Articles as Well as an Analysis of

¶ … articles as well as an analysis of the three articles that have been chosen. There will also be a reflection on the connections that these three articles have towards the best practices in the social studies context and field in general. The three articles to be reviewed and analyzed are; "Technology and classroom practices: An international study." By Robert B. Kozma "Using poetry in social studies classes to teach about cultural diversity Social justice." By Ava L. McCall.

"How to teach thinking skills in social studies and history." By Barry K. Beyer. Technology and classroom practices: An international study. By Robert B. Kozma The main focus of the paper is how technology is used in classrooms all over the world and how it has changed the practice in class and general approach to learning by both students and teachers. According to the article the use of technological tools in classrooms is mainly by students for information search, product designing and publishing of results.

On the other hand teachers use technology for creation of structure, giving advice and monitoring the progress of students. Apart from the practices that have been exhibited the article also shows specific patterns that are more likely to be associated with reports of specific student outcomes that are desirable. The writer also highlights the facts touching on the similarities and differences within the patterns of teachers, students and practices and the ultimate outcomes of technology.

The main focus of the article is the pattern of the innovative classroom practices which are usually supported by technology for instance the impressive findings that saw the use of technology to be instrumental in increasing participation of students in class activities with a record high of 83% participation when technology was employed in the class activities among students. Posted here also is the significant increase in the teacher collaboration with others from 59% to 95% upon employment of technology in carrying out instructions to students on projects.

The central research questions effectively addressed are; practices of teachers and students in technology supportive of classrooms, roles played by students and teachers in these classroom activities supportive practices, the role of ICT, the similarities and differences found among these practices and finally if patterns associated with other factors like outcomes as indicated. The article gives findings from 174 case studies dealing with practices of innovative pedagogy from technologies in 28 participating countries taking care of the international set criteria with local concerns.

The research was carried out to establish the relevance of technology in classroom setting to both the instructor and the students and how technology supported innovation in classrooms from both students and teachers perspective.

The article hence effectively portrayed some of the common trends in classrooms when it comes to technology which are; teachers engaged in advice and guidance to the work by students as part of innovation, students collaborated with each other, students became more innovative, the students achieved much more through the use of technology such as productivity tools, web resources and emails. The article clearly demonstrates that technology supported innovative classroom practices in many countries in the world and they have most of the qualities in common.

The implication of the findings is that teachers in many countries are now beginning to use ICT so as to change classroom setting. With this trend, teachers will continue to incorporate technology in their curriculum. The article is therefore a wake up call showing how technology use in classrooms can improve innovation and learning in classrooms. Using poetry in social studies classes to teach about cultural diversity The article is written from the perspective of a participant instructor in the elementary school level.

It points out several applications of poetry in not only understanding the section of poetry in isolation, or literature, but also other related disciplines with emphasis on social studies in particular. From the article it is clear that poetry is a powerful resource when it comes to social studies in class. The article talks of how poets share their personal experiences of racism, cultural diversity, classism or sexism by the use of poetry.

Poems also give affirmation to women and other cultural groups which are valued less in the society or even portray harm that results from prejudicial comments or actions that show discrimination. The article also highlights the goals of social studies and how these can be achieved through poetry. One of the important goals is highlighted as being encouraging pre-service teachers to read critically and their development of critical literacy.

Critical literacy can be encouraged through asking preservice students to consider social issues in their reading even when they prefer ignoring them. It also looks at why poetry should be read in elementary social studies. One of the reasons given is the fact that poems incorporate the thematic strands of social studies. Poems can also be used to teach social studies standards. Poetry can also be valuable as a teaching tool to solve problems. Reading poetry is appealing since it promotes literacy which is an important skill in life.

Central in the discussion of topic by the author and worth attention is the fact that apart from informing the reader on the centrality of poetry in the daily application and life practice, the article outlines in a methodical way that can and should be used in the study of poems for easier understanding by the students and in-depth interpretation particularly of the multicultural approach and those that portray the social reconstructionist themes in their exposition.

The suggestion given on using poetry including deliberate selection of poems, strategies for reading poems and strategies for discussion poems clearly guide teachers on how they will go about teaching using poetry. How to teach thinking skills in social studies and history The article is centrally based on the teaching of social studies and history with the primary focus on how students can be aided in understanding and appreciating the importance of these subjects.

The approach in ensuring there is an in-depth understanding of the subjects is based not only on the classroom understanding but mainly on the application of the analytical skills and decision making process inculcated by the subjects as taught in class. The author emphasizes on skill application in the daily life of the students.

Being novices in this field, however, the students are given numerous chances to engage their decision making skills impacted on them in class with the hope of achieving the desired effect of ultimate independence at the end.