As a Social Studies beginning teacher, I recognize the importance of teaching young people about what it means to be a part of this world that we all share and participate in. I truly believe in the concept of learning about the past so we are not doomed to repeat it. Social Studies covers many aspects, including geography and history.
Learning Social Studies is not just about memorizing the facts about the past; it is about understanding perspective and developing a critical mind about the facts which have shaped the world that we live in today. It is about allowing students to understand that they have a voice--that they are the current generation that is affecting history right now. Social Studies is about making connections not only to the people and community around you, but also to people who are "different" than you.
It is easy to make judgments of people who have lived in the past. We often look at history with our current understandings of the world and place judgments on actions and decisions that were made in different generations, when values and beliefs might have been different. It is the job of the Social Studies teacher, therefore, to bring light to concepts in Social Studies in a way that not only allows students to connect with the past, but also to try to understand the people who lived then.
In my opinion, there are a few very important purposes of teaching Social Studies and these are: 1) Providing information about things that have happened in the past that still have an effect on our societies today 2) Allowing students to develop critical thinking skills and to explore controversial and important topics from our past so they can make connections to their own lives 3) Deconstruct understandings from the past and learn from past mistakes or actions that have been taken by historical actors. The purpose of this is to create empathy to the past but to force students to be active when history begins to repeat itself 4) Become citizens of the world, whereby students are motivated to use what they know about the geography and history of the world, and use it to be active and empathetic citizens to those around them.
Specifically looking at Canadian history, an important part of teaching this content is to allow students to understand the country where they live from a variety of perspectives which give voice to groups that have not had a voice in the past, in the hopes that we become a more just society.