A 21st Century Kind of Civics Education

Students at my school enter the building every day decked out in Obama garb (before they are subject to the uniform code, of course!), and seeing our president as an icon for inner-city students has made me wonder about the implications of this election. Surely there is profound cultural, ideological, and historical significance surrounding the election of our first African-American president, but does the recent attention given to our government mean that our students understand the processes by which Obama was elected and functions on a daily basis? Is the newfound hope in our country translating to an increased understanding of and desire to participate in democracy?

As the product of a hands-on, experiential government class in high school, I learned the value of interacting with our elected officials and community leaders, attending important political events, and volunteering in local campaigns and service initiatives. I got to see how the Constitution and structure of our government play out in current events and what my role in those events could be. I learned first-hand that I had a voice, and that what I had to say mattered. It saddens me to think that there are few, if any, similar opportunities for the students at the high school where I work. Despite the attention that Government receives as an HSA-tested subject, I fear that there is little practical application to the material that students are drilled about. The Bridge projects give real-world examples for concepts in government, but the most recent round of these projects were returned with only a 68 percent acceptance rate – the lowest of all four subjects. I strongly believe that tying this material to interactive experiences would allow students to see the importance of government and their views about it.

A recent article about Sandra Day O’Connor’s crusade to bring civics back into the forefront of American education cements this view – students know more about TV and pop culture than they do about their chances to make a difference in their country, their communities, and their own lives. I sincerely hope that O’Connor, Obama, and others can inspire and educate our youth about the opportunities available to them, while encouraging schools to reinstate civics – a 21^st Century kind of civics – into their core curricula.