When we make lessons we cannot make them one-dimensional. As teachers we differentiate methods so that all students can learn, so why do we not differentiate the texts we use? In the artifact I have linked, I demonstrate how teachers can get the same points across using a variety of texts within a unit. Videos, documents, maps, and slideshows all count as texts. All of the text components offer a different view of the same unit/idea (in this example voting across the US and civic participation). Changing what we teach and how we teach it encourages more active participation as students can see all the ways in which they can be seen in their communities. Knowing how they fit into their society, gives students a reason to care about what they are learning about as it relates to them personally.
In our classrooms, we need to show each student exactly how much they matter in the grand scheme of the world. Social studies texts tend to be wordy and confusing with lots and lots of big ideas and words that cloud the meaning of the text itself. By using diverse texts we demystify social studies and therefore our role in our society. This assignment showed me just how many things can be seen as an educational text. When we break down maps that show our districts, texts from our state’s senators, we see how personal politics can be. I want to show my students using the different texts (both traditional and non-traditional) to get them to understand the ways in which they can make decisions that matter.
