New York
Give us Your Inquiry
The New York C3 Hub provides access to the New York Social Studies Toolkit, an amazing collection of resources supported by the New York State Department of Education. In the New York Hub you’ll find 84 inquiries distributed across all grade levels, a conceptual foundations essay describing the 10 assumptions guiding the Toolkit, as well as professional development materials for learning more about the project.
On the surface, the compelling question for this inquiry, “What’s the real story behind the purchase of Manhattan?” asks students to explore the background to the story of the sale of Manhattan to the Dutch in 1626 for $24 of beads and trinkets. A closer look at the story reveals a range of myths and unknowns including who was involved in the transaction, what the transaction actually meant, and what was exchanged. In fact, the only contemporary evidence that the sale ever took place is in a document found in the Dutch National Archives—the Peter Schagen letter written in November 1626 (though a statement by English Governor Francis Lovelace in 1670 confirmed the sale).
Exploring this letter and the many other sources of information about the sale offer students a glimpse into the world of historical evidence, a world in which, as much as we might like, conclusive answers prove elusive. Teachers and students should note that, although the supporting questions and tasks ask about the perspectives of Native Americans at the time, there are no historical sources that record their views. Inferences can be made from the Dutch documents, but teachers and students will want to be aware that absence of sources can influence the interpretations that we develop of the past.
The New York Social Studies Resource Toolkit is a curriculum and instructional resource that builds out from the recently released New York State K-12 Social Studies Framework. Featuring an ambitious new approach to constructing social studies curriculum inquiries, the Inquiry Design Model (IDM), the Toolkit emphasizes the role of teacher knowledge and expertise. Funded and sponsored by the New York State Education Department, the direct work on the Toolkit project finished 2015. Implementation of the Toolkit materials are ongoing.
The New York State K-12 Resource Toolkit and Professional Development project, funded by a grant from the New York State Education Department, is the result of the efforts of nearly 100 educators from around New York State and across the country.
See a list of everyone who contributed to the New York Toolkit project
Undergirding the New York Social Studies Toolkit project in general and the curriculum inquiries in particular are a set of 10 assumptions.
These Conceptual Foundations describe the principles that informed the design of Toolkit inquires and the Inquiry Design Model (IDM). Rooted in research and practice and reflecting the Inquiry Arc of the C3 Framework, these assumptions offer a coherent and mutually reinforcing set of ideas that define the often nebulous term “inquiry.” The assumptions are:
Inquiry begins with a question.
Inquiry topics and outcomes are grounded in the New York State Social Studies Framework.
Disciplinary knowledge and skills are integrated within an inquiry.
Students are active learners within an inquiry.
The purpose of assessment is for learning.
Disciplinary sources are the building blocks of inquiry.
Students need opportunities to practice engaged citizenship.
Social studies shares in the responsibility for literacy.
Inquiries are not all inclusive.
Inquiries are best mediated by skilled teachers.
The New York Toolkit Project approach to professional learning recognizes the complexities of designing inquiry activities and then teaching those inquiries in the classroom.
Complementing the Toolkit Inquiries and Conceptual Foundations is a collection of turnkey professional learning materials that introduces educators to the C3 Framework and the Inquiry Design Model. These materials feature PowerPoint slide decks and related materials that are organized around three parts of the Inquiry Design Model – Questions, Tasks, and Sources. The four slide decks available here are annotated to provide facilitators with the information they need to conduct the professional learning activities.
Download the Toolkit IDM slides below.
INVALUABLE RESOURCES
VIDEO CORNER
Created in collaboration with the Tribeca Film Institute, the Toolkit Video Series features the Kathy Swan, SG Grant, and John Lee along authors of our writing team and teachers who helped bring the project to life. The videos speak to the several elements of the Inquiry Design Model in general and three key elements in particular: Questions,Argumentation, and Taking Informed Action. The films feature insight from teachers about using inquiry with students in their classrooms and background on IDM in general and the Toolkit project in particular.
An Introduction to the Toolkit
The C3 Framework provided the inspiration for the New York Social Studies Toolkit Project and has set in motion a grassroots movement to put teachers at the forefront of social studies reform. This video introduces the Toolkit project.
Questions
Social studies is many things, but at its heart are questions. The Inquiry Design Model™ (IDM) represented in the New York Social Studies Toolkit begins with a compelling question and features the elements necessary to support students as they address that question in a thoughtful and informed fashion. This video describes the role of questions in an inquiry.
Argumentation
Inquiries lead to arguments. Using the Inquiry Design Model and social studies content, teachers can design students’ work with sources across all four dimensions of the C3 Inquiry Arc so that they can produce a clear, coherent, and evidence-based argument as the summative performance task. This video describes how teachers support students as they develop inquiry-based arguments.
Taking Informed Action
Taking Informed Action tasks are designed so that students can civically engage with the content of an inquiry. Informed action can take numerous forms (e.g., discussions, debates, presentations) and can occur in a variety of contexts both inside and outside of the classroom. The key to any action, however, is the idea that it is informed. The Inquiry Design Model™, therefore, stages the taking informed action activities such that students build their knowledge and understanding of an issue before engaging in any social action. This final video features teachers describing how taking informed action completes the Inquiry Arc.