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Social studies, particularly in the elementary grades, has been pushed to the back burner in schools. Time is the biggest nemesis. Increased attention to math and language arts under the federal No Child Left Behind law is squeezing out social studies. Many states have standards in social studies so teachers are expected to cover the topic, but without being attached to a high-stakes test, the subject has lost ground. Some states are even dropping state social studies tests. What little social studies is taught usually consists of "laundry lists"--vocabulary words, dates and people's names, educators say, which is just plain boring. Money is another rare commodity to buy proper books, to find quality teachers, and even to create standardized tests to ensure the subject is being taught. Most educators find the decreased attention to social studies a travesty. Even though many students learn social studies in middle or high school, they lack the basic knowledge needed for the subject. Many middle and high school teachers are squeezed for time and can not teach it all. In the end, educators fear youngsters are growing up with little or no knowledge of their own and their neighbors' histories, ironically when the nation is debating many foreign policy issues. (Contains 5 notes.)