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Why does Social Studies matter?
Social Studies is the study of people and it can be summarized as easily as that.
However, the subject matter isn't really all that simple.
Humans are complicated creatures, we have all sorts of different ticks and compulsions that are chocked up to evolutionary instincts.
Other living beings don't seem to get mankind, and even fellow humans don't even seem to understand one another, especially this generation.
That is precisely why Social Studies is so important.
Be it History, geography, civics, government and any more, all of these topics include the input of humans and their thought processes.
Posters and projects of Social Studies students
A Social Studies project describing the Canadian Charter of Rights 25-31
To summarize it easily, all sorts of people have all sorts of ideas and ways of thinking.
This obviously doesn't mean that everyone is going to have morally sound ways of thinking, and that leads to what we call conflict.
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Take the various wars that are scattered throughout history as examples, they were all caused by some sort of disagreement on some sort of topic.
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​These wars are clearly not things that we want to experience once again, as they were and are tragic events to behold.
In that way, Social Studies can become a way to understand what an event was, how it came to be, and how to stop it from occurring again.
Who knows? Perhaps we can also peek into the minds of those who were both in the wrong and the right.
Another Canadian Charter of Rights project on section 24
A Truth and Reconciliation Commission poster
Ever heard of the famous saying: "Those who fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it"?
Well, that statement is one that rings true to an extreme degree, and is quite chilling.
The thing is, whether or not people tried to change in the past, there have been countless events reflecting strife and imbalance, be it through huge battles or smaller disagreements.
That isn't the only thing, it's likely that there will be many more to come as civilization advances.
That is why the new generations, namely youth today, should strive to understand Social Studies as a topic more.
Understanding this wide umbrella of a subject may or may not help us as a collective down the road.
Who knows? Maybe thanks to Social Studies, those soon to be in future positions of power will be able to prevent more tragedy to come.
All in all, Social Studies goes deeper as a subject than just silly little papers on "random events"
Why are there so many paragraphs that we have to write on these beheadings, successions and scams?
Hopefully it's clear now, even if only a little bit.
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