Benjamin Wellenreiter

Assistant Professor

Teaching and Learning

Office

Degarmo Hall - DEG 226

Office Hours

by arrangement

Office Phone

(309) 438-7532office
phone

brwelle@ilstu.eduemail

About
Education
Awards & Honors
Research

Biography

Informed by 19 years of experience in the middle school classroom, Ben teaches courses in middle-level social studies pedagogy, content-area literacy, middle school teaching methods, and classroom management. Ben also serves as the Executive Director of the Illinois Council for the Social Studies, an affiliate of the National Council for the Social Studies.
Ben is co-author of Teaching Middle Level Social Studies: A Practical Guide for 4th-8th Grade (3rd Edition) (2021) Information Age Publishing. He has publications in The Clearing House: A Journal of Educational Strategies, Issues and Ideas; Teaching Social Studies; Middle School Journal; Middle Level Learner; Children, Youth and Environments; and has numerous edited book chapters.
As a middle school teacher, Ben taught geography and US History and served as co-chair of his school district's teacher evaluation process committee, was twice a lead for certified staff contract negotiations, and served on various curriculum and other school district committees.

Current Courses

395.001Issues And Strategies In Middle Level Teaching

352.001Social Studies Methods For The Middle School

233.001Teaching And Learning in Middle Level Education

265.096Curriculum And Pedagogical Issues In A Global Society

407.001Learning In Educational Settings

307.001Methods and Strategies in Middle Level Education: Biology

307.001Methods and Strategies in Middle Level Teaching: Chemistry

307.001Methods and Strategies in Middle Level Teaching: English

307.001Methods and Strategies in Middle Level Teaching: Geography

307.001Methods and Strategies in Middle Level Teaching: History

Teaching Interests & Areas

Interdisciplinary experiences
Spatial Learning
Student voice

Research Interests & Areas

Patriotism Education
Adolescent social development
Social studies pedagogy

EDD Teacher Education

Illinois State University

Normal, Illinois

MA School Counseling

Bradley University

Peoria, Illinois

BS History-Social Science Education, Secondary and Middle Level

Illinois State University

Normal, Illinois

Master Potter Excellence in Education Award

Morton Community Unit School District 709

2017

College of Education and Health Sciences Exemplary Alumni Award for Scholarship

Bradley University, Peoria, IL

2011

Book Review

Wellenreiter, B. R. (2021). [Review of the book Civic education in the age of mass migration: Implications for theory and practice, by A. M. Banks]. Teachers College Record. ID Number: 23879

Book, Chapter

Wellenreiter, B., & Lucey, T. Confronting Mr. Smith: Providing students opportunity to resist authority.. J. Hubbard & J. Harshman (EDs), Extending the Ground of Public Confidence: Teaching Civil Liberties in K-16 Social Studies Education. Information Age Publishing (2019)

Wellenreiter, B. R. (2017). Context is everything: Increasing the relevance of preservice teachers’ experiences in classroom management. In C. Crawford, & S. Hardy, (Eds.). Redefining Teacher Preparation: Learning from Experience in Educator Development. (pp. 23-39). Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield Publishing Group.

Wellenreiter, B. R. (2012). Garbage trucks and deposit slips: The disconnect between life experiences and the economics curriculum of South Africa. In Lucey, T. A., & Laney, J. D. (Eds.) Re-framing financial literacy: Exploring the value of social currency. (pp. 27-45). Charlotte, NC: Information Age Publishing.

Conference Proceeding

Altenburger, E., & Wellenreiter, B. School Climates at Country and Prairie High: The Spaces-In-Between at Two Rural High schools. American Educational Research Association (2020)

Journal Article

Wellenreiter, B. R. & Lucey, T. A. (2022). The influence of loyalty on historical truth and the entanglement of teacher education. Critical Issues in Teacher Education, (CITE), 29, 40-51.

Altenburger, E., & Altenburger, E. Where to Hang Out: Interplay Between School Building Characteristics and Authority Structures. Children, Youth Environments 31.2 (2021): 1-33.

Angleton, C., Zhao, X., & Wellenreiter, B.R. (2021). Can people like me be patriotic too? Gender, race, and economics in “patriotic” picturebooks. Oregon Journal of the Social Studies, 9(2), 24-37.

Wellenreiter, B. R. (2021). Where the action is: Exploring adolescents’ perspectives of middle school social venues. Middle School Journal, 52(2), 5-13. Doi: 10.1080/00940771.2020.1868056

Wellenreiter, B., & Noraian, M. Preservice teachers’ perceptions of the “Public Displays of History” Debate.. The Counselor: A Journal of the Social Studies 81.2 (2020)

Textbook, Revised

Roberts, S. L., Wellenreiter, B. R., Strachan, S. L., and Palmer, K. L. (2022). Teaching Middle Level Social Studies: A Practical Guide for 4^th-8^th Grades, 3rd Ed. Charlotte: North Carolina. Information Age Publishing.

Grants & Contracts

CAST Publication Incentives. Illinois State Univ.. Illinois State University. (2021)