What We Talk about when We Talk about Social Studies: A Reply to Schug and Western's Article on the Homeless Social Studies Teacher

This is a reply to Mark C. Schug and Richard D. Western's article "The Homeless Social Studies Teacher: How Muzak Progressivism Has Harmed Social Studies Education." The Schug and Western article breaks down into three distinct sections: (1) a quasi-satirical analogy of teaching to tax accounting; (2) a description of the problems of progressive education as practiced in "student-centered teaching" and "curriculum integration"; and (3) a concluding set of remarks that ground Schug and Western's version of social studies education in "knowledge-based disciplines." In this response, the author discusses each of the sections, exposing some of the points that need attention, making relevant connections, and then concluding with a set of remarks that ground another version of education in active engagement, no matter the subject.