In my last TSSP message, I made this radical statement: Every social studies educator should have an advocacy plan. That might have sounded extreme, but I truly believe it. To move our discipline forward, it is imperative that we, the ones closest to it, have a plan. I shared tools from the NCSS Advocacy Toolkit in order to do this, such as our “Got Social Studies?” Rubric (State Level and District Level) and our Advocacy Plan Template. 

What I didn’t explicitly say, however, is creating the plan is just the first step. All of you may be thinking, well, duh. However, the part after creating the plan is often the least completed, even though this is the most critical part of advocacy. Think about any issue you care about: animal rights, civil rights, environmental issues, etc. People have been advocating in one way or another for these issues for centuries in many cases. Achieving your advocacy goals for social studies is unlikely to happen quickly. This quote by Joumanah El Matrah sums it up:

“To become advocates, I think people need a sort of levelheadedness around how long it takes for things to change, how much resistance there can be and what it feels like to repeatedly fail. And that, in fact, you may not see the change you’re seeking in your lifetime, but that your contribution nonetheless matters. That you are picking up the baton from someone before you and, ideally, you have a good enough baton to pass on to someone else.” -Joumanah El Matrah, CEO Australian Muslim Women’s Centre for Human Rights

So, how do you sustain your plan? Here are a few pointers.

First, relationships are so important. In order for your plan to have any chance of success, you must build relationships with individuals and other organizations. If you are advocating for increased social studies at the elementary level, who also cares about that issue? Parents? Reading organizations? Think about how you can engage them in being advocates alongside you. Who are those who may not care about your issue? Is there a way you can get some of those folks “on your side?” 

Second, be nimble. Things change, and your plan must change with it. Maybe a new initiative comes along in your district or state. How can you leverage this and connect it to your plan? Use moments of challenge to find moments of opportunity. Maybe a key partner leaves their position? How will you continue to have a relationship with that organization? Be ready for constant change. 

Third, don’t forget to use media. Traditional media is still important. For example, you can find the newspapers (big and small) in your state using this website. Use this tool to send letters to the editor or even engage young people in doing so. Also, don’t forget about social media. This can be a powerful tool to communicate and connect people who also care about your issue. If you want to advocate for increased attention for elementary social studies, think about how you can leverage all kinds of media to do so.  Module 6 of the NCSS Advocacy Toolkit includes lots of resources to support sustaining your advocacy plan. 

As you begin your advocacy journey, I hope the NCSS Advocacy Toolkit is helpful. Share your own advocacy story by tweeting me @srwteacher or NCSS @NCSSNetwork.