Amidst the rise of White Christian nationalism in the United States and the defense of narratives of American history which deny historical injustices and their modern-day legacies, there is an increasing need for justice-oriented social studies education in Christian education settings. In this article, I employ frames from Catholic social teaching to examine how teaching the histories of Catholic involvement in historical injustices in Catholic education can help dismantle White Christian nationalism and strengthen students’ commitments to social justice rooted in Catholic teaching.
In dialogue with Catholic social teaching, I delineate a framework for justice-oriented social studies education in Catholic schools. I then apply this framework to the history of the Catholic Church’s involvement in Native American boarding schools and present a lesson plan on this topic for upper elementary social studies in a Catholic context.
This framework and lesson illustrate how employing religious frameworks in social studies in Catholic schools can promote honesty about historical injustices and support students in advocating for justice as part of their faith.
If justice-oriented social studies education is to take root in Christian education contexts, then educators must employ faith-based frameworks to advocate for historical honesty and connect social studies to students’ spiritual identities. This article invites increased dialogue around how Christian communities can draw on their own traditions to develop more just social studies educational approaches.
