CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background to the study
The overall goal of the Ministry of Education is to provide relevant and quality education
for all Ghanaians, including the disadvantaged, to enable them acquire skills which will
make them functionally literate and productive to facilitate poverty alleviation and
promote the rapid socio-economic growth of the country (Ministry of Education, !"#$
%reparing students for the "st century cannot be accomplished without a strong and
sustaining emphasis on &ocial &tudies (Ministry of Education !"#$ &ocial &tudies
provides cornerstone skills that are the key to opening doors for a more diverse,
competitive workforce and responsible citi'enry$ &tudents use critical thinking, self-
assessment, reasoning, problem-solving, collaboration, research, and investigation to
make connections in new and innovative ways as they progress through &ocial &tudies
education$ These standards outline the knowledge and skills needed to help young people
develop the ability to make informed and reasoned decisions for the public good as
citi'ens of a culturally diverse, democratic society in an interdependent world (&hulman,
"()*#$
Ghana+s education has gone through many reforms dating back to colonial times to date$
,ll these reforms aim at bringing constant improvements in its availability and relevance
of education to the citi'enry$ -n achieving this, the Ministry of Education in Ghana has
since the early "(.!+s modified their entry requirements for admissions into the Teacher
Training /olleges$ Time was when applicants entered Training /olleges from standard
"
seven, but this changed to entry after &enior &econdary &chool$ ,gain, the duration of
training was also changed from one year to two years and to three years$ These changes
in duration spent at the Training /ollege help to ensure higher content knowledge before
and during training$
-t is traditionally accepted that for any effective teaching, the teacher should have both
the content knowledge and the pedagogy$ Teachers+ knowledge about the sub0ect matter
to be learned or taught and that of content to be covered in the syllabus are very
important and when applied well will promote effective teaching and learning$ , teacher
with deep pedagogical knowledge understands how students construct knowledge and
acquire skills and how they develop habits of mind and positive dispositions toward
learning$ ,s such, pedagogical knowledge requires an understanding of cognitive, social,
and developmental theories of learning and how they apply to students in the classroom$
, thorough grounding in college-level sub0ect matter and professional competence in
professional practice are necessary for good teaching$
1ecent scholars have emphasi'ed that meaningful learning is a product not of activity per
se, but of sense-making discourse aimed at developing conceptual understanding and the
links between theory and observable phenomena (2ereiter, "((34 Mortimer 5 &cotty,
!!6#$ Thus, learning is not accomplished through teacher+s approach to teaching and
learning but rather how the teacher will integrate curriculum content to teacher+s own
professional content knowledge to diverse interests and abilities of learners$ The teacher

is required to blend both the nature and the scope of the sub0ect to achieve its purpose,
goals and ob0ectives$
-n Ghana, &ocial &tudies seems to occupy a high profile in the &enior 7igh &chool
curriculum and it is one of the core sub0ects to be studied at that level$ 2ecause of its
importance, the government of Ghana is committed to ensuring the provision of high
quality &ocial &tudies teachers in our educational system through the 8niversities in the
country$ 2esides, &ocial &tudies is compulsory at the 9unior and &enior 7igh &chools$
%ersonal e:perience and unverified information seem to point to the fact that most of our
graduates from the senior high schools display their inability in the needed behavioural
change which &ocial &tudies seeks to address$ /onsistently, negative citi'enry
behaviours of all sorts are on the increase in the country and one begins to ask if the
sub0ect &ocial &tudies is actually achieving its purpose and goals$ &ocial &tudies was
introduced into &enior 7igh &chools in Ghana and made compulsory in &eptember "((*$
-t is e:pected that the nation would have by this time reali'ed some positive behavioural
traits among the products of the &enior 7igh &chool$ The question is why is it that the
sub0ect is not achieving its intended goals and purpose$ ;o the teachers have any gap in
content<
-t is a well known fact that teachers+ content knowledge will influence how teaching is
carried out in the classroom$ This awareness prompted the researcher to conduct a study
into teachers+ content knowledge of &ocial &tudies and its effects on the teaching of
&ocial &tudies in Ghana$ The effectiveness of teaching is highly enhanced by the
6
technique and content knowledge$ -ntegrating teachers+ content knowledge and
pedagogical content knowledge will produce a multifaceted and dynamic classroom
conte:t$
Conceptua !ra"e#ork
The framework for this study is deduced from &hulman+s formulation of =pedagogical
content knowledge>$ The researcher has applied &hulman+s theory by e:tending it to the
phenomenon of teachers integrating content into their pedagogy for effective teaching$
The conceptual framework builds on &hulman+s ("()?, "()*# descriptions of pedagogical
content knowledge (%/@# to describe how teachers+ content knowledge and pedagogical
content knowledge interact with one another to produce effective teaching$ 7e claimed
that the emphases on teachers+ sub0ect knowledge and pedagogy were being treated as
mutually e:clusive domains in research concerned with these domains ("()?#$ The
practical consequence of such e:clusion was the production of teacher education
programmes in which a focus on either sub0ect matter or pedagogy dominated$ To
address this dichotomy, he proposed to consider the necessary relationship between the
two by introducing the notion of %/@$
This knowledge includes knowing what teaching approaches fit the content, and likewise,
knowing how elements of the content can be arranged for better teaching$ This
knowledge is different from the knowledge of a disciplinary e:pert and also from the
general pedagogical knowledge shared by teachers across disciplines$ %/@ is concerned
with the representation and formulation of concepts, pedagogical techniques, and
3
knowledge of what makes concepts difficult or easy to learn, knowledge of students+
prior knowledge and theories of epistemology$ -t also involves knowledge of teaching
strategies that incorporate appropriate conceptual representations, to address learner
difficulties and misconceptions and foster meaningful understanding$ -t also includes
knowledge of what the students bring to the learning situation, knowledge that might be
either facilitative or dysfunctional for the particular learning task at hand$ This
knowledge of students includes their strategies, prior conceptions (both =naAve> and
instructionally produced#4 misconceptions students are likely to have about a particular
domain and potential misapplications of prior knowledge$ %/@ e:ists at the intersection
of content and pedagogy$ Thus, it does not refer to a simple consideration of both content
and pedagogy, but in isolation4 but rather to an amalgam of content and pedagogy thus
enabling transformation of content into pedagogically powerful forms$ %/@ represents
the blending of content and pedagogy into an understanding of how particular aspects of
sub0ect matter are organi'ed, adapted, and represented for instruction$
&hulman argued that having knowledge of sub0ect matter and general pedagogical
strategies, though necessary, were not sufficient for capturing the knowledge of good
teachers$ To characteri'e the comple: ways in which teachers think about how particular
content should be taught, he argued for =pedagogical content knowledge> as the content
knowledge that deals with the teaching process, including =the ways of representing and
formulating the sub0ect that make it comprehensible to others>$ -f teachers were to be
successful they would have to confront both issues (of content and pedagogy#
simultaneously, by embodying =the aspects of content most germane to its teachability>
(&hulman, "()*B(#$ ,t the heart of %/@ is the manner in which sub0ect matter is
.
transformed for teaching$ This occurs when the teacher interprets the sub0ect matter,
finding different ways to represent it and make it accessible to learners$
2elow is a diagram showing teachers+ content knowledge plus pedagogical knowledge
producing effective teaching outcomes, that is, when properly integrated$
$%gure 1.1& An Iustrat%on o! the PC' (ode
&hulman in his %/@, is concerned with the representation and formulation of concepts,
pedagogical techniques, and knowledge of what makes concepts difficult or easy to learn,
knowledge of students+ prior knowledge and theories of epistemology but not how
teachers+ can integrate sub0ect matter and curricula content knowledge with pedagogical
techniques to develop attitudes, values, skills and knowledge for citi'enship education$
There is a relationship between teachers+ content knowledge and pedagogy which when
*
Effective Teaching Cutcome
well integrated will help in achieving the purpose and goals &ocial &tudies seeks to
achieve$ That is, teachers+ content knowledge plus pedagogical content knowledge will
promote effective teaching$
1.) *tate"ent to the Pro+e"
&ince "((*, &ocial &tudies was introduced into secondary schools in Ghana and was
made compulsory for all students$ -t is e:pected that by now the nation would have
reali'ed some of the benefits of the purpose for which it was introduced in &7&$ -t is
e:pected that through the teaching of &ocial &tudies, the nation should produce
responsible citi'ens who are well informed, reflective, concerned and participatory in the
development of the nation$ This implies that most of the students that have passed
through the senior secondary system would have had their civic competencies developed
sufficiently enough to enable them participate actively in the nation+s development$

Cn the contrary, it is sad to note that despite the goals and purposes of &ocial &tudies, the
e:pected outcomes in its learners after their contact with it in secondary schools appear
unachieved$ Many people are putting up behaviours contrary to the goals and ob0ectives
of the sub0ect$ -n the researcher+s opinion, Ghanaians are becoming intolerant to national
issues, people are becoming more self- centred than thinking about their neighbours, and
people are showing apathy to national development$ There is poor attitude to work and
above all people are more tribally centred neglecting the idea of Ghana as a nation$ The
Ghanaian attitude to voting and election in general are matters of concern$ These seem to
suggest that &ocial &tudies is not being well taught in our schools$ -t is this identified gap
?
that has compelled the researcher to find out the content knowledge base of the teachers
in &ocial &tudies in our secondary schools and its effects on the teaching of the sub0ect$
1., Purpose o! the *tudy
Cne will e:pect that si:teen years after the introduction of &ocial &tudies in schools, the
youthful population in Ghana could have 0ustified the purpose and ob0ectives for which it
was brought into the curriculum of Ghana and made compulsory at the &7& and 97&
levels$ &ince the negative attitudes still persist one would like to find out the cause of
such a negative trend in our national development$
Dith the increased number of years in training, one e:pects that the teacher of the sub0ect
would have been adequately e:posed to both the content knowledge and the pedagogy$
The researcher therefore investigated whether the content knowledge of teachers is
appropriate and adequate and whether they are able to blend these in the process of
transmission of knowledge$ This was to help establish why Ghanaians+ basic attitudes
and values about life are unable to transform the society$
,ccording to &hulman ("((?#, teaching skills are related to the acquisition of knowledge,
while professional action is considered to be the application of such knowledge$
/onsequently, the professional learning of teachers starts from concrete e:perience and
their sub0ective perceptions of practical situations$ The transmission of general concepts
from theory and research is therefore of limited importance$ /onte:t-based e:perience
)
and reflection may indeed be important, but - still suggest that content knowledge among
teachers can make a difference in the level of learning$
1.- O+.ect%/es o! the *tudy
The ob0ectives of the study areB
To find out how far &ocial &tudies teachers at the &7& level understand the
content of what they are teaching.
To %n/est%gate ho# !ar *oc%a *tud%es teachers are a+e to ach%e/e the
o+.ect%/es o! the su+.ect #hen teach%ng.
To e:a"%ne ho# teachers0 content kno#edge o! *oc%a *tud%es %"pacts on
the students.
1.1 Research 2uest%ons
The research questions that were used to guide this study areB
7ow far do &ocial &tudies teachers understand the content they are teaching at the
&enior 7igh &chool<
7ow far have teachers of &ocial &tudies been able to achieve the ob0ectives of the
sub0ect they teach<
7ow do the contents of &ocial &tudies taught impact on the students<
Dhat is the general level of effectiveness of &ocial &tudies teachers in the &7&<
(
1.3 *%gn%!%cance o! the *tudy
Every sub0ect has its own peculiarity and the essence for its study$ 2y consensus, &ocial
&tudies is citi'enship education$ This definition has given the teaching of &ocial &tudies
peculiar scope, nature, purpose, goals and ob0ectives which distinguish it from the other
sub0ects$ The ultimate goal of &ocial &tudies is to prepare students to have the needed
civic competencies$ &ocial &tudies teaching equips the learner to take certain decisions
for hisEher survival$
-n this study, the researcher attempted to establish the importance of content knowledge
and the relevance of professional training that a &ocial &tudies teacher ought to get to
make him or her effective$ &uch findings could inform /olleges of Education and the
8niversities on the need to modify their &ocial &tudies curricula to suit what the Ministry
of Education e:pects at the &7& level$ &hulman ("((?# stated that teachers+ content
knowledge and pedagogical knowledge should interact with one another to produce
effective teaching$ The practice in our /olleges of Education and the teaching
8niversities where methods of teaching are taught by the Faculty of Education should be
stopped since it does not allow every sub0ect area with its peculiarity to have its
repertoire of teaching so as to bring out its peculiarity$ The study could also help /olleges
of Education and 8niversities which teach general methodology to restructure their
programmes to suit content methodology for effective teaching and learning$ Teacher
Education could restructure contents of &ocial &tudies to reflect its goal and ob0ectives
for effective teaching$ ,gain, teachers who teach &ocial &tudies could know the
relevance of teacher+s content knowledge to the teaching of &ocial &tudies$ &ocial &tudies
"!
,ssociation could also use this study to improve upon its members contents knowledge to
teach to reflect the nature, scope, goal and ob0ectives of the sub0ect to develop civic
competencies of the learners$
1.4 De%"%tat%on
-n teaching &ocial &tudies, the content knowledge of the teacher plays a vital role in
achieving the aims and goals of the sub0ect$ The researcher restricted herself to &ekondi-
Takoradi Metropolis instead of covering all &ocial &tudies teachers in at least five
;istricts in the Destern 1egion for wider coverage$ The researcher limited the study to
one ;istrict because the researcher wanted to do both qualitative and quantitative work to
unveil the situation on the ground with regards to teachers+ content knowledge$ The
researcher restricted herself to areas close by to cut down cost$ This means that for a
more complete study on teachers+ content knowledge4 other ;istricts need to be
researched into to help evaluate the performance of &ocial &tudies in the Destern region$
1.5 Organ%sat%on o! the study
This study is organised into si: chapters$ /hapter one is the introduction to the study
which provides the background of the study, statement of the problem, purpose and
ob0ectives, research questions, significance of the study, limitations and delimitations of
the study$ /hapter two reviews related literature focusing on content of &ocial &tudies,
the place of content in teaching, teaching effectiveness, &ocial &tudies, attitudinal change
and the place of methods in teaching$ /hapter three describes the methodology used for
the study$ This includes the research design, population, sample techniques, procedures
""
and instruments used to collect data as well as methods used to analyse the data collected$
/hapter four deals with the presentation of data collected$ /hapter five is the discussion
on the findings of the research$ /hapter si: is the summary, conclusion,
recommendations and suggestion for further research$
"
CHAPTER T6O
RE7IE6 O$ RE8ATED 8ITERATURE
).9 Introduct%on
This chapter is a review of literature on the ma0or themes in the study, namely4 content
of &ocial &tudies, the place of methods in teaching, and the place of content in teaching,
teaching effectiveness and &ocial &tudies and attitudinal development$
).1 Content o! *oc%a *tud%es
The content of a discipline is largely dictated by the acceptable definition prescribed by
its practitioners$ 8nfortunately, in the field of &ocial &tudies the practitioners have held
different definitions and there are those who do not seem to see any link between the
definition and the content$
,ccording to &hulman ("((#, teachers need to master two types of knowledgeB (a#
content, also known as GdeepG knowledge of the sub0ect itself, and (b# knowledge of the
curricular development$ /ontent knowledge encompasses what 2runer ("(*!# called the
Gstructure of knowledgeG namelyB the theories, principles, and concepts of a particular
discipline$ Especially important is content knowledge that deals with the teaching
process, including the most useful forms of representing and communicating content and
how students+ best learn the specific concepts and topics of a sub0ect$ G-f beginning
teachers are to be successful, they must wrestle simultaneously with issues of
pedagogical content or knowledge as well as general pedagogy or generic teaching
principlesG (Grossman, as cited in Crnstein, Thomas, 5 Hasley, !!!B .!)#$ &hulman
"6
("((.# defined content knowledge as the knowledge about the sub0ect, for e:ample,
mathematics and its structure$
This implies that knowledge of &ocial &tudies and knowledge of &ocial &tudies
presentations are related to content knowledge, while knowledge of students and how
teaching is done is related to pedagogical content knowledge$ Thus, what a teacher
perceives the sub0ect to be and the methodology to make known what heEshe perceived
will bring about a well presentation of the sub0ect so that its philosophy, nature, goal and
ob0ectives will be well integrated to produce learners whose civic competencies are well
developed$ The perceived knowledge of the sub0ect is what &hulman ("((.# termed as its
sub0ect matter and deep understanding of the sub0ect matter is the foundation for
pedagogical content knowledge which enables the teacher to teach effectively so that
students become well informed to develop their civic competence$
&hulman ("((.# was of the view that, for a teacher to be able to teach effectively, heEshe
needs to understand the sub0ect matter deeply so that heEshe can relate one idea to
another, and address misconceptions in students$ Teachers need to see how ideas connect
across fields of study and to everyday life$ This kind of understanding provides a
foundation for pedagogical content knowledge that enables teachers to make ideas
accessible to others$
This means that a number of factors may influence the teaching of &ocial &tudies but
teachers play an important role in the teaching process$ The common belief in society is,
if a &ocial &tudies teacher knows &ocial &tudies very well, he or she is the best person to
teach &ocial &tudies$ 2ut, what about knowing how to teach &ocial &tudies<
"3
Fennema and Franke ("((# came out with components of &ocial &tudies teachers+
knowledge as4
"# @nowledge of &ocial &tudies
/ontent knowledge
The nature of &ocial &tudies
The mental organisation of teacher knowledge
# @nowledge of &ocial &tudies representations
6# @nowledge of students+ cognitions
3# @nowledge of teaching and decision-making
The first item is about having conceptual understanding of &ocial &tudies$ They argue
that if a teacher has a conceptual understanding of &ocial &tudies, this influences
classroom instruction in a positive way$ Therefore, it is important for teachers to possess
&ocial &tudies knowledge$ Teachers+ interrelated knowledge is very important as well as
procedural rules$ They also emphasi'e the importance of knowledge of &ocial &tudies
representations, because &ocial &tudies is seen as a composition of a large set of highly
related disciplines$
,gain, Fennema and Franke ("((# stated that =if teachers do not know how to integrate
these disciplines into a form that enables learners to relate the &ocial &tudies to what they
already know, they will not learn with understanding> (p$"(#$ This means that &ocial
&tudies knowledge for teaching goes beyond that captured in the curriculum content of
&ocial &tudies$ For e:ample, teachers of &ocial &tudies do not only need to teach to test
".
but also need to know how to use pictures or diagrams to represent &ocial &tudies
concepts and facts which provide students with information that will make them to be
concerned, reflective and participatory citi'ens who will help solve problems of the
individual+s survival and that of the nation$ &ocial &tudies seeks to develop in learners
social understanding and civic efficacy which means the readiness and willingness to
assume citi'enship responsibilities and to make informed and reasoned decisions for the
public good as citi'ens of a democratic society$
@nowledge of students+ cognitions is seen as one of the important components of teacher
knowledge, because, according to Fennema and Franke ("((#, learning is based on what
happens in the classroom, and thus, not only what students do, but also the learning
environment is important for learning$ The last component of teacher knowledge is
=knowledge of teaching and decision making>$ Teachers+ beliefs, knowledge, 0udgments,
and thoughts have an effect on the decisions they make which influence their plans and
actions in the classroom$
,n, @ulm and Du (!!3# pointed out that pedagogical content knowledge has three
componentsB
I @nowledge of content
I @nowledge of curriculum
I @nowledge of teaching
"*
They are of the opinion that knowledge of content and curriculum knowledge are of great
importance to knowledge of teaching because teacher+s sub0ect matter which is the
knowledge of content plus the content given in the syllabus will produce effective
teaching and learning$ They were of the same view with &hulman ("((# and they accept
that content knowledge is the core component of pedagogical content knowledge$ -n
&ocial &tudies, for e:ample, its content deals with such distillate knowledge,
development of attitudes, values and skills that are essential in solving the problems of
the individual+s survival in a given community$ This means that what can rightly be
called &ocial &tudies would centre on issues, questions and problems of the individual+s
survival in the society and the development of positive mind and skills towards their
solutions$ To be able to achieve this requires the teacher+s deep understanding about the
sub0ect and hisEher right approach to the teaching of the content as prescribed to himEher$
Grouws and &chult' ("((*# summed up the argument when they stated that =pedagogical
content knowledge includes, but is not limited to, useful representations, unifying ideas,
clarifying e:amples and counter e:amples, helpful analogies, important relationships, and
connections among ideas (p$ 3*#>$ For e:ample, @i'lik (!"#, who for many years
perceived &ocial &tudies as amalgamation of the social sciences, was teaching &ocial
&tudies courses as history, civics and geography at the secondary level$ From his
e:perience, he claimed he had reached some conclusions about what it takes to teach
these diverse sub0ect areas effectively$ &ocial &tudies is rather broad set of sub0ect-matter
courses, and for a teacher at the secondary level, it is highly unusual that he or she would
have mastery of more than two or three of them$ -ncluded in the &ocial &tudies
"?
curriculum are such courses as economics, history, geography, civics or government and
anthropology$ %olitical &cience is usually reserved for the college level, but it appears as
a course in many high school curricula$ @i'lik (!"# stated that =much too often, &ocial
&tudies courses are regarded as relatively unimportant sub0ect matter, whether in
elementary school, middle school, or high school>$ This is a perception used by many
practitioners and it leads to diminished attention being paid to &ocial &tudies as a serious
sub0ect area, yet in the overall development of the intellect of students, no other sub0ect
matter content holds as much promise$
@i'lik (!"# made his assertion by using citi'enship education$ 7e said =if an intended
learning outcome of the &ocial &tudies curriculum is good citi'enship, then it is patently
clear that there is a disconnect between intentions and outcomes> (p$36#$ This trend has
persisted, despite countless reforms in the curriculum, instructional techniques, and
programmes of studies and goals promulgated by such organi'ations as the Jational
/ouncil for the &ocial &tudies, and the virtual mountain of programmes and technology
=solutionsG touted as effective$
-n the main, &ocial &tudies is about understandings, not skills$ Cstensibly, these
understandings will lead one to become 0ust, compassionate, honest, and perhaps even
curious about not 0ust questions of Gwhat,G but also questions of GhowG and Gwhy$G 2ob
as cited in @i'lik (!"# said that =learning the content of the social studies is about
creating knowledge, not memori'ing facts. &tudents certainly require factual information
to construct knowledge, but that is only the beginning$ ,s opposed to the content of the
")
Gstructured disciplines,G the &ocial &tudies is especially amenable to constructivist ideas
for teaching and learning$ /onstructivism has little value in learning skills such as those
found in mathematics, language arts, and certain content represented in the sciences
(@i'lik, !"#$ For the &ocial &tudies, it can be pure magic in the hands of competent
teachers$
Karious schools of thought have emerged to give different definitions to the sub0ect but
there has been a consensus that the definition of &ocial &tudies is /iti'enship Education$
2lege (!!!# viewed citi'enship education as =the instructional preparation of the
younger generation towards making students good and effective persons in society>
(p$ "6#$ 2lege+s (!!!# definition implies helping the up and coming members of the
society to acquire adequate knowledge, desirable attitudes, values and skills, to enable
them become useful citi'ens in the society in which they live$ Cbviously, the word
preparation used in 2lege+s (!!!# definition means a systematic orientation of students
for readiness towards citi'enship functions including active participation in every effort
designed to promote the progress of society$ These may involve active participation in
communal life such as clean-up campaigns, voting in elections, etc$
%ecku ("((3# viewed citi'enship education as education which sharpens the civic
competencies of the individual$ /ivic competencies here have to do with the citi'en+s
ability to perform duties e:pected of a citi'en$ These include showing concerns for
activities that help uplift the image of the society heEshe finds himself or herself in$
Even though by consensus &ocial &tudies is accepted as citi'enship education in Ghana, it
must however be emphasi'ed that there are still arguments about how this citi'enship
"(
education must be carried out (2ekoe, !!*#$ From these arguments emerge two schools
of thoughtB one advocating for the integration of knowledge for solving problems of the
individual+s survival (citi'enship education# and the other amalgamation of the social
sciences to give students broader knowledge about what happens around himEher4 an
opinion Luartey described as education for the citi'enry (Luartey, !!6#$
/iti'enship education in sum is the preparation of citi'ens to participate actively in a
democratic society (2lege, !!!4 %ecku, "((3#$ 2lege (!!"# and Cdumah (!!6# agreed
that =the nature of &ocial &tudies is problem-solving>$ -n an attempt to give effect to this
position these authors e:plained that &ocial &tudies deals with the contemporary
persistent problems of human survival$ These problems, according to 2lege (!!"#, are
those current and =perple:ing issues> in our particular societies which when left
unattended for a long time poses a threat to the continued survival of people in that
society$ This raises two ma0or points about the nature of &ocial &tudies$ Firstly, &ocial
&tudies deals with the problems of the =here> and the =now>$ The =here> refers to the
problems of the particular society$ For instance, &ocial &tudies in Ghana should deal with
the problems that confront Ghana as a nation$ This is because the problems of Ghana are
not essentially the same as those of Jigeria$ ,lthough, the two countries are developing
countries Ghana however faces distinct economic and social problems that Jigeria might
not be facing$
Dith the problems of the =now>, &ocial &tudies as a sub0ect is concerned with current
socio-economic and political issues or challenges that confront people in their society$
This is better e:pressed in the definition by Luartey ("().# that &ocial &tudies equips
!
=man> with the necessary tools to combat the problems of human survival in hisEher
community$ For instance, Ghana is currently faced with high rates of road accidents,
7-KE,-;& pandemic, deep seated political division, killings of people by loved ones and
the nation+s currency depreciating as against the foreign currency$
&econdly, the problems &ocial &tudies seek to prepare individuals to be able to identify
and find solution to must be persistent and contemporary$ The persistent and
contemporary problems are those re-current problems that continue to afflict society in
spite of the many attempts to deal with them in the past$ &ome of those problems, in
Ghana, that &ocial &tudies must deal with are corruption, maintaining constitutional
order, ethnocentrism, road accidents, armed robbery and economic dependency
associated with tripling foreign debts among others$
8ltimately, &ocial &tudies is, or at least should be, about helping students develop
positive values that will lead them to make good decisions, do the right thing, and be
decent, moral, caring, and involved citi'ens$ ,kinlaye (!!6# also share the same view
that =the competence in teaching &ocial &tudies depends largely on sound understanding
of its philosophy> and that how the sub0ect is perceived plays an important role in the
determination of its goal and ob0ectives$
,nother writer like Luartey (!!6# said that the philosophy of a sub0ect is the main core
that links the content, teaching and assessment of that sub0ect4 appropriate teaching
techniques and assessment procedures depend to a large e:tent on what the sub0ect stands
for$ To achieve the intended ob0ective of &ocial &tudies therefore begins with a clear
"
understanding of what the sub0ect is about$ Effective teaching of &ocial &tudies requires
that its teachers hold perceptions that fall in line with what the sub0ect is intended for$
This implies that, &ocial &tudies knowledge for teaching goes beyond that captured in the
curriculum content of &ocial &tudies and also pedagogy plus content knowledge will lead
to effective teaching of &ocial &tudies which will at the end imbibe in students+ attitudes,
values, knowledge and skills for their survival in the society$ For e:ample, teachers of
&ocial &tudies do not only need to teach to test but also need to know how to use pictures
or diagrams to represent &ocial &tudies concepts and facts to students, provide students
with information that will make students to be concerned, reflective and participatory
citi'ens to help solve problems of man+s survival and that of the nation$ The &ocial
&tudies curriculum builds four capacities in young peopleB disciplinary knowledge,
thinking skills, commitment to democratic values, and citi'en participation and at the end
of each lesson, teachers must achieve that in their teaching$
The contents of &ocial &tudies are drawn from several social sciences but not determined
by the discipline of any one of these$ &ocial &tudies is meant to cover the ground,
traditionally associated with 7istory, Geography, Economics, /ivics etc, if the teaching
of these sub0ects only imparts miscellaneous and unrelated information and does not
throw any light on it or provide insight into social conditions and problems or create the
desire to improve the e:isting state of things, their educative significance will be
negligible$ The whole group of studies has, therefore, to be viewed as a compact whole,
whose ob0ect is to ad0ust the students to their social environment$

&ocial &tudies teaching must include material which is conducive to the development of a
well informed, intelligent person who is capable of comprehending properly the current
problems, is keen to accept responsibilities as a citi'en for the welfare of all and has
developed insights, skills and moral qualities which are so essential and desirable in a
democratic society, this, @i'lik (!"#, also said under his view on pedagogy$
This was e:actly again what &hulman ("((.B 3!# was saying in his pedagogical content
knowledge that effective teaching includes, =the ways of representing and formulating the
sub0ect that make it comprehensible to others M an understanding of what makes the
learning of specific topics easy or difficult4 the conceptions and preconceptions that
students of different ages and backgrounds bring with them to the learning of those most
frequently taught topics and lessons> and this portrays a teacher who possesses an in-
depth knowledge of how to represent the sub0ect matter to learners$
,dditionally, pedagogical content knowledge refers to the ability of the teacher to
transform content into forms that are pedagogically powerful and yet adaptive to the
variations in ability and background presented by the students (&hulman, "()?, cited in
,n, @ulm and Du, !!3#$
Meaning, &ocial &tudies content knowledge and pedagogical content knowledge are
integrated parts of effective &ocial &tudies instruction$ -n order to construct &ocial
&tudies concepts in students+ mind, pedagogical knowledge as well as &ocial &tudies
content knowledge is needed$ The manner in which teachers relate their sub0ect matter
(what they know about what they teach# to their pedagogical knowledge (what they know
about teaching# and how sub0ect matter knowledge is a part of the process of pedagogical
6
reasoning are seen as integrants of pedagogical content knowledge (/ochran, ;e1uiter 5
@ing, "((6#$
Most researchers point out the importance of &ocial &tudies content knowledge as well as
pedagogical knowledge$ ;espite this widespread interest and concern, what counts as
=sub0ect- matter knowledge for teaching> and how it relates to student achievement has
remained inadequately specified in past research$ , closer look at the educational
production function literature, for e:ample, reveals that researchers working in this
tradition have typically measured teachers+ knowledge using pro:y variables, such as
courses taken, degrees attained, or results of basic skills tests$ This stands in sharp
contrast to another group of education scholars who have begun to conceptuali'e
teachers+ knowledge for teaching differently, arguing that teacher effects on student
achievement are driven by teachers+ ability to understand and use sub0ect-matter
knowledge to carry out the tasks of teaching (2all, "((!4 &hulman, "()*4 Dilson,
&hulman, 5 1ichert, "()?#$
@ahan, /ooper and 2ethea+s (!!6# review shared the same concern that =student learn
more &ocial &tudies if their teachers knew more &ocial &tudies but content knowledge in
the sub0ect area does not suffice for good teaching> (p$ 6#$ 7owever, they also outlined
that the content of pedagogical content knowledge is Ncontent-specific and at the same
time goes beyond simple knowledge of &ocial &tudies therefore a &ocial &tudies teacher
may not posses it$ 2ecause teachers+ knowledge has not been adequately measured, the
e:isting educational production function research could be limited in terms of its
conclusions, not only regarding the magnitude of the effect of teachers+ knowledge on
3
student learning but also regarding the kinds of teacher knowledge that matter most in
producing student learning$ Teachers+ content knowledge and pedagogy knowledge
interact with one another to produce effective teaching$
).) THE P8ACE O$ CONTENT IN TEACHIN:
-n recent years, teachers+ knowledge of the sub0ect matter they teach has attracted
increasing attention from policymakers$ %rogrammes such as &ocial &tudies workshop for
&7& &ocial &tudies teachers, English language workshop for &7& English teachers and
the Jational &cience Foundation+s Math-&cience %artnerships are all aimed at providing
content-focused professional development intended to improve teachers+ content
knowledge$ The focus on sub0ect-matter knowledge is evidence suggesting that teachers
have not made the necessary impact on their teaching and that they lack the essential
knowledge for teaching their field of area (e$g$, 2all, "((!4 Ma, "(((#$
;espite this widespread interest and concern, what counts as =sub0ect matter knowledge
for teaching> and how it relates to student achievement has remained inadequately
specified in past research$ , literature read for e:ample, reveals that researchers working
in this tradition have typically measured teachers+ knowledge using pro:y variables, such
as courses taken, degrees attained, or results of basic skills tests$ This stands in sharp
contrast to another group of education scholars who have begun to conceptuali'e
teachers+ knowledge for teaching differently, arguing that teacher effects on student
achievement are driven by teachers+ ability to understand and use sub0ect-matter
knowledge to carry out the tasks of teaching (2all, "((!4 &hulman, "()*4 Dilson,
&hulman, 5 1ichert,"()?#$
.
The Jational /ouncil for &ocial &tudies said that, teaching &ocial &tudies powerfully and
authentically begins with a deep knowledge and understanding of the sub0ect and its
unique goals$ &ocial &tudies programs prepare students to identify, understand, and work
to solve the challenges facing our diverse nation in an increasingly interdependent world$
Education for citi'enship should help students acquire and learn to use the skills,
knowledge, and attitudes that will prepare them to be competent and responsible citi'ens
throughout their lives$ /ompetent and responsible citi'ens are informed and thoughtful,
participate in their communities, are involved politically, and e:hibit moral and civic
virtues (J/&&, !!)#$
Teacher education, competence, and practice is an important topic, but still there has, at
least in the Ghanaian conte:t, been limited research on teachers+ competence as well as
performance when it comes to &ocial &tudies as a school sub0ect$ &everal studies have
been directed toward the content and evolution of the national curriculum of &ocial
&tudies$ Cthers have been concerned with &ocial &tudies te:tbooks, while yet others have
done research on students attitudes toward and practicing of democratic values in the
school setting$ To my knowledge, there has been an empirical research e:ploring the
priorities, perspectives, and teaching methods of &ocial &tudies teachers$ The conclusion
from these different studies is, of course, more nuanced than - am able to e:press in a few
lines, but a general tendency appears to be that &ocial &tudies, in line with other school
sub0ects, has been sub0ect to changing content and intentions based on general trends in
school policy$ To /lausen, te:t books, on the other hand, are still limited in their ability
to e:press social and political themes from a non-traditional perspective (/lausen !!?#, and
teachers are largely unable to depart from te:t-books and traditional teaching methods$
*
,s e:pressed by /hristophersen, et al (!!6# a stronger emphasis on social science methods
in national curricula, has not changed the teaching practice of social science teachers$
They are still teaching &ocial &tudies in a classical manner, applying traditional teaching
methods$ Dhen this is said, however, teaching and writing te:tbooks for &ocial &tudies is
not a simple assignment, because there is more than one perspective on what the intention
and content of the sub0ect should be$
,ccording to 2Orhaug (!!.#, &ocial &tudies is short of a specific didactical canon
defining the sub0ect matter+s most important purpose, goal, content and teaching
methods$ This makes the sub0ect matter a vulnerable one, set out to cover topics and
themes that the school should be concerned with, but that do not fit into any of the other
established school sub0ects$ &uch a school sub0ect becomes a difficult one to teach$
,ltogether, 2Orhaug (!!.# identifies at least three different perspectives on what should
be the content of &ocial &tudies as a school sub0ect$
Firstly, an important purpose is to legitimi'e the current structure of the society by
transferring democratic values, and teaching students about the established social and
political -nstitutions$ From a political science perspective this is, of course, important to
maintain established structures, such as for e:ample democracy and free speech (March
5 9ohan "((.#$ There are several ways to teach &ocial &tudies to secure such intentions$
For e:ample, one can render democracy as identical with our own political institutions,
one can avoid critical discussion of established institutions, or one can e:press social and
political institutions as solely sub0ect to a national dimension (2Orhaug !!.#$ /lausen
?
(!!?# and 7aavelsrud ("(?(# said that, for those studying &ocial &tudies te:t-books, this
is e:actly what they find$ The sociali'ation into certain values is strong, and some topics
are not at all treated in a critical manner$ Empirical studies do, indeed, indicate that the
legitimi'ingEsociali'ation purpose of &ocial &tudies is heavily represented in te:tbooks as
well as in the daily teaching of &ocial &tudies$ There are, nevertheless, reasons to be
sceptical to this trend$
,lso, TOnnesson (!!6# e:pressed that, if something is e:pressed in one perspective,
without presenting the alternatives, this is highly unethical and contrary to scientific
ethics$ The second perspective on &ocial &tudies, introduced by 2Orhaug (!!.# is to
treat &ocial &tudies as a sub0ect that should teach students important skills that may be
useful in their everyday life$ This would involve for e:ample how to vote and what
welfare rights you have, as well as critical thinking skills and methodological
competence$ -n the most recent national curriculum, this has become an important
perspective, suggesting that students should learn the appropriate skills to manage
socially and politically$ 7owever, there are many themes in &ocial &tudies that do not fit
into this perspective, such as immigration, sociali'ation, and international relations$ -n
addition, many of those studying trends in the national curriculum are sceptical towards
the tendency to focus on skills rather than knowledge (&karpenes, !!?4 Foros !!*#$ -t
appears plausible that applying skills and methods becomes difficult without some
background knowledge of the society in which new knowledge is to be constructed$
)
The third perspective suggested by 2Orhaug (!!.# is a more critical approach where the
goal of &ocial &tudies teaching is that the students should become reflective upon their
own action, and the social and political system$ &tudents should learn to understand that
political behaviour and institutions are not given, but sub0ect to evaluation and change$
This requires knowledge of the social and political system, as well as the student+s
position within it$ 2ut it also requires political skills and the ability to cooperate with
other, as well as the methodological skills to independently evaluate information$
,ccording to 7abermas ("((*# and Englund (!!(#, studies indicate that te:t-books have
tendencies to be moralistic and one-sided, and teachers appear unable to teach &ocial
&tudies in critical manner$ Teachers should be able to introduce topics and themes from
the national curriculum in various perspectives, even if these various perspectives are not
fully represented in the te:tbook$ /entral in this regard is the idea of the deliberative
democracy$ This implies that a &ocial &tudies te:t book does not make a teacher a good
teacher, also, it does not make the sub0ect easier to be taught by any teacher of other
discipline as it is going on in some schools, again, the te:t book will not make a teacher
teach effectively to achieve the intended goals, purpose and ob0ectives it seeks to achieve$
Englund (!!(# also said that, students develop citi'enship literacy as they have the
opportunity to e:pand their competence to understand and to deliberate upon plural ideas
and argumentsB a communication which is about sharing as well as contesting different
ways of apprehending the world$
(
,ccording to H0unggren and Pst (!"!#, the teacher should, therefore, not only introduce
students to the various perspectives, but should open up for discussing these various
perspectives, and possible political controversies, in class$ This involves going beyond
the dominant pattern of in-class communication where the teacher teaches and the
students listen$ Meaning, &ocial &tudies teachers should be better at making the &ocial
&tudies school sub0ect less abstract by introducing the students to &ocial &tudies research
pro0ects$ This makes the student to be part of the lesson$ &ocial and political behaviour
and structures are highly present in the students+ everyday life$ To make this possible is
to engage students in social science research pro0ects related to their own environment$
&tudent can, for e:ample be asked to e:plore and discuss the practicing of democracy in
their own environment or in the local community4 making &ocial &tudies a practical as
well as theoretical sub0ect$ This does, however, require that the teachers themselves are
familiar with &ocial &tudies research methods and strategies and can guide students in
their research pro0ects$ /ontent matters because skills are not enough$ &kills are
necessary but they are only the beginning of learning$ Dithout skills, one cannot acquire
knowledge$ @nowledge builds on knowledge$
).).1 The Pace o! (ethod %n Teach%ng *oc%a *tud%es
To teach all students according to today+s standards, teachers need to understand sub0ect
matter deeply and fle:ibly so they can help students create useful cognitive maps, relate
one idea to another, and address misconceptions$ Teachers need to see how ideas connect
across fields and to everyday life$ This kind of understanding provides a foundation for
6!
pedagogical content knowledge that enables teachers to make ideas accessible to others
(&hulman, "()?#$
&hulman ("()*# introduced the phrase pedagogical content knowledge and sparked a
whole new wave of scholarly articles on teachersQ knowledge of their sub0ect matter and
the importance of this knowledge for successful teaching$ Especially important is content
knowledge that deals with the teaching process, including the most useful forms of
representing and communicating content and how students+ best learn the specific
concepts and topics of a sub0ect$ G-f beginning teachers are to be successful, they must
wrestle simultaneously with issues of pedagogical content (or knowledge# as well as
general pedagogy (or generic teaching principles#G (Grossman, as cited in Crnstein,
Thomas, 5 Hasley, !!!, p$ .!)#$
The J&T, &tandards authors define a model of pedagogy familiar to teachers and
teacher educators$ This model includesB actions and strategies of teaching, organi'ation of
classroom e:periences, providing for diverse learner needs, evaluation and
implementation of learnerQs prior notions, and transformation of ideas into understandable
pieces (Jational &cience Teachers ,ssociation, "(()#$ These familiar notions were
clearly described in 2orko and %utnamQs (!!!# review of literature on learning to teach$
The treatment in J&T, &tandards look e:clusively at literature related to science
teaching$ The outcome of these standards is reflective of teaching standards found in The
Jational &cience Education &tandards (J&E&# ("((*#$
6"
The J&T, &tandards ("(()# suggested that teachers of science should be able to provide
all students the opportunity to learn from science instruction, to make sense out of
science and to want to do more science$ This is in the spirit of the J&E&, but no simple
task$ This statement involves multiple pedagogical tasks includingB addressing all
studentsQ needs4 planning activities that allow and encourage students to learn and reason
about problems4 trying to make sense of the world4 and instilling in students the desire to
learn more science (Jational 1esearch /ouncil, "((*#$
Hooking back at &hulman+s ("((# /ontent and %edagogy knowledge, there were some
important themes that overlapped in that document$ The /ontent section e:pected that
teachers would be able to make connections and see relationships between concepts$
Dhile the %edagogy section sought to help students learn about societal problems$
Making connections requires an understanding of the problems faced man for hisEher
survival$ The /ontent section e:pects &ocial &tudies teachers to learn and teach about the
process of developing attitudes, values, skills and knowledge, while the %edagogy section
e:pects teachers to plan e:periences for their students to be reflective, concerned,
responsible and participatory citi'ens$ This presents the intersection in the learning how
to teach &ocial &tudies using different approaches$ Making similar connections relies on a
facile understanding of both the content students are learning and how students learn$
Hee &hulman ("()?# developed the construct of Gpedagogical content knowledgeG (%/@#
in response to some of the problems of teaching and teacher education$ -ronically, it is
only mentioned to e:plain that the content standard would be looking at the content
specific aspect of the sub0ect$ There is a connection between content knowledge and
6
pedagogical knowledge in &ocial &tudies teaching, which is implicit in many research
made$ /areful reading reveals connections in the two domains that cannot be neglected$
For e:ample the pedagogy standard suggests that teachers know about organi'ation of
classroom e:periences$ 7owever to design such organi'ation requires a deep
understanding of content$ This was what &hulman ("()?# was talking about when stating,
GThe key to distinguishing the knowledge base of teaching lies at the intersection of
content and pedagogyG (pg$ ".#$
2ased on &hulman+s ("()?# notion of pedagogical content knowledge, effective teachers
can possess an in-depth knowledge of how to represent the sub0ect matter to learners
(%arker 5 7eywood, !!!#$ &hulman ("()?# also stated that pedagogical content
knowledge must include the knowledge of learners and their characteristics, knowledge
of educational conte:ts, knowledge of educational ends, purposes and values, and their
philosophical and historical bases$ ,dditionally, pedagogical content knowledge refers to
the ability of the teacher to transform content into forms that are pedagogically powerful
and yet adaptive to the variations in ability and background presented by the students
(&hulman, "()?, cited in ,n, @ulm and Du, !!3#$ &ocial &tudies is short of a specific
didactical canon defining the sub0ect matter+s most important purpose, goal, content and
teaching methods$
)., E$$ECTI7E TEACHIN:
Hearning the basic skills necessary for you to become an effective educator can be
especially difficult for a first year teacher$ 2ecoming an effective teacher takes practice
66
and time and special guidance from mentors$ Effective teaching does not involve
presenting your e:citing lessons or activities to the class, it is a craft learned over time$
Effective teaching is a teaching philosophy that can distinctly change given the situation$
For e:ample, a classroom with five students is a much different situation than addressing
a class of forty students$ 7aving the skills and abilities necessary to become an effective
teacher will allow you to craft your lessons and teaching style to accommodate any si'e
of class$
,ccording to Foros (!!*# the characteristics of effective teaching include4 positive
e:pectations, enthusiasm, effective classroom manager E organi'ation, ability to design
lessons and activities, and rapport with students$ Effective teachers should have high
e:pectations for their entire class$ Dhether a student constantly makes hundreds on tests
or a fifty, each student should be given positive reinforcement in class$ Effective teachers
should e:hibit positive e:pectations to ensure each student believes he can e:cel$
Transmitting positive reinforcement by telling each student that they have high abilities
and are a capable learner will allow students to e:cel to their highest abilities$ -n addition,
setting positive e:pectations in the classroom will help students who do not have proper
motivation and support at home$
Effective teachers should always e:hibit enthusiasm in the classroom$ Enthusiasm will
allow your students to be interested in class discussions and classroom activities$
Effective teachers should speak in e:pressive ways, not a monotone style$ -n addition,
gestures with arms and constantly moving around the classroom will allow your students
63
to be interested in the classroom discussion$ Effective teacher should also maintain eye
contact with their students at all times$
Educators need to have proper classroom management skills in order to be effective
teachers$ /lassroom management is not about disciplining your class4 it deals with how to
effectively manage the classroom$ /lassroom management deals with how to take roll,
keep an effective grade book and how to discipline students$ Cne of the most important
skills for an effective teacher to master is how to design and implement lessons in the
classroom$ ;esigning lessons involves how to cater for the needed curriculum content
into discussions, activities and assignments$ -n addition, an effective teacher should also
be able to evaluate whether or not their students mastered the lesson$
,n effective teacher should always establish rapport with their students$ Establishing
interpersonal relationships with students is crucial to form a trusting bond with each
student$ Effective teachers should be available outside of class to answer questions and
provide additional help to students$ -n addition, an effective teacher should show
tolerance to differing points of view during class$
There are not many who, when given an option, would choose to have a poor classroom
teacher rather than a good one$ 2ut 0ust how important is the teacher to student
achievement and learning< 1esearchers are finding that the effect of good teaching is
substantial and lasting$ %erhaps the most well known research on this question was
performed by Dilliam H$ &anders and 9une /$ 1ivers at the 8niversity of Tennessee$ -n
one study, they found that Ggroups of students with comparable abilities and initial
achievement levels may have vastly different academic outcomes as a result of the
6.
sequence of teachers to which they are assignedG &anders ("((3#$ Three years of highly
effective teachers can boost student achievement by as much as .! percentile points,
compared to having relatively ineffective teachers for three years$ &andersQ ("((3#
research e:amines Gthe improvement of students from the beginning of the school year to
the endG based on test scores, what is called the Gvalue addedG by teachers$
-n fact, classroom teachers contribute more to student achievement than any other factor$
&pecifically, &andersQ ("((3# value-added research found that teacher effectiveness has a
greater impact than Grace, poverty, RorS parentQs educationG$ -n addition, Hinda ;arling-
7ammond (!!!#, from &tanford 8niversity, notes in a research review that differences
in teacher effectiveness are more important than Gdifferences in class si'eG$ ;arling-
7ammondQs (!!!#, own analysis of data from the Jational ,ssessment of Educational
%rogress found Gthat the effects of well-prepared teachers on student achievement can be
stronger than the influences of student background factors, such as poverty, language
background, and minority statusG (!!!#$ Finally, 9ohn &chacter from the Milken Family
Foundation and Teow Meng Thum from 8/H, found in a review of relevant studies that
GDhen compared to virtually every other school reform effort to date (e$g$ class si'e
reduction, charter schools, vouchers, direct instruction, technology, etc$#, students who
have effective teachers achieve the mostG (!!3#$ The quality of the teacher, then, is the
most important school-related factor and can be more powerful than many out-of-school
factors$
).,.1 Character%st%cs o! E!!ect%/e Teachers
6*
Dhat the studies cited so far do not tell us, however, is what makes teachers effective$
More recent research has attempted to answer this question by pairing value-added
research methods with studies of teacher characteristics (Foros, !!*#$ Jot surprisingly,
there is no universal agreement among researchers about which teacher qualities matter
the most$ 7owever, several research reviews have identified teacher qualities that seem to
make a differenceB
7er+a a+%%ty& There is near universal agreement that the verbal skills of teachers
matter$ -n fact, @ate Dalsh and /hristopher Tracy of The Jational /ouncil on
Teacher Luality assert that Gtwo recent reviews of the research found that a
teacherQs level of literacy as measured by vocabulary and other standardi'ed tests
affects student achievement more than any other measurable teacher attribute.G
Content kno#edge& -t is also commonly acknowledged that a secondary teacher
with a degree in math or science will Groutinely get higher student performance
than teachersG that do not have a degree in those fields (7aycock, "(()#$
7owever, some research notes that, while it is important for teachers to know the
material to be taught, the importance of knowing the sub0ect will Ggrow smaller
beyond some minimal essential levelG (;arling-7ammond, !!!#$
Cert%!%cat%on& The research on the importance of teacher certification to student
achievement is less clear$ Hinda ;arling-7ammondQs (!!!# study found that
Gteacher quality characteristics such as certification status and degree in the field
to be taught are very significantly and positively correlated with student
outcomesG$
6?
E;per%ence& Most agree that a teacher with some e:perience is usually more
effective than someone new on the 0ob$ 2ut most studies have found that teachers
become more effective during the first five years of their careers and then level
off until close to the end of their careers$ -nterestingly, however, ;arling-
7ammond (!!!#, reports that Gveteran teachers in settings that emphasi'e
continual learning and collaboration continue to improve their performanceG$
Dhile &anders ("((3# agree that Gsome e:perience does have an impact on
student achievementG they also maintain that Ge:perience has less of an impact on
student achievement than other measurable teacher attributes$G
The four attributes discussed above are the most commonly studied because they are the
easiest to measure$ Cther teacher qualities may be as or more important, but are difficult
to measure on a large scale$ For e:ample, &anders ("((3# suggests that the qualities that
Teachers for ,merica has found to be common among their most successful teachers
(academically successful in school and college, responsible, able to think critically,
motivated, respectful, and sharing the organi'ationQs goals# may be important contributors
to teacher effectiveness$ &imilarly, Hinda ;arling-7ammond (!!!# identifies a Gpositive
relationship between student learning and teachersQ Qfle:ibilityQ, QcreativityQ, or
QadaptabilityQ $$$&uccessful teachers tend to be those who are able to use a range of
teaching strategies and who use a range of interaction styles, rather than a single rigid
approachG$ &uch GsoftG attributes are undoubtedly important, but they are difficult to
ascertain without observing or interviewing teachers directly$
).,.) 2ua%ty Teach%ng
6)
The research on teacher characteristics and their effect on student achievement have been
useful in recent discussions about how to construct policies to encourage high quality
teachers to enter and remain in the profession$ 7owever, it is most likely that the positive
effects on student achievement attributed to good teachers are as much a result of quality
teaching as of teacher qualities$ -n other words, it is how teachers teach that makes the
most difference in student achievement$ Hike the personality traits mentioned above,
however, how teachers teach is more difficult to measure than how many years someone
has been a teacher$ -n fact, J/&& (!!)# notes that Gthere are no comprehensive reviews
that neatly synthesi'e research on teaching practicesG$ 1ather than relying on research
reviews, then, this section summari'es a few studies that attempt to identify effective
teaching practices as measured by effects on student achievement$
The Teacher+s /urriculum -nstitute (T/-# (!!3#, sought to determine Gwhether high-
quality teaching was related to better outcomes for all childrenG using data from more
than ?,!!! students and almost 3!! teachers$ To determine teacher quality, they relied on
classroom observations by a teacherQs principal or assistant principal, using a set of
standards for teachers$ The standards in the study dealt with teachersQ content knowledge,
use of a variety of instructional methods, lesson planning, use of assessment data,
adaptively to student needs, persistence, and engaging Gstudents cognitively in activities
and assignments $$$congruent to instructional ob0ectives$G The researchers e:amined
student performance data in grades 3-* in math and reading$ ,fter accounting for other
factors, such as Gteacher e:perience and student pretest score, minority status, and free-
lunch status,G T/- (!!3# found that Gbetter teaching appears to be related to better
6(
learning outcomes$G -n other words, teachers who were rated highly according to the
standards produced better results for kids$
&chacter and Thum (!!3# used a similar approach to measuring teacher practice and its
effect on student achievement in a study of more than .! teachers at five ,ri'ona
elementary schools$ &chacter and Thum (!!3# developed G" teaching performance
standards and rubrics to assess teaching quality$G Their standards were drawn from a
comprehensive review of research on Gteacher behaviours, teaching models, teaching
strategies and teacher qualifications$G The standards included such practices asB
/ommunicating learning ob0ectives
/onnecting learning to student e:periences
%resenting new information important to a lesson logically
Efficient use of instructional time
%lanning activities to support learning and student interaction
,sking a variety of types of questions
/ommunicating learning e:pectations clearly
%roviding students regular feedback on their performance
%articipants were evaluated on their use of those " practices during eight observations$
The results of their findings are clearB Gteachers who implement effective teaching as
measured by our " teaching standards and performance rubrics produce students who
make considerable achievement gains$G
3!
,s demonstrated by the two studies discussed above, measuring the effect of teacher
quality through an observation of classroom practice is a labour intensive process$ Cne
way that researchers have dealt with this is by studying teachers who are already
identified as e:cellent through some other method$
The Teacher+s /urriculum -nstitute (!!3# seeks to Gadvance the quality of teaching and
learning by developing professional standards for accomplished teaching, creating a
voluntary system to certify teachers who meet those standards and integrating certified
teachers into educational reform effortsG$ Teachers achieve board- certification based on
portfolios of student work and videos of the applicants teaching and also on their score on
a test of their sub0ect-matter knowledge$ They are evaluated onB
Their commitment to students and their learning, including their use of different
approaches for different students that are consistent with principles of cognitive
development
Their knowledge of the sub0ects they teach and how best to teach them
Their ability to manage student learning by establishing an appropriate
environment and using regular student assessments
Their ability to think about their teaching and to use what they learn to improve
Their ability to create learning communities that engage parents and others
&o, are nationally board certified teachers the most effective< Teacher+s /urriculum
-nstitute (!!3# set out to answer this question in !!3 by comparing the effectiveness of
3"
board-certified teachers against teachers who had tried to become certified but did not
make it$ They found that Gteachers who are successful in their attempts to attain
certification are more effective than those who are unsuccessful applicants, providing
evidence that T/- (!!3# is, in fact, identifying the more effective teachers of those they
actually evaluate$G -n addition, those who are or eventually become board-certified are
more effective than those who do not meet the selection criteria or who do not apply$
They concluded that students in the classrooms taught by board-certified teachers+
outperformed students in classrooms with non-board certified teachers "!!U of the time$
Thus, the qualities of effective teaching identified by the Jational 2oard appear to be
teaching practices that have a positive impact on student achievement$
Finally, the authors of the T/- (!!3# research review on effective teaching offer five
Gkey themes $$$that reflect key findings from the researchG on teaching practices$ The five
themes areB
2uilding on studentsQ prior knowledge
Hinking goals, assessment, and instruction
Teaching content and critical thinking
;eveloping language skills
/reating a culture of learning
-nterestingly, each of these themes finds some support in one or more of the studies
summari'ed above$ -n other words, all of these teaching practices have been
demonstrated, to one degree or another, to have a positive effect on student achievement
as measured by student performance on standardi'ed tests$
3
Concus%on
Dhile these studies have identified important characteristics and practices of effective
teachers, teaching occurs in a comple: environment$ Many factors contribute to student
achievement, and while the quality of the teaching is the most important school factor in
student achievement, teaching quality itself is affected by conte:tual factors$ For
e:ample, Hac'ko, and 2erliner (!!"# both of the ,merican Educational 1esearch
,ssociation, found that Gfourth-grade students have higher achievement in mathematics
and reading when they attend schools characteri'ed by higher levels of teacher
collaborationG$ -t may be the case, then, that effective teachers will be even more
effective in a collaborative workplace (or less effective in a dysfunctional environment#$
Finally, as many have noted before, standardi'ed tests are not the only measure of student
learning or the effects of a good teacher$ &tandardi'ed tests may not be the best measure
of critical thinking, writing, or creativity$ Jor do they typically measure what may in fact
be the most important result of an e:cellent teacher, instilling a lifelong love of learning
in students$ -nspiration, curiosity, an ability and desire to pursue knowledgeB the best
teachers provide all of these to their students, and yet these effects are not measured on
the &,T$ -n the end, the importance of quality teaching in our classrooms may be beyond
measure$
).- *OCIA8 *TUDIE* AND ATTITUDE DE7E8OP(ENT
,ccording to Martorella ("((3#, an attitude can be defined as a positive or negative
evaluation of people, ob0ects, event, activities, ideas, or 0ust about anything in your
environment$ ,n attitude is Gthe relatively stable over behaviour of a person which
36
affects his status$G G,ttitudes which are different to a group are thus social attitudes or
VvaluesQ in the Thomasonian sense (Martorella, "((3#$ The attitude is the status-fi:ing
behaviour$ This differentiates it from habit and vegetative processes as such, and totally
ignores the hypothetical Qsub0ective statesQ which have formerly been emphasi'ed$
Ferguson 5Domack ("((6# has defined attitude as Gthe totality of those states that lead
to or point toward some particular activity of the organism$ The attitude is, therefore, the
dynamic element in human behaviour, the motive for activity$G For /hildolue ("((*# an
attitude is Ga susceptibility to certain kinds of stimuli and readiness to respond repeatedly
in a given wayWwhich are possible toward our world and the parts of it which impinge
upon us$G ,ttitudes are 0udgments$ They develop on the ,2/ model (affect, behaviour,
and cognition#$ The affective response is an emotional response that e:presses an
individualQs degree of preference for an entity$ The behavioural intention is a verbal
indication or typical behavioural tendency of an individual$ The cognitive response is a
cognitive evaluation of the entity that constitutes an individualQs beliefs about the ob0ect$
Most attitudes are the result of either direct e:perience or observational learning from the
environment$
8nlike personality, attitudes are e:pected to change as a function of e:perience$ Tesser
("((6# has argued that hereditary variables may affect attitudes - but believes that they
may do so indirectly$ For e:ample, consistency theories, which imply that we must be
consistent in our beliefs and values$ The most famous e:ample of such a theory is
;issonance-reduction theory, associated with /hildolue ("((*#, although there are others,
such as the balance theory$
33
,ttitudes can be changed through persuasion and we should understand attitude change
as a response to communication$ E:perimental research into the factors that can affect the
persuasiveness of a message includeB
"$ Target CharacteristicsB These are characteristics that refer to the person who
receives and processes a message$ Cne such trait is intelligence - it seems that
more intelligent people are less easily persuaded by one-sided messages$ ,nother
variable that has been studied in this category is self-esteem$ ,lthough it is
sometimes thought that those higher in self-esteem are less easily persuaded, there
is some evidence that the relationship between self-esteem and persuasibility is
actually curvilinear, with people of moderate self-esteem being more easily
persuaded than both those of high and low self-esteem levels (%arker 5 7ey-
woods, !!!#$ The mind frame and mood of the target also play a role in this
process$
$ Source CharacteristicsB The ma0or source characteristics are e:pertise,
trustworthiness and interpersonal attraction or attractiveness$ The credibility of a
perceived message has been found to be a key variable here4 if one reads a report
about health and believes it came from a professional medical 0ournal, one may be
more easily persuaded than if one believes it is from a popular newspaper$ &ome
psychologists have debated whether this is a long-lasting effect$ For e:ample,
7olland and Deiss ("(."# found that the effect of telling people that a message
came from a credible source disappeared after several weeks (the so-called
Gsleeper effectG#$ Dhether there is a sleeper effect is controversial$ %erceived
3.
wisdom is that if people are informed of the source of a message before hearing it,
there is less likelihood of a sleeper effect than if they are told a message and then
told its source$
6$ Message CharacteristicsB The nature of the message plays a role in persuasion$
&ometimes presenting both sides of a story is useful to help change attitudes$
3$ Cognitive RoutesB , message can appeal to an individualQs cognitive evaluation to
help change an attitude$ -n the central route to persuasion the individual is
presented with the data and motivated to evaluate the data and arrive at an attitude
changing conclusion$ -n the peripheral route to attitude change, the individual is
encouraged to not look at the content but at the source$ This is commonly seen in
modern advertisements that feature celebrities$ -n some cases, physician, doctors
or e:perts are used$ -n other cases film stars are used for their attractiveness$
3*
CHAPTER THREE
(ETHODO8O:<
Introduct%on
This chapter e:amines the methodology and procedures used to carry out the research$
The chapter concerns itself with the research design, population, sample and sampling
technique, instruments used in the study, the administration of the instruments, collection
of data and data analysis procedure$ The aim of the researcher is to e:amine teachers+
content knowledge of &ocial &tudies and its effects on the teaching of the sub0ect at the
&enior 7igh &chool level$
,.1 RE*EARCH DE*I:N
The study was designed to e:amine the content knowledge of &ocial &tudies teachers in
the &enior 7igh &chools in the &ekondi-Takoradi Metropolis$ This has become necessary
because, since the introduction of &ocial &tudies in the &7&, there have been several
reviews of the curricula content presentation to teachers since the curricula contents were
not properly fused$ -t was more of an amalgamation of sub0ect disciplines than integration
since the contents were from Geography, 7istory, Economics, Government and the
7umanities$ 7owever, in all these attempts at making the sub0ect more responsive to the
needs of the people in particular and the nation generally, little or no attention has been
paid to the actual content knowledge teachers possess for effective teaching and learning$
To fulfil this important need of e:amining what is taught in the &ocial &tudies classroom,
the researcher sought respondents+ opinion on &ocial &tudies, teachers+ characteristics
3?
and content knowledge on &ocial &tudies and this makes it a survey in design$ -t includes
a qualitative and quantitative aspect$ ;ata collected was analysed in the form of tables
and words were used to e:plain it$
,voke (!!.# viewed descriptive survey as a design that portrays accurately the
characteristics of particular individuals, groups or situations$ That is, survey provides a
quantitative or numeric description of trends, attitudes, or opinions of a population by
studying a sample of that population$ /ohen and Manion ("((3#, said, =the descriptive
survey was also found to be appropriate because it is concerned with conditions or
relationships that e:ist, practices that prevail, beliefs, points of views or attitudes that are
held, processes that are going on, efforts that are being felt or trends that are developing>
(p$6.#$ This is in line with the purpose of this study because it e:amined teachers+ content
knowledge of &ocial &tudies and how it affects learning in the &ocial &tudies classroom$
,.) POPU8ATION
&ocial &tudies teachers in the &enior 7igh &chools in the &ekondi-Takoradi Metropolis
constituted the population for the study$ -nformation from the Metro Education &ervice
indicates that there are twelve ("# public &7& in the Metropolis with si:ty-nine (*(#
&ocial &tudies teachers$ There are .(. public senior secondary schools in Ghana$ Each of
these schools has at least three &ocial &tudies teachers$ The &ekondi-Takoradi Metropolis
is made up of ninety-si: public 9unior 7igh &chools and twelve &enior 7igh &chools$
Each 9unior 7igh &chool has one ("# &ocial &tudies teacher, so the ninety-si: 97& have
ninety-si: &ocial &tudies teachers and si:ty-nine &ocial &tudies teachers in the &enior
3)
7igh &chools$ The total population of &ocial &tudies teachers in the Metropolis are one
hundred and si:ty-five ("*.#$
The breakdown of the schools that formed the study+s population is as followsB
Ta+e ,.1& *oc%a *tud%es Teachers %n *en%or *econdary *choos %n the *ekond%=
Takorad% (etropo%s
&econdary schools Jumber of &ocial &tudies Teachers
,rch 2ishop %otter Girls &enior 7igh &chool
(,$%$&$&#
&T 9ohn+s &enior 7igh &chool
2ompeh &econdary Technical &enior 7igh
&chool (2$&$T$&$7$&#
Takoradi &enior 7igh &chool (T,;-&/C#
Fi0ai &enior &chool
;iabene &enior 7igh &chool
,hantaman &enior 7igh &chool (,$7$,$&$&#
&ekondi &enior 7igh &chool (&E/@C#
Ghana &econdary Technical &enior 7igh &chool
(G$&$T$&#
,diembra &enior 7igh &chool
Methodist &enior 7igh &chool (ME&E/#
Takoradi Technical -nstitutes &enior 7igh &chool
(TT-#
TCT,H
6
3
?
(
3
.
*
3
3
.
*
)
*.
3(
,., *A(P8E AND *A(P8IN: PROCEDURE
Teachers in public &enior 7igh &chools in Ghana today are all university graduates$ The
researcher limited herself to nine &enior 7igh &chools in the &ekondi-Takoradi
Metropolis$ The total teachers for the study were fifty-four (.3#$ The secondary schools
are scattered in the regional capital and each of them can be identified in the community
in which they are situated, called circuits$ For instance, in ,diembra we have Fi0ai &enior
7igh &chool, ,diembra &enior 7igh &chool and ,rcbishop %orter &enior 7igh &chool$
&ekondi circuit is made up of &t 9ohn+s &enior 7igh &chool and Methodist &enior 7igh
&chool$ ,gain, @etan circuit is made up of ,hantaman and ;iabene &enior 7igh &chool$
-n Takoradi East is Ghana &econdary and Technical school$ -n Takoradi central is
2ompeh &econdary Technical &chool$ -n Effia-Tanokrom is Takoradi Technical -nstitute
which has currently turned into a &enior 7igh &chool$ -n ,na0i circuit is Takoradi &enior
7igh &chool, in @o0okrom and Essikado is &ekondi &enior 7igh &chool$
The researcher randomly picked the nine out of the " &enior 7igh &chools in the
Metropolis for the study, because, the population was dispersedly framed and the cost to
reach all was high$ /luster sampling technique was used for the researcher+s
convenience$ Luestionnaires for the study were administered in all the nine schools$
/onvenience was therefore considered in the selection of the schools so that data
collected would be of some consistency and within the scheduled period of the study$ ,ll
teachers teaching &ocial &tudies in all the nine public secondary schools selected were
used as sample for the study$ -n all, fifty-four (.3# &ocial &tudies teachers were used for
the study to respond to the questionnaire, two (# of those who responded to the
.!
questionnaire (i$e$ two from four of the selected schools# were interviewed and observed
while they taught$
,.- RE*EARCH IN*TRU(ENT*
The main instruments used for the study were questionnaire, interview guide and
observation check list$ The three instruments were used to enable the researcher
triangulate the information to test the consistency of the findings obtained from each of
the instruments used$ 2ekoe (!!*# supported this view when he stated =triangulation in
research is to test for consistency of findings obtained through different instruments>$ -t
was therefore important that different instruments were used to validate the information
gathered$
The questionnaires were used to give the researcher an insight into the content knowledge
of teachers of &ocial &tudies$ Through the use of interviews, the study e:plored each
respondent+s understanding of &ocial &tudies and what forms hisXher bases for the content
heEshe uses for the teaching and learning activities$ ,ccording to /ohen and Manion
("()(#, an interview entails a type of conversation which is initiated specifically by the
interviewer purposefully for obtaining relevant information and description, prediction or
e:planation which cannot be obtained when the questionnaire is solely relied on for the
information$ Cbservation checklists were also used to investigate the effect of teachers+
content knowledge in &ocial &tudies lessons$ This is because =observation brings the
investigator into contact with the phenomenon being studied++Y@umekpor, !!, p$.Z$
."
,.-.1 2uest%onna%re
Luestionnaires were used to reach all teachers of &ocial &tudies to solicit their views on
what the sub0ect is all about$ , twenty Y!Z item questionnaire was prepared (see
appendi: ,#$ The questionnaire was divided into two parts, consisting of si: items on
preliminary personal data and fourteen items on other research items$ The personal data
made the researcher to have teachers+ characteristics as to the schools they teach, se:,
educational qualification, 8niversity attended, area of speciali'ation and their e:perience
in teaching$ This was to find out whether the teacher has been trained or untrained whilst
the other part was to find out whether teachers have knowledge of what constitute
knowledge of the sub0ect$ Teacher+s e:perience in the questionnaire was to find out
whether e:perience counts when it comes to sub0ect matter$ The research items mainly
sought to investigate teachers+ content knowledge in relation to their selection of content
to be taught$
These questionnaire items were developed first to e:amine teachers+ content knowledge
in &ocial &tudies in the &enior 7igh &chool$ -n order to ensure that the questionnaire
items were valid and reliable, the drafted questionnaire was trial-tested in three &enior
7igh &chools in the Destern 1egion$ The revised questionnaire was further improved
upon based on the suggestions of the researcher+s supervisor$
,.-.) Inter/%e#
-nterviews were used to enable the researcher to probe into some information provided on
the questionnaire$ -nterview provides the interviewer more fle:ibility and also certain
.
confidential information the interviewer might not have put in writing using the
questionnaire Y@umekpor, !!4 Twumasi, !!"Z$ To @umekpor Y !!Z, an interview
affords the interviewer the opportunity to e:plain the purpose of the investigation and can
e:plain more clearly 0ust what information sEhe wants$ =-f the sub0ect misinterprets the
question, the interviewer may follow it up with a clarifying question,>Y @umekpor, !!
p$(Z$ The interview guide (see appendi: 2# consisted of twelve Y"Z items which were
mostly closed-ended questions to ensure that respondents e:press themselves to give the
researcher detailed information for the study$ ,gain, the interview was preferred because
it ensures that each of the respondents was basically asked the same questions so as to
facilitate the analysis of data obtained$ The questionnaires were pre-coded$ This gave a
clue to the persons who answered the questionnaire$ %ersonal letters were used to select
teachers for the interview and the observation$ This helped the researcher to pick teachers
who ma0ored in &ocial &tudies and those who did not do &ocial &tudies$ This was
anonymous because of research ethics$ This helped the researcher to triangulate$
The interview guide was developed based on &ocial &tudies teachers+ understanding of
the goals and ob0ectives of the sub0ect4 content knowledge of &ocial &tudies teachers in
teaching &ocial &tudies$ -n order to ensure the validity the reliability, the items for the
interview were trial tested in two schools in the Destern 1egion which did not form part
of the population$ The revised interview guide was scrutinised by panel at the proposal
defence and was given to the researcher+s principal supervisor for another scrutiny and
advice for further improvement$
.6
,.-., O+ser/at%on
Cbservation was also used in this research, because =observation brings the investigator
into contact with the phenomenon being studied> Y@umekpor, !!, p$6"Z$ -n this way,
observation becomes an effective means of reporting precisely what prevails about the
phenomenon under study with greater reliability$ This technique afforded the researcher
the opportunity to see the teaching of &ocial &tudies as done in schools in the study area$
,n observation checklist was prepared (see appendi: /# to cross check the questions
asked in the questionnaire on teachers+ competences in the sub0ect$ The checklist was
based on the ob0ectives the teaching addresses, how the &ocial &tudies teacher develops
the attitudes, values and skills of students, teachers efforts in drumming in the needed
attitude, how teachers make students conscious of the problems of man+s survival, how
the teachers address and solve the problem and the relevance of the teaching activities
teachers make students to perform$ &imilarly, the observation guide went through the
same refining process as the questionnaire and the interview guide$
,.-.- >ust%!%cat%on o! the Tr%anguat%on (ethod
The researcher used questionnaire, interview and observation to cross check the
responses given on the questionnaire for authenticity$ The observation guide was used to
test the reliability of the responses given in the interview$ To do this, personal coding was
done on the questionnaire to give clue to teachers who are &ocial &tudies trained and
those who are not$ This was anonymous because of research ethics$ Two teachers, one
.3
trained and one untrained were selected from each selected school for the interview and
observation$ The essence of this was for triangulation$
/ohen, Manion and Morrison (!!?# defined triangulation as the use of two or more
methods of data collection in the study of some aspect of human behaviour$ They further
added that triangulation technique in the social sciences attempts to map out, or e:plain
more fully, the richness and comple:ity of human behaviour by studying it from more
than one stand point by making use of both quantitative and qualitative data$ The
researcher acknowledged the fact that triangulation can assist in e:plaining teachers+
content knowledge in &ocial &tudies and its impact on the teaching of the sub0ect$
/ombining data from different methods will certainly increase the quality of the data$ -n
view of this Thomas and Jelson ("((*#, pointed out that triangulation is valuable because
of the increased quality control achieved by combining methods and data sources$ The
complementary function of each of these data collection methods enriched the quality of
this study$ /ombining different sources and methods in the research process helped the
researcher to build on the strength of each type of data collection$ This minimi'ed the
weakness of any single approach (Jau, "((.#$ 7owever, this is not to say triangulation is
the most perfect method of data collection in research$ That is why Thomas and Jelson
("((*# cautioned that multiple methods may serve to magnify error$ -n view of this, the
researcher was cautious in using these three types of data collection instruments$ This
caution was taken to reduce the error margin of the study as a result of using the three
methods$
..
,.1 DATA CO88ECTION PROCEDURE
,dministration of the research instruments began in Jovember, !""$ The e:ercise
begun with visits to the selected schools to seek for permission for the administration of
the instruments$ -ntroductory letters from the 7ead of the ;epartment of &ocial &tudies
Education, in the 8niversity of Education, Dinneba were attached to the verbal
permission sought$ , visit was made to each school selected with the introductory letter
seeking permission from respective heads of department to schedule an ideal time for the
administration of the instruments vi' questionnaire, interview, and observation of &ocial
&tudies lessons$ Mostly, the heads of &ocial &tudies department did not hesitate to help to
organi'e the teachers for the data collection e:ercise$
To attain ob0ective scoring of items listed in the observation checklist and interview
guide, a recorder was used for validity and reliability$ The researcher spent one week in
each school to enable her to reach all respondents and most importantly to afford them
enough time to administer the instruments$ The process of administering the
questionnaire began with the identification of &ocial &tudies teachers and briefing them
on the ob0ective and significance of the study after which the questionnaires were
distributed to them$ The teacher had one week to respond to the questionnaire and return
them to the researcher$ The teachers gladly took the questionnaire and some even
immediately answered them and handed over to the researcher$ Cthers returned the
completed questionnaire the ne:t day$
.*
Cne teacher from each selected school who had also completed and returned the
questionnaire was selected for the interview$ &ome teachers were unwilling to be
interviewed and therefore selection was based on teacher+s willingness$ Teachers were
briefed on the essence of the e:ercise and were assured of confidentiality of the e:ercise
after which the interview was conducted and recorded on a tape recorder$ The interviews
lasted between ten Y"!Z to fifteen Y".Z minutes for each teacher$
&ocial &tudies lessons were observed for three separate times depending on the selected
teacher+s schedule for the day of observation$ The observation lasted for four weeks since
the researcher was able to visit three schools a week$ Eight teachers were conveniently
selected from the twelve public &enior 7igh &chools in the &ekondi-Takoradi Metropolis$
The students were first curious to know why the researcher was with them$ 7owever,
their curiosity had little significance since it was not related to what was to be observed$
Each teacher was observed on three different occasions to confirm or deny earlier
impression made in their previously observed lessons$ Each of the lessons observed
lasted for eighty Y)!Z to ninety ((!# minutes due to the differences in the time allotted for
sub0ect periods in the various schools$
,.3.1 7a%d%ty
Every good research must have some kind of validity and reliability so far as its data
collection instruments are concerned$ The validity of the questionnaire instrument,
particularly the face validity, was ascertained through the discussion of the questionnaire
items with the research supervisor$ This was done by checking the content to ensure that
.?
it measures what it is supposed to measure$ For validation of the interview discussions,
the tape recorded interaction was transcribed verbatim$ Dith the observation checklist,
the items were cross checked with the responses given in the interview with the research
supervisor$ This was done by checking the content to be sure it measures what it is
supposed to measure$
,ccording to Cpoku (!!.#, validity refers to the fact that the test items constituting a
questionnaire in survey research are measuring the construct that the test developer has
designed it to measure$
2urns (!!!# also said that if the study and its findings make sense to participants then, it
must at least have some validity$ -n this research, validity was also addressed by
triangulating the findings from the three instruments used for the study$ This was
necessary because of the value triangulation adds to the research work$
,.3.) Re%a+%%ty
The reliability of the questionnaire was ensured by pilot testing the questionnaire,
observation checklist and the interview guide$ The pilot testing was done at Takoradi
&enior 7igh &chool in the &ekondi-Takoradi Metropolis of the Destern 1egion$ The
students were selected because they had the same characteristics as respondents from the
study area$ %ilot testing these enabled modification and clarification of questionnaire
items that appeared ambiguous to respondents$ Cther materials that were found
unsuitable were dropped$ Dith the e:perience from this pilot testing only &ocial &tudies
teachers were selected as respondents for the actual data collection because of their
.)
e:perience and their academic background$ ,ll these were geared towards improving the
reliability of the research$ ,ccording to 2ell ("((6# reliability is the e:tent to which a test
or procedure produces similar results under constant conditions on all occasions$ There
should be consistency of scores when the research instruments are administered multiple
times on different occasions$
,.4 (ETHOD O$ DATA ANA8<*I*
The researcher employed the combination of both qualitative and quantitative methods
for the data analysis$ The data will be analysed by using tables and percentages$ Dords
were used to interpret the tables and percentages for easy understanding$ The mi:ed-
method approach is a way to come up with creative alternatives to the study or a more
monolithic ways to conceive and implement ultimate findings of the study$ -t is likely
that the blending of two methodologies in a single research paradigm can produce
alternatives that will not be able to represent radical shifts in the short run$ -ntegrating
different methods is likely to produce better results in terms of quality and scope$ ,dding
qualitative flesh to the quantitative bones is a good strategy to overcoming some of these
problems$
The responses were described and e:plained in the form of narratives$ &ometimes
responses were quoted verbatim to authenticate claims made$ The responses were
answers to open-ended questions$ This was important for a particular reason$ @oul,
(!!!# quoted %atton ("() p$ )# on this issue as e:pressing the view that =responses
from open-ended questions in the form of direct quotations reveal level of emotions of
respondents, the way in which they have organi'ed their world, their thought and
.(
e:periences about certain happenings, and their perceptions$> Luantitative data were
tabulated, organi'ed, analy'ed and interpreted to draw sound conclusions and
generali'ations$
*!
CHAPTER $OUR
PRE*ENTATION O$ DATA
-.9 Introduct%on
This chapter presents and discusses the data collected from respondents$ The
triangulation method was adopted in the data collection process$ The questionnaires, an
interview schedule and observation checklist were designed to collect data for the
following research questionsB
7ow far do &ocial &tudies teachers+ understand the content they are teaching at
the &enior 7igh &chool<
7ow far have teachers of &ocial &tudies been able to achieve the ob0ectives of the
sub0ect they teach<
7ow do the contents of &ocial &tudies taught, impact on the students<
Dhat is the general level of effectiveness of &ocial &tudies teachers in the &7&<
The analysis of respondents+ bio-data has become necessary because the researcher was
trying to see whether teachers+ ability to teach the content well depends on qualification
and e:perience$
-.1 De"ograph%c Character%st%cs o! Respondents
-n this, the researcher will present the schools of the &ocial &tudies teachers, educational
qualification, university attended, area of speciali'ation, and teaching e:perience in
teaching &ocial &tudies$
*"
Ta+e -.1& Na"e o! *choos
&chool
Jumber of Teacher 1espondents %ercent
T,;-&/C ( "*$?
&E/@C . ($6
2CM%E7 "! ")$.
&T 9C7JQ& * ""$"
F-9,- "" !$3
G&T& ? "6$!
,;-EM21, * ""$"
,%&& ! !
Total .3 "!!$!
;ata in Table 3$" show the respondents and the name of school in which they teach$ The
table shows that "" (!$3U# of the teachers teach at Fi0ai &enior 7igh &chool, "! (")$.U#
indicated they teach at 2ompeh &enior 7igh &chool, ( ("*$?U# were from Takoradi
&enior 7igh &chool (T,;-&/C#, while . (($6U# of the teachers were from &ekondi
&enior 7igh &chool (&E/@C#$ &o Fi0ai &enior 7igh &chool has the highest number of
&ocial &tudies teachers, followed by 2ompeh and Tadisco$

Ta+e -.)& *e; o! respondents
*e; $re?uency Percentage
Male
Female
66
"
*"$"
6)$(
Total .3 "!!
;ata in Table 3$ shows that 66 (*"$"U# of the respondents were male, while the
remaining " (6)$(U# were females$ This means that there were more male respondents
in the study than female$
*
Ta+e -.,& Educat%ona ?ua%!%cat%on
2ua%!%cat%on $re?uency Percentage
First ;egree
%ostgraduate ;egree
3*
)
).$
"3$)
Total .3 "!!
Table 3$6 shows that out of the .3 respondents sampled for the study, 3* representing
).$U of them were degree holders, while the remaining ) ("3$)U# were holders of
postgraduate degrees$ This means that ma0ority of the respondents used for the study
were first degree holders$
Ta+e -.-& Un%/ers%ty Attended
8niversity ,ttended by
1espondents
%ercent
8ED . 3*$6
8niversity of Ghana . ($6
8// 6 3$*
@J8&T " "$(
Total .3 "!!$!
1esults in Table 3$3 indicate that . representing 3*$6U of the respondents were products
from the 8niversity of Education, Dinneba (8ED#, 6 (3$*U# were graduates from the
8niversity of /ape /oast, . (($6U# were graduates from the 8niversity of Ghana, and "
("$(U# is from the @wame Jkrumah 8niversity of &cience and Technology$
Ta+e -.1& Area o! spec%a%@at%on
*6
Frequency %ercent
Economics "! ")$.
7istory . ($6
Geography ? "6$!
%olitical &cience 6$?
&ocial &tudies 6! ..$*
Total .3 "!!$!
Table 3$. shows that 6! (..$*U# of the respondents speciali'ed in &ocial &tudies, "!
(")$.U# speciali'ed in economics, ? ("6U# speciali'ed in geography, . (($6U# history,
while (6$?U# of the respondents speciali'ed in political science$ The result shows that
..$*U of the respondents sampled for the study speciali'ed in &ocial &tudies at the
8niversity$
Ta+e -.3& E;per%ence %n teach%ng *oc%a *tud%es
Frequency %ercent
less than a year * ""$"
"-. years "* ($*
*-"! years ") 66$6
,bove "" years "3 .$(
Total .3 "!!$!
;ata in Table 3$* indicate that ") (66$6U# of the respondents have been teaching &ocial
&tudies between *-"! years, "* (($*U# indicated "-. years, "3 (.$(U# indicated they
have been teaching &ocial &tudies for more than "" years, while * (""$"U# stated they
have been teaching &ocial &tudies for less than a year$
-.) Data Coected on Research 2uest%ons
*3
-n this section the main data collected in response to the research questions will be
presented to address the four research questions that guided the study$ The questionnaire,
the one-on-one interview and observation checklist were presented side by side to address
each research question$ The data from the questionnaire have been presented using
frequencies, percentages and tables$ The interview session centred on soliciting in-depth
views of respondents on how far they understand the content they are teaching, how far
they are able to achieve the ob0ectives of the sub0ect they teach, how the content they
taught impact on the students, and why their teachings are not making the needed impact$
The themes that emerged from the interview were combined with the responses from the
questionnaire and the items of the observation checklist to address the research questions$
This authenticates the responses given by respondents in the questionnaire$ The
observation checklist was used to test the reliability of the responses given in the
interview$ This helped the researcher to do the triangulation$
Research 2uest%on One
Ho# !ar do *oc%a *tud%es teachers understand the content they are teach%ng at the
*en%or H%gh *chooA
This question sought to find out the understanding of &ocial &tudies teachers regarding
the content of the sub0ect they teach$ -tems ?, ), (, "!, "3, "., "*, "? and "( on the
questionnaire (see appendi: ,# were used to solicit responses from the respondents on
the understanding of the &ocial &tudies content$ Luestions ?, ( and "! of the observation
checklist (see appendi: /# were the items used to find teachers understanding of what
constitute the content of &ocial &tudies$ ,lso, questions , 6, and ( of the interview guide
*.
were used to complement the questionnaire items as well as the observation checklist$
2elow are the compiled views$
The table below shows items on teachers+ knowledge of &ocial &tudies and how that
helps in achieving the goals and ob0ectives of the sub0ect$ 1espondents gave various
responses to the items$
Ta+e -.4& Teachers0 Content 'no#edge
&tatements A U D
?$ &ocial studies can be taught by teachers from any educational
background
"! * 6)
)$ The main focus of &ocial &tudies teaching is making students to
acquire relevant facts
6* . "6
($ The problem stated in the &ocial &tudies syllabus for &7& helps
in the selection of the right content to be taught in the sub0ect
3 ) 3
"!
$
Teachers+ knowledge in social studies can enhance the teaching
of the sub0ect
.6 - "
"6
$
Teachers+ knowledge of social studies helps in achieving goals
and ob0ectives of the sub0ect
.3 - -
"3 &ocial &tudies is citi'enship education 3? 3 6
".
$
&ocial &tudies is a combination of knowledge of Geography,
7istory, Economics and Government
3* *
"*
$
/iti'enship education enables one to understand the past, the
geography of the world and how we are governed
6! " "
"?
$
,s soon as you see a &ocial &tudies topic what comes to the
mind is the meaning of it
( ( "*
"(
$
-n teaching &ocial &tudies, the teacher tries to address the
concept for the topic
3" "! "6
Dhere , stands for ,greed, 8 [ 8ndecided, ; [ ;isagreed
;ata in Table 3$? show that all .3 ("!!U# of the &ocial &tudies teachers sampled for the
study agreed that teachers knowledge of &ocial &tudies helps in achieving goals and
ob0ectives of the sub0ect, .6 (()$"U# agreed that teachers knowledge in &ocial &tudies
can enhance the teaching of the sub0ect, " ("$(U# disagreed with the statement$ &till on
**
teachers understanding about the content they teach, 3? ()?U# of the teachers agreed that
&ocial &tudies is a citi'enship education, 3 (?$3U# were undecided, while 6 (.$.U#
disagreed with the statement4 3* ().$U# agreed that &ocial &tudies is a combination of
knowledge of Geography, 7istory, Economics and Government, (6$?U# were
undecided about the statement, while * (""$"U# disagreed with the statement$ The result
also shows that 3" (?.$(U# of the respondents agreed that in teaching &ocial &tudies, the
teacher tries to address the concept for the topic, "! (")$.U# were undecided, while "6
(3U# also disagreed$
The interview questions that fall under research question one are as follows4
=-n teaching &ocial &tudies, do you consciously develop attitude, values,
knowledge and skills in the students<>
=Dhich of these directs a &ocial &tudies teacher in the teaching of
topics in the sub0ect<
a# Jature of topic
b# the problems of man+s survival in the country
c# the related content the topic addresses>
=Dhich of these will be the driving force when you are teaching the
topic N%hysical Environment+ in &ocial &tudies<
a# The relief, climate and the drainage of the area
b# The climate and the geomorphology of the world
c# 7ow the individual can utili'e the physical environment for his benefits
d# 7ow the physical environment dictates the activities of the individual$>
*?
The responses from the respondents during the interview revealed the followingB
, respondent said the followingB
1. !t is better to get someone who has a broad spectrum of the sub"ect
#Social Studies$. !t will be very difficult for a science teacher to teach social
studies. !t will be very difficult for most teachers who are more biased in
science to teach social studies. !t will be better for someone who has a good
%rts background to teach social studies&.
'. (enerally) yes) but what is very important is) normally) you know Social
Studies has a whole lot of areas) for e*ample) economics) an aspect of
geography) it entails an aspect of environmental science) so ! think that if a
teacher has a background knowledge) it will go a long way to build capabilities
and capacity in students&
+. ,ith the problems) it helps us a lot. %lthough) it is a challenge) being a
teacher) it helps to strive to overcome those challenges in terms of research and
other things in order to teach the students very well.&
-. .ature of topic
,nother teacher also had this to say
1. Some topics are technical) for e*ample) geography) teachers who have not gotten the
knowledge in Social Studies may not teach the sub"ect effectively&.
'. .ot necessarily) because the issue is not only about the facts but the facts
ac/uired should be used in daily life situation&.
+. !t really helps you very much because when you read the problem and in your
absence or when you are not there and somebody comes who has no knowledge
in Social Studies) that person will have a background knowledge and it will
enable the person to look for the necessary materials to take over the sub"ect.&
-.& The problems of man0s survival in the country.&
, teacher had this to say4
*)
1. 1es and .o) because for those who teach in their speciality that is Social Studies has
something in social aspect over human life&. 7e further added that =such a person can
teach other sub"ects but not into detailed as the one who has knowledge in the sub"ect&.
'. That is what is supposed to be) because it involves the human settlement and the
various topics relate very well in human e*istence) so ! think it is in the right
direction.
+. 2ecause the topics and the problems are set out) they help the teacher to go
straight to the problem without even digressing from the issue.&
- The problems of man0s survival in the country&
, colleague also had this to say4
"$= !t is impossible) ! do not think so) because in my observation) Social Studies)
though any teacher with a social science background can teach) ! think it is an
additional advantage to teach the sub"ect) but then it needs more of the
understanding of what the sub"ect matter is than applying any other thing in
teaching Social Studies.&
'. .o) because it is about attaining the knowledge but looking at the practical
aspect of it) ! think this is the way Social Studies should be taught.&
+.& The problem stated in the syllabus needs to be garnished by you the teacher
because) sometimes it does not commensurate the content you are going to teach.
2ut then all the same) you can add up to what you have.&
-. To me) all the three options are right to be considered when teaching the topics in
Social Studies.&
This is what another teacher from other schools interviewed saidB
1. .o) because) looking at the sub"ect you have to be trained. %lthough) people
from other sub"ect background teach the sub"ect) to me) the sub"ect should be
taught by its specialists) that is) the trained personnel to teach it.&
'. .o) it is not only the presentation of facts. The sub"ect needs to be imparted for
attitudinal change.&
+. ! present the sub"ect in a practical way&
-. The problems of the individual0s survival in the country&
Teacher 2 in the same school had this to say4
*(
1. .o) if we say it can be taught by teachers with any educational background) it
means we are not helping the sub"ect. !t means anybody can handle the sub"ect
which is not true.&
'. This is not the main focus of Social Studies because we are not "ust only
imparting the knowledge but we are inculcating the right attitude as well so that
they will be self disciplined in the society.&
+. !t helps a lot because knowing the problem at hand) when teaching ! use the
problem as my introduction and with that) the background) it helps me to impart
the right knowledge to the children.&
-.& The related content the topic addresses.&
2elow is what went on in the classroom when the researcher visited the classroom to
observe teachers as they teach to find out whether responses those teachers gave during
the interview session were authentic$ The items in the table falls under the research
question one$
Table 3$) below are data collated from the evaluation of the teachers+ content knowledge
through the observation of their lessons$
Ta+e -.5& O+ser/at%on o! essons
?!
To #hat e;tent are the
!oo#%ng true o! the *oc%a
*tud%es teach%ng.
7ery
great
e;tent
:reat
e;tent
(oderatey
true
A/eragey
untrue
Not
true
Facts used make the students+
conscious of the problems for
the individual+s survival$
- - - *
;id teacher+s content address
the stated problem<
- - - ) -
Teacher+s knowledge in &ocial
&tudies helped in achieving the
stated ob0ectives$
- - - ) -
The data in the table 3$) show that out of the eight ()# teachers observed, (.U#
moderately presented facts of &ocial &tudies to make students conscious of the problems
for the individual+s survival, * (?.U# do not present facts to make students conscious of
the problems for the individual+s survival$ ,lso, ) ("!!U# of the teachers observed lack
content knowledge of the sub0ect although, they agreed that &ocial &tudies is citi'enship
education$ The result also shows that ) ("!!U# of the teachers observed were in no way
teaching for the attainment of the stated ob0ectives of the sub0ect$
Research 2uest%on )& Ho# !ar are teachers o! *oc%a *tud%es a+e to ach%e/e the
o+.ect%/es o! the su+.ect they teachA
-tems "", ", "6, "), and ! of the questionnaire address the research question above$
These try to find out whether &ocial &tudies teachers make deliberate effort to develop
positive attitudes and skills in the students and they try to work for the achievement of the
goals and ob0ectives to enable students to solve the problems of the individual+s survival$
Ta+e -.B& Responses to ?uest%onna%re on o+.ect%/es o! the su+.ect
&tatements Responses
?"
A U D
""$ The &ocial &tudies teacher makes deliberate efforts to develop certain
positive attitudes and values in students when teaching
3( 6
"$ Goals and ob0ectives of &ocial &tudies direct the whole process of
teaching the sub0ect
33 * 3
"6$ Teachers+ knowledge of &ocial &tudies help in achieving goals and
ob0ectives of the sub0ect
.3 - -
")$ -n teaching &ocial &tudies the teacher tries to ensure he is helping the
student to solve the problem of survival
3( " 3
!$ &ocial &tudies is best taught through the use of relevant life
e:periences
6* ( (
;ata in Table 3$( indicate that all the .3 ("!!U# respondents agreed that teachers
knowledge of &ocial &tudies help in achieving goals and ob0ectives of the sub0ect, 3(
((!$?U# agreed that in teaching &ocial &tudies the teacher tries to ensure that heEshe is
helping the student to solve the problem of the individual+s survival, " ("$(U# was
undecided, while 3 (?$3U# disagreed$ The result also show that 3( ((!$?U# respondents
agreed that the &ocial &tudies teacher should make deliberate efforts to develop certain
positive attitudes and values in students when teaching, (6$?U# were undecided and 6
(.$.U# disagreed, 33 ()"$3U# respondents agreed that goals and ob0ectives of &ocial
&tudies direct the whole process of teaching the sub0ect, * (""$"U# were undecided and
3 (?$3U# disagreed and 6* (**$*U# respondents agreed to the statement that &ocial
&tudies is best taught through the use of relevant life e:periences, ( ("*$*U# were
undecided and ( ("*$*U# disagreed$
The two interview questions below were designed to find out whether teachers of &ocial
&tudies at the &enior 7igh &chools in Ghana teach for the attainment of the ob0ectives of
the sub0ect$
?
.$ ,s &ocial &tudies teacher, what is the importance of the goal and general aims of the
sub0ect to you<
*$ Dith the goal of the sub0ect in mind, what do you think the sub0ect seeks to inculcate
in learners<
The responses from the respondents during the interview were as presented below$
, respondent said in response to the interview questions aboveB
The main aim or if ! should say the goal of Social Studies is to be able to get
background knowledge in all areas. Since Social Studies entails a lot of issues) it is
more or less a general perspective so to speak) so it will be very important for a
student to learn Social Studies to get knowledge in the other aspects of social
science.
,ith the goal in mind ! made sure students broaden their hori3on by learning the
other social science topics.&
,nother teacher also had this to sayB
The goals and ob"ectives of Social Studies enable me to really plan my lesson towards
the goals which help me to come out with the facts to make teaching very practical.
The goals enable the students to see the sub"ects as part of them and it enables
them to ad"ust to any situation they find themselves at any point in time because) it
enables the learners to see any other people as themselves and that prevents
conflict.
, teacher had this to sayB
%s ! indicated earlier) you have your goals already set) so it directs you to what you
are supposed to teach. 1ou drive straight to the goal when it comes to the physical
environment. 1ou know these days the problem is sanitation4 this is practical) so it
helps you to positively impact on the children.
?6
,ith the goal in mind) ! am able to impart whatever thing the student ought to
know.&
The respondent also saidB
5kay) it has numerous importance to the individual and the society as a whole in
that everything as human) apart from the inanimate ob"ect) you have to know the
sub"ect is there to guide us to the way we see things in like our social perception
on how things are to be done) so Social Studies life goes beyond the ac/uiring of
knowledge.
, respondent also had this to sayB
! do not know what to say about the goals and ob"ectives of the sub"ect and how it
helps me in my teaching
,nother respondent saidB
6nowing the goals and the ob"ectives of the sub"ect helps me to know what to
teach.
!t inculcate in the learners the right attitude and values as a student so that it will
help them to solve personal problems and the society as well.
The observation items which fall under research question are ", , 6 and 3, sought to
find the e:tent to which &ocial &tudies teachers have been able to achieve the ob0ectives
of the sub0ect they teach$
Ta+e -.19& E/auat%on o! essons
To #hat e;tent are the
!oo#%ng true o! the *oc%a
*tud%es teach%ng.
7ery
great
e;tent
:reat
e;tent
(oderatey
true
A/eragey
untrue
Not
true
?3
The overall ob0ective of the
lesson was achieved$
- - 3 " 6
&tudents+ attitudes were
being developed by the
teacher$
- - 3
&tudents+ values were being
developed$
- - 3
&tudents+ skills are being
developed by the teacher$
- - 3
;ata in the above table shows that none of the eight teachers observed teaching the
sub0ect did their teaching for the attainment of the ob0ective, 3 (.!U# of the teachers
moderately taught towards achieving the ob0ectives, " ("$.U# somehow tried to achieve
the ob0ectives and 6 (6?$.U# did not attempt to achieve the teaching ob0ectives$ Table "!
also shows that (.U# of the teachers moderately developed students attitude, values
and skills in the teaching, 3 (.!U# somehow did that, while (.U# did not attempt to do
that$
Research 2uest%on ,& Ho# do the contents o! *oc%a *tud%es taught %"pact on the
studentsA
This question sought to find out the contents of &ocial &tudies as taught in the class and
how they impact on the students$ -tems ( and "" of the questionnaire were used to solicit
responses to research question 6$ ,lso, questions 3, ?, (, "!, "", " and "6 of the
interview guide were used to complement the questionnaire items$ ,gain questions ., *,
and ? of the observation items were used to complement the interview conducted$ 2elow
are the illustrations$
?.
Ta+e -.11& 2uest%onna%re responses to research ?uest%on ,
&tatements A U D
($ %roblem stated in the &ocial &tudies syllabus for &7& helps in
the selection of the right content to be taught in the sub0ect
3 ) 3
""
$
The &ocial &tudies teacher makes deliberate efforts to develop
certain positive attitudes and values in students when teaching
3( 6
The data in table 3$"" indicate that, 3 (??$?U# respondents agreed that the problem
stated in the &ocial &tudies syllabus for &7& help in the selection of the right content to
be taught in the sub0ect, ) ("3$)U# were undecided and 3 (?$3U# disagreed4 3( ((!$?U#
respondents agreed to the statement the &ocial &tudies teacher makes deliberate efforts to
develop certain positive attitudes and values in students when teaching, (6$?U# were
undecided and 6 (.$.U# disagreed$
The responses from the interview conducted revealed the following
-nterview questionsB
"$ -n what ways will your knowledge in &ocial &tudies help you in your teaching<
?$ -n teaching &ocial &tudies, do you consciously develop attitude, values, knowledge
and skills in the students<
($ Dhich of these directs a &ocial &tudies teacher in the teaching of topics in the
sub0ect<
a$ Jature of topic
b$ the problems of the individual+s survival in the country
c$ the related content the topic addresses
?*
"!$ Dhich of these will be the driving force when you are teaching the topic N%hysical
Environment+ in &ocial &tudies<
a# The relief, climate and the drainage of the area
b# The climate and the geomorphology of the world
c# 7ow the individual can utilise the physical environment for his benefit
d# 7ow the physical dictates the activities of the individual
""$ Dhen teaching a &ocial &tudies topic N&cience and Technology+ the teacher will be
concerned with
a# The meaning of &cience and Technology
b# Dhat constitutes &cience and Technology<
c# 7ow the study of &cience can be applied in Technology<
d# The advantages of &cience and Technology
"$ Dhen teaching &ocial &tudies topic Ninstitution of marriage+ at &7& the teacher will
be concerned with
a# 7ow to help people to solve the problem of selecting a future partner<
b# Dhat constitutes the preparation that ought to be made before getting married<
c# Meaning of marriage
d# The types of marriages we have in Ghana$
"6$ -n teaching &ocial &tudies topic NJational -ndependence and &elf reliance+ which of
these will be the driving force$
a# The meaning of the concept political independence and self reliance$
??
b# The implication of attaining independence$
c# The political ambition of people$
d# The history of Ghana+s colonial masters and how they gain independence$
This is what respondents saidB
%ctually) like ! said) once Social Studies entails a broad spectrum) being a
teacher) if ! am able to get the needed skills and knowledge) ! think ! will be able
to teach because there are some areas you have to do a lot of research and if you
are very naive and a novice) ! think it will be a great challenge) but if you have a
broad spectrum in terms of knowledge) it will help you in other social issues. !t
will help you to teach the sub"ect very well.
The knowledge ! have ac/uired in Social Studies helps me to relate all the issues
related to real life situations) in the sense that it makes you to relate the topic to
situations to the understanding of the children.
7ow the study of science can be applied in technology&
,hat constitute the preparation that ought to be made before getting married8&
The implication of attaining independence.&
, respondent had this to sayB
! did not do Social Studies nor did social science but my profession as a Rev.
minister relating to the people from all walks of life and then the liberal studies
that ! did at the 9niversity also helps me to deal with problems in the society. My
knowledge and e*periences as a minister and liberal studies helps me to teach
Social Studies. ,ith e*perience ! share what ! have e*perienced with the students.
7ow the study of science can be applied in technology.&
,hat constitute the preparation that ought to be made before getting married8&
The meaning of the concept political independence and self reliance.&
?)
,nother respondent said thatB
My knowledge in Social Studies helps me to garnish my teaching.&
:ersonally) all the three options go together.&
8nder the interview questions ? and ), this is what a respondent saidB
1es) once you have knowledge in Social Studies) it will help you to learn certain
skills) knowledge and other things. !t also entails an aspect of values because a
curriculum or syllabus aspect of Social Studies helps the teacher to teach the
students certain skills and capabilities. ;or e*ample) topics like self identity and
self consciousness. %lthough the teacher is na<ve in the area of knowledge of the
sub"ect) will she=he not be able to build the capabilities of students&.
7ow can the study of science be applied in technology8&
7ow to help people to solve the problem of selecting a future partner8&
The implication of attaining independence.&
, respondent also had this to sayB
,hat constitute science and technology8&
,hat constitute the preparation that ought to be made before getting married8&
The political ambition of people&
, respondent from the same school also said that,
7ow can the study of science be applied in technology8&
,hat constitute the preparation that ought to be made before getting married8&
?(
The implication of attaining independence&
1es) because looking at the concept you make sure of what the topic really
re/uires the students to get at the end of the lesson. ! also make sure to prepare
my lesson delivery towards the achievement of the goals.
1espondents had this to say under questions ? and ) of the interview guide4
>*actly) because there are some things students are already having but whether
that is the right thing) you take advantage to educate them and that calls for
attitudinal change.
!t is something that ! keep hammering on or at times ! use role play. ! spend time
to argue sometimes and even ask them to vote. Sometimes the ma"ority might be
wrong because of their preconceived ideas sometimes4 ! use that to change their
mind from that attitude.
! think yes) because in teaching) it garnishes that line) but then changing of
attitudes in students is difficult because of even how the student see the sub"ect) so
it is an aspect of my teaching to change the behavioural aspects of the student.
! give them so many research works and upon their findings ! indicate what is
relevant to the individual students and the impact to the society.
, respondent had this to sayB
Through the topics we teach the students because one of the topics works on their
social values and at times in the course of teaching) students might misbehave so)
! have to teach them the right thing like attitude) skills and value
! consciously inculcate in student the right attitude) skills and values.&
)!
Ta+e -.1)& E/auat%on on ho# *oc%a *tud%es content are taught
To #hat e;tent are the
!oo#%ng true o! the *oc%a
*tud%es teach%ng.
7ery
great
e;tent
:reat
e;tent
(oderatey
true
A/eragey
untrue
Not true
&tudents+ attitudes are being
developed by the teacher$
- - 3
&tudents+ values are being
developed$
- - 3
&tudents+ skills are being
developed$
- " 6
Teacher makes repeated
efforts in encouraging in the
needed attitudes for
students$
- - - *
The data in Table 3$" indicate that, (.U# of the &ocial &tudies teachers moderately
made the attempt to teach to develop students+ attitudes, 3 (.!U# averagely made the
attempt to deliberately teach to develop students+ attitudes and (.U# did not attempt to
teach to develop students+ attitudes$ -t was also revealed that (.U# of the &ocial
&tudies teachers were able to develop students skills to a great e:tent, " ("$.U#
moderately did that, 6 (6?$.U# averagely made the attempt, while (.U# did not
attempt to teach to develop teachers skills$
)"
Research ?uest%on -& 6hat %s the genera e/e o! e!!ect%/eness o! *oc%a *tud%es
teachers %n the *H*A
This question sought to find out whether &ocial &tudies is making the necessary impact it
seeks to make on learners$ -tems "3 and ". of the interview guide were used to solicit
responses to 1esearch Luestion 3$ -tems ? and ) of the observation checklist were also
used to complement the interview items to address research question 3$
The responses derived from the interview conducted as presented belowB
1espondents had this to sayB
Somehow along the line ! think it is making the necessary impact since it will go a
long way to be able to help students to develop the necessary skills and
knowledge to be able to build their future.
,ell) Social Studies has become a driving force to shape some of these students
in terms of hygiene) in terms of preparation when they are picking their future
partners and other things.
,nother respondent also said thatB
1es) because it enables the children to learn about citi3enship education and with
the knowledge in all these areas. !t will enable the child to be able to know his or
her rights in the society which helps the child to live and to organise him or
herself well when it comes to the problem that comes around the child.&
1es) because it enables the children to find their ways in life without any
difficulty.
! have a problem because) it has been a long time but ! believe that gradually we
shall get there because to change a preconceived idea is not easy to change.
)
,gain, a respondent saidB
! think yes. !t has achieved its purpose because) during class discussions in the
topics for e*ample) as being treated in science and technology) they are able to
understand their science problems especially) in the science classes that am
handling and especially) why is (hana not attaining her technological age
because of certain factors ! will bring on board.
5riginally) ! will say that) because that borders on much of sociali3ation because)
some people cultivate the habit before coming to school) it will be very difficult
because it takes some time for them to change.
Somehow&
!n some ways it is achieving and in another way it is not.&
1es it does&
!t helps the children to be patriotic citi3en. !t helps them to solve their own
problem and societal problems as well since in Social Studies we do not give any
value "udgment. ,e base everything on "udgment) so anything you have to do you
analyse the problem and to know what you are about to do before you give your
"udgment.
Really) to others it has had a positive impact but to others too) nothing because
they see the sub"ect as e*amination sub"ect so they learn to pass e*ams not any
behavioural change.
Ta+e -.1,& I"pact o! *oc%a *tud%es at the *H* e/e
To #hat e;tent are the
!oo#%ng true o! the *oc%a
*tud%es teach%ng.
7ery
great
e;tent
:reat
e;tent
(oderatey
true
A/eragey
untrue
Not
true
Teacher tries to address how to
solve the problem$
- - - ) -
&tudent activities performed in
class were relevant to the topic
- - * -
Teacher makes repeated efforts in
encouraging in the needed
attitude to students$
- - - *
Facts used make the students+
conscious of the problems for
man+s survival$
- - - *
)6
Teacher+s content address the
stated problem$
- - - ) -
The data in Table 3$"6, ) ("!!U# of all the teachers observed did not attempt to address
the problem stated in the syllabus as they teach, * (?.U# somehow gave activities to be
performed by students to reflect on the topic taught in class, (.U# deliberately made
the effort to repeatedly encourage the needed attitude for students whilst * (?.U# did not
make the effort to repeatedly encourage the needed attitude to students, (.U# in a way
used facts in content to make students conscious of the problems for the individual+s
survival during lesson presentation, * (?.U# did not show any attempt to use facts to
make students conscious of the problems for the individual+s survival and ) ("!!U# did
not use their content knowledge to address the stated problem$
)3
CHAPTER $I7E
DI*CU**ION O$ THE $INDIND*
1.9 Introduct%on
-n this section the main data are analysed$ The analysis addresses the four research
questions that guided the study$ ;ata derived from the questionnaire, the one-on-one
interview and observation checklist are analy'ed side by side to address each research
question$ The instruments centred on soliciting in-depth views of respondents on how far
they understand the content they are teaching, how far they are able to achieve the
ob0ectives of the sub0ect they teach, how the content they taught impact on the students,
and why their teachings are not making the needed impact$ The findings that emerged
from the interview were combined with the responses of the questionnaire and the
observation checklist to address the research questions$
1.1
Ho# !ar do *oc%a *tud%es teachers understand the content they are teach%ng at the
*en%or H%gh *chooA
;espite the government+s effort to focus on sub0ect-matter knowledge of teachers by
organising seminars for teachers, it is evident that, teachers have not made the necessary
impact through their teaching and that they lack the essential knowledge for teaching
their in area of speciali'ation$
).
From the data collected, although all the respondents .3 ("!!U# agreed that teachers+
content knowledge is important and that it enhances good teaching skills which enable
the sub0ect to achieve the purpose it seeks to achieve in the questionnaire, it proved
contrary during the interview session, because responses given to the interview items , 6
and ( show that teachers lack content knowledge about the sub0ect$ This was not different
when the observation was conducted in the classroom$ Cne of the respondents+ response
to interview items , 6 and ( were as followsB
.o) because it is about attaining the knowledge but looking at the practical
aspect of it) ! think this is the way Social Studies should be taught.
The problem stated in the syllabus needs to be garnished by you the teacher
because) sometimes it does not commensurate the content you are going to teach.
2ut then all the same) you can add up to what you have.
To me) all the three options are right to be considered when teaching the topics
in Social Studies.

This implies that knowledge of &ocial &tudies and knowledge of &ocial &tudies
representations are related to content knowledge, while knowledge of students and
knowledge of teaching are related to pedagogical content knowledge$ -t is surprising that
a graduate teacher who has been e:posed to both the content and the pedagogy of &ocial
&tudies and after many years of teaching the very sub0ect does not possess mastery of the
content of the sub0ect$ &hulman ("((# is of the view that for a teacher to be able to teach
effectively, sEhe needs to understand the sub0ect matter deeply so that sEhe can help
students create useful cognitive pictures, relate one idea to another, and address
misconceptions$
)*
The definition of a sub0ect directs its content$ ,s seen from the findings from the
questionnaire, )?U of the respondents agreed that &ocial &tudies is citi'enship education$
The teaching and content of &ocial &tudies should therefore be geared towards the
development of learners+ civic competencies$ Findings from the observation schedule
show that teachers are merely presenting facts which do not develop the attitudes, values
and skills of students$ Thus, in practice hardly are &ocial &tudies teachers developing the
civic competencies of the learners$ From the interview and the observation out of the
eight teachers observed 3 (.!U# moderately made the attempt to present facts to make
students conscious of the problem stated in the syllabus$ &ince all the teachers have
degrees in &ocial &tudies one wonders why this should occur$ The /1;; curriculum in
&ocial &tudies has a column for the problem$ This implies that the teachers are not aware
of the essence of the stated problem$ There seems to be misconceptions about what
citi'enship education is and this cut across all the teachers from the various 8niversities
who responded$ This gives room for teachers of &ocial &tudies to see the sub0ect as
amalgamation of the social sciences$
From the interview conducted all the ) respondents agreed that, for the sub0ect not to
suffer, e:perts who are trained in &ocial &tudies should teach the sub0ect as the accepted
definition given to it so that teachers will not still teach &ocial &tudies in a classical
manner by applying traditional teaching methods but this was not so, even teachers who
were trainees of the 8niversity of Education have certain misconception about what the
sub0ect is, although, they perceive it to be citi'enship education$ From the findings 6!
(..U# of the respondents were undecided, that is, they do not understand citi'enship
education$ Cnly " ($U# disagreed to the statement that citi'enship education enables
)?
one to understand the past, the geography of the world and how we are governed,
meaning, the teacher does not know what citi'enship education is$ -f all respondents
agreed on accepted definition of &ocial &tudies as citi'enship education, then it is out of
conte:t for a teacher to say sEhe is able to teach &ocial &tudies because sEhe has broader
spectrum of knowledge in social sciences$ This is a quote from the interview granted to
him, =!n teaching Social Studies you need someone who has a broad spectrum of the
social sciences&$ &uch teacher will still teach &ocial &tudies as an amalgam of the social
sciences, &ocial &tudies being broad go to the other disciplines to borrow ideas and
integrate it to solve problems of man+s survival$ This integration is done in a way that
each discipline is not seen in isolation but well fused to give the sub0ect its unique nature
and scope$
@i'lik (!"# ,said that, much too often, &ocial &tudies courses are regarded as relatively
unimportant sub0ect matter, whether in elementary school, middle school, or high school$
This perception leads to diminished attention paid to &ocial &tudies as a serious sub0ect
area, yet in the overall development of the intellect of students, no other sub0ect matter
content holds as much promise$
@i'lik (!"# believes that, &ocial &tudies curriculum taught in our schools is a mile wide
and an inch deep$ &o much has to be GcoveredG in a year that there is literally no time to
go into much depth in anything$ -n many cases learning is 0udged to have taken place
because students correctly answer the requisite number of questions on multiple choice
tests$ To think of such results as meaningful learning is an e:ercise in self-deception, but
it is done every day in thousands of classrooms$ There is no reason for students to do
))
anything with such content once the test is over, and so it is quickly forgotten, only to be
GrelearnedG and GretestedG later on$ The researcher agrees that learning the content of
&ocial &tudies is creating of knowledge, values, skills and attitudes but not 0ust mere
presentation of facts$
Hooking back at &hulman+s ("((# /ontent and %edagogy knowledge, there were some
important themes that overlapped in that document$ The content section e:pected that
teachers would be able to make connections and see relationships between concepts$
Dhile the %edagogy section sought to help students learn about societal problems,
making connections requires an understanding of the problems facing human for their
survival$ The content section e:pects &ocial &tudies teachers to learn and teach about the
process of developing attitudes, values, skills and knowledge, while the %edagogy section
e:pects teachers to plan e:periences for their students to be reflective, concerned,
responsible and participatory citi'ens$ From the findings, 6* (**$*U# of the respondents
agreed with the statement that, the main forms of &ocial &tudies teaching is making
students acquire relevant fact$ -t is not 0ust a mere fact or knowledge but a distilled
knowledge that will develop the students+ civic competency$
1.) Ho# !ar ha/e teachers o! *oc%a *tud%es a+e to ach%e/e the o+.ect%/es o! the
su+.ect they teachA
, greater percentage ()?U# of the respondents agreed that &ocial &tudies is citi'enship
education, so the nature, goal and ob0ective should be dictated by the prescribed
definition$ The goal of the sub0ect is the ultimate purpose for teaching the sub0ect$ The
/urriculum 1esearch ;evelopment ;ivision (/1;;# breaks the broad goal of the
)(
sub0ect into systematic attainable ob0ective called the general ob0ectives which direct the
whole process of teaching the sub0ect$ 8nfortunately, teachers do not know the goal and
ob0ectives of the sub0ect they are teaching$ From the questionnaire administered, 33
()"$3U# of the respondents agreed that goals and ob0ectives direct the whole process of
teaching the sub0ect but different result showed up during the interview$ This means that
teachers teaching &ocial &tudies do not understand the goal and the general ob0ectives of
the sub0ect so they do not select facts which will address the attainment of the goal and
the general ob0ectives$ For e:ample, a teacher who has taught &ocial &tudies for eleven
years had this to say about the goal and ob0ectives of the sub0ect4
=The main aim or if ! should say the goal of Social Studies is to be able
to get a background knowledge in all areas) since Social Studies
entails a lots of issues) its more or less a general perspective so to
speak) so it will be very important for a student to learn Social Studies
to get knowledge in the other aspects of social science.&
,ith the goal in mind ! make sure students broaden their hori3on by learning the other
social science topics.
The observation carried out in class did not show something different from the interview
conducted$ ;uring the class evaluation, 3 (.!U# of the &ocial &tudies teachers
moderately addressed their teaching to the ob0ectives of the sub0ect$ This finding is in line
with 2orhang+s (!!.# assertion that, the purpose, goal, content and teaching methods are
most important and these make the sub0ect-matter a vulnerable one and that a proper
integration of these will make the sub0ect achieve the intended goals, purpose and
ob0ectives it seeks to achieve$ 1elating this to Ghana, it is e:pected that while in school
and even after leaving school, students should be well informed citi'ens and actively get
(!
involved in the affairs of the nation with an understanding and appreciation of Ghana+s
system of government and civic life (,kinlaye , "((?#$ This is e:actly what the stated
goal and ob0ectives of the sub0ect in the syllabus seek to achieve$ &o a teacher who
perceives the sub0ect as citi'enship education but teaches the sub0ect as amalgamation of
the social sciences will not be able to achieve the goal and ob0ectives of the sub0ect$ That
is the reason why teachers teach the sub0ect the way it is being taught in class, although
they profess to have content knowledge about the &ocial &tudies$ Jone of the teachers
observed was seen to have set any achievable instructional ob0ectives$ ,ll ) teachers
observed were mostly concerned about giving learners knowledge that were related to the
topics they were teaching$ This is mere knowledge$ This supports ,kinlaye+s (!!6# view
that =the competence in teaching &ocial &tudies depends largely on sound understanding
of its philosophy> and that how the sub0ect is perceived plays an important role in the
determination of its goal and ob0ectives$
1., Ho# do the contents o! *oc%a *tud%es taught %"pact on the studentsA
The questionnaires administered showed that, 3 (??$?U# of the respondents agreed that
the problem stated in the &ocial &tudies syllabus helps in the selection of the right content
to teach the sub0ect$ The observations made, prove that teachers of the sub0ect do not
understand what the problem stated in the syllabus means to the teaching of the sub0ect$
They do not know that the stated problem should help them in the selection of the right
approach to solve the problem for the individual+s survival$ They could not link the
problem to the appropriate approach to the teaching of that particular content, so, they
neglect the problem stated to do their own thing during teaching$ The question is how to
("
use the stated problem to effect change, impart values, skills and knowledge into students
to become concerned, reflective, well informed and participatory citi'ens was the
problem$ Jone of the teachers observed tried to solve the problem let alone to
consciously effect change in students$
Hooking at &hulman+s ("((#, /ontent and %edagogy knowledge, there were some
important themes that overlapped in that document$ The /ontent section e:pected that
teachers would be able to make connections and see relationships between concepts$
Dhile the %edagogy section sought to help students learn about societal problems$
Making connections requires an understanding of the problems faced by man for hisEher
survival$ The /ontent section e:pects &ocial &tudies teachers to learn and teach about the
process of developing attitudes, values, skills and knowledge, while the %edagogy section
e:pects teachers to plan e:periences for their students to be reflective, concerned,
responsible and participatory citi'ens$ This presents the intersection in the learning how
to teach &ocial &tudies using different approaches$ Making similar connections relies on a
facile understanding of both the content students are learning and how students learn$
Dith this, the &ocial &tudies teacher after teaching should develop attitudes, values, skills
and knowledge so that learners will be reflective, concerned, responsible and
participatory citi'ens for the individual+s survival$ The data from the questionnaire shows
that 3( ((!$?U# of the respondents deliberately effect possible attitudes and values in
students when teaching &ocial &tudies$ This unfortunately does not reflect teacher+s
teaching because they do not know the goals and ob0ectives of the sub0ect$ This is as a
result of wrong misconception of citi'enship education or they are confused with
(
citi'enship education and education of the citi'enry$ For e:ample, a teacher said this
during the interview section4 =through the topics we teach the students. Topics that work
on their social values are at times used to inculcate the right thing like attitude) skills and
values.&
! consciously inculcate in student the right attitude) skills and values.&
,ccording to Martorella, ("((3#, an attitude can be defined as a positive or negative
evaluation of people, ob0ects, event, activities, ideas, or 0ust about anything in your
environment$ This implies that wrong teaching of &ocial &tudies coupled with bad
environment can develop a negative attitude in students$ -n effect, a wrong conception
about the sub0ect will not develop positive attitudes in learners$
The researcher totally agrees with Martorella ("((3# who said that attitudes are
0udgments$ They develop on the affective, behavioural intention and the cognitive
evaluation of the entity that constitutes an individual+s beliefs about the ob0ect$ Most
attitudes are the results of either direct e:perience or observational learning from the
environment$ This means the persuasive and the communication ways that a teacher can
use to change attitudes are missing in their effort of changing attitudes when we consider
the above statements$
The 3( ((!$?U# respondents who agreed on the statement that, the &ocial &tudies teacher
makes deliberate efforts to develop certain positive attitudes and values in students when
teaching and 6* (**$*U# who agreed that &ocial &tudies is best taught through the use of
relevant life e:periences both in the questionnaire, showed a different thing when the
(6
researcher interviewed the sampled teachers and observed them in class$ ,s seen from the
findings from the interview that teachers deliberately effect change in attitudes, value and
skills, things were different during the observation session$ From the observation, only
(.U# of the teachers moderately made the attempt to deliberately developed learners+
attitudes, skills and values by repeatedly encouraging the needed attitude for students$
This means that teachers presenting mere facts to learners will not make any positive
impact$
The Jational /ouncil for the &ocial &tudies said that, teaching &ocial &tudies powerfully
and authentically begins with a deep knowledge and understanding of the sub0ect and its
unique goals$ &ocial &tudies content prepare students to identify, understand, and work to
solve the challenges facing our nation in an increasingly interdependent world$ &ocial
&tudies as citi'enship education should help students acquire and learn to use the skills,
knowledge, and attitudes that will prepare them to be competent and responsible citi'ens
throughout their lives$ /ompetent and responsible citi'ens are informed and thoughtful,
participate in their communities, are involved politically, and e:hibit moral and civic
virtues$
1.- 6hat %s the genera e/e o! e!!ect%/eness o! *oc%a *tud%es teachers %n the *H*A
The findings from the observation revealed that only (.U# of the teachers teaching
mentioned wrong attitudes casually to students when they were teaching the topic =the
need for the individual to serve>$ ,ll the others were only presenting facts to students to
copy$ The deliberate change in attitudes was not seen$ -n certain times, the researcher
(3
e:pected the teacher to call the student to share what sEhe has learnt during the teaching
period with friends but that was not seen$ -t was also revealed in another class where the
teacher was teaching =conflicts and conflicts resolution> that did not give the student the
opportunity to contribute to the lesson when teaching$ This means that, the application of
the content and facts were not presented in the lesson$ This is in line with H0unggren and
Pst (!"!# saying that, effective teaching does not involve presenting your e:citing
lessons or activities to the class, it is a craft learned over time$ They added that, effective
teaching is a teaching philosophy that can distinctly change given the situation$ For
e:ample, a classroom with five students is a much different situation than addressing a
class of forty students$ 7aving the skills and abilities necessary to become an effective
teacher will allow you to craft your lessons and teaching style to accommodate any si'e
of class$ They are talking about class si'e, but the researcher is of the view that class si'e
should not prevent teachers to do the right thing$
,ccording to the Teacher+s /urriculum -nstitution (!!3#, most researchers agree that a
teacher with some e:perience is usually more effective than someone new on the 0ob$ 2ut
most studies have found that teachers become more effective during the first five years of
their careers and then level off until close to the end of their careers$ This to a large e:tent
can be true but on the contrary it did not show in the research conducted$ -nterestingly,
however, ;arling-7ammond (!!!# reported that Gveteran teachers in settings that
emphasi'e continual learning and collaboration continue to improve their performanceG$
Dhile T/- (!!3# agree that Gsome e:perience does have an impact on student
achievementG they also maintain that Ge:perience has less of an impact on student
achievement than other measurable teacher attributes$G
(.
1.1 8%"%tat%ons
This study concerns itself with teachers+ content knowledge and its effects on the
teaching of &ocial &tudies at the &enior 7igh &chool level in the &ekondi-Takoradi
Metropolis$ The metropolis has twelve ("# public &enior 7igh &chools with each school
having at least four (3# &ocial &tudies teachers and a ma:imum of eight$ The accessible
population used for this study was fifty-four (.3# &ocial &tudies teachers$ Joting that
there are about *!! public &enior 7igh &chools in Ghana, the study cannot capture the
intentions and actions of most of the &ocial &tudies teachers in Ghana$ 2ut since in
Ghana, it is only the 8niversity of /ape /oast and the 8niversity of Education, Dinneba
that produce most &ocial &tudies teachers, one e:pects that their practices will be a
reflection of what is taught in these two universities$
,gain, during the interview session, some respondents were reluctant to answer some of
the questions and some of them were under the pretence that their competences were
being tested, so there was lack of co-operation from them$ &ome were even saying the
questions should have been given to them to study and make reference to their school
notes$ ;ue to this, the anticipated interviewed persons became smaller$ This made the
researcher to observe the lessons of the teachers two times at different times to get the
result the researcher was looking for$
(*
CHAPTER *IC
*U((AR<D CONC8U*ION* AND RECO((ENDATION*
-n this chapter, the researcher will present the summary of the study, conclusions,
recommendation as well as suggestions for further research$
3.9 *u""ary
The main ob0ective of this study was to investigate how far &ocial &tudies teachers at the
&enior 7igh &chools understand the content they are teaching, how they have been able
to achieve the ob0ectives of the sub0ect and how this impacts on the students$ The study
area was the &ekondi-Takoradi Metropolis of the Destern 1egion of Ghana$ To achieve
these ob0ectives, the researcher used three instruments, namely, the questionnaire,
interview guide and observation checklist$ -n all, .3 teachers responded to a questionnaire
and ) teachers were both interviewed and observed$ Four (3# research questions were
formulated to serve as a guide to the study, namelyB how far do &ocial &tudies teachers
understand the content they are teaching at the &7&<, how far have teachers of &ocial
&tudies been able to achieve the ob0ectives of the sub0ect they teach<, how do the content
of &ocial &tudies taught impact on the students<, why are &ocial &tudies teachers in the
&7& not making the needed impact< Through convenience sampling, secondary schools
were selected$ 1andom sampling was used in selecting four (3# schools for the study and
two (# teachers from each of the four selected schools for interview and observation$
;ata collected from the questionnaire and observation guide were analy'ed using
percentages and frequency tables$ The data collected from the interview were triangulated
to establish the truthfulness of the findings$
(?
From the questionnaire it is clear that all the 3? respondents accept that &ocial &tudies is
citi'enship education$ 7owever, the interview and observation revealed that they did not
understand what citi'enship education means$ Thus ..$*U of the respondents viewed
citi'enship education as education for the citi'en$ There was also evidence of teachers
not knowing the goals and ob0ectives of the sub0ect and what the problem stated in the
syllabus stands for$ The study further revealed that though e:perience and certification
matter in students+ achievement, but under this research, the revelation was that it has no
correlation because bad things taught many years can produce more bad students than
good ones$ ,nother revelation from the study relating to relevant content selected for
&ocial &tudies instruction was that teachers could not connect specific ob0ectives to the
general ob0ectives$
3.) Concus%ons
2ased on the findings it can be concluded that many teachers in the &ekondi-Takoradi
Metropolis do lack content knowledge in &ocial &tudies$ This made them not able to
understand the essence of the problem in the syllabus$ They therefore did not select facts
which will develop the civic competences of the learners$ ,gain many &ocial &tudies
teachers do not know what the general ob0ectives of the sub0ect are$ They therefore do not
select facts which address the attainment of these goals and ob0ectives$ ,gain, achieving
good D,&&/E results give teachers some fame and reward and so teachers are poised to
achieve these rewards rather than developing the learners+ attitudes, values, skills and
giving them knowledge which will benefit the society and the nation at large$
()
3.- Reco""endat%ons
2ased on the outcome of the study, the following recommendations have been madeB
&ince content knowledge is vital to good teaching, there should be courses on
&ocial &tudies content so as to develop teachers+ knowledge about the sub0ect to
enhance effective teaching$
The goal and ob0ectives direct the content to be taught$ Therefore, authors of
&ocial &tudies should be advised to keep the goal and ob0ectives of the sub0ect in
mind so as to guide them in their write ups and teaching$
Luestions in &ocial &tudies should emphasise on how to address the problems of
human survival$ D,E/ style of setting questions should be such that students
will apply what they have acquired in class rather than reproducing what is in the
te:tbooks$
There should be periodic seminars for &ocial &tudies teachers to refresh the minds
of those who have been outside the university for a long time so that they will be
abreast with new information about the sub0ect$
/olleges of Education should restructure their programmes to suit content
methodology of &ocial &tudies for effective teaching and learning$
&ocial &tudies ,ssociation should organised in-service training for newly trained
graduates from the 8niversities and /olleges on the content of &ocial &tudies to
enhance effective teaching$
((
3.1 *uggest%ons !or $urther Research$
The current study was limited in scope$ This is because the study covered only the
&ekondi-Takoradi Metropolis of the Destern 1egion of Ghana$ , replication of this
study could be conducted in other Metropolitan areas of the country to find out what the
situation is$
-t is also suggested that studies should be conducted in the study area to find out the
views of teachers on the teachers+ content knowledge in &ocial &tudies and its effect in
the teaching of the sub0ect at the &enior 7igh &chools$ Further studies may also be
necessary to find out whether there is a correlation between teachers+ content knowledge
and students+ achievement$
"!!
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"!"
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(Ed# 7andbook of research on mathematics teaching and learning. Jew TorkB
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&onHife %rinting and &ervices$
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Ma, H$ ("(((#$ 6nowing and teaching elementary mathematicsB Teachers understanding
of fundamental mathematics in China and the 9nited States$ 7illsdale, J9B
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/iti'ens$ Jew 9erseyB MacMillan %ublishing /ompany$
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,ccessed ,ugust *, !""$ www$nbpts$org$
"!6
Jational /ouncil for the &ocial &tudies (!!)#, =:osition statement on curriculum
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tool< The qualitative report (on-line serial#, (6#$ ,ccessed ,ugust "., !""
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Jational /ouncil for the &ocial &tudies #'AA1$. Creating effective citi3ens. :osition
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www$socialstudies$orgEpositionsE&ocial understanding.
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and pedagogic content knowledge in primary teachers+ learning about forces$
!nternational ?ournal of Science >ducation, ("#, pp$ )(-"""$
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"!*
APPENDIC A
2UE*TIONNAIRE
%lease answer the following questions by either ticking the appropriate answer or proving
the answer where needed$
"$ Jame of
schoolB $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$
$ &e:B male R S
Female R S
6$ Educational qualification
;iploma R S
;egree R S
%ost graduate R S
3$ 8niversity attended
8niversity of Education, Dinneba R S
8niversity of Ghana R S
8niversity of /ape /oast R S
8niversity of ;evelopment &tudies R S
@wame Jkrumah 8niversity of &cience and Technology R S
Cther 8niversities (please
specify#$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$
.$ ,rea of speciali'ation
Economics R S
7istory R S
Geography R S
%olitical science R S
&ocial science R S
Cther (specified# R S
"!?
*$ E:perience in teaching social studies
Hess than a year R S
"-.years R S
*-"!years R S
,bove ""years R S
2elow is a list of statement about social studies$ 1ead carefully and select which
statement best describes your understanding of &ocial &tudies, Tick (# in the appropriate
column$
Jote that the ratings are as followsB
, [ ,gree
8 [ 8ndecided
; [ ;isagree
Teacher+ content knowledge , 8 ;
? &ocial studies can be taught by teachers from any
educational background
) The main focus of social studies teaching is making
students to acquire relevant facts
( The problem stated in the social studies syllabus for &&&
helps in the selection of the right content to be taught in the
sub0ect
"! Teachers knowledge in social studies can enhance the
teaching of the sub0ect
"" The social studies teacher makes deliberate efforts to
develop certain positive attitudes and values in students
when teaching
" Goals and ob0ectives of social studies direct the whole
process of teaching the sub0ect
"6 Teachers+ knowledge of social studies help in achieving
goals and ob0ectives of the sub0ect
"3 &ocial studies in citi'enship education
". &ocial studies is a combination of knowledge from
Geography, 7istory, Economics and Government
"* /iti'enship education enables one to understand the past,
the geography of the world and how we are governed
"? ,s soon as you see a social studies topic what comes to
mind is the meaning of it
") -n teaching social studies the teacher tries ensure he is
helping the student to solve the problem of survival
"( -n teaching social studies, the teacher tries to address the
"!)
concept for the topic
! &ocial studies is best taught through the use of relevant life
e:periences
APPENDIC B
INTER7IE6 :UIDE
Male R S Female R S
"$ /an social studies be taught by teachers from any educational background<
$ -s making students to acquire relevant facts the main focus of social studies<
6$ 7ow the problem stated in the syllabus does helps you in teaching the sub0ects<
3$ -n what way will your knowledge in social studies help you in your teaching<
*oc%a stud%es teachers understand%ng o! the goas and o+.ect%/es o! the su+.ect.
.$ ,s &ocial &tudies teacher, what is the importance of the goal and general aims of
the sub0ect to you<
*$ Dith the goal of the sub0ect in mind, what do you think the sub0ect seeks to
inculcate in learners<
?$ -n teaching social studies, do you consciously develop attitude, values, knowledge
and skills in students<
)$ 7ow<
Content kno#edge o! soc%a stud%es teachers %n teach%ng soc%a stud%es.
($ Dhich of these directs a social studies teacher in the teaching of topics in the
sub0ect<
d# Jature of topic
e# The problems man+s survival in the country
"!(
f# The related content the
"!$ Dhich of these will be the driving force when you are teaching the topic N%hysical
Environment+ in &ocial &tudies<
e# The relief, climate and the drainage of the area
f# The climate and the geomorphology of the world
g# ManEwoman can utili'e the physical environment for his benefits
h# 7ow the physical dictates the activities of manEwoman
""$ Dhen teaching a social studies topic N&cience and Technology+ the teacher will be
concerned with
a# The meaning of science and technology
b# Dhat constitute science and technology
c# 7ow the study of science can be applied in technology
d# The advantage science and technology
"$ Dhen teaching a social studies topic Ninstitution of marriage+ at &7& the teacher will
be concerned with
a$ 7ow to help people to solve the problem of selecting a future partner
b$ Dhat constitutes the preparation that ought to be made before getting married
c$ Meaning of marriage
d$ The types of marriages we have in Ghana
"6$ -n teaching social studies topic NJational -ndependence and &elf reliance+ which of
these will be the driving force$
a$ The meaning of the concept political independent and self reliance$
b$ The implication of attaining independence
""!
c$ The political ambition of people
d$ The history of Ghana+s colonial masters and how they gain independent
"3$ ;o you think &ocial studies is achieving the purpose it seeks to attain<
".$ Dhat can you say about the impact of the sub0ect on learners<
APPENDIC C
OB*ER7ATION CHEC' 8I*T
To what e:tent are the following
true of the social studies teaching
Kery
great
e:tent
Great
e:tent
Moderately
true
,veragely
untrue
Jot
true
The overall ob0ective the teaching
addresses was achieved
&tudents+ attitudes are being
developed by the teacher
&tudents+ values were being
developed
&tudents+ skills are being
developed
Teacher tries to address how to
solve the problem
&tudents+ activities performed in
class were relevant to the topic
Teacher makes repeated effort in
encouraging the needed attitude to
students+
Facts used make the students+
conscious of the problem for man+s
survival
Teachers+ content addressed the
stated problem
Teachers knowledge in social
studies helped in achieving the
stated ob0ective
"""
""