Chapter 6: “Shut Up! He Might Hear You!”: Teaching Marx in Social Studies Education

There is a misguided tendency in our society to believe that activities that strengthen or maintain the status quo are neutral, or at least non-political, while activities that critique or challenge the status quo are “political” and many times inappropriate. For example, for a company to advertise its product as a good thing, something consumers should buy, is not viewed as a political act. But, if a consumer group takes out an advertisement charging that the company’s product is not good, perhaps even harmful, this is often understood as political action.

This type of thinking permeates our society, particularly when it comes to social studies education. “Stick to the facts.” “Guard against bias.” “Maintain neutrality.” These are admonitions or goals expressed by some social studies teachers when asked about keys to successful teaching. Many of these same teachers (and teacher educators) conceive of their role as designing and teaching courses to ensure that students are prepared to function non-disruptively in the society as it exist. This is thought to be a desirable goal, in part, because it strengthens the status quo and is seen as being an “unbiased” or “neutral” position. Many of these same teachers view their work in school as apolitical, a matter of effectively covering the curriculum, imparting academic skills, and preparing students for whatever high-stakes tests they might face. Often these teachers have attended teacher education programs designed to ensure that they were prepared to adapt to the status quo in schools (Marker, 2000).