Every so often, you walk down the hallway and see students dressed up in clothing taken straight from the 1800s. These outfits, which include vests, collared shirts and bow ties, aren’t just interesting fashion choices — they’re a part of social studies class projects.
Classes such as World History and U.S. History usually convey the curriculum to students through lectures and discussion-based activities. The discussion-based activities include debates, role-playing, filmmaking, videos and Socratic seminars. This type of teaching is especially popular in history classes because analyzing and interpreting ideas is a central focus, and the projects add another layer of interaction with the material.
The second type of learning is a more traditional approach, where teachers lecture on a topic and students take notes.
Activity-based projects can help students understand the material better since they aren’t just memorizing facts and actually interacting with the material. They also can make the learning process more interesting for many students.
“For me, history can be kind of monotone, so I really appreciate things like simulations, because they are the things that I remember the most,” sophomore Sarah Musani said.
Activities like the Trial of Kaiser Wilhelm debate in World History require students to analyze the information and apply it in a way they would never learn to do with traditional lecturing and note-taking.
In the World History classes taught by Jerry Sheehy, students participate in multiple simulations each year. During the feudalism unit earlier this year, some students held different noble ranks while the rest were peasants.
The simulation was designed to help students understand the heavy tax burdens imposed by landowners. They used fake money and wheat to simulate how nobles and the monarchy overtaxed peasants.
The king, nobles and church would each tax peasants a certain amount, and at the end of the simulation, the peasants had no wheat left. The simulation gave students a tangible way to see what it was like to be among the poor in the Middle Ages.
While activity-based instruction can be very effective in helping students understand the material, teachers say traditional lecturing is also a vital part of the teaching process in many history classes.
“I find myself lecturing to kids when I believe it is needed,” Sheehy said. “So when I have to teach information quickly, or if the material doesn’t offer a lot to interact with, I use more teaching styles like lecturing.”
Lecturing can be the most efficient way for teachers to convey information in larger amounts to students and can be entertaining. It provides a way for students to learn in a clear and more structured manner, and it helps students learn foundational information like dates and important people.
However, both Sheehy and history teacher Mike Davey believe the best classes combine both activity-based and direct instruction.
“I really like how Mr. Sheehy teaches because it’s really helpful to the learning process,” Musani said. “Obviously, he switches from lectures and activities, but I really appreciate his teaching methods.”
Since it can be hard for students to understand and relate many topics taught in history classes, using activities can help students analyze and apply what they are learning. Davey mentioned that one kind of learning cannot exist without the other.
“Humanities in general are supposed to make students feel and think morally, which trials and debates help with, but you really can’t have activities without lectures,” Davey said. “Combining both types of teaching is the way to go.”