Social studies syllabus for JHS
Social studies involves studying the problems of the society. The subject is meant to help the student to be well equipped with the knowledge about their culture and also the general way of life of a society. Social studies syllabus values the moral so of the society and teaches the students to hope for a better future. Social studies for JHS is composed of multiple disciplines which include history, geography, economics, civic education, and psychology. Each of the disciplines named above is integral in for a student, and they are all capable of standing on their own. We tell you more about the social studies syllabus for JHS.
Rational of teaching social studies
Social studies syllabus for JHS in Ghana helps the students to understand how a society functions and also is very important in helping students to develop critical thinking on the important issues in the society. It is aimed to help the young JHS students to understand the Ghanaian society better. The syllabus is designed to help the student to acquire the required knowledge to be able to drive the society for faster development and growth.
Main objectives of GES new syllabus for JHS in Ghana
The WAEC syllabus for social studies is aimed to help the student understand the basic relationships between the physical environment and the social environment and also how both of them affect the development of various sectors in Ghana. It also helps the student to be in a position to appreciate the different components of the environment and also help them to understand how they are supposed to do to ensure sustainable developments that are aimed to improve the country. It also aims to highlight the different challenges that might be facing Ghana as a country and also some of the solutions that can be implemented to ensure sustainable development and help come up with ways in which to deal with the challenges.
The Social Studies syllabus also aims to help the student has a sense of national consciousness and also at the same time strengthen their national identity. The syllabus is also designed to help the student develop attitude and skills for personal growth and also co-existence and also help the students develop respect for other nationals also.
What is the content of the social studies teaching syllabus for JHS in Ghana?
The new social studies syllabus for JHS is meant to help the student develop the required attitude, skills, and knowledge that will help the student develop a greater knowledge and perspective on the world and also Ghana as a whole. The current social studies syllabus for JHS focuses on the following parts mainly.
- Social and economic development
- The environment
- Governance, politics, and stability
The teaching syllabus for social studies for jhs in Ghana is the primary prerequisite of the practical skills that are needed for citizenship education at the primary school level. It is also very important to enhance the observational skills of the pupil as well as the critical thinking.
What is the organization of the syllabus?
The Ghana Education Service social studies syllabus for JHS has been structured to cover the three years of Junior High Schools. The syllabus is divided into different sections which also has different units. The units are arranged in a way which they will fit into the scheme of work for the teacher. Here is the basic structure of the current social studies syllabus for JHS.
Junior High School 1
It is divided into three sections which are further subdivided into units.
Section 1: Environment
- Unit 1: the environment and environmental problems
- Unit 2: Adolescent reproductive health
Section 2 : Governance, Politics and Stability
- Unit 1: Ghana as a Nation
- Unit 2: Colonization And National Development
- Unit 3: Independence and Nationhood
- Unit 4: Citizenship and Human Rights
Section 3: Socio-Economic Development.
- Unit 1: The Use of Land in Our Community
- Unit 2: Our Natural and Human Resources
- Unit 3: Production in Ghana
- Unit 4: Managing Our Finance
Junior High School 2
For the second year of JHS, the sections are still three and further subdivided into units. Here they are:
Section 1: Environment
- Unit 1: Our Culture
- Unit 2: Mapping our Environment
- Unit 3: Our Country Ghana
Section 2: Governance, politics and stability
- Unit 1: Our Constitution
- Unit 2: Law And Order In Our Community
- Unit 3: Conflict Prevention and Management
- Unit 4: Ghana’s Co-operation with Other Nations.
Section 3: Socio-Economic Development
- Unit 1: Tourism, Leisure and Development
- Unit 2: Education and Productivity
- Unit 3: Entrepreneurship
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Junior High School 3
This year is the same as the previous 2. It is also divided into sections and further subdivided into units.
Section 1: Environment
- Unit 1: Significance of some Natural Features of the earth
- Unit 2: Population Growth and Development
Section 2: Governance, Politics and Stability
- Unit 1: Government and Society
- Unit 2: Promoting Political Stability in Ghana
Section 3: Socio-Economic Development
- Unit 1: Problems of Development in Ghana
- Unit 2: Sustainable Development
A required amount of time is necessary for syllabus completion .Social studies should be allocated at least three periods in a week and each of them having thirty-five minutes. It is recommended that the period be either single period or double period.
What are the suggestions for teaching social studies?
The new social studies syllabus for JHS has basic advice to the teachers who are teaching it. It is very important to have someone who has had as much experience as possible. It is also important to have the required resources when teaching the subject. The required resources can be gotten from government ministries, drivers’ union, politicians, the police and even business persons and also some of the individuals in different professionals.
It is essential for the pupils to learn social studies from people who have had real-life experiences. This is going to ensure that they are all excited for the subject, and it will make the concepts stick more to them and also make sense. The teacher is expected to develop a scheme of work based on how the syllabus has been structured. The syllabus is designed to cover the three years in JHS. It is also imperative to ensure that the learning is participatory for the students to make it interesting to them.
What are the general objectives of the subject?
For every section and unit, the objectives are stated in the textbook. The objectives are what determine the general flow of the sections and units. It is therefore important for a teacher to go back to the general objectives after they’re done teaching to ensure that they have all been achieved. If the objectives have not been achieved, there would have bee no point of the student going through the course.
How is the JHS social studies syllabus planned?
As stated above the syllabus is divided into sections and units. Every year's works are divided into identical sections which have different units covering the sections. Every unit present a different topic which the student needs to understand. Every section has the following parts to ensure proper comprehension of the syllabus. The parts are also known as columns.
- Units
- Specific objectives
- Content
- Teaching and learning activities
- Evaluation
We are going to look at each column on its and see what it entails.
1. Units
These are the subdivisions of the of the broad section topics. The teacher is expected to follow the unit topics as they have been put in order. This aimed to help the learner grasp the concepts that have been presented. Every unit usually has an accompanying problem that needs to be solved or an issue that needs to be addressed. The teacher is encouraged to identify any related problems that the students could relate to when learning. It is preferred that the stunt have examples that are more familiar to them.
2. Specific objectives
Every unit has specific objectives. They have been numbered as 1.3.5 or 2.2.1. These numbers are what is referred to as the syllabus reference numbers. The first digit is meant to indicate the section the second digit is the unit in question and the third is the specific objective. The specific objectives usually state the terms of the pupils. This is what the pupils should be able to do by the end of the unit and the problems the pupils should be able to tackle. This part shows the objectives of the unit correctly.
3. Content
This is the third column of the JHS social studies syllabus. This part mainly presents the information body of the syllabus that the teacher can use to tech every objective of the topic. There are instances when the content provided can be exhaustive but teachers are also advised to look for additional content for their students. This will ensure that the students understand the material well and too that the objectives are achieved.
4. Teaching and learning activities
This is the fourth column of the units. This column calls for maximum participation by the pupils in the class. It introduces a less monotonous way of pupils participating in class. The teacher should rearrange the learning activities or even add to them when they feel like the activities on the syllabus are not as exhaustive.
5.Evaluation
This column is composed of the suggestions and also exercises on how the teacher can evaluate the lesson. It can be den as oral questions or even as quizzes. It can also be done as structured questions and essays or investigations or project work. It is important to ask questions and ask the pupils so that you can get to know the knowledge acquired while studying the topic. Evaluation is important to test the scope of understanding for the pupils.
You can download social studies syllabus for JHS here.
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Source: YEN.com.gh
