A COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF TEACHING SCIENCE AND SOCIAL SCIENCE SUBJECTS IN THE FIRST THREE YEARS OF THE SLOVENIAN ELEMENTARY SCHOOL AND THE FIRST THREE YEARS OF AN ELEMENTARY SCHOOL OF TEANECK, USA

Slovenija in ZDA sta državi na dveh različnih kontinentih in se v marsičem razlikujeta. Ravno zaradi tega me je zanimalo, ali sta si tako zelo različni v izobraževanju otrok v prvih treh letih osnovnega šolanja. Podobnosti in razlike so opisane v tej diplomski nalogi. V diplomski nalogi, ki je razdeljena na dva dela, sem v teoretičnem delu najprej predstavila šolski sistem in njegovo zgodovino, cilje ter program osnovnošolskega izobraževanja, učne načrte za spoznavanje okolja v Sloveniji ter družboslovje in naravoslovje v ZDA. Na podlagi teoretičnih dejstev in lastnih izkušenj sem v drugem delu diplome primerjala, kakšne so podobnosti in razlike pri poučevanju naravoslovnih in družboslovnih vsebin v prvih treh razredih v Sloveniji in v Teanceku v ZDA. Naredila sem primerjavo ciljev prvega, drugega in tretjega razreda pri predmetu spoznavanje okolja v slovenski osnovni šoli in ciljev male šole, prvega in drugega razreda pri predmetih naravoslovja (Science) in družboslovja (Social Studies) ameriške osnovne šole. Ugotovila sem, da je izobraževanje glede na vsebino in število ciljev, ki jih poučujejo slovenski in ameriški učitelji, primerljivo.Slovenia and the United States are countries on two different continents and are different in many ways. For this reason, I wanted to explore whether their children education systems in the first three years of primary education are that much different as well. The similarities and differences are discussed in this graduation thesis. The graduation thesis is comprised of two partsthe theoretical part introduces the education system and its history, the goals and the program of primary education, curricula for cognition of environments in Slovenia, and social studies and science in the United States. Basing on theoretical facts and personal experience, the second part of the graduation thesis provides similarities and differences regarding teaching science and social studies subjects in the first three years both in Slovenia and in Teaneck, USA. A comparison of the first, second and third grade subjects of a Slovene primary school was carried out which included the subject cognition of society in and pre-school education goals, and the first and the second grade science and social studies of a US primary school. The findings have shown that education, considering the content and goals as taught by Slovenian and US teachers, is comparable