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Teaching Social Studies with a History or Political Science BA
History and Political Science majors interested in teaching middle school or high school social studies have four options.
After you graduate, complete a Master’s of Teaching (MAT) degree, leading to certification and resulting in a pay increase. (South Carolina pays teachers based on experience and the number of advanced degrees earned.
Options for completing a Master’s degree in this region include:
- MAT at Augusta University (online degree focused on history)
- MAT at USC Columbia (an in-person degree that covers comprehensive social studies)
You can take the Praxis exams and get certified through PACE, an alternate certification program in which you enter the classroom and start teaching while completing three college courses.
Students interested in PACE are strongly encouraged to ask their advisors about the cognate in Teaching Social Studies (see details below), designed to prepare you for the Praxis and for teaching a range of social studies courses or a minor in Educational Studies.
If you have already graduated and are interested in the PACE program, you should call PACE, speak to a liaison, clarify which Praxis exams you need to take, and receive instruction on how to start and navigate the PACE process.
Students pursuing PACE certification are encouraged to take the Praxis exam called Combined Core Academic Skills for Educators, as well as subject matter (history, social studies, etc.). These Praxis exams can be taken immediately after graduation.
- Students can pursue employment at a private school or a charter school, which typically do not require certification. Students interested in this option are strongly encouraged to ask their advisors about the cognate in Teaching Social Studies (see details below), designed to prepare you to teach various social studies courses or a minor in Educational Studies.
- Students can return to USC Aiken and, in approximately one and a half years, achieve certification without earning an MAT.
Pros, Cons, and Costs
- The cost of an MAT will vary depending on the institution and your state residency. We encourage you to investigate the costs of different programs. South Carolina public schools pay teachers on a scale that rewards years of experience and degrees earned, which means you will be paid more as someone who earned a Master’s degree. If you are interested in teaching outside of South Carolina, you may want to look into MAT programs in the state where you plan to live so you don’t have to worry about transferring your teaching license.
- The PACE program allows you to start teaching immediately. However, this means entering the classroom before learning the fundamentals of teaching and this may be challenging. For this reason, we encourage students who plan to pursue PACE certification to consider the cognate in Social Studies Education or the minor in Educational Studies. PACE program fees can be found here.
- Teaching at a private school allows you to bypass a Master’s degree and PACE certification. However, as with the PACE program, this means you will enter the classroom without coursework in topics like classroom management and assessment. For this reason, we encourage students who plan to pursue a teaching career in private schools to consider the cognate in Social Studies Education or the minor in Educational Studies. In addition, students may want to weigh the reality that private schools often pay less and offer fewer benefits compared to public schools, although they may be a better match for your personal values.
What Courses Should I Take?
If you’re a History or Political Science major who plans to teach, you should take advantage of USCA’s General Education requirements and your program’s requirement to have a minor or cognate to prepare yourself for the job market and your future career. The recommendations below fall in two categories: what to take for your Gen Ed courses to prepare yourself for the Praxis exams and for teaching a range of Social Studies courses; and what additional courses you can take in a Teaching Social Studies Cognate.
Recommended General Education Courses for History Majors
All students must take General Education credits; these selections will best prepare you to teach various social studies courses at the high school level.
- World Civilization Requirement: World History to 1750 (HIST A101)
- Humanities Requirement #1: World History Since 1750 (HIST A102)
- American Political Institutions: United States History to 1865 (HIST A201)
- Humanities #2: US History from 1865 (HIST A202)
- Humanities #3: Introduction to Abrahamic Faiths (RELG A101) or Asian Religions and Philosophy (RELG A103)
- Social Science #1: American National Government (POLI A201)
- Social Science #2: Introduction to Sociology (SOCY A101) or Introduction to Psychology (PSYCH A101)
- Social Science #3: Introduction to Geography (GEOG A103)
Recommended General Education Courses for Political Science Majors
All students must take General Education credits; these selections will best prepare you to teach various social studies courses at the high school level.
- World Civilization Requirement: World History to 1750 (HIST A101)
- Humanities Requirement #1: World History since 1750 (HIST A102)
- American Political Institutions: United States History to 1865 (HIST A201)
- Humanities #2: US History from 1865 (HIST A202)
- Humanities #3: Introduction to Abrahamic Faiths (RELG A101) or Asian Religions and Philosophy (RELG A103)
- Social Science #1: Introduction to Psychology (PSYC A101)
- Social Science #2: Introduction to Sociology (SOCY A101)
- Social Science #3: Introduction to Geography (GEOG A103)
Teaching Social Studies Cognate (12 credits)
What is a cognate? A cognate is like a minor but is interdisciplinary and requires slightly fewer courses. All cognate courses must all be at the 300 or 400 level, and these will not count towards your major or general education requirements. We recommend the following courses for a Social Studies Education Cognate. Choose four or more courses for a total of 12 credits.
Educational Psychology Courses (make sure you take at least one):
- Introduction to Educational Psychology (EDPY 235)
- Introduction to Educational Psychology (EDPY A334)
Secondary Education Courses (make sure you take at least one):
- Introduction to Adolescent Education (EDSE A311)
- Introduction to Teaching Diverse Populations in the Middle and High School (EDSE A312)
Economics Courses (you may only take these if you have completed Math 108):
- Principles of Macroeconomic (ECON A221) or
- Principles of Microeconomics (ECON A222)
Other Recommended Courses:
- Technology Integration for Teaching and Learning (EDUC A245)—note: this is a 2-credit course
- One or more upper-division history courses (political science majors only)
- One or more upper-division political science courses (history majors only)
- One or more upper-division psychology courses
- One or more upper-division sociology courses
** Unlike a minor, you have more choices with a cognate. These recommendations will guide you and your advisor as you design your cognate.
Some questions to consider as you choose your path
- Do I want to teach in South Carolina specifically, in the wider region, or do I want to move somewhere very different? What program would allow me to teach in the state where I want to live?
- What are my values and how do they fit in with my career goals? Would I prefer to teach at a public, private, or charter school? Do I see myself teaching at a rural, suburban, or urban school?
- Do I mostly want to be in the classroom, or do I also want to coach a sport, lead the debate team, or develop a Mock Trial program?
- Do I want to earn a master’s degree? Or am I ready to be done with coursework for a while?
- What are my financial needs? Can I afford to pay additional tuition? Is it important that I start work right away, or do I have the support to spend some more time in school?
Final Advice
Experiences outside the classroom, such as serving as a Resident Mentor, coaching a high school team, or participating in Mock Trial, can help make you an attractive teaching candidate at the high school level.
If you want to teach outside the southeastern United States, earning a master’s degree is your best plan.
If you plan to pursue a career as a teacher, talk to your advisor about your goals and the options that will prepare you for certification, finding a teaching position, and success in the classroom.
South Carolina School Property Taxes: Did You Know?
School property tax is a complicated subject that many residents do not fully understand. South Carolina’s school property tax system is unique among the American states. Read on to learn about some of its particular aspects.
- Most home-owners do not pay property taxes on their primary residence for the regular operating costs of public school in South Carolina. In 2006, the SC Legislature passed Act 388, an overhaul of the state’s property tax laws. One of its key provisions was a 100% exemption on the market value of owner-occupied homes from the school property tax (also called school operating millage). Since 2006, most home-owners bear no obligations to pay school operating millage on properties they occupy as their primary residence. As a result, South Carolina has one of the lowest effective tax rates on owner-occupied residential property among the 50 states (Lincoln Institute for Land Policy 2021, 8).
- To make up for losses in school property tax revenue, the state legislature instituted a 1% state-wide sales tax to help fund public school districts. The 1% sales tax is assessed widely on a range of consumer goods. It originally included taxes on food, but in the years since 2006, the state legislature acted to exclude groceries and other consumer items (Walczak et al 2018, 107). All residents pay the same state sales tax rate, but lower income residents generally pay a higher share of their overall income in sales taxes than do higher income residents.
- During the years following the Great Recession, revenues from the 1% state-wide sales tax failed to fully compensate many school districts for lost residential property tax revenues. This was because consumer activity, which generates sales tax revenue, significantly decreased when the economy tanked during the Great Recession. Clemson researchers Holley Ulbricht and Ellen Saltzman found that many school districts received less combined state/local funding per pupil in the three years after Act 388 was implemented. Other school districts initially received a boost in state funding through provisions added to Act 388 (Ulbricht and Saltzman 2012, iii and 22-24). In more recent years a growing number of school district leaders have voiced concerns about the resource limitations that Act 388 imposes on their districts (Kreber 2018, Summers 2018).
Do You Still Have Questions About the School Property Tax?
Wait a minute, didn’t I pay property taxes on my home to build that new school?
Some counties and school districts do tax owner-occupied homes to pay debt costs for capital projects related to schools. Act 388 exempted home value from being taxed to pay operating costs of schools – staff salaries, supplies, overhead – but did not eliminate property tax to pay the debt obligations on bonds issued to build public school facilities. (Salazar and Saltzman 2013). Counties can still levy these sorts of school property taxes when approved via the voters in a referendum. However, these school debt-related property taxes are usually much lower than the school operating millage previously levied on owner-occupied homes (SC Association of Counties 2020).
I am a business owner! I know I pay school millage on my commercial property.
Act 388 did NOT exempt commercial property from school millage. Homes that are rented are considered to be commercial property and are therefore not exempt from property tax for schools. Neither is property for small businesses or much industrial property. One of the impacts of Act 388 is that it significantly shifted the property tax burden for school millage on to business-owners and firms (Ulbricht and Saltzman 2012, 17; Walczak et al 2018).
But I am a renter, so do these property tax laws really affect me?
Commercial rental homes are not exempt from school tax, and landlords and real estate firms likely pass property tax costs on to the tenant in the price they charge for monthly rent in order to make a profit from their leased properties (Bell 2017). A 2021 report of the Lincoln Institute for Land Policy found evidence that South Carolina apartments, which are often rented, are taxed 2.5 to 3.5 times more than owner-occupied homes. Renters indirectly pay school millage tax and likely bear a higher burden for this tax than occupying home-owners.
I don’t recall applying for a school millage exemption on the home I own.
In SC owners of “legal residence” (owners who occupy their home) can apply for a reduced “special assessment ratio” on their homes for local property taxes (county and municipal). If approved, their home values are only assessed at 4%, instead of 6%. Real estate agents often advise buyers of homes to apply for this special assessment ratio, and most home-owners probably do so and receive the exemption. A home-owner who qualifies for the special 4% ratio automatically receives the school tax exemption as well, often without even knowing it, because it requires no additional action on the part of the home-owner. Those who receive the special assessment ratio are exempt from the school operating portion of local property tax millage by default.
In Summary
Many home-owners are concerned that school home taxes are too high, but due to Act 388, most home-owners do not pay property taxes to fund the regular operating costs of public schools. Others are concerned that schools need more resources and want school taxes on owner-occupied homes raised, but under Act 388 this is not easy to do. Regardless of their view on this issue, it is important for residents to understand how the current tax system operates in order to better advocate for their preferred position.
Sources
Bell, Rudolph. Sept. 13, 2017. “Want to rent your house? Well, You’re Going to Have to Pay” The Greenville Journal .Accessed online August 2021.
Kreber, Monica. April 12, 2018. “Board, staff, teachers delve into Act 388.” Summerville Journal Scene.
Lincoln Institute of Land Policy. 2020. “A Deep Dive on South Carolina’s Property Tax System: Complex, Inequitable and Uncompetitive.”
Salazar, John and Saltzman, Ellen Weeks. 2013. "Act 388 and school funding in Beaufort County, South Carolina, 2013 May" Tigerprints, Publications. Accessed online August 2021.
South Carolina Association of Counties. 2020. “South Carolina Property Tax Rates by County, December 2020”
Summers, Greg. Oct. 14, 2018. “Act 388 strangles education budgets” The Lancaster News. Accessed online August 2021.
Ulbrich, Holley Hewitt and Saltzman, Ellen Weeks. 2012. "Act 388 revisited, 2012 November" Tigerprints, Publications. 10.
Walczak, Jared, Joseph Bishop-Henchman and Katherine Loughead. 2018. “South Carolina: A Roadmap for Tax Reform.” Tax Foundation. www.taxfoundation.org. Accessed April 15, 2020.
Survey Results
Survey results are still to come. Please check back for findings from our survey analysis in the coming months.
Thanks to everyone who submitted their responses to our confidential survey through mail or the online portal.
Research Team
- Dr. Sarah Young, Assistant Professor of Political Science, USC Aiken
- Dr. Matthew Thornburg, Associate Professor of Political Science, USC Aiken
- Wilson Steinmeyer, Student Research Assistant, USC Aiken (graduating Spring 2022)
Pi Gamma Mu - International Honor Society in Social Science
History and Purpose
The society was founded in 1924 by the deans of the College of William and Mary and of Southwestern College in Kansas. It is the oldest, the largest, and the most significant of the honor societies broadly concerned with the social sciences. It now has 180,000 members in 170 active chapters located at large universities, medium-sized institutions and liberal arts colleges throughout the United States and abroad.
The society was founded in 1924 by the deans of the College of William and Mary and of Southwestern College in Kansas. It is the oldest, the largest, and the most significant of the honor societies broadly concerned with the social sciences. It now has 180,000 members in 170 active chapters located at large universities, medium-sized institutions and liberal arts colleges throughout the United States and abroad.
The purpose of Pi Gamma Mu is to foster excellence in the social sciences and to promote cooperation among them. The motto of the society is "Ye shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free."
In addition to the work of its chapters, the honor society supports scholarships for graduate work, guest lectureships for chapters, the publication of International Social Science Review, andPi Gamma Mu Newsletter. It is a member of the Association of College Honor Societies.
Who can join Pi Gamma Mu?
An individual may be invited or may petition to join an active chapter of Pi Gamma Mu when he/she is a junior, senior or graduate student in the upper 35 percent of the class, has at least 20 semester hours in social science, and has a grade average of "B" or better. Pi Gamma Mu's constitution defines the social sciences to include the disciplines of history, political science, sociology, anthropology, economics, international relations, criminal justice, social work, social psychology, social philosophy, history of education, and cultural geography.
Faculty and administrators may also accept the privileges and responsibilities of membership in a college chapter.
South Carolina Theta Chapter at USC Aiken
South Carolina Theta Chapter of Pi Gamma Mu received its charter on February 4, 1994 when 25 members were initiated. Since that time, the chapter has continuously initiated new members each year, normally in the fall semester. The initiation banquet with guest speaker is the highlight of fall events for the chapter and a special field trip normally earmarks spring semester.
History Club is open to any student interested in History.
The Club visits local historical sites, puts on a film series, participates in trivia competitions, and performs community service. History Club is a Student Organization under the SGA with a President, VP, and Secretary. We are a Service-Learning Club focused on the preservation and exploration of local history through Community Archiving: with projects such as an NAACP Oral History Project and a Photo Digitization project. We also perform community service and are currently helping to maintain Pine Lawn Cemetery, one of the oldest cemeteries in Aiken. Finally, History Club is an active part of USC Aiken’s Inter Curricular Enrichment (ICE) hosting film series, speakers, and other events.
So, if you are good with a weed whacker, or want to participate in the preservation of local history, or help educate the larger community, or just hang out in graveyards and talk about nerdy stuff, History Club is the place for you. We need all kinds of skills and abilities from photography and filming to video production and archival work. We also need people interested in being part of organizing, promoting, and running events, and participating in student government. (We really need a weedwhacker! Trivia Skills also appreciated.)
All of our projects provide a chance to gain experience and skills producing tangible artifacts such as papers or videos for publication or presentation. We are committed to making a positive impact on our community through everything we do and are constantly looking for new ways to serve. To earn graduation regalia, students need to actively participate in the club’s total 150 hours of service (per SGA guidelines) making History Club a good way to give back. It is also a great way to get to know more about South Carolina; some of our excursions have included camping at Magnolia Plantation with the Slave Dwelling project, visiting local historical houses such as Redcliff Plantation and Hill House. Likewise, participation in the Community Archiving projects can include conducting oral history interviews or doing archival and secondary source research necessary to contextualize the oral histories and photos we are collecting and archiving. This allows students to meet Aiken’s notable residents, preserve memories, unearth forgotten episodes, and understand Aiken within a larger historical framework.
Upcoming Events
NAACP Oral History Project: We Stand on Shoulders of Giants: NAACP Oral History Project
The Aiken branch of the NAACP just celebrated its 100-year anniversary and History Club has tried to capture some of the last 50 through the memories and stories of NAACP members and Civil Rights advocates in the CSRA. The stories highlighted in the event came from Oral History interviews conducted by the History Club (2019) and capture local perspectives on national historical moments. Through these short clips we see the role of the NAACP and the broader Civil Rights Movement in shaping Aiken and the larger world. We also see the impact of individuals, and this event is a celebration of these people and the work they have done.
The Importance of Education: Dr. Noble on role of education in her life (2:33)
Past Trips and Events
USC Aiken’s Philosophy Club offers guest lectures, informal discussions, and other activities during the academic year. The club also organizes USC Aiken’s Intercollegiate Ethics Bowl Team, which competes in the fall against teams from throughout the region. For more information about the club or to subscribe to the email list, contact Dr. Devi Dillard-Wright, faculty advisor.
Opportunities
Intercollegiate Ethics Bowl
See rules and information about the Intercollegiate Ethics Bowl
Academics
Become a philosophy or religion minor! Take a look at the courses below, and keep in mind that many of these courses also fulfill general education requirements. Philosophy and religion minors score higher on standardized tests, they develop strong writing skills, and they gain a better understanding of world cultures. Talk to your advisor today, and declare a philosophy or religion minor!
The Admissions staff at the University of South Carolina Aiken understands that the college selection process can be overwhelming. Our staff is dedicated and prepared to help you with information about the University and our admissions process.
Your enrollment counselor is your personal contact at USC Aiken. If you have a specific question, please feel free to contact him/her.