Academic majors of social studies teachers and student achievement in the U.S.

Abstract

The education of social studies teachers has been understudied at a large scale, relative to other subject areas. This study estimated whether the undergraduate and/or graduate majors of social studies teachers are associated with student achievement in civics, U.S. history, and geography. Broad categorizations of social studies-related majors were not associated with student achievement. However, a graduate major in political science for students' teachers was positively and significantly associated with student achievement in civics, and an undergraduate major in geography/geography education was negatively associated with student achievement in civics and U.S. history. Implications for policy and research are discussed.