Teaching Social Studies: Methodology · Chapter 5

Planning: Year Plan, Unit Plan, Lesson Plan and Teaching-Learning Materials

What to remember

Planning moves from big to small: the year plan covers the whole academic year, the unit plan covers one theme or chapter, and the lesson plan covers one period.
A good lesson plan starts with objectives, not with content. Objectives are written as observable learner behaviour, and every activity and every test question must link back to them.
Teaching-learning materials (TLM) support the lesson; they do not replace the teacher. Good TLM is simple, accurate, age-appropriate, low-cost and used at the right moment.

Why planning is needed

Social Studies has a large syllabus that joins History, Geography, Civics and Economics. Without planning, the teacher either rushes the last chapters or repeats the same facts. Planning gives these benefits:

It saves class time and avoids a last-minute rush before examinations.
It links objectives, content, methods, TLM and evaluation into one chain.
It helps the teacher choose activities such as map work, role play, discussion and projects.
It makes the teacher confident and the class orderly.
It allows review: the teacher can see what worked and change the next plan.

Planning is also a continuous process. A plan is a guide, not a fixed order, and the teacher may change it when the class needs more time.

Year plan

The year plan (annual plan) is made at the start of the academic year. It divides the whole syllabus over the available months.

Steps in preparing a year plan:

1. Count the actual working days after removing holidays, examinations, festivals and school events.
2. Study the syllabus and textbook, and list all units and chapters.
3. Divide the units over months or terms based on their length and difficulty.
4. Fix the dates for formative tests and summative examinations.
5. Place co-curricular activities (map practice, quiz, fair, field visit, celebration of national days) at suitable points.
6. Leave a few days for revision and remedial teaching.

A year plan usually has these columns: month, number of working days, units or chapters, activities and TLM, evaluation. Because the Social Studies textbook has four strands, a good year plan balances them so that no strand is left for the end of the year.

Unit plan

A unit is a complete block of learning around one theme, such as "Rivers and Civilisations" or "Local Self-government". It is larger than one lesson and smaller than the year.

A unit plan contains:

Title and class, and the number of periods needed.
Objectives of the unit, stated in learner behaviour.
Content analysis: facts, concepts, skills and values in the unit.
Learning experiences: discussion, map work, source reading, projects, visits.
TLM needed for each period.
Evaluation plan: oral questions, written test, assignment, project.
Links to earlier learning and to real life.

The unit method was supported by Henry C. Morrison, and it is close to the project and problem-solving ideas of modern teaching. In a unit plan, the periods are connected, so students see the chapter as one story.

Lesson plan

The lesson plan is a detailed plan for one period (about 40 to 45 minutes). It answers four questions: what will I teach, why, how, and how will I know that students learnt it?

Parts of a lesson plan

General details: class, subject, topic, date, period, time.
Instructional objectives and learning outcomes.
Previous knowledge and the question that will test it.
TLM list.
Introduction, development (the main activities), consolidation (summary, board work), and evaluation.
Home assignment or follow-up.

Writing objectives. Objectives are written with action verbs that can be observed, for example "identifies", "locates on a map", "compares", "explains", "draws". Verbs such as "knows" or "understands" are too vague. Robert Mager's approach asks for the learner, the behaviour, the condition and the standard.

Bloom's taxonomy is used to classify objectives. The original cognitive domain has six levels: knowledge, comprehension, application, analysis, synthesis, evaluation. The revised version (Anderson and Krathwohl) uses verbs: remember, understand, apply, analyse, evaluate, create. The three domains are cognitive (knowing), affective (feeling and values) and psychomotor (doing).

Herbartian steps. J. F. Herbart's five steps, developed by his followers, were an early model for the lesson plan:

Step	What happens
Preparation	Teacher tests earlier knowledge and creates interest
Presentation	New material is given
Association (comparison)	New is compared with the known
Generalisation	Students reach the rule or concept
Application	The rule is used in a new case

Later, "statement of aim" and "recapitulation" were added, giving a longer form often used in training colleges.

Constructivist 5E model. Modern plans give more space to the learner: Engage, Explore, Explain, Elaborate, Evaluate. The teacher is a guide, and students build knowledge through activity, discussion and questioning. Planning for a constructivist class therefore includes the key questions to ask, the group tasks, and the points where students present their own findings.

Difference between the three plans

Feature	Year plan	Unit plan	Lesson plan
Time covered	Whole academic year	One theme or chapter (several periods)	One period
Main concern	Syllabus division and calendar	Connected learning experiences	Step-by-step teaching
Detail	Brief	Medium	Very detailed
Made	Start of year	Before the unit begins	Before each period

Teaching-learning materials (TLM)

TLM are all the resources that help a teacher teach and a child learn. They make abstract ideas concrete, hold attention, and reach different learning styles.

Classification

Visual (non-projected): maps, globes, atlas, charts, models, pictures, flash cards, graphs, timelines, bulletin board, textbook.
Audio: radio, recordings, songs, folk tales, speeches.
Audio-visual: film, video, television, documentary, computer or smart-board presentations.
Projected and ICT: slides, projector, digital maps, online content such as DIKSHA.
Activity and resource based: real objects (coins, stamps, tools), specimens, field visits, resource persons.

Edgar Dale's Cone of Experience. Dale arranged learning experiences from concrete to abstract. From the base up: direct purposeful experiences, contrived experiences, dramatised experiences, demonstrations, field trips, exhibits, motion pictures, radio and recordings and still pictures, visual symbols, verbal symbols. The lesson is that learning is stronger when it begins with real or near-real experience. Dale did not mean the cone to give exact percentages of what is remembered.

Qualities of good TLM

Relevant to the objective and the class level.
Accurate and up to date, especially maps and data.
Simple, clear and large enough for the whole class to see.
Attractive but not crowded.
Durable and cheap; local and waste material is encouraged.
Easy to handle and safe.
Involves children in making or using it.

Use in Social Studies. Use a globe to show day and night, a relief map to show plateaus, a timeline strip for the Freedom Movement, a model of a village, coins and photographs for history, and a mock Gram Sabha or role play for civics. A map is always shown in the right orientation, and children should mark the place themselves.

A short model plan

Topic: "Rivers and early settlements" (one period).

Objectives: the learner (1) names two river valleys where early towns grew, (2) locates them on an outline map, (3) explains in two sentences why rivers helped farming.
Previous knowledge: "Why do we need water every day?"
TLM: wall map of India, chart of a river valley, pictures of early tools.
Development: pair work to mark rivers on the map; a short talk on soil and water; a table on "uses of a river".
Consolidation: students complete a one-line summary on the board.
Evaluation: three oral questions and one map-marking task.
Follow-up: collect a picture of a river in the home area.

This plan shows the chain: objective, activity, TLM, evaluation.

Exam traps

Year plan is not the same as a lesson plan; the lesson plan is for one period.
"Unit" means a theme with connected lessons, not a single lesson.
Herbartian step "comparison" is also called association; "generalisation" comes before "application".
Objectives should be observable; "to appreciate" or "to know" is weak wording for a behaviour.
Cone of Experience puts direct experiences at the base, not verbal symbols.
A map and a globe are both visual aids, but a globe shows shapes and directions more correctly than a flat map.
TLM are not only costly items; low-cost and no-cost material is preferred.
5E begins with Engage, and Evaluate is last.

One-liners

1. A year plan divides the syllabus over the working days of the year.
2. A unit plan covers a theme made of several connected lessons.
3. A lesson plan is made for one period.
4. Objectives are best written in observable behaviour.
5. Bloom's taxonomy has cognitive, affective and psychomotor domains.
6. The revised Bloom taxonomy ends with "create".
7. Herbart's steps begin with preparation.
8. The 5E model is Engage, Explore, Explain, Elaborate, Evaluate.
9. Edgar Dale designed the Cone of Experience.
10. Radio and recordings are audio aids.
11. A model of a village is a three-dimensional visual aid.
12. Local, low-cost TLM made with children's help is encouraged.

Practice questions

A plan that divides the whole syllabus over the working days of an academic year is called a
1. unit plan
2. year plan
3. daily diary
4. lesson plan
Answer
B. year plan
The year (annual) plan spreads the syllabus over the available working days.
A lesson plan is prepared for
1. one month
2. one term
3. the full year
4. one period
Answer
D. one period
A lesson plan covers a single class period of about 40 to 45 minutes.
A unit plan is best described as a plan for
1. a single minute of teaching
2. a theme made of several connected lessons
3. the school timetable
4. one question in a test
Answer
B. a theme made of several connected lessons
A unit is a complete block of learning around one theme or chapter.
Which verb is best for writing an observable instructional objective?
1. Understands deeply
2. Knows
3. Appreciates
4. Locates on a map
Answer
D. Locates on a map
Objectives need action verbs that can be seen and measured, such as locates.
Which of these is the first step of Herbart's five steps?
1. Application
2. Preparation
3. Association
4. Generalisation
Answer
B. Preparation
The sequence is preparation, presentation, association, generalisation, application.
In Herbartian steps, the step in which students arrive at a rule or concept is
1. generalisation
2. preparation
3. presentation
4. application
Answer
A. generalisation
Generalisation follows comparison and gives the rule; application then uses it.
The 5E model ends with the stage of
1. Explore
2. Elaborate
3. Evaluate
4. Engage
Answer
C. Evaluate
The order is Engage, Explore, Explain, Elaborate, Evaluate.
Edgar Dale is known for the
1. Zone of Proximal Development
2. Programmed instruction
3. Multiple Intelligence theory
4. Cone of Experience
Answer
D. Cone of Experience
Dale arranged learning experiences from concrete to abstract in his cone.
At the base of Dale's Cone of Experience are
1. verbal symbols
2. direct purposeful experiences
3. visual symbols
4. motion pictures
Answer
B. direct purposeful experiences
The most concrete experience, direct and purposeful, forms the base.
A globe, a chart and a model of a village are examples of
1. audio materials only
2. visual teaching-learning materials
3. evaluation tools
4. lesson objectives
Answer
B. visual teaching-learning materials
They are seen, not heard, so they are visual TLM.
Radio and recorded speeches are classified as
1. audio aids
2. audio-visual aids
3. projected aids
4. visual aids
Answer
A. audio aids
Radio is heard only, so it is an audio aid.
A documentary film shown in class is an example of
1. non-projected visual aid
2. audio aid
3. audio-visual aid
4. community resource
Answer
C. audio-visual aid
A film provides both sound and moving picture.
Which quality is most important for a map used as TLM?
1. Accuracy and clarity
2. Bright colours only
3. Large cost
4. Heavy frame
Answer
A. Accuracy and clarity
Maps must be correct and clear for the class level.
The term 'TLM' stands for
1. time-limited module
2. teacher's lesson method
3. total learning measure
4. teaching-learning material
Answer
D. teaching-learning material
TLM means teaching-learning material.
Which Bloom (revised) level is the highest?
1. Apply
2. Remember
3. Create
4. Analyse
Answer
C. Create
The revised order ends with create, preceded by evaluate.
Which domain of objectives deals with attitudes and values?
1. Physical domain
2. Cognitive domain
3. Psychomotor domain
4. Affective domain
Answer
D. Affective domain
Feelings, attitudes and values belong to the affective domain.
Drawing an outline map accurately mostly develops the
1. psychomotor domain
2. affective domain only
3. cognitive recall only
4. none of the domains
Answer
A. psychomotor domain
Skilled hand work such as drawing is psychomotor.
Before a year plan is made, the teacher should first count the
1. school fees
2. actual working days
3. number of textbooks printed
4. students' birthdays
Answer
B. actual working days
Plans depend on real working days after holidays and examinations.
The 'Application' step in a lesson plan asks students to
1. copy the lesson
2. repeat the title
3. use the learnt rule in a new situation
4. leave the class
Answer
C. use the learnt rule in a new situation
Application tests whether the generalisation can be used in a new case.
Which is a no-cost or low-cost TLM?
1. Imported electronic model
2. Costly digital projector only
3. Rented film
4. Chart made from waste paper by students
Answer
D. Chart made from waste paper by students
Local and waste material is encouraged in TLM.
The main purpose of using TLM in Social Studies is to
1. make abstract ideas concrete
2. reduce student activity
3. fill class time
4. replace the teacher
Answer
A. make abstract ideas concrete
TLM make ideas clearer and more interesting; they do not replace the teacher.
A teacher states: 'Students will compare two river valleys.' This statement is mainly a(n)
1. evaluation tool
2. instructional objective
3. year plan
4. TLM
Answer
B. instructional objective
It names the learner's observable behaviour.
The first part of a lesson plan after the objectives is usually
1. home assignment
2. school inspection
3. previous knowledge and introduction
4. annual examination
Answer
C. previous knowledge and introduction
The teacher links new content to what students already know.
A teacher tests earlier knowledge with two questions before starting a lesson. This corresponds to Herbart's step of
1. application
2. generalisation
3. recapitulation
4. preparation
Answer
D. preparation
Preparation tests earlier knowledge and creates interest.
In a constructivist lesson, the 'Explore' stage mostly involves
1. copying notes
2. teacher's long lecture
3. students investigating through activity
4. final marks
Answer
C. students investigating through activity
Students explore materials and ideas before explanations.
Which is NOT a part of a unit plan?
1. Learning experiences
2. Objectives
3. Evaluation plan
4. Roll number list of the whole school
Answer
D. Roll number list of the whole school
A unit plan has objectives, content, experiences, TLM and evaluation.
Why should a year plan keep a few days for revision and remedial teaching?
1. To cancel tests
2. To correct learning gaps before examinations
3. To reduce the syllabus
4. To avoid planning
Answer
B. To correct learning gaps before examinations
Revision and remedial work close gaps found by assessment.
Mager's well-known contribution to planning concerns
1. behavioural objectives
2. intelligence quotient
3. moral dilemmas
4. school architecture
Answer
A. behavioural objectives
Robert Mager popularised clearly stated behavioural objectives.
The Morrison plan in teaching is related to the
1. unit method
2. Dalton plan
3. play-way only
4. quiz method
Answer
A. unit method
H. C. Morrison advocated the unit approach with stages of learning.
Consider the following statements. Which of them is/are correct? 1. A year plan is made at the start of the academic year. 2. A lesson plan is more detailed than a year plan.
1. 1 only
2. 2 only
3. Both 1 and 2
4. Neither 1 nor 2
Answer
C. Both 1 and 2
Both are true: year plans are brief and lesson plans give period-level detail.
Consider the following statements. Which of them is/are correct? 1. A unit plan contains objectives and an evaluation plan. 2. A unit plan covers only one question of a test.
1. 1 only
2. 2 only
3. Both 1 and 2
4. Neither 1 nor 2
Answer
A. 1 only
A unit is a theme with several lessons; statement 1 is false.
Consider the following statements. Which of them is/are correct? 1. Dale's Cone of Experience places verbal symbols at the base. 2. Direct experiences are the most concrete in the cone.
1. 1 only
2. 2 only
3. Both 1 and 2
4. Neither 1 nor 2
Answer
B. 2 only
Verbal symbols are at the top; direct purposeful experience is at the base.
Consider the following statements. Which of them is/are correct? 1. TLM should always be costly to be effective. 2. Good TLM should be accurate and age-appropriate.
1. 1 only
2. 2 only
3. Both 1 and 2
4. Neither 1 nor 2
Answer
B. 2 only
Low-cost and local TLM work well, so statement 2 is false.
Consider the following statements. Which of them is/are correct? 1. Herbart's steps include association and generalisation. 2. In Herbart's sequence, application comes before preparation.
1. 1 only
2. 2 only
3. Both 1 and 2
4. Neither 1 nor 2
Answer
A. 1 only
Application is the last of the five steps, so statement 2 is false.
Consider the following statements. Which of them is/are correct? 1. In the 5E model, Elaborate comes before Explore. 2. In the 5E model, Engage is the first stage.
1. 1 only
2. 2 only
3. Both 1 and 2
4. Neither 1 nor 2
Answer
B. 2 only
The order is Engage, Explore, Explain, Elaborate, Evaluate.
Consider the following statements. Which of them is/are correct? 1. A lesson plan should link activities to objectives. 2. A lesson plan has no role for evaluation.
1. 1 only
2. 2 only
3. Both 1 and 2
4. Neither 1 nor 2
Answer
A. 1 only
Evaluation is part of every lesson plan.
Consider the following statements. Which of them is/are correct? 1. Bloom's revised taxonomy has 'create' as its top level. 2. Bloom's taxonomy covers cognitive, affective and psychomotor domains.
1. 1 only
2. 2 only
3. Both 1 and 2
4. Neither 1 nor 2
Answer
C. Both 1 and 2
Both statements are correct.
Consider the following statements. Which of them is/are correct? 1. Radio is a visual aid. 2. A model of a village is a three-dimensional visual aid.
1. 1 only
2. 2 only
3. Both 1 and 2
4. Neither 1 nor 2
Answer
B. 2 only
Radio is an audio aid; a model is a visual aid.
Consider the following statements. Which of them is/are correct? 1. A plan is a fixed order that can never change. 2. A teacher may change a plan when the class needs more time.
1. 1 only
2. 2 only
3. Both 1 and 2
4. Neither 1 nor 2
Answer
B. 2 only
A plan is a flexible guide.
Consider the following statements. Which of them is/are correct? 1. Constructivist planning includes group tasks and key questions. 2. The 5E model leaves no role for students' own findings.
1. 1 only
2. 2 only
3. Both 1 and 2
4. Neither 1 nor 2
Answer
A. 1 only
5E gives space for learners to present their own findings.
Consider the following statements. Which of them is/are correct? 1. Verbs like 'identifies' and 'compares' make objectives observable. 2. Objectives written with 'knows' or 'understands' are easy to observe.
1. 1 only
2. 2 only
3. Both 1 and 2
4. Neither 1 nor 2
Answer
A. 1 only
Vague verbs are hard to observe; action verbs are better.
Consider the following statements. Which of them is/are correct? 1. The unit plan is prepared before the unit begins. 2. A year plan should balance History, Geography, Civics and Economics.
1. 1 only
2. 2 only
3. Both 1 and 2
4. Neither 1 nor 2
Answer
C. Both 1 and 2
Both are correct planning practices.
A teacher keeps a column for 'month, working days, chapters, activities, evaluation'. This is most likely a
1. cumulative record
2. blueprint of a question paper
3. lesson plan
4. year plan
Answer
D. year plan
These columns are typical in a year plan.
Which statement about Dale's cone is correct?
1. It is a type of test
2. It is a model of classroom seating
3. It gives exact percentages of recall
4. It moves from concrete to abstract experience
Answer
D. It moves from concrete to abstract experience
The cone orders experiences from concrete to abstract without exact recall figures.
Which activity belongs to the 'Elaborate' stage of the 5E model?
1. Taking attendance
2. Showing the first picture only
3. Announcing results
4. Applying the idea to a new situation
Answer
D. Applying the idea to a new situation
Elaborate extends the learnt idea to new contexts.

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