40 Headmasters and 60 School Assistants in Social Studies) from 40 selected secondary schools located in Visakhapatnam district of Andhra Pradesh using Stratified Random Sampling technique.  Mean score values, standard deviations and independent t-tests were used for analysis of data. The findings of the study revealed that the demographic variables – ‘Gender’ and ‘Location of the school’ have no influence on the attitude of teachers towards innovative methods and practices in teaching Social Studies at secondary level.  However, the ‘Teaching Experience’ has a significant positive influence on their attitude towards teaching Social Studies.  The study suggested that the Social Studies teachers working in secondary schools need to improve their pedagogical skills by attending Faculty Development Programs conducted by different agencies at regular intervals of time.