More than 1000 educators gathered at Metea Valley on Feb. 27 for the DuPage County Social Studies Conference (DCSSD). The DCSSD is a day-long institute that focuses on community involvement, new teaching methods, and discourse about history.
Rho Kappa Social Studies Honor Society chapters from Metea Valley, Neuqua Valley, and Wheaton-Warrenville North organized the conference, allowing teachers from DuPage and surrounding communities to collaborate.
Social Studies Department Chair and member of the DCSSC Planning Team, Donald Pankuch, talked about the role of the conference in the classroom.
“Teachers from DuPage County and surrounding counties come and get professional development from college professors and leaders in their field to learn about information, current events, and better teaching methods,” Pankuch said.
Topics varied from civic engagement to Native American culture, and more. Educators from DuPage and surrounding communities attended in order to learn from each other about issues relevant to government, economics, and history.
Metea Valley multilingual teacher Lisa Carnahan presented about the importance of accessible resources beneficial for English language learners.
“I think more students will be able to take a bigger variety of classes if the teachers know what kind of tools to offer to them,” Carnahan said. “It’s not that the student can’t understand. They just need access to the [English] language.”
Teachers attending the conference have an opportunity to connect, share, and learn from each other. This information exchange allows teachers to make up new lesson plans and methods that make teaching both informative and engaging. Teachers participated in forums in which some of them gave presentations on how they can improve their lessons. They spoke about implementing topics relevant to social studies that they felt were not taught enough.
Social studies, one of the pillars of school curricula, is an opportunity for students and teachers alike to engage in civic activities and the world around them.
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Refer to the student handbook for further specifics on what is considered appropriate.
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