Decoloniality, power and ideology in the social studies textbooks of Tibetan exile schools

Purpose The increase of Islamophobia-inspired hate crimes toward Sikh Americans led the Sikh Coalition of America and the National Council for the Social Studies to request social studies educators to conduct a content analysis on the presentation of Sikhism in social studies textbooks. The Sikh Coalition hopes to use the findings of such research to encourage more appropriate inclusion about the religion in textbooks by the leading publishing companies and as a legitimate social studies subject of instruction in the state standards for all 50 states. The paper aims to discuss this issue. Design/methodology/approach The incorporation of critical pedagogy, as a tool of critical multiculturalism, serves as the theoretical design of this study. Content analysis serves as the method of research for this study. The authors also employed an online survey to determine the scope of religious literacy of the pre-service teachers with regard to Sikhism before the conducting of content analysis of social studies textbooks for the presentation of Sikhism. Findings The current presentation of Sikhism in social studies textbooks has the potential to help fuel the Islamophobia that Sikh Americans now face. The authors found that the pre-service teachers possess little religious literacy regarding Sikhism. Furthermore, from the content analyses, the authors found that a total of 21 out of the sample of 32 textbooks (5 elementary, 11 middle grades and 16 high school) mention Sikhism. Eight textbooks include a mention of the origins of Sikhism. Nine textbooks misidentify the religion as a blending of Hinduism and Islam. Nine textbooks mention the religion in relation to the assassination of Indira Gandhi. Research limitations/implications The originality of this research led the authors to find that the very limited and inaccurate information we found present in the most-used textbooks for elementary, middle grades and high school social studies made the employing of inferential statistics like correlation difficult. Also, the authors found from the literature that research addressing Islamophobia in the classroom has centered on the role of licensed teachers only. The research gives a model to how pre-service teachers may address Islamophobia in the classroom and also gain religious literacy regarding Sikhism. Practical implications The rise of Islamophobia-inspired violence toward students of South Asian descent has led to the call to address this matter. The research introduces a method to how social studies education professors may help engage their pre-service teachers in proactively addressing Islamophobia. Social studies professors have a responsibility to help promote social justice through critical pedagogy that explores the religious literacy of their pre-service teachers beyond Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Islam and Judaism. Social implications The Sikh Coalition, by telephone, has formally acknowledged to the authors that the textbook research has been the most extensive they have received since making their joint request with the National Council for the Social Studies. They have used the research to successfully convince the state education boards of Texas and recently Tennessee to adopt the inclusion of Sikhism in social studies content. More Americans, at a young age, need to learn about Sikh culture, so they are less likely to develop prejudicial ideas about Sikh Americans and commit violent acts of religious-based discrimination. Originality/value The research is extremely rare. To date, no one else in the country has conducted research on the presentation of Sikhism in textbooks to the extent that the authors have. The authors hope that the research will encourage more dialogue and further research. The authors hope that the research will help prevent further acts of religious-based violence toward followers of the world’s sixth largest religion.

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EFFECT OF CHANGE IN SOCIAL STUDIES CURRICULUM PROGRAMS ON FAMILY SUBJECT IN TEXTBOOKS

Ulakbilge Dergisi ◽

10.7816/ulakbilge-08-50-05 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 8 (50) ◽

Keyword(s):

Social Studies ◽

18Th Century ◽

Document Analysis ◽

Educational Programs ◽

Analysis Method ◽

The Social ◽

The Family ◽

Social Studies Textbooks ◽

The Usa ◽

Historical Issues

Social studies education emerged in the USA in the 18th century and has come to life in different geographies for about three centuries. Four different programs in the years 1968, 1998, 2005 and 2018 were prepared for the aforementioned subject which has taken part in the curriculum as social studies and has been implemented as an independent course in Turkey since 1968. In this study, four 7th grade social studies textbooks prepared according to different curriculum programs were examined (Akşit and Asal 1973, Şahin and Göze 2000, MEB Commission 2015, Gültekin, Akpınar, Nohutcu, Özerdoğan and Aygün 2019). The books were subjected to content analysis by document analysis method regarding the family. The findings were compared and examined. In general, it was found that the 2019 edition social studies textbook was different from the 1973, 2000 and 2015 edition social studies textbooks in terms of addressing the family. Subjects of History and Geography were predominantly included in the social studies textbooks published in 1973 and 2000. Therefore, the concept of family has mostly been reflected through the context of historical issues. Among the four published textbooks, the 2015 social studies textbook stands out as having the most coverage on democracy and human rights. This book also mentions the concept of domestic democracy. Alongside the shortcomings, many positive aspects have been identified in the 2019 edition 7th grade social studies textbook that is currently being taught in schools. Keywords: Turkey, educational programs, social studies, 7th grade social studies textbook, family, content exchange

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The Frequency and Placement of Main Ideas in Children's Social Studies Textbooks: A Modified Replication of Braddock's Research on Topic Sentences

Journal of Reading Behavior ◽

10.1080/10862968409547502 ◽

1984 ◽

Vol 16 (1) ◽

pp. 27-40 ◽

Cited By ~ 14

Author(s):

James F. Baumann ◽

Judith K. Serra

Keyword(s):

Social Studies ◽

Main Idea ◽

Eighth Grade ◽

The Social ◽

Reading Materials ◽

Social Studies Textbooks ◽

Expository Prose ◽

Main Ideas

Braddock (1974) evaluated adult, expository reading materials for the frequency and placement of topic sentences (main ideas). Results indicated that relatively infrequently were main ideas directly stated in expository prose, and that paragraphs opened with a simple topic sentence only 13% of the time. This study was a modified replication of Braddock's research in which second-, fourth-, sixth-, and eighth-grade social studies textbooks were examined for the presence of explicit and implicit main ideas in paragraphs and short passages. Results were generally consistent with Braddock's findings on topic sentences: only 27% of all short passages that were examined in the social studies textbooks contained explicit passage main ideas; only 44% of all paragraphs contained explicit main ideas; and only 27% of all paragraphs opened with a directly-stated main idea. Implications for teachers, publishers, and reading researchers are discussed.

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EFFECT OF CHANGE IN SOCIAL STUDIES CURRICULUM PROGRAMS ON FAMILY WIEW IN TEXTBOOKS

Ulakbilge Dergisi ◽

10.7816/ulakbilge-08-49-03 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 8 (49) ◽

Keyword(s):

Social Studies ◽

Education Policies ◽

7Th Edition ◽

Raising Awareness ◽

The Social ◽

The Family ◽

Social Studies Textbooks ◽

Curriculum Education ◽

Positive Effect ◽

The Ideal

Social Studies course aims to create a common culture in schools in order to raise the ideal citizens needed by the society. The content of the textbooks prepared in line with the goals of raising awareness, empowerment, and inclusion of citizens is also important in this regard. The content of the textbooks varies according to the curriculum. In this study, the 7th grade social studies textbook prepared by Gültekin, Akpınar, Nohutcu, Özerdoğan ve Aygün, (2019 according to the 2018 curriculum was examined in terms of recruiting the family and compared with the 1973, 2000 and 7th edition social studies textbooks prepared according to the previous social studies curricula. The textbooks examined were subjected to document analysis using qualitative research method. In general, it was revealed that the 2019 edition social studies textbook is different from the 1973, 2000 and 2015 edition social studies textbooks in terms of addressing the family. In the 2019 edition 7th grade social studies textbook, it was determined that the subjects that are more compatible with the logic of social studies such as citizenship information, current issues, communication, media and economy are dominant and that the family is included more in the known sense. In this respect, it can be said that the social studies course of the 2019 edition 7th grade social studies textbook concur with the ideal citizen raising logic. It is seen that the curriculum, education policies and the perception of the family have a positive effect on the textbook. Despite their positive aspects, the subject of the family was not sufficiently included in the transfer of subjects such as natural disasters and population in the textbook. Keywords:Turkey, Educational Programs, Social Studies, 7th Grade Social Studies Textbook, Family, Content Exchange

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Poetry in the Social Studies Textbooks in Turkey

Journal of Culture and Values in Education ◽

10.46303/jcve.01.01.4 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 1 (1) ◽

pp. 50-62

Author(s):

Bulent Tarman ◽

Emin Kılınç

Keyword(s):

Content Analysis ◽

Social Studies ◽

Visual Communication ◽

Research Method ◽

Four Seasons ◽

The Social ◽

Social Studies Textbooks ◽

5Th Grade ◽

Theoretical Issues

The purpose of this paper is to examine social studies textbooks to investigate the use of poetry in the social studies textbooks in Turkey. This paper also examines whose poets have been represented in the textbooks. The authors applied content analysis to evaluate social studies textbooks. Content analysis is a research method that uses a set of procedures to make valid inferences from text. It is also described as a method of analyzing written, verbal or visual communication messages. Content analysis allows the researcher to test theoretical issues to enhance understanding of the data. The results showed that very few poems were used in the social studies textbooks. The finding of the study revealed that poems in the 4th grade textbooks relate to topics that were interest to students the nature and humanism. Poem about Şavşat, described the beauty of Turkish homeland in the four seasons. Vetch Field poem in the 5th grade social studies textbook, described a bride who has to work in the field. This poem seems to be written for girls since the language indicates ‘girls’ several times. It emphasizes how hard to be a bride in the vetch field. Remaining poems were used to promote students’ patriotic values. These poems emphasizes flag, homeland, heroism etc.

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