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Most Difficult Topic in Social Science Curriculum as Perceived by Elementary Level Student-Teachers

The study used the survey research design aimed for investigating the most difficult topic in elementary teacher education first-year social science curriculum as perceived by the student-teachers. The study also investigated the underlying reasons responsible for the student-teachers' difficulties in learning the topic. Two research questions guided the study. 218 student-teachers were selected using convenience sampling technique from five District Institutes of Education and Training (DIET), in Tamil Nadu State, India, for the study. The instrument used for data collection was a checklist designed by the researchers to elicit information from the student-teachers. The data collected were analysed using frequencies and percentages. The results revealed that the topic 'Reading the Globe, Maps and Atlas' was the most difficult topic in elementary teacher education first-year social science curriculum. The results also revealed that teaching the topic without using the maps, lack of previous knowledge about the maps, the existence of vague concepts, heavy content load, and lack of interest and motivation to learn map concepts were the main reasons responsible for the student-teachers' difficulties in learning the topic.