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February 1, 2008
Choices -- History and Current Issues for the Classroom

{I met Susan Graseck at the Issues-Centered Education community meeting at NCSS 2007. She runs Choices, an educational program that leads students to make an genocideunit.jpginformed and personal choice and defend it within an organized classroom activity. Choices charges for some materials, but many are free. I invited Susan to share program information in this guest blog post. - Brian}

High school students in Portland, Maine end their yearlong study of genocide and human rights with a community forum at which they consider options for confronting genocide and discuss their views with community members who have experienced genocides first hand. Classes in Illinois, Oregon, New Mexico, and Maine blog together on Iran’s history and recent U.S. policy. Students in Stafford, Virginia wrestle with policy options on the Iraq war as their families deal with the personal impact of war.

The Choices Program is a national education program designed to introduce substantive international content into the core curriculum.

The Teaching with the News initiative provides free online curriculum materials and ideas to connect the content of the classroom to the headlines in the news.

IranChoices.jpg

More in-depth Curriculum Units incorporate the latest scholarship with extensive background readings, lesson plans, and a role-play or simulation exercise that encourages students to apply their knowledge in an authentic setting. These published materials are provided at the subsidized cost of $20 per title.

And the new Scholars Online program brings scholars who have participated in the development of teaching resources into the classroom via the internet. Resources are free and include interviews with scholars; digitized primary sources; and lesson plans.

“Choices’ Iraq and genocide materials have been invaluable to me and my students,” says Sarah Roeske of Stafford, Virginia. “The best part is that they are always so current and up-to-date on the most pressing issues. I often check the ‘Teaching with the News’ section of the Choices website for help in teaching my most complex and current issues.”
CapitolChoices.jpg

Choices is a core program of the Watson Institute for International Studies at Brown University, a research institute that was established in 1985 to analyze contemporary global problems and develop initiatives to address them.
You can contact Choices at choices@brown.edu.

{Have you used the Choices materials? Please share your experience with us. Would a program like this work in your school? - Brian}

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Comments
Posted:
02/ 6/08 at
04:24 PM 		Gene Dorn : I started using the choices program in 1995 and continued to use it until I retired from teaching in 2006. I believe it is the best curriculum available for teaching current events or modern problems courses. The units are updated often and the teacher support provided by the Choices program is extensive. I would encourage every teacher faced with the task of developing and maintaining a current events type curriculum to check out "Choices"
Posted:
02/ 9/08 at
01:40 PM 		Ron Levitsky : I have used various Choices units over the years with my eighth grade students in Northfield, Illinois. I find that, for my U.S. History class, the units on immigration, imperialism, the League of Nations, Vietnam, and genocide are especially useful. It's wonderful to get up-to-date research (the units are continually revised), in-depth background materials, and, of course, the role play, which my students always love. It's an excellent opportunity for students to engage in critical thinking, meaningful dialogue, and the exploration of their own values. I can't think of a better resource for history teachers.
Posted:
02/ 9/08 at
01:42 PM 		Josh Otlin : I started using Choices materials in 2001 and use them in every course I've taught: Civics, US History, International Relations, Ethics, and Economics. The readings make complex topics accessible to students. The role-plays get students actively engaged and thinking critically. The flexible format of the units and the supporting materials make the Choices units incredibly easy to implement. The range of offerings, from early American history to current events and historical topics from around the globe, make Choices units an outstanding resource for every social studies classroom.
Posted:
02/11/08 at
10:14 AM 		Kevin Zupin : I was introduced to Choices four years ago and it has revolutionized how I teach social studies, even after 20 plus years in the classroom. The multiple viewpoint approach to social studies issues these units offer engages the students and makes them reflect on their own values and beliefs. My students, of all abilities levels, look forward to our fish bowl deliberations where they weigh the trade-offs between the different options provided in the Choices Units. They enjoy listening to the insights of their peers as they reflect and develop their own views. The Choices units provide a great bridge to having students actually act on their beliefs and become civically engaged as well. I recommend them highly!
Posted:
02/11/08 at
11:32 AM 		Scott Aronson : I have used Choices in my classroom for 6 years and find them the most effective and captivating activities I present all year. The students love the activities and I see critical thinking, the use of evidence to support postions, the ability to articulate a position orally and ask critical questions as just some of the benefits of using the Choices units. It takes time to set up some of the activities but it pays off.
Posted:
02/12/08 at
08:16 AM 		Staci Fahlsing : I have been having my students deliberate for 2 years and am very impressed with the Choices curriculum. Often times high school teachers get discouraged because so much of the education materials are geared for middle school and younger. The Choices curriculum are designed at a level that is easily understood by high school students, yet challenging enough to get them really thinking. I have been extremely impressed by the excitement that the Units create in my classroom. If you have never tried them,I encourage you to start now. They are excellent!
Posted:
02/12/08 at
09:01 AM 		Mary Ann : I have used "Never Again" about Genocide. The students really get into it b/c they don't realize what has happened in the past, except for the Holocaust, and that it continues today. My students have done various civic responses to the unit: they have written letters to our Congressional reps and the President, we have built a memorial to the victims of Genocide, we sold T-shirts about ending genocide and sent the money to the Holocaust Museum in DC. I strongly recommend using the Choices units in your classroom. The students learn a lot more than me teaching about it.
Posted:
02/12/08 at
09:30 AM 		Kevin Cline : I have been using Choices actively in my classroom for two years now, and love it! The units are so well planned, and provide such a plethora of resources that I would not have the creativity or time to find on my own. What I like best is that it "forces" the students to examine multiple perspectives on issues, which can not only open their minds, but establish a personal point of view based on fact. Highly recommend to any teacher!
Posted:
02/12/08 at
10:41 AM 		Stephanie Bode : Choices has been an ideal curriculum for my high ability 7th graders these last two years. Students have commented that the dialogue from the classroom spills out into the schools hallways. By stretching their minds to accomodate other points of view, students grow intellectually in ways that they never could through a textbook assignment. The timeliness of the topics and the high quality background materials make Choices one of my favorite and most valuable curriculum and instructional packages.
Posted:
02/12/08 at
02:31 PM 		Stacy Schwing : Using Choices in my classroom has enabled my students to gain a real understanding of current and past issues. The units allow for teachers to choose what aspects they would like to focus on as well as ensuring that the students have a better-than-surface-level understanding of history. They have made an excellent addition to my classroom.
Posted:
02/12/08 at
03:11 PM 		Deb Wrye : I have used several of the Choices units in both my middle school and high school social studies classes. The materials are teacher and classroom friendly, easily adapted for special needs students or a variety of grade levels, and inexpensive! Students enjoy the role plays, but are always more anxious to get to fishbowl discussions that allow them to share with each other and validate their own opinions on the topic. The units allow me to easily incorporate authentic writing (that pleases test-minded admin.) when students develop their own options or responses to the options in essay form or letters to various public figures. In fact, I am in the middle of the Shifting Sands in the middle school and China on the World Stage in the high school this week!
Posted:
02/12/08 at
05:17 PM 		Ed Robson : I have been using Choices units for three years with my 7th graders and my high school world history classes. I love the fact that the deliberation process allows for and requires my students internalize content. They don't just memorize material. They have process and find meaning. Also the students have to develop support for their ideas in a deeper manner than what is usually required of them.
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