research in social studies education

Perspectives Daily

“What Changed” in Social Studies Education

A View from the Classroom

Samantha Stearns | Jul 30, 2019

Editor’s note: This is the first installment of a two-part column. The second installment can be found here .

“What changed?” asked one of my graduate school professors. She was talking informally with me and another student about how so many undergraduate students seem unprepared for the rigor of college-level history courses. She observed that she had to constantly revise her syllabi due to the decreasing skill level of the students she taught from year to year. It frustrated her that she kept having to reduce the number of monographs she assigned and the amount of academic writing she required. But the question of “what changed” isn’t mysterious to me: not only am I a graduate student, finishing my master’s degree in history, I’m also an eighth-grade social studies teacher with a decade of classroom experience. Being on the front lines of social studies education in this way, I have a unique perspective from which to answer her question, and some ideas about finding a solution.

Social studies teachers at all levels are often forced into the stereotype of being a jack of all trades and master of none. Luis Pérez via Flickr/CC BY 2.0.

From a teacher’s point of view, the answer to “What changed?” is rooted in the ambiguous definition of “social studies” itself. In most American classrooms, social studies is an amalgam of disciplines largely dominated by history, but depending on the curriculum adopted by a district or school, it also may incorporate geography, political science, economics, religious studies, psychology, sociology, and archaeology. This means that social studies teachers at all levels are often forced into the stereotype of being a jack of all trades and master of none. For that reason, many history professors will end up seeing students with limited historical content knowledge and critical-thinking skills. But what they might not understand is that social studies curriculum is heavily dependent on not just teacher preferences (or preparation) but also the priorities of the government. District and state standards matter, but the status of social studies education as a mix-match of disciplines reflects priorities that start at the federal level.

Social studies education, it seems to many educators, has never recovered from the blow dealt to it by the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act of 2001, with its high-stakes standardized testing in math and reading, to the detriment of other subjects. The effects of NCLB are evident when students in a 100-level history course do not understand the difference between primary and secondary sources, for example, or when students in upper-level courses have trouble identifying and evaluating a historian’s argument. These gaps in the skills necessary to succeed in history courses are formed at an early age for most American students because of the emphasis on math and reading education.

On the ground, this means that elementary and intermediate school teachers have a dual mission: teaching multiple content areas and increasing reading and math standardized test scores. If teachers feel underqualified or ill-equipped to teach social studies curriculum per se, they might integrate pieces of it into content areas that students will be assessed on. For example, teachers might use a short story with the American Revolution as a backdrop in a reading or language arts class. Or, students might learn about the state bird in a science class as part of a broader unit on varying species. On paper, the student has received social studies “minutes” as mandated by the state or district, but in reality, the student has learned about an event, a person, or a place without any historical context. The student therefore views the topic in isolation, never to be thought about again. Young learners’ inherent curiosity is stifled when they can’t move beyond the what to also explore the why and how : the very essence of what quality social studies education should encourage.

Unfortunately, the lack of quality social studies education does not improve much as a student progresses in grade level. According to the most recent Schools and Staffing Survey , conducted in 2011, third graders in American schools spent less than 10 percent of their academic week learning social studies. By the eighth grade, students spent only 4.2 hours per week in a history or social studies class—as compared to 6.5 hours in English or Language Arts, 5 hours in math, and 4.3 hours in science. [1] What changed, then? Social studies, and therefore history as a discipline, became the bottom rung of the educational ladder for many schools and therefore the first of the core academic subjects to be modified or reduced to increase minutes in other subject areas, or to be scrapped completely.

Prioritizing social studies education probably won’t come from state or federal mandates, nor should it. Its needs to come from the grassroots level, by encouraging professionalization among those who teach social studies. Professionalization would increase educators’ authority to emphasize content-relevant skills in their curriculum, and to incorporate opportunities for students to experience what it means to be a professional historian. This would result in clear skill development among students, which would transcend the problem of social studies’ content variability—a problem that has contributed to its decline. At a time when it seems the only path to a subject’s legitimization is whether it is tested, professionalization would help teachers gain recognition for their content mastery while also reinforcing their ability to develop students’ critical-thinking skills.

The means of professionalization for social studies teachers can and should vary by individual, but there are several readily accessible pathways, including content-driven professional development, advanced study, and networking with professional historians. Professionalization will allow the conversation to move from “What changed?” to what works.

[1] Dinah Sparks and Kathleen Mulvaney Hoyer, Instruction Time for Third- and Eighth-Graders in Public and Private Schools: School Year 2011–2012 (NCES 2017-076) (Washington, DC: National Center for Education Statistics, Institute of Education Sciences, US Department of Education, 2017), https://nces.ed.gov/pubs2017/2017076.pdf .

Samantha Stearns is an eighth-grade social studies teacher and chair of the social studies department at Roosevelt Middle School in River Forest, Illinois. 

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In This Article Expand or collapse the "in this article" section Social Studies Education

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Social Studies Education by William B. Russell LAST REVIEWED: 19 August 2020 LAST MODIFIED: 23 March 2012 DOI: 10.1093/obo/9780199756810-0041

Social studies education most commonly refers to the training of professional educators to teach social studies. It includes the training of social studies educators who emphasize the need for social education through the teaching of various social science disciplines (e.g., history, psychology, political science). The field of social studies education is unique and is occasionally referred to as social science education and/or history education. However, it should be noted that social science education and social studies education are often used interchangeably, but history education is a subfield of social studies education. Some may argue the opposite, because of history education’s perceived dominance in the field of social studies education, but this is neither a common nor a majority perspective. The citations included below lead a user to works that encompass the field of social studies education and the many subfields and issues that characterize this field. They have been selected because of their comprehensive nature or because of their significance in influencing the field generally or a particular direction within the brief historical evolution of social studies education.

The following general works provide a well-balanced introduction to the broad field of social studies education. The National Council for the Social Studies 2010 curriculum standards (see under Definition ) is a thoughtful and organized text that outlines the purpose, goals, and standards for social studies. As the world changes and schools evolve, the state of social studies education and its perspectives shift. Russell 2011 is seminal work that examines the issues surrounding contemporary social studies education. Parker 2009 is a valuable collection of some of the most significant articles that have been recently published. Readers interested in issues related to social studies education research should turn to Stanley 2001 .

Russell, W., (Ed.) 2011. Contemporary Social Studies: An Essential Reader. . Charlotte, NC: Information Age Publishing.

The field of social studies is unique and complex. It is challenged by the differing perspectives related to the definition, goals, content, and purpose of social studies. This volume discusses the issues surrounding social studies education today. Its 28 chapters are written by prominent scholars in the field of social studies. The collection inspires and provokes readers to reconsider and reexamine social studies and its contemporary state. Readers will explore the various critical topics that encompass contemporary social studies.

Parker, Walter, ed. 2009. Social studies today: Research and practice . New York: Routledge.

This volume is a collection of previously published articles of significance. Each article discusses various issues and perspectives of social studies education. The volume includes twenty-five chapters written by some of the leading scholars in the field of social studies education.

Stanley, William B., ed. 2001. Critical issues in social studies research for the 21st century . Charlotte, NC: Information Age.

This volume discusses various issues and perspectives of social studies research relevant to the 21st century. The volume includes eleven chapters written by some of the leading scholars in the field of social studies education.

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Annals of Social Studies Education Research for Teachers

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We know that social studies teachers are dedicated to their craft and always looking for ways to improve those practices. Teachers tell us that they would like to make use of research that illustrates powerful social studies teaching and learning, but that they don’t have access to the research, don’t have time to read it, or find it too difficult to digest.

Here at ASSERT we want to break down these barriers for you. On our site, you will find easily digestible, relevant, well-written, summaries of the best published social studies research the profession has to offer with practical advice on how to implement these ideas in your classroom.

Each article is blind peer-reviewed by two professionals, a scholar with expertise in the field and a practicing social studies teacher. These reviewers help to ensure that the summaries you read are of the highest possible quality, that they accurately represent the research, and that they provide teachers with practical advice they can use to take their teaching to the next level. They are published with a Q & A that poses five questions (generated by teachers and teacher educators) about the author’s article.

Best of all, we provide you with access to these articles free of charge. We are a collective of social studies teachers and teacher educators dedicated to the profession and to hard-working teachers like yourself. You and your students should have the best new ideas, research, and practices available to you. Now, you have it at your fingertips. The Annals of Social Studies Education Research for Teachers welcomes you to join us in this new and exciting venture.

Current Issue

This issue reflects our first open call for papers and brings forth perspectives for social studies educators that help to expand our understanding of the field, including two articles by Allen, Williams, & Hicks and Washington & Seay that provide the reader with a rich portrait of who rural educators are and the challenges they face in teaching social studies today. Poitras Pratt & Danyluk offer a compelling approach to reconciliation that aims to improve relations between Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples. Finally Picardo provides a glimpse into the curricular lives of Finnish teachers, offering North American teachers an opportunity to think about a different approach from one of the most well-regarded education systems today. Each offers a perspective many social studies teachers don't consider that promise to enrich the journey of the educators who read them.

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A Portrait of Rural Social Studies Teachers (and Their Students) Demographics and Implications for Professional Development

Examining cultural barriers to teaching anti-racist history in the rural u.s., acting on the trc calls to action through education, competence learning brought to life how finnish teachers actualize a new curriculum.

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Preparing Social Studies Students to Think Critically in the Modern World

Vetting primary resources isn’t easy—but doing it well is crucial for fostering engagement and deeper learning in a rapidly changing world.

In an era when students must sort through increasingly complex social and political issues, absorbing news and information from an evolving digital landscape, social studies should be meaningful and engaging—a means for preparing students for the modern world, writes Paul Franz for EdSurge . Yet much of our social studies curricula emphasizes content knowledge over the development of foundational, critical thinking skills such as understanding the context in which primary sources were created, and determining the credibility of resources.

“The consequence of this approach, coupled with a preference by many schools for multiple-choice assessments, turns out students who are disillusioned with social studies—and creates an environment where “accumulating knowledge and memorizing information is emphasized because that’s what counts on standardized tests,” writes Franz.

In his book Why Learn History (When It’s Already on Your Phone) , author Sam Wineburg, a professor at Stanford’s Graduate School of Education, examines how historians approach resources and argues that this is how teachers should be rigorously vetting—and teaching students to vet—social studies materials for the classroom.

Wineburg first describes how an AP US History student analyzes a New York Times article from 1892 about the creation of Discovery Day, later renamed Columbus Day. The student criticizes the article for celebrating Columbus as a noble hero when, in fact, he “captured and tortured Indians.” However, when real-life historians examine the same article, Wineburg notes that their  approach is “wildly different.”

“When historians encounter this resource, their first move is to source it and put it in context, not to engage with the content,” writes Franz. “This article, to them, isn’t really about Columbus at all. It’s about President Harrison, who was responsible for the proclamation, and the immigration politics of the 1890s.”

The skills demonstrated by the historians are the same skills that should form the core of effective social studies education, according to Franz:

• Assessing the point of view of an author and source
• Placing arguments in context
• Validating the veracity of a claim

It is critical that teachers model this process for students: “Vetting social studies resources is important not just because we want to ensure students are learning from accurate, verifiable materials. It’s important also because the ability to ask questions about sources, bias, and context are at the heart of social studies education and are essential skills for thriving in the modern world.”

Much like historians, professional fact-checkers verify digital resources by using lateral reading. As opposed to vertical reading, where a reader might stay within a single website to evaluate a factual claim, fact-checkers scan a resource briefly, then open up new browser tabs to read more widely about the original site and verify its credibility via outside sources. This process mirrors how historians vet primary sources.

Teachers may also, of course, choose to rely on vetted social studies resources and lessons published by reputable sources—Franz recommends Newsela, Newseum, The National Archives, and the Stanford History Education Group.

Encouraging students to seek out knowledge and ideas, and then to deeply explore the reliability of their sources by considering their context, perspective, and accuracy should be the core skill of any rigorous social studies curriculum.

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Handbook of research in social studies education

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Description

Creators/contributors, contents/summary.

• Dedication Preface Acknowledgements Contributors
• Chapter 1 Introduction: Linda L. Levstik and Cynthia A. Tyson Part I: Change and Continuity in Social Studies
• Chapter 2 Continuity and Change in Social Studies Curriculum Stephen J. Thornton
• Chapter 3 Early Elementary Social Studies Jere Brophy and Janet Alleman
• Chapter 4 What Happens in Social Studies Classrooms? Research on K-12 Social Studies Practice Linda S. Levstik Part II: Civic Competence in Pluralist Democracies
• Chapter 5 Knowing and Doing in Democratic Citizenship Education Walter C. Parker
• Chapter 6 International Political Socialization Research Carole L. Hahn and Theresa Alviar-Martin
• Chapter 7 Service-Learning Rahima Wade
• Chapter 8 Controversial Issues asnd Democratic Discourse Diana Hess
• Chapter 9 Diversity and Citizenship Education: Historical, Theoretical, and Philosophical Issues James A. Banks and Diem Nguyen Part III: Social Justice and the Social Studies
• Chapter 10 Social Justice and the Social Studies Kathy Bickmore
• Chapter 11 Gender and Sexuality in the Social Studies Margaret Smith Crocco
• Chapter 12 Global Education Guichun Zong, Angene H. Wilson, and A. Yao Quashiga Part IV: Assessment and Accountability
• Chapter 13 Assessment and Accountability in the Social Studies S.G. Grant and Cinthia Salinas Part Five: Teaching and Learning in the Disciplines
• Chapter 14 Research on Students' Ideas about History Keith C. Barton
• Chapter 15 Research on K-12 Geography Education Avner Segall and Robert J. Helfenbein.
• Chapter 16 Recent Research on the Teaching and Learning of Pre-Collegiate Economics Steven L. Miller and Phillip J. VanFossen Part VI: Information Ecologies: Technology in the Social Studies
• Chapter 17 Technology and Social Studies Kathleen Owings Swan and Mark Hofer Part VII: Teacher Preparation and Development
• Chapter 18 The Education of Social Studies Teachers Susan Adler
• Chapter 19 The Professional Development of Social Studies Teachers Stephanie van Hover.
• (source: Nielsen Book Data)

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The Dr. Frank Y. Chuck and Dr. Bernadine Chuck Fong Family Book Fund

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Understand the past, question the present

Your Primary Source for the Social Studies Classroom

Discovery Education's Social Studies Techbook is a standards-aligned, core-curricular resource that uses an inquiry-based approach to enhance literacy and critical thinking skills, allowing students to approach inquiry through the 5Es: Engage, Explore, Explain, Extend, and Evaluate. From stories of ancient cultures to current events, this comprehensive digital textbook takes concepts off the pages and brings lessons to life.

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The Pivotal Role of Prison Libraries as an Information Resource for Prisoner Rehabilitation

An integrative review of the literature.

• Olusegun Opesanwo Dominion University, Ibadan
• Dr. Oluyọmi Awofeso Dominion University, Ibadan, Oyo State, Nigeria

This article delves into the multifaceted roles of prison libraries in rehabilitating and reintegrating incarcerated individuals. It begins by underscoring the significance of education in correctional facilities and the inherent challenges of providing access to educational resources due to security constraints. The primary objective of this study is to scrutinize the theoretical underpinnings that drive the rehabilitative functions of prison libraries and identify existing gaps in the literature. This research, through a comprehensive analysis of various empirical studies, reveals the pivotal role played by prison libraries in fostering personal growth, facilitating social integration among inmates, serving as havens where prisoners are afforded the autonomy to choose their reading materials, empowering them to enhance their lives through self-directed learning, and contributing to cultural enrichment, literacy advancement, and preparation for successful reintegration into society. The findings of this integrated literature review underscore the constructive influence of prison libraries on effective time management and offering meaningful activities for prisoner rehabilitation. This study highlights the need for further research that amalgamates robust theoretical frameworks with empirical evidence, thereby establishing how prison libraries can efficaciously contribute to prisoner rehabilitation. This study also informs policy formulation to enable correctional institutions to utilize these insights to bolster behavioural management strategies.

Author Biographies

Olusegun opesanwo, dominion university, ibadan.

Olusegun Adebayo Opesanwo is a lecturer, a librarian, and an emerging scholar working at Dominion University in Ibadan, Nigeria. He holds an MLS degree from the University of Ibadan, Nigeria and is currently pursuing a PhD in Academic Librarianship. Before his appointment as a librarian, he had worked as a high school teacher for close to two decades. His research interests include social media, knowledge management, information practices, information literacy, user studies, and emerging technologies in library and information science. His contributions have been published in scholarly journals, and he actively engages in professional networks to foster knowledge exchange. Olusegun Opesanwo plays a vital role in supporting information access and promoting effective use of library resources.

Dr. Oluyọmi Awofeso, Dominion University, Ibadan, Oyo State, Nigeria

Oluyọmi A, Awofẹsọ holds a PhD in Sociology from the University of Ibadan, Oyo State, Nigeria. Her PhD research investigated Post-founder business enterprise (dis)continuity. She worked as a Cambridge A- Level Sociology tutor for over a decade teaching module related to mainstream sociology, education, family, global development , religion amongst others. Also, she served as a school administrator (in a private school) for half a decade before joining Dominion University, Ibadan, Oyo State as a lecturer in the Department of Criminology and Security Studies in 2021. Her interest in Criminal Justice, in general, and Criminal Rehabilitation, in particular, was developed while working with the Department.  Awofeso is an early career researcher currently working as an independent researcher with research interests in Sociological theory; enterprise survival; prison entrepreneurship; prisoner re-entry, prisoner rehabilitation; community-based corrections as well as crime prevention. She is also a volunteer with “Environmental Conflict Mediation and Women Development Initiative” - an NGO committed to climate change and the well being of women.

Copyright (c) 2024 Olusegun Opesanwo

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License .

Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms: see Author Agreement . Articles are licensed under a CC-BY-NC-ND license.

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UMD-Led Study Abroad Program in Cuba Celebrates 10 Years

Anastasia Lavrenyuk had been looking forward to spending spring break conducting research in Cuba since before she even began her doctoral studies in international education policy at the University of Maryland. As an international student from Russia, she was fascinated by Cuban-Soviet relations. And having lived in Mexico, she was eager to continue working in Latin America.

This year, Lavrenyuk was among 16 graduate students from UMD’s College of Education and School of Public Policy and the George Washington University (GWU) who participated in the UMD-led spring break study abroad fieldwork program in Cuba , which is celebrating its 10th year. The experience is part of the course Embargoed Exchanges: International Investigations in Cuban Education. More than 100 UMD graduate students have participated in the program over the last decade–meeting with Cuban educators and scholars, visiting schools and educational sites, and conducting their own research.

While in Cuba, Lavrenyuk and Anna Grigoreva, a fellow UMD international education policy doctoral student, interviewed six Cuban professors who had studied in the Soviet Union. Although the chance to further her research was exciting and rewarding, to Lavrenyuk, one of the most memorable parts of the experience was “the warm reception we received from the Cuban delegation,” she said. “While the primary focus of our trip was exchanging knowledge, our Cuban colleagues also ensured that we always felt welcomed, had good food and had fun. Every day, we had cultural events featuring music and dancing. Initially, only performers danced, but eventually, all of us joined in, including even the shyest among us.”

The chance to build cross-cultural relationships and engage in dialogue is a hallmark of the program. Although the Cuba program is marking one decade as a UMD-led, graduate-level experience, its success in building solidarity and fostering intellectual interchanges between Cuban and U.S. educators and scholars goes back even farther.

The program in Cuba originated in 1994 as an academic exchange in Cuba between U.S. and Cuban education scholars. Sheryl Lutjens–then a faculty member at the Northern Arizona University and now a professor of interdisciplinary and emerging programs at California State University, San Marcos–led the original program in partnership with the Asociación de Pedagogos de Cuba (APC, the Association of Cuban Educators).

In 2015, Taylor Woodman M.A. ’12, Ph.D. ’19–then a doctoral student and now an assistant clinical professor in the UMD College of Education–worked with Lutjens and colleagues at the APC and GWU to reimagine the program in Cuba as a graduate-level study abroad course. Woodman now leads the program in collaboration with colleagues at the APC.

“The U.S. embargo has a direct impact on academic life in Cuba. Scholars have difficulty engaging with U.S. scholarship and sharing their research and findings with U.S. scholars,” said Woodman. “This program is a rare opportunity for Cubans to directly engage in academic discourse with U.S. scholars, share their ongoing research, seek collaborative solutions to pressing educational issues and develop aligned scholarly projects.”

Over the years, Woodman and his colleagues have navigated various logistical challenges–from changing policies toward Cuba under the Obama, Trump and Biden administrations, to the COVID-19 pandemic that forced the program to pivot to a virtual format from 2020 to 2022.

Each year, the group visits different provinces in Cuba, which “provides new insights each and every time that we’re there,” said Woodman. This year, the University of Camagüey in Camagüey, Cuba, hosted the group in collaboration with the APC. Two other College of Education faculty, Ebony Terrell Shockley and Mark Ginsburg, also traveled to Cuba, and served as informal mentors to the students.

The 2024 Cuba visit centered around five major themes, based on the students’ research interests: race, gender and sexuality in education; values education; teacher training; higher education; and education policy related to socioemotional learning. Participants also explored topics including research ethics and issues of power and privilege in their roles as U.S. researchers in global contexts. Woodman coordinates visits to educational sites engaged in work related to the students’ individual research questions.

“My goal is that their research goes beyond our class and helps complicate or add to the narrative of U.S.-Cuba educational practice and collaboration,” said Woodman. His students have written peer-reviewed journal articles and book chapters, presented their research at academic conferences, and incorporated their Cuba-based research into their dissertations.

During their nine days in Cuba this year, the group met with two university presidents and 45 Cuban educators, as well as educational policy representatives and scholars. They visited 12 rural and urban schools and educational sites, ranging from early childhood education to adult learning.

For Lindsey Allen, a doctoral student in teaching and learning, policy and leadership, language, literacy, and social inquiry specialization, the most memorable moment during this year’s program came during a visit to an arts-centered secondary school. “A colleague and I were able to sit in this gorgeous courtyard, talking to students about their experiences,” she said. “Slowly, other cohort members joined, as well as more Cuban students. It was simple. Joyful. Real.”

The Cuba visit is often a life-changing experience with profound effects on participants’ lives, careers and worldviews, long after students finish their graduate work. Michael Anthony Goodman Ph.D. ’20 credits his experience in Cuba in 2017 with shaping his perspective in his role as an assistant professor of practice in higher education leadership and policy at the University of Texas at Austin. “As a professor, I cannot detangle my work in higher education policy from that of international education and policy,” said Goodman. “My opportunity to experience UMD's Cuba program informs so much of that perspective and approach, and it shows up in how I design courses and even some of my research.”

In June, Woodman will present findings at the Latin American Studies Association’s annual conference in Bogotá, Colombia, based on interviews he and three UMD doctoral students, Timothy Ford Bryson, Juanita Ariza and Sarah Pickens, conducted with 12 long-standing APC members. These interviews highlight the Cuban educators’ views of the program’s importance over the past 30 years in terms of academic diplomacy and solidarity building. “It’s important for educators to work across language, cultures and political and geographic space,” said Woodman. “This exchange allows us to think about alternative approaches to education that we can take back into U.S. classrooms, educational policy environments, graduate studies, research and advocacy initiatives.”  

Groundbreaking Survey Sheds New Light on Trans Life in Maryland

A Record-Breaking Giving Day for the College of Education

UMD-Hosted Summit Mobilizes Youth Voters for 2024 Election

Becoming the Teacher Who Saved Him

Journal of Social Studies Education Research

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The Journal of Social Studies Education Research (JSSER) is an internationally recognized double-blind peer-reviewed electronic journal. Manuscript must align with the mission and purpose of The Journal of Social Studies Education Research Authors must adhere to the guidelines of the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (7th Ed). Manuscripts must be submitted as Microsoft Word (.doc) or Rich Text Format (.rtf) and must be 1.5 spaced using a 12-point font in Times New Roman; employ italics, rather than underlining (except with URL addresses); and all illustrations, figures, and tables are placed within the text at the appropriate points, rather than at the end. Recommended manuscript length is 2500 to 8000 words, including references. Include an abstract of 300 words or less. Include a title page with author/s contact information. If the manuscript has more than one author, please indicate which author is acting as the contact person. Include a statement indicating that the manuscript has not been published elsewhere and is not under consideration for publication elsewhere. Include a statement saying that the copyright will be given to The Journal of Social Studies Education Research should it be published in JSSER. The manuscript must be submitted via the journal's web site located at http://www.jsser.org/index.php/JSSER. Paper copies will not be accepted.

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Are you a faith and flag conservative progressive left or somewhere in between.

Take our quiz to find out which one of our nine political typology groups is your best match, compared with a nationally representative survey of more than 10,000 U.S. adults by Pew Research Center. You may find some of these questions are difficult to answer. That’s OK. In those cases, pick the answer that comes closest to your view, even if it isn’t exactly right.

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The effect of social media on mental health

Previous research shows a link between social media and poorer mental health among young people. Studies link the use of social media with depression, anxiety, insomnia, stress, eating disorders, fear of missing out. The project will involve in-depth interviews and quantitative surveys with college students recruited from Penn State Berks to explore thoughts, decisions, and reflections about their experiences with social media. 

Blog The Education Hub

https://educationhub.blog.gov.uk/2024/01/29/disposable-vape-ban-and-what-it-means-for-young-people/

Disposable vape ban and what it means for young people

The number of children using vapes has tripled in the last three years and there is strong evidence to suggest that cheap and easy-to-use disposable vapes are partly to blame.

Our research shows that in 2023, around 69 per cent of vapers aged 11 to 17 in Great Britain were using disposable vapes, up from 7.7 percent in 2021. This is extremely worrying given the unknown long-term health impacts and the addictive nature of the nicotine in vapes.

While vaping can play a role in helping adult smokers to quit, the NHS advises that you shouldn’t take it up if you don’t already smoke– and children should never vape.

Here’s what we’re doing to prevent children from vaping and smoking to protect their health, both in school and out.

Are disposable vapes being banned?

Yes, the sale and supply of disposable vapes is being banned in England, Scotland and Wales because of their appeal to young people. Northern Ireland will also consider introducing this in future.

Alongside this, to make vapes less attractive to children, we're strengthening the regulation of vape flavours, packaging and how they are displayed in shops.

To crack down on underage sales, trading standards officers will have the power to issue an ‘on the spot’ fine of up to £100 when they spot the sale of tobacco and vapes to children in England and Wales.

The ban is being introduced after a public consultation on smoking and vaping showed nearly 70 percent of respondents including parents, teachers, healthcare professionals were in favour of the measure.

Adults will still have access to non-disposable vapes to help them to stop smoking.

When will the disposable vape ban begin?

We aim to bring in legislation to ban disposable vapes as soon as possible.

Any legislation will allow for a buffer period of at least 6 months, to allow businesses to adapt.

What action are you taking to stop young people smoking?

It will soon be illegal to sell tobacco products to anyone born on or after 1 January 2009.

The measures, which we announced in October, means that children turning 15 this year or younger can never legally be sold tobacco.

Stopping young people from ever starting to smoke will protect an entire generation from smoking harms as they grow up.

What are you doing to prevent vaping in schools?

Schools are legally required to have a behaviour policy that sets out what is expected of pupils, including what items are banned from school premises. Some schools have already banned vapes.

In Relationships, Sex and Health Education (RSHE), pupils in primary and secondary school are taught the facts about legal and illegal harmful substances and their risks, including smoking, alcohol and drugs.

We are currently reviewing the RSHE curriculum, including looking at strengthening content around smoking and vaping, and will launch a public consultation on a revised version as soon as possible.

We have also published training resources for teachers, including one on drugs, alcohol and tobacco, which makes specific reference to e-cigarettes and vaping.

You may also be interested in:

• What is RSHE and can parents access curriculum materials?
• 5 ways we support schools to deal with bullying
• How we’re taking action to keep young people and children safe in our schools

Tags: Ban on disposable vapes , Vaping ban , vaping rules at school

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