Issues-Centered Instruction with Low Achieving High School Students: The Dilemmas of Two Teachers

Abstract

Critics of issues-centered instruction contend that it is fine for advanced students but too difficult for lower achieving adolescents. This article explores this assumption through the lens of a case study of two ninth grade world geography classes composed of low achieving students. It describes the organization of knowledge, the social interaction, and adaptations made for low achievers in a unit on Latin America based on the principles of issues-centered instruction. The authors conclude that teachers confront a series of obstacles and difficulties in planning and implementing such instruction with low achieving adolescents. Although many low achievers valued the exposure to in-depth knowledge and the opportunity to think and talk about its meaning, the promise of such instruction depends on the skills and resources of teachers and schools to make adjustments to manage the obstacles. The authors offer a few implications of the research for the future of issues-centered instruction.