Synthesis 1 - In the year 2025

In the year 2025, content knowledge will be extremely important. In a time when knowledge will be continuously available to students, there will be no excuse not to know it. Students should be able to easily master the subject content knowledge and be able to move onto higher order thinking that uses that content knowledge. The content knowledge I will be teaching (social studies) is extremely important to make well-rounded citizens. One cannot understand the modern world without a background in history. A democratic society would not be possible without history. Some of the United States' greatest influences came from Ancient Greece. Without history providing a record of them and their contributions, the United States would have had a more difficult time forging ahead. History is the seed from which the rest of the social studies grow. And society is built of social studies. Without a proper content knowledge, the students of 2025 will be incapable of being effective citizens. In 2025, as in all times, content knowledge will be one of the most important things for students to learn.

As teachers, we must be masters of the content knowledge. First of all, we cannot ask our students to do anything that we ourselves wouldn't do. Second, we must serve as a resource and guide for our students at all times. We must be close to walking encyclopedias of knowledge for our students. It will quickly become obvious to our students if we are not experts.

In order to be productive, students will need to master technology. They will need to understand how to access information via the Internet, and how to evaluate information. They will also really need to know how to write. As more companies and offices do an increasing amount of business over e-mail, we will need our adults of tomorrow to be as well versed in the written word as possible. The book Nine Shift also acknowledges this coming phenomenon. No longer can a social studies teacher claim, "I'm not an English teacher. I don't grade on grammar." Not teaching and not demanding quality writing will do our students a disservice.

As teachers, we must be aware of the new technological advances all the time. We must keep up with it almost like a hobby, so that we are aware of what our students use for fun and for school. We need to command the language of both technology and English for our students. We need to employ proper writing, diction, grammar, spelling and punctuation. We need to lead by example and be aware that students are always watching us.

In some ways, the year 2025 will not be that different from the year 2011. The role of content knowledge should not change, nor should the importance of proper language. However, as technology advances so will the way our students access and interact with information. We will need to learn to keep up with a fast-paced and changing world together.