Authentic Social Studies Assessments

Many students and perhaps some teachers think that History and Social Studies is just memorizing names and dates and regurgitating that information on worksheets and tests. What Social Studies education should be is asking and answering questions about how and why things have happened and are continuing to happen today. This presentation will focus on alternative projects to assess student learning that will dig deeper into the how and why and hopefully spark student interest in exploring other times and cultures.

Professor Peter Baganz began his ministry teaching 4th and 5th grades on the Apache Reservation at Bylas, AZ. He then went on to serve for 19 years as a History and Computer teacher at Huron Valley Lutheran High School in Westland, MI. He is now in his 11th year as a professor of History at Martin Luther College where he has the privilege of sharing his love of History and his ideas for teaching with the next generation of called workers.