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Although civic education has experienced a significant revitalization during the past two decades, America's high schools are not adequately preparing young people for self-governance and civic participation. While an estimated 90 percent of American high school students take a Civics or American Government course, a majority of graduates are deemed less than "proficient" in their knowledge of civics in a standardized exam.1 Nor does taking a course translate into civic action, as turnout among America's newest voters (18- to 20-year-olds) was only 15 percent in the 2014 midterm elections and 39 percent in the 2016 presidential election.2 Furthermore, young people's access to civic-learning opportunities varies greatly by race, ethnicity, geography, and income level, producing unequal capabilities to participate fully in civic life.3 Empirical data on overall levels of youth participation and on staggering inequality warrant a need to explore new approaches, along with ways to improve current practices. In this article, we explore the latter by asking how discussion of controversial issues--one of the Six Promising Practices presented in The Civic Mission of Schools--can be more widely deployed so that all students, regardless of their background, have access to meaningful and productive discussions about contentious topics that affect our society.4 We focus on the role of two sets of prospective allies--families and principals--in fostering these discussions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents global insights for U.S. civic education. Topics include South Africa and Northern Ireland are stated to offer particular insights for the U.S. teachers interested in extending their practice of civic education, building school culture and focusing on relationships such as the residential programs at the Corrymeela Community, which bring students and teachers of different backgrounds together for a shared learning experience, help to foster these relationships.

The article discusses finding alternatives to the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) Naturalization Test for civic learning and readiness. Topics discussed include becoming active in civic life, assessment in civic education showing importance of civic teaching and learning, National Council for the Social Studies' plan for civic education and assessment, and raising questions about civic literacy in American public schools.

The article offers information on community-based projects for increasing student learning. Topics discussed include learning civics, economics, geography and history by elementary students; project-based learning for students engagement with the community; and designing projects to address the Michigan social studies standards.

The article offers information on urging colleges to offer a unit on Tracking Congress to offer an opportunity to connect civics and government to students' real lives. Topics discussed include implementation of all four dimensions of the C3 Inquiry Arc; assessment of students' knowledge of the government, economic growth and freedom; and tracking the activities of federal legislators by students and helping each other learn the vocabulary.

Civic education is fighting for a place at the instructional table. Still suffering the effects of policy privileging literacy, math, and science, social studies sees little air time in a typical elementary school day. Ironically, the relegation of civic education to the margins of schools comes at a time when political polarization and distrust among U.S. citizens is extraordinarily high. Cross-cutting dialogue that aims for understanding and deliberation committed to shared decision making are hard to find even among officials elected to conduct political business on behalf of their constituents. With fewer adults to serve as role models outside of schools, classrooms may be one of the few places where young people can learn these important civic practices. Particularly in public schools, where diverse individuals come together on a daily basis to live and work, formal civic education has the potential to instill in students both a set of practical skills for talking across difference and an appreciation for the art of doing so. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Game-based learning not only contributes to a learning environment that is interesting and engaging for students but also fosters collaboration while meeting educational goals. Recognizing the potential of digital games to promote primary-source use for discovery and problem-solving, the Library of Congress established funding to advance the development of digital apps for a variety of grade levels. The KidCitizen project aims to develop a free cross-platform app that provides game-based learning activities with primary sources for K-5 students. KidCitizen's interdisciplinary team of historians, educators, child development specialists, and game designers are integrating the Inquiry Design Model with game-based learning approaches. The KidCitizen app, which will be accessible to teachers this spring, provides authentic, age appropriate interaction with primary-source materials, is guided by researchinformed practices and evidence-based pedagogy, engages children in exploring civics and government concepts through historical sources, and helps them make connections with their daily lives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article suggests the reflective classroom teaching approach to enable students engagement in learning political issues and civic education. It is noted that reflective classroom community approach will facilitate students in creating a sense of trust in civics, listening and knowledge sharing skills, and student reflection. The reflective classroom community methods includes group discussion, debates in civil discourse, and knowledge sharing.

The article discusses the need for a high school government course focusing on civic education in the U.S. Topics discussed include providing deep knowledge of the U.S. government and politics includes the Constitution, implementing Complex Scenario Test, a classroom-based performance assessment, and conducting curriculum research.

The article discusses that to cultivate engaged citizens through civic education, teachers need to ensure that students have real-world opportunities to develop, practice, and apply civic skills and suggests key ideas related to the same. Topics include active citizenship means working with government to tackle community challenges, active citizenship includes building coalitions and active citizenship works to support and teach others.

The article presents a speech by Terry Cherry, President of the National Council for the Social Studies, delivered at the 97th National Council for the Social Studies annual conference in San Francisco, California on November 17, 2017. Topics included need of efforts from educators for media literacy; preparing students for civic life; and implementing technological innovation in classroom.

The article presents a study that reveals the tendency of American students who have attended racially pluralistic schools to be less civically active after graduating than other students. Topics include the extent by which young Americans' opinions and issue priorities vary by racial background, and the relation between the racial heterogeneity of a school's student population and the civic education and civic participation of young adults.

A personal narrative is presented which explores the author's experiences of teaching the concept of audience and civic agency to first grade students in the U.S. as of March 2015.

The article discusses teaching strategies for elementary students, particularly in the U.S., as of March 2015. It focuses on how to exploit existential problems confronted by the students to teach them problem solving strategies. Also cited are the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) anchor standards, the process of inquiry, and the book "Across the Wide and Lonesome Prairie," by Kristiana Gregory as a resource.

The article describes an activity program for social studies elementary education which asks students to participate in the Building Bridges project model to teach them about social issues through the performance of civic tasks.

The article provides information on an Action Civics project conducted with grade four students at Public School (PS) 29, John M. Harrigan School in Brooklyn, New York as of March 2015. The project was based on the curriculum of Generation Citizen for middle and high school students. The co-teachers included Generation Citizen's Sarah Andes and Scott Warren.

The article discusses a lesson that asks students to examine several views expressed by the Founding Fathers of the U.S. to understand the context for including freedom of the press in the First Amendment. Topics covered include the examination by students of the role that the news media and the need to be an informed citizen play in democracy, helping students build practical skills in evaluating information, and giving students an assignment to construct an argument on press freedom.

The article highlights major initiatives that have made progress in the states of Illinois, Florida, Tennessee, and California aimed to restore the civic mission of schools for all students. Topics covered include how the states prepare young citizens to become the responsible caretakers of democracy, the challenges faced by advocates of civic learning in these four states, and the role of social studies educators for advancing the civic mission of schools.

The article highlights the importance of the College, Career and Civic Life (C3) Framework to social studies education. Topics covered include the use of the Framework as a tool for local or site level curriculum planning and development, the Civic Learning Arc implied by the Framework and the resources that can support in preparing students for an informed and engaged civic life.

The article offers recommendations for U.S. social studies teachers who are working with immigrant youth and highlights positive deposition of immigrant youth towards the curriculum of social studies. It urges educators to encourage enrollment of immigrant youth in higher school social studies courses, suggests teachers to recruit immigrant youth into advanced social studies courses, and advices teachers to utilize role-plays and Socratic seminars with immigrant youth in classrooms.

The article discusses how teachers can turn students into voters using civic education in the U.S. Topics discussed include a survey by the Center for Information & Research on Civic Learning & Engagement (CIRCLE) of Tufts University, which found no correlation between amount of civic education received by students and their preferences for political parties, and use of congressional elections as contests among parties and candidates by teachers to increase students' interest in it.

An interview with Kathy Swan of University of Kentucky in Lexington, Kentucky is presented. Topics discussed include progress made by the College, Career, and Civic Life (C3) Framework for Social Studies State Standards in its first year, obstacles that teachers face in implementing C3 Framework, and the teacher-student relationship implied by the C3 Framework. It discusses how implementation of C3 Framework can enrich social studies experience of students.

The article focuses on the U.S. Constitution Day & Citizen Day, citing reference to English economist John Stuart Mill's treaties on Representative Government. Topics discussed include the Civics Renewal Network (CRN) aimed to raise national awareness about civics education, origin of the U.S. Constitution Day & Citizenship Day, and the "Guardian of Democracy: Civic Mission of Schools" report which showed American students low scores on the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP).

The article focuses on the College, Career, and Civic Life (C3) Framework for Social Studies Standards published by the National Council for the Social Studies (NCSS) , which obliges teachers for updating their practices. It suggests ways in which teachers can chart a course for accomplishing their teaching objectives, implementing C3 Framework, and reviewing the progress made. It also highlights guiding principles of the C3 Framework to examine and reflect on teachers' own teaching practice.

Each week, U.S. government classes at our school eagerly organize and participate in moot courts. When we began a search for a Supreme Court case study on substantive due process, we found that the only appropriate brief on the StreetLaw website--a treasure trove of student-accessible court case summaries-- Lawrence v. Texas (2003), was a case on anti-sodomy laws. Ayo cautiously explained the situation to her class of mostly teenage boys, expecting an uproar and potentially insensitive complaints. Instead, there was a moment of silence. Brian, a quiet teenage father who rarely says a word in class, suddenly piped up from the corner of the room, "That's okay, it's not about gay sex. It's about privacy." [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents a lesson plan for primary education which teaches concepts of developing civic thinking.

The article presents case studies of projects in Generation Citizen which is a civics program in the U.S. whose pedagogical approach is focused on action, community, and student. It notes that these studies guide educators in developing much-needed further research applicable to schools and organizations. It indicates that Generation Citizen collaborates with several classes and students in various cities in the country including Boston, Massachusetts; Providence, Rhode Island and New York City.

The article discusses how kindergarten pupils learn the attributes of good citizenship by building and maintaining an imaginary playground. Students establish the setting based on visual representations of the park. Characters are then created for their role-playing activity. The students are then stimulated to think of the environment that they have created. They then confront issues that reflect real-life settings and act to bring closure on the problem.

The article discusses a learning strategy wherein first graders are actively involved in acquiring and analyzing information about the production of stuffed toys and taking steps in becoming active citizens. The strategy makes use of interdisciplinary learning, which involves the integration of various subject areas in investigative and summative activities. For this particular exercise, a resource speaker was invited to talk to the students. They are then asked to pose their questions.

The article discusses a strategy adopted for sixth grade students wherein they engaged in research on their chosen countries and provide their perspectives on issues affecting their citizens. For this particular exercise, students from Lockhart School in Massapequa, New York were grouped and assigned a country in the Eastern Hemisphere. They then used PowerPoint presentation for creating a virtual bus tour, which tested their organizational, geographic, and analytical skills.

The article discusses the development of a curricular and pedagogical framework for teaching good citizenship. A team of teachers draw inspiration from the text "Young Citizens of the World," wherein citizenship is thought as learning the dilemmas of equality and equity. Teaching strategies aim to foster meaningful and thoughtful engagement. Critical reading is an integral part of one strategy and so is the use of art and literature for enriching social studies content.

The article reports on the essence of utilizing technology through online communications to learn civic education. It offers information on ThePeopleUnite.com (TPU) partnership that incorporates interactive civic education activities, blogs and a multitude of resources for developing a portfolio that showcases the work of students. It notes that TPU online resources includes curriculum development, civic education campaigns and professional development.

The article discusses the initiative of students to become agents of change in their school. A group of fifth graders at Park Forest Elementary School in State College, Pennsylvania had concerns about the salad being served in the school cafeteria. According to the authors, the girls took their concerns to their teacher which lead to the students' trek on activism. The authors took the initiative of these students and modified the Project Citizen protocol of the Center for Civic Education.

The article presents a design experiment which intends to transform the civic learning in the U.S. history course. It cites the four design principles on civic education including the need education to build the students' experiences with civic life, providing opportunities for students to discuss important controversies in civic life, and building the students' skills. It concludes that the redesigned civic learning course was a prominent experience for both students and teachers.

The article reports on the efforts of civics teachers to strengthen the civic mission of Illinois schools. These efforts include building the Illinois Democracy Schools Network, establishing the Task Force on Civic Education and pushing for a legislative measure requiring the implementation of a civics course in high schools. The author concludes that strengthening the schools' civic mission enables students to assume leadership roles and promote the importance of civics education.

The article presents an exposition on the concept of 'university of obligation' through social responsibility approach for student sociology learning. It discusses on how individuals decide whether they have an obligation to help others, and how they determine which groups they are willing to help. It is mentioned that understanding of society's universe of obligation will help students in formulating a historical case study and bring clarity in their perception in viewing others and society.

The article discusses the significance of democratic education programs in improving the civic and political literacy of the youth in the U.S. Six research based components identified by the American Civil Liberties Union that constitutes an optimal democratic education including instruction, discussion of important civic events, service learning, extracurricular activities, school governance participation and simulations of democracy are discussed. Suggestions are also given to help for the reduction of democracy divide that occurs in the country.

The article discusses the present condition of high quality civic education in the United States. It aims to highlight a model of high quality civic education as well as the research base that affirms it through the investigation of the availability of civic education among students across the schools in California. This model offers an understanding of how curricular experiences nurture broad civic commitments through the development of the sense of civic capacities, connections, and commitments of students. The significance of civic education is offered.

The article presents a discussion on using technology in support to several historical inquiry and civic reasoning. The author also explained the Persistent Issues in History Network, which seeks to nurture and support a national community of teachers. These teachers encourage their students to engage in problem-based historical study that promotes competent citizenship.

Presents an activity that enables teachers of upper elementary grades to explore the Civil Rights Movement. Use of words, art, photographs, and music to help understand important social issues; Collection of primary historical sources and secondary sources from the humanities; Creation of a graphic organization of the information gathered from various resources.

Presents the WebQuest unit of study in which students would take on the role of news reporters on U.S. legislation. Research of bills under consideration in the state legislature or U.S. Congress; Creation of brochures that provides the advantages and disadvantages of specific items of legislation; Number of weeks devoted to the structure and functions of government.

Offers valuable advice for teachers participating in the We the People program of the Center for Civic Education in the U.S. Tips on how teachers and students can enhance the performance of participants in the program; Preparations for congressional hearings; Measurement of the success of the program.

Features the nationwide civics initiative entitled, Our Document: A National Initiative on American History, Civics and Service announced by U.S. President George W. Bush. Integration of historical documents into classroom instruction; Incorporation of documents into document-based essay questions to assess student knowledge of the topic; Participation of students in national competitions. INSET: One Hundred Milestone Documents in U.S. History..

The article describes an activity program for older elementary students which asks students to participate in a social studies field trip.

Offers civic education tips for social studies teachers in the United States. Development of political identity through base knowledge concepts; Conducting of participatory activities with different levels of complexity. INSET: National health insurance..