Social Studies and the Social Order: Telling Stories of Resistance

Caddo Gap Press. 3145 Geary Boulevard PMB 275, San Francisco, CA 94118. Tel: 415-666-3012; Fax: 415-666-3552; e-mail: [email protected]; Web site: http://www.caddogap.com

Y

17

Social Studies; Resistance (Psychology); Controversial Issues (Course Content); Case Studies; Teaching Experience; Critical Theory; Behavior Theories; Curriculum Evaluation; Teaching Methods; Political Socialization; Social Attitudes; Historical Interpretation; Cognitive Style; Student Attitudes

0737-5328

The social studies profession has always been at its weakest in dealing with the analysis of racism and class (Ladson-Billings, 2003; Marshall, 2001), and the new technocratic atmosphere and discourse generated by No Child Left Behind (NCLB) will serve to make such analysis completely absent, despite the rhetoric of the National Council of the Social Studies (NCSS) standards. Such state of affairs demands that the social studies intensify its own dialogue about its story and responsibilities. With this in mind, the authors tell the specific stories of a social studies teacher in a small Alabama town and another of a university professor at a large university in Alabama. These stories provide a counter narrative to current socio-political mileu, as well as offer some possible approaches to resisting the technocratic discourse. However, they are also cautionary tales of the risks, complications, and consequences of engaging in such acts of resistance. In other words, the stories speak of an experience with historical heresy, or what Pierre Bourdieu calls heterodoxy--the act of putting forth a history that challenges the status quo, complete with its requisite problematic (Webb, Schirato, & Danaher, 2002). The first story is a brief recounting of the conflict faced by a university professor when teaching about resistance.

ERIC

59

2009

EJ851028