Social studies and the teaching of history at senior secondary in Kabwe district, Zambia

This study was aimed at assessing Social Studies and the teaching of History in Kabwe District, Central Province of Zambia. Social Studies is a combination of History, Geography and Civics at junior level. The three are taught as one subject. The research revealed that since its introduction in the Zambian curriculum, Social Studies has been implemented differently. In some schools, teachers were compelled to teach all the three components of Social Studies despite not been trained in one or two components. In other schools, teachers taught the components according to their specialisation. Despite having some advantages in many ways, it was found that there were some challenges like lack of qualified teachers and teaching materials for the subject. Therefore, the study argues that the introduction of Social Studies has contributed to poor performance in history at senior level. This is because most of the teachers given to teach Social Studies are not qualified. Moreover, government did not provide adequate and quality teaching materials for the subject. Therefore, the study urges government to revisit Social Studies and that there must be serious consultation with curriculum specialist and teachers on how best the subject can be implemented.