Abstract
The teaching theories of Social Studies are divided into three groups in Japan. One is "Social Studies teaching for empathizing and understanding the social meanings". Another is "Social Studies teaching for developing children's thinking ability". The third is "Social Studies teaching for bringing up practical human beings with scientific knowledge". This paper intends to clarify the epistemological basis of "Social Studies teaching for empathizing and understanding the social meanings", in order to compare with the three Social Studies teaching theories.
