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Abstract

The aim of this research is to provide an applied example that serves as a guide to social studies classrooms and directly supports the teachers who implement it, specifically for the social studies lesson. In the research planned as an action research, a group of 27 7th-grade students from a middle school was selected as the study group, and activities were implemented under the name of “Social Studies Club” for a duration of 16 weeks, with 2 hours of weekly sessions. The results of the research support the literature in terms of student perceptions at the beginning of the application. According to students “Social studies is not among the favorite subjects, there is little interest in the subject, but it is not considered difficult. The lessons are perceived as simple but boring.” At the end of the applications, students have developed positive feelings towards the social studies lesson, gained awareness about the achievements, and acquired learning outcomes. Looking at the interviews conducted with the students at the end of the applications, it can be observed that the students made positive evaluations regarding the applications. They were able to make more inferences about the social studies lesson, not because they found it simple, but because they considered it important. As a result, they started to view social studies as one of their favorite subjects and expressed that they have explored the content of the social studies lesson. Although this research provides a small snapshot in terms of the duration of the application, it can be considered as a guiding resource in terms of addressing the problems in social studies education.

Keywords

boring contributions goals lack of interest social studies

Introduction

Students do not see the social studies course as an important field of study. They see the social studies course as less important than the courses such as mathematics and English (Fernandez et al., 1976). Similarly, Schug et al. (1982) revealed that English, mathematics and reading courses rank higher than social studies courses because students see the subjects of these courses as preparing them for careers and teaching important skills they will need in the future. When we look at what has changed in the 40 years since these determinations, (Bousalis, 2022; Chiodo & Byford, 2006; Darby, 1991; Dundar & Rapoport, 2014; Fraser, 1981; Frusci, 2019; Governale, 1997; Hansberry Anne, 2000; Khaled, 2013; Omolara & Adebukola, 2015; Shaughnessy & Haladyna, 1985; Zhao & Hoge, 2005) researches show that not much has changed in terms of social studies education.

Social Studies is an important course and an important part of the school curriculum, aiming at a return that will enable individuals to participate in society as active citizens (Garcia, 2021). Because it provides students with the ability to understand the values associated with being a good citizen (Khaled, 2013). Students learn the rules and responsibilities of being a good citizen in their classrooms and school communities (Payne, 2018). Unlike many other school courses, social studies is located at the intersection of more than one discipline (Hansen & Puustinen, 2021). Therefore, allocating time to social studies instruction is crucial as it forms the foundation for students to understand and make sense of the world in which they live, as it is an integral part of their daily lives (Clark & Hooser, 2018).

Despite all these facts, social studies is often seen as less important than mathematics and reading. Although this course is part of the curriculum, it is often overlooked by teachers due to exam demands (Bousalis, 2022). Of course, reading and math are core subjects. However, social studies contribute to the civic competence of young people who make informed and reasoned decisions in an interconnected world that is in the public interest and contributes to an increasing diversity (Duncan, 2011). Well, despite all this importance, is social studies education really understood? Has it received the value it deserves?

Since the early 1970s, teachers were reduced teaching time devoted to social studies as they increasingly focus on reading and mathematics, and this trend continued until the 1980s (Hodges et al., 2019). The decrease in interest in social studies education over time has started with the acceleration of standards and test movements in mathematics, especially since 1991 in the world. The primary goal of schools has been to raise standardized test scores in literacy and mathematics. This has caused social sciences and especially social studies to face important problems (McGuire, 2007). Unfortunately, in the past time “teacher, why is this so boring?” question has become the main problem of social studies. For this reason, in a world where technology and science are constantly changing, it is criticized that the subject of social studies, especially the curriculum and pedagogy, almost never changes while the world around us changes and develops (Milam, 2020). What was the problem in terms of social studies education? So how can this problem be overcome? What did we aim to do in this study?

Considering that one of the main purposes of social studies is to prepare students for civic life, a social studies teaching that will better motivate and engage students improves the preparation of all students for civic life (Thacker et al., 2018). Students want to learn social studies with various learning and teaching methods, be active in the lesson, go on field trips, do cooperative learning activities and see teachers as guides, and they want teachers to organize their teaching approaches and learning styles to meet student interest (Shah, 2016). These requests point to a social studies teacher who understands the nature of social studies in the classroom and takes action. So, are classroom applications the only problem? While explaining the reasons for the lack of interest in social studies, we also mentioned other factors above. The current examination system pacifies the social studies course. In addition, students mention that they could not establish the relationship of the course with life. These aforementioned issues open the door to three important problems on behalf of the problems of social studies education. The first problems is the teaching of the course in the classroom, the second is that the curriculum does not allow more opportunities for the relationship of the course with life and accordingly the teacher is having difficulty in the classroom and lastly, the current examination system does not take into account the long-term benefits of social studies. Here we will talk about an attempt to solve the first two of these three identified problems within the scope of our research. In this direction, we aim to organize in-class practices with secondary school students on behalf of teachers and to guide the current curriculum.

Method

Research Model

This study is a qualitative research designed as an action research. There are different action research approaches. In this research, “school wide action research” was used. In this action research process, teachers/researchers may choose to focus their work on one student, a small group of students, one/several classes, or a school. School-wide action research is a school reform initiative, and its results can lead to school-wide change (Hewitt & Little, 2005). Action research “improves teaching practices, increases interest in classroom and work, and is research in which one works to improve oneself” (Arora, 2017). Furthermore, in a school-wide action research, the presence of a collaborative structure and the opportunity for teachers to observe another researcher/teacher also enhance the effectiveness of the action process. (Mertler & Hartley, 2017). Moreover, action research is known for enabling teachers and administrators to improve their professional practices and is considered suitable by many educators for addressing issues in education and finding solutions (Lufungulo et al., 2021). Therefore in this study, it was aimed to make in-class applications to increase the interest of secondary school students in the social studies lesson, to provide an exemplary practice to the teachers, and to enable the students to experience a constructivist classroom atmosphere in the name of social studies.

Study Group

The study group of this research consists of a total of 27 seventh grade students, 15 females and 12 males, aged 12 to 13, studying at a public secondary school in the first semester of the 2019 to 2020 academic year. The reason for choosing seventh graders in the study is that they have been taking social studies lessons since the fourth grade and it is thought that they have developed a certain judgment about the social studies lesson since it is their last year. Since the research has an application dimension and it is a time-consuming study, an easily accessible, convenient sampling method was used.

Figure 1.

The Action Planing Stage.

Data Collection and Analysis

The data of this research were collected through open-ended question form and face-to-face interviews with students during the stages of action research. The data obtained were analyzed by descriptive analysis, and the findings were supported by direct quotations from the students’ views (as … 1FS: 1. female student, 2MS: 2. male student). During the analysis process of the research, the codings were conducted separately by each researcher. The analyses performed by the researchers were examined in terms of similarities and differences, and the agreement between the coders was checked. The agreement among the coders was examined using the formula by Miles and Huberman (1994), “R(Reliability) = [Na (Agreement) / Na (Agreement) + Nd (Disagreement)] × 100,” and the agreement was determined to be 94%.

The action stage process, which was preferred as a method in the research, was carried out in four stages. The first stage, the action planning stage, lasted for three education periods. In order to determine the problem and prepare an application guide on the possible problem, the researchers made a group of pre-service teachers work in secondary schools in order to meet with students in secondary school, make observations, and apply the sample activities they prepared in social studies classes within the scope of community service practices and social project development courses in the department of social studies at the faculty of education. At this stage, applications were made in three different secondary schools in three education periods and each term conveyed guiding information to the next period.

In the step of putting the second stage plan into action, the researchers created a 14-week activity calendar in the light of the data of three periods. At the beginning and end of this activity calendar, a 16-week process was prepared with the students in the study group and with an evaluation meeting.

Data collection and analysis step, which is the third action steps of the research, was carried out in the planning step, the step of putting the plan into action and the last step (evaluation). In the last stage, action evaluation stage, which is the fourth action step of the research, face-to-face interviews were conducted with the students in the study group and they were asked to evaluate the application process. The applications were carried out by two teacher candidates under the coordination of the researchers. At the end of the applications, the seventh grade students also sent letters to the researchers through teacher candidates. When the common request in these letters were to come to the faculty of education and meet the researchers, the researchers invited the students to the faculty. Drama workshops were held in the faculty in the form of two sessions. For researchers, this experience with students has given important information about the solution of the problem on which the research is based. For this reason, the letters written by the students in the study group to the researchers were also included in the data analysis.

Application Process

All the applications of this research were prepared by the researchers, while the studies in secondary school were carried out by two pre-service teachers studying in the third grade of social studies teaching. The research permissions were initiated by writing a letter to the school where the application would take place, within the scope of the course at the faculty. Afterwards, the researchers obtained consent from the participants of the study group who voluntarily agreed to participate and completed the application. The study was carried out within the scope of community service practices course in the social studies undergraduate program and the necessary permissions were obtained under the coordination of this course. In the research, a content that reflects the essence of the social studies course subjects that students see from the fourth to the seventh grade was prepared. This content was controlled by field experts and the applications made every week were discussed by the scientific committee formed in the faculty in accordance with the spirit of action research, and the next week’s plan was created. This scientific committee consisted of researchers, as well as five graduate students and two social studies field experts. The prepared content was explained in detail to the pre-service teachers (two pre-service teachers, one of them was conducting the activity, the other one was a reporter, and the other one served as an assistant teacher in the use of equipment) every week before the application. They were given detailed activity instructions and the activity tools were handed over.

In the applications, firstly, acquaintance activities were held with the secondary school students in the study group, and then they were allowed to start a club activity in which they could personally participate in the applications. It was said that the club activities would help the social studies course and voting was done to find a name for the club they joined. Instead of the previous name “I Love Social Studies,”“Social Studies Everywhere” was agreed upon.

During the application process, students also found an updated news about the subject of that lesson after each completed lesson and prepared a classroom board. In addition, at the end of the lesson, the subject of the next week was mentioned and they were asked to come prepared for the subject, and at the end of the lesson, an evaluation meeting was held with the students and they were asked to complete the sentences “What did I feel today, what did I notice today, I learned … for the first time today.”

In the content of the application, first it was tried to ensure that the students saw the birth, purpose, content and benefits of social studies (2, 3, 4, and 5 weeks) and then, learning areas and disciplines related to social sciences were studied within the framework of the learning areas that constitute the content of the social studies course they took until the seventh grade (from the 6th to the 12th week). In the activities carried out during these weeks, it is aimed that the students reinforce the subjects they have learned in the social studies lesson since primary school, discover the disciplines that are the content of the subjects, and associate them with their daily lines and future. In addition, they were advised to read a book related to each learning area, a movie was suggested, and a weekend trip with their families was recommended. In the last 3 weeks, the most important aim of the social studies course was how to be a good citizen for the ideal society and the rights and responsibilities of the individual. Therefore, in this study, the application process was completed over a period of 16 weeks, with a total of 32 hours, involving 2 hours per week. Explanations on the application process are shown in Table 1:

Table 1.

Application Process.

Weeks	The subject of the course	Course achievements	Instruction and purpose of the course
1st week	Application of pre-tests and acquaintance activities	• Students get to know each other. • Prepares for club work.	The teaching of the course begins with the application of the pre-tests specified in the study. After the application of the tests, in order to create learning benefits such as group dynamism and cooperation, games are played, which are planned in order for the students to get to know each other and to be a real group in the studies by providing harmony and trust.
2nd week	What is social studies? How was it born? How does it make our life easier?	• Defines social studies • Knows the history of social studies • Realizes the use of social studies in daily life.	This week’s events are made up of three phases. As the first step, the definition of social studies was given to the students, as the second step, how social studies was born, that is, its history, was emphasized, and as the last step, the students were asked to think about the place of social studies in our lives.
3rd week	Social studies takes its content from social sciences	• Realizes the relationship between social studies and social sciences. • Distinguish the concepts of social studies and social sciences.	The first stage designed during the course is to make students adopt the relationship between social studies and social sciences. The aim of the course is to enable students to see that the content of social studies is derived from social science disciplines and to provide students with the “Social Studies as Social Sciences” approach, which is one of the teaching approaches of social studies.
4th week	Overview of social studies and art and literature	• Understands the place and importance of literature and art in social studies. • Becomes aware of the literary and artistic aspects of themselves based on social studies.	The course begins by remembering the definition of NCSS for the concept of social studies. “Social Studies is a field of study that combines arts, literature and social sciences with an interdisciplinary approach to gain civic competences” (National Council for the Social Studies, 1993). Based on this definition, it is aimed that students realize the relationship between social studies and art and literature.
5th week	Reflection of Social Sciences on learning areas - the secret of learning areas	• Relates learning areas with social sciences. • Realizes the multidisciplinary aspect of social studies.	In this course, it is aimed for students to establish a connection between social studies learning areas and social science disciplines and to learn the relationship between the names of learning areas and the content. Students were provided to explore the content of social studies by establishing the relationship of learning areas with disciplines.
6th week	Individual and society	• Realizes the effects of social problems on the individual. • Knows their responsibilities as an individual on social issues. • Takes responsibility in social events.	The individual and society learning field is associated with sociology and psychology from social science disciplines. In the activities, it is aimed that the students realize the relationship between this learning area and the disciplines of sociology and psychology, see the processes of being me-us, see their rights and responsibilities and gain the awareness of being a citizen.
7th week	Culture and heritage	• Learns the past based on cultural elements. • Explores the role of cultural elements in social continuity. • Recognizes and loves cultural heritage and sees the importance of protecting it.	The field of learning culture and heritage is associated with the discipline of history. In the activities, it was aimed that the students realize the relationship between this learning area and the discipline of history, that the students see the importance of cultural elements for social continuity, and that they discover their role in the transfer of culture to future generations.
8th week	People places and environments	• Becomes aware of the geographical distribution and events around them. • Takes an active role in the protection of nature.	People, places, and environments learning area is associated with the discipline of geography.
9th week	Production distribution and consumption	• Can explain that resources are limited • Tells the importance of choosing a profession	Production, distribution, and consumption learning area is related to the discipline of economics.
10th week	Science, technology and society	• Knows how to use technology in a positive way in line with their needs. • Tells the importance of scientific work	With the science, technology and society learning area, it is aimed that students discover the history of science, get to know scientists, discover scientific ethics, and question the contributions of technology to society.
11th week	Active citizen	• Sees social problems and produces solutions • Explain what an active citizen is	It is associated with active citizen learning area and the disciplines of political science and law. The main purpose of the activities is to explore the relationship between these disciplines and social studies. In addition, it is aimed that students discover their social roles as active citizens.
12th week	Global connections	• Have information about the cultural values of different nations. • Respects different cultures. • Recognizes global problems.	With the global connections learning area, it is aimed that students get to know different cultures and geographies, discover the importance of global competition and what a common heritage is.
13th week	What kind of world, what kind of society, what kind of citizen?	• Shows sensitivity to the problems in the society and the world, starting from himself/herself. • Sees that different cultures enrich the society.	The main goal of the activity is just as social studies learning areas start from the individual and society and end in the active citizen learning area to enable students to think analytically about every event, first as an individual, then as a society and then as the world, starting from themselves. While doing this, attention is drawn to the order of learning areas. It is aimed that the students think about the problems in the society and the world based on themselves and gain perspectives on their responsibilities first as citizens and then as people of the world.
14th week	Good citizen with social studies	• Defines the purpose of social studies as good person-good citizen. • Realizes the importance of being a good citizen for society.	The aim of the activity is to convey the concepts of good people and good citizens, which is the purpose of social studies in the world, to students. The relationship between this concept and the social studies lesson and the importance of the social studies lesson were tried to be brought to the students. In this activity, “Social Studies as Citizenship Transfer” approach, which is one of the social studies teaching approaches, was adopted.
15th week	My rights and responsibilities with social studies	• Defines rights and responsibilities • Knows the obligations of being a citizen	The aim of the activity is to enable students to find the equivalent of the concepts of rights and responsibilities they learned in the social studies course in daily life.
16th week	Social studies in my dreams and post test	• They describes the social studies course they dreamed of.	The aim of the activity is for the students to imagine how they want the social studies lesson to be based on all the activities. After this activity, post-test interviews are held with the students and the applications are concluded.

Findings

Findings Regarding the Action Planning Step

Findings Presented by the Applications of the First Period (2017–2018 Academic Year)

The first period, in which the research topic was considered and put into practice, started with an interview with the seventh graders of secondary school. In the interview conducted with 32 students in a class of seventh grade of a public secondary school, the first five courses they liked the most were asked. In the answer they gave to this interview question, the students who took the social studies course among the first five courses were 13 students. None of these students took the social studies course among the first three courses.

In the interview, the students were asked whether you like social studies, explain why. Among the students who answered this question, 27 students said that they liked social studies. Two of the other students gave the answer that I partially love, and three students gave the answer that I do not like. While the students who did not like the social studies lesson interpreted the lesson as rote and unnecessary, the students who answered I partially liked the lesson interpreted the lesson as very classical. On the other hand, the students who liked the lesson gave answers such as “a simple lesson that is easy to pass, a lesson that is not forced, to love history subjects.”

Regarding this first application, it was inferred from the students that the social studies course was liked even though it was not preferred much in the favorite course, and even if it was liked, they could not put forward a suitable reason for the purpose of social studies. In this first semester application, after the interviews, various in-class activities were carried out with the students and the implications about the application were noted one by one. Some of them can be said that only the curriculum-oriented approach did not make the desired change in students, traditional lectures did not attract attention to the social studies course, and students were more affected to the lessons taught with activity. In the light of this information, the next period is planned.

Findings Presented by the Applications of the Second Period (2018–2019 Academic Year)

In the other application period, when the research subject was more mature, interviews were started with 24 students studying in the seventh grade of a secondary school of a state university. As in the previous year, students were asked what their top five favorite courses were. Similar to the previous year, the results were in the first five courses of nine students but were not included among the first three courses. Students who favored the social studies course stated that this course was their favorite because it was “easy, simple, easy to pass, it teaches our history, it is intertwined with history, and it teaches the past.”

In the second term applications, students were also asked whether they liked the social studies course again, and all of the students answered that they love it. Also, to students, “should social studies be in the curriculum?” question was asked. Sixteen of the students stated that there was no need for this because they thought it was a simple course, and that the course hours should be increased for important courses (such as Mathematics, Turkish, and English) that had questions in the exams instead of this course. The other eight students said that they wanted it to be in the curriculum. As the reason, they stated that the course was easy and they got high grades.

The second period applications showed that the students could not give adequate answers in terms of seeing the objectives of the social studies course, that although the course was liked, it was not considered necessary for the curriculum, and the course was preferred because it was simple and easy to pass even though it was liked. After the interviews, the “I Love Social Studies” club was established for secondary school students, and the activities aimed to be performed were carried out under the roof of this club. The aim here is to attract the attention of the students, to give them tasks with club activities and to allow them to generate ideas on behalf of the social studies course and to direct the course themselves.

It was concluded that the social studies course was primarily included as a course in this application period and that the absence of questions from this course in the exams prevented the student from giving the necessary importance to the course, and that the teacher tried to prevent the student’s indifference to the course by making it easier for the student to pass the course. This paves the way for the perception that “social studies does not receive the value it deserves in the curriculum,” which is our main problem.

Compared to the previous year, in the second period applications, students were not only provided with in-class activities related to the curriculum, and students spared extracurricular time and voluntarily moved to a more productive position under the name of club work made them become more willing to learn social studies and see their goals. For this reason, the applications for the other period were enriched and the contents of the applications were arranged.

Findings of the Last Period Applications (2019–2020 Academic Year)

This period was not originally considered as the last period. It was planned to continue the applications for several more periods. However, due to the transition to distance education with the pandemic period all over the world, the applications could not be realized in the next period. In the 2020 to 2021 academic year in Turkey, secondary schools did not switch to face-to-face education, and in distance education, practical permissions for the social studies course could not be obtained (due to reasons such as the process, internet access, the curriculum). For this reason, the data from the 2019 to 2020 academic year were used to report the research.

In the last period applications, 27 students from the seventh grade of a secondary school were studied. Students were asked about their top five favorite courses and their reasons. Eleven of these students showed the social studies course among their favorite courses but they did not show it among their top three favorites as in other periods. While explaining the reasons, the students who showed the social studies course as one of their favorite courses again offered reasons such as “an easy lesson, love history, interest in learning about the past.” Some of them stated reasons such as “it’s a fun, environmentally friendly lesson, I love the course’s teacher.”

When asked whether they would like the social studies course to be included in the school curriculum in the last semester, 15 students in the study group stated that they would like the social studies course in the curriculum because it is an easy and simple course to pass, while the other students stated that they would prefer to have the courses they consider more important. When the students were also asked the question of what will social studies do for you today and in the future, 11 students from the study group answered that if we learn social studies for today, it will allow us to pass the course, and if it comes up in the exams in the future, we can do the questions of this course. While 12 of the students answered that “it will contribute to the general culture, they will be a knowledgeable person, it helps us to socialize,” they said that it would be useful for them if they became a social studies teacher or a history teacher in the future, and four of them stated that they had no idea or that they did not know.

The feedback received from the three-period interviews with secondary school seventh grade students guided us in the action planning step in our study, and an action plan was prepared for these students to guide the curriculum. In this plan, it is aimed to convey the content, goals and role of social studies in our lives to the students on an activity-based basis. While doing this, it was decided that it was necessary to start the work by taking the student away from the simple, easy, rote understanding, valuing the field and enabling them to take part in the applications themselves.

Findings Regarding the Application Phase in the Step of Putting the Plan Into Action

The findings obtained from the preliminary interviews before starting the applications were conveyed during the planning stage of the action, which was the previous step. The data obtained from this preliminary interview structured the application phase. During the applications, the stages that show the development of the students according to the weeks are as follows:

In the first week meeting activities with the students, it was observed that they generally used expressions such as “excited, curious and confused” in their statements about their feelings, and in their statements about what they noticed, they replied that “it was pleasant to meet the activity, the activity with the group was enjoyable.” The students gave feedback about what they learned for the first time as “drama method and doing activities with drama.”

At the end of the courses in the 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 5th weeks, which aimed to see the birth, purpose, content and returns of social studies to the life of the individual, the students generally gave the following (most and dominantly) feedbacks:

According to Table 2, it is possible to say that students’ awareness and learning developed in accordance with the achievements created for the lessons. The students’ statements about their feelings in these lessons were positive. In this direction, it can be said that the students have positive feelings in the first department courses and they have acquired the achievements. Some of the students’ answers are as follows:

I was frankly surprised to walk into a classroom playing music today. During the entire activity, I never lost my interest from the course. Sometimes I get bored in classes, but believe me, I’m never bored today. (6FS, 2nd week, my feelings)

I realized that the social studies course covers such a wide area. In fact, you can find it yourself when you count the topics, but I guess I never thought about it. Today I realized that it is a very comprehensive course. (2M, 4th week, what I noticed)

I have never paid attention to the name of the learning areas until today. I didn’t even think about who created this and why. Every new topic was telling me we’re moving on to a new boring topic. However, every learning area has a purpose. When I look at my textbook now, I see how they fit such a wide course in such a light book. (11FS, 5th week, what I learned)

Table 2.

First Part Feedbacks in Applications.

Process	My feelings	What I noticed	What I learned
2nd week	Excited, confused	Social studies is in my life, social studies is not just a course.	The birth of social studies, its contribution to my life, the contribution of knowing social studies
3rd week	Lucky, knowledgeable	Many courses constitute social studies.	Contribution of different fields to social studies
4th week	Confused, curious	The area covered by social studies	Contribution of literature and art to social studies
5th week	Thoughtful, knowledgeable	Social studies course is a knowledge cube, all learning areas explain life.	The meaning and content of the name of the learning areas

At the end of the lessons in the 6th, 7th, 8th, 9th, 10th, 11th, and 12th weeks, in which the students were aimed to reinforce the subjects they learned in the social studies lesson from primary school, to discover the disciplines that are the content of the subjects, and to associate them with their daily lines and their future, they generally gave (what they say most and dominantly) the following feedback:

According to Table 3, it is seen that the students express positive feelings at the end of the course in the second part as well. It can be said that in what I noticed part they express social studies program’s aims in the learning area. It is possible to say that students in what I learned part learned the content of the discipline and learning area with which learning areas are related. Some of the students’ answers are as follows:

As with every course, I came to today’s lesson with excitement. If it is the club day, I feel happiness when I come to school. (2FS, 6th week, my feelings)

In today’s lesson, we covered an incredibly boring subject. I was very surprised there was no memorization or just reading. I don’t understand how the lesson ended. I spoke very much. The thing that impressed me the most was that the continuation of our culture was in our hands. In fact, where we live, we are surrounded by our culture. We were in. We promised to protect our culture. (10M, 7th week, what I noticed).

Today we studied the most enjoyable subject in social studies class. Our subject was science, but we did not see it as in the lesson. We did many activities. We had incredible fun. But I learned new things. We talked about the harm that technological products cause to the environment. I loved science subjects even more. (6F, 10th week, what I learned).

Table 3.

Second Part Feedbacks in Applications.

Process	My feelings	What I noticed	What I learned
6th week	Responsible, thoughtful, curious	I am a citizen, have rights and responsibilities	The processes of being I and us, psychology and sociology sciences are in social studies.
7th week	Happy, excited sharing,	The importance of culture, my role in cultural transmission, the importance of traces from different periods for today.	The science of history is in social studies, culture keeps societies alive.
8th week	Determined, willing	To discover the place where he/she lives, to discover the environment, to protect the nature	Geography science is in social studies, human interaction with his/her environment.
9th week	Knowledgeable, curious	that resources are limited	The science of economics is in social studies, the importance of choosing a profession, the importance of working for society.
10th week	Good, positive	The importance of scientific studies, the importance of scientific thinking, the importance of being a scientist, how technology affects our lives.	Scientific ethics, the history of science, what scientists do, technological products harm nature.
11th week	Lucky, happy	How social problems are solved, how the social order is protected, the importance of democratic ways	Political science and legal sciences are included in social studies, the social role of groups, institutions and social organizations, what an active citizen is.
12th week	Curious, eager	Different cultures, problems concerning the world, global problems, international importance of tourism, respect for different cultures.	What is the global dimension, why states cooperate, the importance of global competition, what is the common heritage.

The most important aim of the social studies course was how to be a good citizen for the ideal society and the rights and responsibilities of the individual, and at the end of the 13, 14, and 15 weeks, students gave (what they say most and dominantly) the following feedback in general:

According to Table 4, it is possible to say that the social dimension of social studies was noticed by the students, and they saw the aim of the social studies course to raise good citizens, and that they saw these subjects given in the curriculum as the equivalent of the course in society, not as a course subject. Some of the students’ answers are as follows:

I was very surprised today. We came to class with music. It was written on the class board that those who shared the same feeling, not the same language, agreed. There were pictures of different cultures inside. Our teacher said welcome in different languages. Every time I come to class, there’s an excitement. Our club teacher said that the social studies teacher is full of surprises, definitely so . (7M, 13th Week, my feelings)

The promise of being a good person, a good citizen is always in our ears. But in this lesson, we talked about what it means. I realized that it is a summary of the content of the social studies course. (5F, 14th week, what I noticed)

The definition of a good citizen is so wide that I made only one right, and I cannot say that I am a good citizen now. This is a very deep statement. What we learned today was like a map of what is expected of us when we become adults. In order not to get lost on the map, use the keys given in the social information correctly. The treasure is huge when it arrives at the destination. (1F, 15th week, what I learned)

Table 4.

Last Part feedbacks in the Applications.

Process	My feelings	What I noticed	What I learned
13th week	Surprised, excited, happy	Different cultures and different people enrich society.	What is the ideal society, why the ideal society is needed, the types of citizenship
14th week	Responsible, knowledgeable	The content and importance of being a good person-good citizen	The contribution of the social studies course to being a good citizen
15th week	Happy, positive	Why should rights and responsibilities exist	What are my rights and responsibilities, their connection with the social studies course

The last feedback of the action phase formed by social studies in my dream activity in the last week of application. In this activity, the students created the content of the social studies course of their dreams. The findings regarding the social studies content of the students’ dreams are shown in Table 5.

Table 5.

The Content of the Social Studies Course in the Dreams of the Students.

Social studies I dreamed of
Activities are made	I can recognize different cultures
Out-of-class excursions and making examinations	I can see advanced technologies
A class where I could see the examples it shows	With more teaching hours
A class where I could go to the places it showed	The subjects are explained with film and video.
I could use technological products in the classroom.	The teacher is versatile and fun
With music and drama	No boring narration
I can plan the process with my teacher	I can do projects
I can cooperate with my friends	I should be able to see what this lesson will do for me
Conducted outside the classroom	I should be able to use it in daily life
A class designed by ourselves	It should be like our club class

Table 5 indicates that the students actually want to see social studies in line with the constructivist understanding, as suggested by the literature. It is possible to say that the environment that students dream the most is a social studies course enriched with activities, excursions and examinations. In addition, there were some who explained the social studies course in their dreams by showing examples of the applications we made from the answers of the students. Some of the students’ answers are as follows:

In my dream I have a social studies class where there are always activities. I can’t stand a boring social studies class. I love that you meet us with music. I can say that this is how it should be. (13FS)

If social studies is a door to the future, why are we sitting in the classroom? Please do not keep us in this class. In my dreams, social studies is a course that is taught not by sitting in the classroom, but by activities, trips and projects. (12MS)

This club brought me closer to social studies. It erased the boring part of the social studies class with an eraser. This is how it should be. (3MS)

Findings Regarding the Evaluation Phase of the Last Step of Action

In the last step of the action research, the students in the study group were interviewed about the application process. Following questions were asked to students; “What are your thoughts about the activities you did at the club? Did these activities change your view of the social studies course? What is the most important thing you remember from these activities? What does the social studies course mean to you?” Students expressed positive opinions about the activities they did under the name of club work. In addition, it is possible to say that the students acquired the achievements of the prepared applications, discovered the content of the social studies course and saw the goals of social studies. Some of the students’ thoughts are as follows:

I was excited to come to all the events we did. This even got me attached to work. The activities were like a summary of all the social studies course we took. Why are courses not conducted like this or such studies are not done every semester? (14FS)

I do not know why the social studies course was chosen in these activities. There are more difficult lessons. While we were thinking about the lessons that we have difficulty in understanding, our club teacher said that social studies is in life, this is not actually a course, it is an eyeglass and life is more meaningful when you wear glasses. Now I understand that you chose social studies because you care more about us being successful in life than succeeding in exams. Of course, my perspective has changed. (3MS)

What I remember the most from these activities are become a good citizen, contribute to the society you live in, become a qualified citizen of this society with your chosen profession. (9FS)

Social studies is a course I like. I like the course because it is not difficult to understand, but sometimes it can be boring. But if the content was prepared in this way, it would be the school’s favorite subject. I’m sure the whole class agrees with me. (10MS)

After the completion of the research, the students in the study group sent a letter to the researchers through the pre-service teachers who carried out the club work. In this letter, they stated that they wanted to come to the faculty of education and meet with the researchers as well as their thoughts about the applications. Their requests were welcomed and the researchers met with the students in the drama hall of the faculty of education. The students were accompanied by the social studies teachers at their schools, and the researchers carried out activities with the two-session drama method. In the letters written by the students, they expressed their gratitude and satisfaction to the researchers about the activities. The statements of some students regarding the evaluations of the applications in their schools are as follows:

… I want to meet you. Because I don’t remember ever entering the class with so much surprise and curiosity in my school life. I asked my teachers. Why did you choose us, what is your reason for doing these activities? They said you prepared our events and did all the planning. Actually, the thing caught my attention the most was that my club teacher told me that you did the same activities at the university and that you were waiting for students with music in class. This impressed me a lot, teacher … If your aim is to get us to know and love social studies, you have succeeded, teacher. I would love to come to your university and tell you about it … (8FS)

… I don’t know how you found us or chose us, but I think we are the luckiest students in the school. I wish all classes were like this. … We loved our club teachers. But we wanted to get to know and thank their teacher … You wanted us to love social studies, and to really understand it. You value your students so much that no matter what you teach them, they will already learn. I hope I will be a good teacher like you. Who knows, maybe I’ll become a social studies teacher … (4MS)

Conclusion

Today, social studies education is faced with three important problems, as we pointed out in the introduction. This study includes an example application of the current problems of “teaching the lesson in the classroom and the teaching of the curriculum by associating it with daily life.” Actually, this application includes steps for the teacher to organize the classroom atmosphere in favor of social studies. The results of the application, on the other hand, are desired even in a short period of time and are satisfactory. No course in the curriculum needs a warning to its students as much as social studies, “This lesson will help you, if you understand this lesson, you will be successful in your social life when you become an adult.” Furthermore, in order for each lesson in the curriculum to achieve its objectives, there is a need for social studies, which aims to cultivate good citizenship within society, to be stronger. Hence, the time to take action in social studies classrooms has long arrived. That’s why it’s time to take action in social studies classes.

For the ideal social order, if we want the good citizen, we aim to raise for the century we live in to reach the expected skills and adopt democratic values, we have to take action in the social studies classes. That’s why, in this research, an application that can be practiced in social studies classes, change the students’ view of the lesson, set an example for teachers, guide the curriculum, and introduce the negativities mentioned in the literature for the social studies lesson is planned. The applications of the research were carried out in three periods. All of the data sourced for the first two periods and the last period findings are similar to the literature (Bousalis, 2022; Fernandez et al., 1976; Milam, 2020; Schug et al., 1982). Additionally, it can be stated that the negative opinions about the lesson found in the first two periods’ findings are similar to those in the literature (Alazzi & Chiodo, 2004; Hintz, 2014; Omolara & Adebukola, 2015; Shah, 2016; Ross, 2018; Zhao & Hoge, 2005). Findings of “Social studies are not among the favourite courses, there is little interest in the course, but it is not difficult, the course is simple but boring” led us to reconstruct the content of the course. Students take a social studies course, which expands from the fourth grade to the seventh grade, opens up to the world from their own society, and presents its content by opening up to the whole society in the form of a fan, starting from themselves as an individual. Considering such a wide content the application process has been prepared to reflect the essence of 4 years by taking the current curriculum as a guide.

Looking at the classroom reflections of the applications done for 16 weeks, students were asked about their feelings at the end of each lesson. The reason for this is to constantly check the general judgment of the class because they find the social studies course boring. During the 16 weeks, none of the students in the study group used the expression “I was bored,” on the contrary, they frequently expressed the expressions “I was surprised and excited.” The reason for these surprises was to wait for the students in the classroom with a music that would definitely increase their motivation for that day’s topic in the application class. In addition, planning a different activity every week has created a desire and excitement in the students towards the lesson. It is possible to say that this has been a positive start to break the resistance to the course mentioned in the literature for social studies.

In the classroom feedback, at the end of the lesson, “What did you notice in this lesson and what did you learn for the first time?” questions were asked to the students. When the answers of the students are examined, it is possible to say that they acquired the achievements in the directive prepared for the application to a large extent, that they understood the necessary messages from the content of the lesson and that they saw the goals of the social studies course. In addition, they stated that the information they learn for the first time was actually what they had seen before in their lessons, but because of their negative attitude towards the lesson or because they could not learn the information permanently, they re-learned the information they had seen in the past. It is possible to accept this situation as a contribution of classroom interaction in applications.

When we look at the interviews made with the students at the end of the applications, it can be said that the students made positive evaluations about the applications, they could make more inferences about the social studies course, they saw the course as one of their favorite courses more because they saw the course as important and discovered the content of the course, not simply because they saw it as simple. It is possible to say that the studies carried out for 2 hours a week have positive results in terms of presenting a small but important cross-section for the teaching of the course. Similarly in the literature, the study of Governale (1997) on the creation of a classroom environment that arouses interest in the field of social studies draws attention. A significant improvement was observed in students’ attitudes towards social studies with the “historical fiction, collaborative learning groups, hands-on activities and graphic organizers” used in the study. In this regard, Zevin (2013) mentioned that understanding the different roles you will play as a performing teacher for students in a social studies classroom will help you engage the majority of your students in a wide variety of learning activities. In addition, Berg and Shaw (2014) mentioned in their studies that there is a need for pedagogical models to revive the problematic social studies curriculum at school. Bauml (2016) should also force students to ask questions, evaluate and interpret resources, and think critically in order to endear social studies and improve students’ perspectives on social studies. He emphasized that such challenges will enable students to generate new ideas and to use their minds actively while evaluating the problems they encounter from multiple perspectives, thus enabling them to enjoy the lesson. Egüz (2022), on the other hand, revealed in his research that the songs created by the social studies pre-service teachers for the teaching of the social studies lesson support the learning of the secondary school students by having fun in the social studies lesson and provide a better understanding of the subjects. In their study, Rosfiani et al. (2019) highlighted that the learning environment, inquiry, and learning interest directly influence students’ social studies learning. According to these evaluations, considering that “the interaction between teachers and curriculum strongly influences how and what students learn” (Fogo et al., 2019), it can be said that enriching the content of the social studies course and the classroom atmosphere created by the teacher will also have a positive effect on the social studies course.

Although the aim of this study is to contribute to the more effective application of the social studies lesson through in-class examples, it is only possible for the lesson to receive the value it deserves with the collaboration of social studies teachers. The most important factor that will change the atmosphere of social studies classrooms and initiate action for the lesson is social studies teachers. In line with this, when reviewing the literature, for example, Shaughnessy and Haladyna (1985) emphasized that the key to determining what social studies will be for students lies in the teacher. Darby (1991) also mentioned that teachers need to consider the strategies they apply, the classroom atmosphere they promote, and the expectations they communicate to students in order to encourage social studies education in schools. Byford (2002) also pointed out that active participation in the lesson, teacher enthusiasm, and being engaged with the subject lead to positive perceptions of social studies. Heafner (2004) also indicated that social studies teachers need to incorporate student-centered instructional practices in order to create a more enriching and engaging learning environment that focuses on supporting cognitive development in students. As mentioned by Doğan and Sezer (2011), teachers can contribute to students’ achievements by encouraging and motivating them in areas where they excel. Perhaps at this point, social studies teachers have a greater responsibility compared to other teachers.

In light of all these studies, it is possible to say that the effective establishment of a social studies classroom by the teacher plays a crucial role in making the social studies lesson loved and valued by students, and more importantly, in helping students to understand the objectives of the lesson. Actually, there are many examples that can be given for an effective social studies classroom. For example, Paulo Freire, who has made remarkable contributions to the field of education philosophy, presents two fundamental educational approaches that align with both the current state and the desired state of social studies classrooms. In Freire’s Problem-Posing Education Model, the classroom atmosphere is characterized by the teacher not only as a transmitter or instructor of knowledge but also as a learner engaged in dialogue with students (Yılmaz, 2016). Thus, it is clear that the success of the social studies course is primarily entrusted to the social studies teachers who organize the classroom atmosphere.

This research is a small step built with big ideas. However, it contains important results in order to set an example for the awakening of social studies, which should be launched in the entire curriculum. The limitation of this study is that it cannot extend to the problem of “the current examination system does not take into account the long-term benefits of social studies.” But this issue depends on the resolution of the other issues we have discussed. Therefore, further research is needed to support this study.

Supplemental Material

sj-docx-1-sgo-10.1177_21582440231193824 – Supplemental material for We are Late Enough: Take Action in Social Studies Classes

Supplemental material, sj-docx-1-sgo-10.1177_21582440231193824 for We are Late Enough: Take Action in Social Studies Classes by Nadire Emel Akhan, Serpil Demirezen and Samet Çiçek in SAGE Open

Footnotes

Declaration of Conflicting Interests

The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

Funding

The author(s) received no financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

ORCID iD

Nadire Emel Akhan

Supplemental Material

Supplemental material for this article is available online.

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