“Again, teachers need to recognize the static nature of
standards and frame their instruction accordingly. Recent studies have found that social studies
classrooms rarely utilize discussion, and scholars often point to
standards-based education as a contributing factor… The SOLs contain few
standards designed to stimulate discussion; therefore, teachers must act on
their own to foster the ideals of deliberation in their classrooms. A similar argument can be made for
participatory and social justice aspects of citizenship. The ubiquitous nature of standards prohibits
specific recommendations for active or communitarian aspects of
citizenship. It is the responsibility of
educators to encourage students to participate in democracy in order to develop
habits associated with active citizenship, rather than to simply reap its
benefits as passive spectators.” (p. 357)
Journell, W. (2010). Standardizing citizenship: the potential
influence of state curriculum standards on the civic development of adolescents.
PS:
Political Science & Politics, 43, 351-358.
This passage appears in the conclusion of Wayne Journell’s article on the
current state citizenship education.
Journell bases his research on the Virginia Standards of Learning for
civics and government courses; he examines the types of citizenship standards
advocate, the differences between civics and government standards, and how well
those standards prepare students to participate in our society as citizens. Upon inspection, Journell finds that if
teachers design instruction based on standards alone, their students will not
necessarily practice group discussion or deliberation of complex ideas. He also suggests that Virginia’s SOLs do not
ask students to simulate democratic participation, think about social justice,
or focus on their role in the community.
He acknowledges that this is likely due to the seemingly “political”
nature of such topics. However, Journell argues that the subject is inherently
political and if we remove all items that could be construed as advocating a
particular political ideology, we will distill civics education to an unhelpful
list of facts. The author urges
classroom teachers to create lessons that push students beyond memorizing the
function of politics and government to practicing the habits they will need to
take full advantage of their status as members of American society. He says that because the standards are not
sufficient for fostering effective citizenship on their own, teachers should
supplement them with opportunities for students to act in their classrooms,
schools, and communities. The Civic
Mission of Schools report agrees with Journell.
The report finds a lack of civic knowledge, low level of civic
engagement, and civic achievement gap among the American populace. These results offer evidence for the author’s
argument; teachers need to do something differently to ensure students receive
effective civics education.
I wholeheartedly agree with Mr. Journell. Civics education must change in order to
prevent the deficiencies we continue to see American adults. The Civic Mission of Schools report found
that a shocking number of adults do not retain an accurate understanding of how
our institutions function. For example,
the report shows that “only one-third of Americans could name all three
branches of government; one-third couldn’t name any”, “almost a third
mistakenly believed that a U.S. Supreme Court ruling could be appealed”, and “Only
one in five Americans between the ages of 18 and 34 read a newspaper, and only
one in ten regularly click on news web pages” (p. 4, 14). Statistics such as these indicate that we need
to change our approach to educating our citizens. Instead of merely teaching a collection of
facts about the Electoral College, the three branches of government, and the
Constitution, we need to teach our students in a way that is relevant to their
lives. I believe one way we can begin
showing students the importance of civic knowledge would be to move beyond
discussing the “whats” and diving into the “whys” of our governmental
structure. If we ask our students to
think about how our political system and social structure came about they will
start to see how they are relevant to their lives. We need to explain the social contract AND
help them develop their political agency.
If social studies teachers are committed to educating students to be
effective citizens, we must use the standards as a guide, but we should build
upon them. We need to find creative ways
that teach students the facts they need to know for their standardized assessments
and prepare them to apply what they have learned in their lives. Relevance is key.
