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For Teachers Our Mission
The mission of the Knox County Schools Social Studies Department is to utilize research-based instructional strategies and cross-curricular connections to empower students with the skills and knowledge necessary to become competent, active, career and/or college ready citizens within a global society and to support excellence for every child.
Our Beliefs
- Engaging in Social Studies coursework nurtures growth in both personal and social skills.
- Social Studies enhances students’ global awareness.
- Social Studies promotes active participation in our political and economic systems.
- Social Studies equips students with skills and knowledge to be successful in their community and world.
- Social Studies empowers students to be problem-solvers and critical thinkers.
- Social Studies fosters good citizenship.
- Social Studies encourages an understanding of the past, how it applies to the present, and of how it impacts the future.
- Social Studies promotes respect for diversity.
- Social Studies teachers engage all students by using purposeful, meaningful, and research-based instructional strategies.
- Cross-curricular instruction supports excellence for all children.
- Collaboration and data-driven instruction supports excellence for every child.
Our Goals
- Students will develop a respect for their rights and the rights of others.
- Students will develop the knowledge, skills, and attitudes that will foster responsible, global citizenship.
- Students will develop the skills necessary to adapt to an ever-changing society.
- Students will understand how society establishes governing institutions and distributes power and authority.
- Students will study, analyze, and interpret data in order to develop a historical perspective to assist in making informed choices and decisions for the present.
- Students will develop global and multicultural perspectives.
The Social Studies standards-based curriculum/content provides critical support for KCS, including the School Board's and each school's Mission, and the Superintendent’s Strategic Plan by:
- Supporting the common good.
- Adopting common and multiple perspectives.
- Applying knowledge, skills, and values to civic action.
- Acquiring information and manipulating data.
- Developing and presenting policies, arguments, and stories.
- Constructing new knowledge.
- Implementing a collaborative, teacher-developed standards-based curriculum.
- Using data to improve instruction.
- Addressing Career, College, and ACT Readiness Standards for Reading & Writing throughout the K-12 Curriculum.
- Encouraging cross-curricular instruction to support high-stakes areas such as Math and Reading.
- Supporting the building of literacy in Social Studies/History.
- Differentiating instruction to support the needs of every child.
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Judy Newgent
Social Studies SpecialistAndrew Johnson Building10th Floor(865) 594-1730 Office
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Dean Burress
K-12 Instructional CoachAndrew Johnson Building
10th Floor(865) 594-1730 Phonedean.burress@knoxschools.org
Katherine Petko
K-12 Instructional CoachAndrew Johnson Building
10th Floor(865) 594-1730 Phone
Vickie Beckers
Administrative Assistant for Social Studies/ELA/ReadingAndrew Johnson Building10th Floor(865) 594-1730 Phone
