The ability to find credible information online is necessary for informed civic engagement in the 21st century. This need is particularly acute for young people, who often turn to the Internet to learn about social and political issues. Preparing students to evaluate online content, particularly as it concerns social and political issues, aligns…

This article analyzes how guns emerged as both urgent topics of dialogue and common features of everyday life for 228 students and their teachers in six communities across the United States who participated in the Digital Democratic Dialogue (3D) Project, a year long social design-based experiment aimed at foregrounding youth voice and fostering…

One of the most urgent contemporary challenges is to ensure a sustainable planet for future generations. The analysis of environmental problems and the best strategies for dealing with them should be an integral component of social studies education. This e-book offers essential information and recommends exemplary methods for teaching about…

In 2020, Rick Hess and Pedro Noguera engaged in a long-running correspondence that tackled many of the biggest questions in education -- including topics like school choice, equity and diversity, testing, privatization, the achievement gap, social and emotional learning, and civics. They sought to unpack their disagreements, better understand one…

The aim of the "National Academy of Education (NAEd) Educating for Civic Reasoning and Discourse" report is to better prepare students to examine and discuss complex civic, political, and social issues by ensuring that the curricula, pedagogy, and learning environments that they experience are informed by the best available evidence and…

This is the executive summary for the report, "Educating for Civic Reasoning and Discourse." This report aims to better prepare students to examine and discuss complex civic, political, and social issues by ensuring that the curriculum, pedagogy, and learning environments that they experience are informed by the best available evidence…

The current political climate has created urgency around civic education. The authors argue that educators can best seize the moment by infusing authentic activities and experiences in content studies. They provide an example of one such hybrid instructional model from Democracy Prep Public Schools.

Apparent political apathy among youth in the United States has led to a moral panic about the future of democracy. Many researchers question the facts, while others seek to engage and mobilize young people around public issues they care about in order to master the citizen role and to bring social change. Civic youth work has its modern roots in…

Adult education programs should turn to the deliberative democracy movement in order to help their communities better address the "wicked problems" they face. The authors contend that due to the "wicked" nature of problems in the diverse democracies, communities must develop and sustain their capacity for deliberative democracy and collaborative…

The author discusses how high school civics teachers can use the Gallup Poll Web site to teach students about the influence of public opinion in politics. The author describes his firsthand experiences using the Web site with high school students. He emphasizes the need for teachers to structure higher-level thinking questions instead of having…

The power of civic education to elicit positive student outcomes has been empirically documented. However, the field is only now beginning to understand the causal processes that bring about these positive changes in young people. "The Civic Mission of Schools" report commissioned by the Carnegie Corporation of New York and CIRCLE (2003) lays out…

Cosponsored by Coalition for After-School Funding (CASF) and The After-School Corporation (TASC), After-School Advocacy Days have been held annually in Albany, NY since 2000. These events are enormously helpful to the two sponsors' efforts to influence officials who make decisions about funding afterschool programs. The annual event is designed to…

This report, one part of the evaluation program of the Committee on Civic Education to determine the impact of the committee's instructional program, "Conflict, Politics, and Freedom," consists of a questionnaire, with responses from the sample of 54 out of 104 contacted teachers, displayed in graphs and by lists of comments. The data are graphed…

This article presents a study of African American youth resistance and activism. The data revealed that African American youth have a large capacity for activism and ability to resist. Early engagement on issues of social justice, equality and freedom by family, teachers, pastors and community leaders can help to shape political character and…

The author contends that conceptions of citizenship education must be updated to prepare students for participation in an increasingly interdependent, complex, and changing world. Good citizenship refers to the degree to which decisions regarding public affairs are undertaken self-consciously and purposively. Responsible citizenship involves a…