Social Studies

Description

The Social Studies Department at Camden Hills Regional High School offers a broad array of courses, cutting across several disciplines within the Social Sciences. Two year-long Social Studies courses are required for all students to graduate: World History and US History.  Additionally, students must earn another credit from a variety of social studies seminar options. Taken as a series, these required courses present students with multiple opportunities to demonstrate proficiency in all four Social Studies Graduation Standards.

All required courses are offered at different levels. College preparatory classes offer highly differentiated instruction, and address the reading, writing, note-taking, and discussion skills students will need to be successful in a post-secondary environment. Honors and Advanced Placement courses offer a more intense, challenging curriculum for those students with exceptional interest in the subject, and who wish to earn potential college credit through the A.P. Exam.

The Social Studies Department offers a broad array of seminars, which are available to students during their junior and/or senior year. Offerings vary on a year-to-year basis, depending upon availability of staff and student interest. One-semester offerings include Active Citizenship in the 21st Century, Behavioral Economics, Economics for Everyone,  Global Studies Seminar, Introduction to Psychology, Maine: How Our Past Informs Our Present, Liberty and Justice, and Media Literacy.  In addition, there are four year long AP social studies seminar options: AP European History, AP Human Geography, AP Psychology, and AP United States History.

Philosophy

We believe that instruction should be differentiated to the greatest degree possible to allow for diverse learning styles.  We also stress the importance of certain core skills and content that are essential for all students to succeed in the world beyond high school.

We believe that writing and literacy are essential both in understanding the principles of Social Studies and in communicating those ideas. To this end, we require all students to read and interpret both fictional and non-fictional materials, such as novels, memoirs, and both primary and secondary historical documents. We also require all students to write essays that analyze, interpret, and evaluate issues in Social Studies.

We believe that all students should understand the process of researching important issues in Social Studies and of communicating the findings of research in a variety of ways suited to audience and purpose.

We believe that literacy in the subject areas of geography, economics, history, and civics is essential.

Rationale

A firm grounding in Social Studies is essential for functional and effective professional development and positive citizenship in a democracy. Understanding the ideas, feelings, and patterns that shape human societies enables us to participate actively in civic life, to respect and appreciate human differences, to think critically, and to understand the nature and roots of human society. Additionally, clear and effective communication of knowledge, ideas, and feelings –both verbally and in writing—are essential for all in today’s dynamic society.