Social Studies Curriculum

Area Studies Electives

« Return to Area Studies Electives Framework home page

Adopted January 1999

Contemporary Problems and Current Events

Course Description:

Contemporary Problems and Current Events will focus on the social, political, cultural, and geographic forces that have created contemporary world "hot spots."  Students will discuss the evolution of these issues on the world stage and the implications of their resolution or non-resolution.

The course title and description have been approved by the Anchorage School Board.  This course outline is meant to serve as an example of one possibility for organizing this class.  It does not represent the only way the course may be organized.  Each course outline has been written by a different teacher so there will be differences in the approach used from one course to another.

Course Goals:

Through this course students will:

• Understand important current issues and significant factors (e.g.. cultural, historical, environmental, economic, political) involved with the issues.
• Determine the relationship(s) of current events to the past.
• Improve reading, research, and library skills.
• Understand the short and long term implications of current events and propose viable solutions to these problems.
• Develop and apply critical thinking skills to contemporary issues to determine how these issues affect their lives.
• Understand the importance of an informed citizenry.

Course Objectives:

The student will:

• Identify and describe significant contemporary problems and current events.
• Identify and describe important factors as they are related to current events and contemporary problems.
• Identify and use a variety of news sources and describe the limitations and strengths of each.
• Utilize a variety of research tools such as print media, television, and the Internet.
• Recognize bias and point-of-view found in information.
• Research and identify root causes of current problems.
• Identify geographic, social, political, and economic aspects of the topic.
• Record and explain the complexities of these issues.
• Assess the short and long term consequences of action or inaction.
• Formulate and provide support for opinions on these issues.
• Formulate and support possible, probable, and preferred resolutions to the issues.

Course Outline:

1. Introduction to contemporary problems and issues
   1. What is Contemporary Problems
   2. Contemporary problems and issues that will be examined
   3. Significant points-of-view related to the selected contemporary issues
   4. Impact of the issues/problems to daily life
2. Skills required in examining contemporary problems/issues.
   1. Sources of information
      1. Internet
      2. Print materials (books, newspapers, magazines, etc.)
      3. Media (television, radio)
      4. Human/community resource people
      5. Other
   2. Evaluating the quality/bias of information sources
3. Process for examining contemporary aspects of selected problems
   1. Physical and cultural geographic background of the issue/problem
      1. Location
      2. Place characteristics (physical and cultural)
      3. Human/environment relationships
      4. Movement (physical and cultural)
      5. Regions (physical and cultural)
      6. Political and economic geography
   2. Historical aspects of the issue/problem
      1. Causes
      2. Differing historical points-of-view
   3. Economic aspects of the issue/problem
   4. Political aspects of the issue/problem
   5. Contemporary differing points-of view
   6. Formulate and support a point-of-view related to selected issues
4. Formulate and support the possible, probable, and preferred resolution of selected issues
5. Develop and provide a presentation(inclusive of previously listed factors) on a contemporary problem and the possible, probable and preferred future for this issue.

Next: Sample Course Outlines - Environmental Studies »