Civic Education in a Time of Democratic Crisis

Civic Education in a Time of Democratic Crisis PDF Author: Gregory White
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781071930922
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Book Description

Civic Education in a Time of Democratic Crisis

Civic Education in a Time of Democratic Crisis PDF Author: Gregory White
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781071930922
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 0

Get Book Here

Book Description


Civic Education in the Twenty-First Century

Civic Education in the Twenty-First Century PDF Author: Michael T. Rogers
Publisher: Lexington Books
ISBN: 0739193503
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 529

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Book Description
Imagine an America where politicians, governmental institutions, schools, new technologies, and interest groups work together to promote informed, engaged citizens. Civic Education in the Twenty-First Century brings together scholars from various disciplines to show how such a United States is possible today. Inspired by Alexis de Tocqueville’s analysis of American democracy in the early 1800s, this edited volume represents a multidimensional evaluation of civic education in its new and varied forms. While some lament a civics crisis in America today, Civic Education in the Twenty-First Century raises hope that we can have an informed and active citizenry. We find the activities of a number of politicians, government institutions, schools and interest groups as promising developments in the struggle to educate and engage Americans in their democracy. New technologies and new innovations in civic education have laid the foundation for a revitalized American civic ecology. With Civic Education in the Twenty-First Century, we call for the United States to make these practices less isolated and more common throughout the county. The volume is broken into three major sections. First there are four chapters exploring the history and philosophical debates about civic education, particularly with respect to its role in America’s educational institutions. Then, the second section provides seven groundbreaking inquiries into how politicians and political institutions can promote civic education and engagement through their routine operations. As some examples, this section explores how politicians through campaigns and judiciaries through community programs enhance civic knowledge and encourage civic engagement. This section also explores how new technologies like the Internet and social media are increasingly used by government institutions and other entities to encourage a more politically informed and engaged citizenry. Finally, the third section contains six chapters that explore programs and practices in higher education that are enhancing civic education, engagement and our knowledge of them. From the virtual civics campus of Fort Hayes State to citizens’ academies throughout the country, this section shows the possibilities for schools today to once again be civics actors and promoters.

Civic Education in Polarized Times

Civic Education in Polarized Times PDF Author: Elizabeth Beaumont
Publisher: NYU Press
ISBN: 1479829064
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 264

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Book Description
Reveals the possibilities and challenges of civic education in circumstances of extreme polarization, and how civic learning and political divisiveness can interact and influence each other As fears about polarization—and its contribution to democratic crisis and corrosion—rise, many people have posited civic education as a possible remedy. In a time of increasing political polarization, what should the goals of civic education be, and how should they be implemented? In the latest installment of the NOMOS series, Eric Beerbohm and Elizabeth Beaumont bring together a distinguished group of interdisciplinary scholars across philosophy, politics, and law, inviting us to think deeply about the complex promises and pitfalls of civic education. Contributors raise a variety of crucial considerations not only about how to educate citizens in a polarized era but also for a polarized era. What types of civic learning hold promise for preparing students to navigate their way through a political landscape of escalating hostile factions, distrust, truth decay, and disagreement about basic facts? Could or should civic education attempt to reduce or counteract polarization, or should it focus on other aims? Beaumont and Beerbohm show us that the dynamics and circumstances of polarization do not stop at the schoolhouse gates, but bring new urgency together with added pressures and constraints to all civic education. As political polarization continues to intensify across the globe, this riveting volume illuminates the significance, the possibilities, and the challenges of civic education in the contemporary era.

Civic Pedagogies: Teaching Civic Engagement in an Era of Divisive Politics

Civic Pedagogies: Teaching Civic Engagement in an Era of Divisive Politics PDF Author: Lauren C. Bell
Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan
ISBN: 9783031551543
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Book Description
This book comes at a crucial time as the USA and countries around the world wrestle with an ongoing period of democratic backsliding that shows little sign of abating. Alarmingly, study after study shows that younger people are not convinced that democracy will endure – and that a sizable number are no longer convinced that it should. Especially as changing educational and political landscapes make efforts to educate for democracy both more necessary and more fraught, contributors to this book offer innovative pedagogies and praxis grounded in political and civic theories aimed at strengthening democratic norms, practices and institutions.

The Future of Civic Education

The Future of Civic Education PDF Author: Elizabeth Yeager Washington
Publisher: Taylor & Francis
ISBN: 1040148980
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 158

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Book Description
Speaking to the need to move beyond traditional formulations, this textbook presents radical visions for transforming civic education in the United States. Drawing on the experience of educators and scholars—including those rooted in feminist, queer, abolitionist, global, and race-conscious perspectives—this work offers new, practical ideas for civic education reform. Responding to recent political crises, many scholars, educators, and public commentators have called for a rebirth of civic education, but these all are grounded in the premise that the goal of civic education should be to teach students about the U.S. Constitutional system and how to operate within it. This book argues that the U.S. governmental system, including the Constitution, is infused with racist and anti-democratic premises and procedures. It asks: How can we seek a new path—one that is more democratic, more equitable, and more humane? A diverse range of leading civic educators, who are willing not just to push the boundaries of civic education but to operate outside its assumptions altogether, explore what future possibilities for civic education might look like and how these innovative ideas could be implemented in the classroom. Combining theory with practice, The Future of Civic Education will be important reading for those studying or researching in social studies methods, social studies issues, citizenship, and civic education. It will also be beneficial to social studies teachers at elementary and secondary levels, as well as policymakers and non-governmental organizations (NGOs).

Citizenship under Fire

Citizenship under Fire PDF Author: Sigal R. Ben-Porath
Publisher: Princeton University Press
ISBN: 1400827183
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 173

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Book Description
Citizenship under Fire examines the relationship among civic education, the culture of war, and the quest for peace. Drawing on examples from Israel and the United States, Sigal Ben-Porath seeks to understand how ideas about citizenship change when a country is at war, and what educators can do to prevent some of the most harmful of these changes. Perhaps the most worrisome one, Ben-Porath contends, is a growing emphasis in schools and elsewhere on social conformity, on tendentious teaching of history, and on drawing stark distinctions between them and us. As she writes, "The varying characteristics of citizenship in times of war and peace add up to a distinction between belligerent citizenship, which is typical of democracies in wartime, and the liberal democratic citizenship that is characteristic of more peaceful democracies." Ben-Porath examines how various theories of education--principally peace education, feminist education, and multicultural education--speak to the distinctive challenges of wartime. She argues that none of these theories are satisfactory on their own theoretical terms or would translate easily into practice. In the final chapter, she lays out her own alternative theory--"expansive education"--which she believes holds out more promise of widening the circles of participation in schools, extending the scope of permissible debate, and diversifying the questions asked about the opinions voiced.

A Republic, If We Can Teach It

A Republic, If We Can Teach It PDF Author: Jeffrey Sikkenga
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 1645720500
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 119

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Book Description
America faces a crisis in civic education that imperils the long-term health of our country. Too many Americans—especially young people—do not have the knowledge of our history and principles necessary to sustain our republic. Recent national test results reveal the sad state of civic education in our schools. The 2022 report of the National Assessment of Educational Progress showed that only 22 percent of eighth graders tested were “proficient” or better in their knowledge of civics, and proficiency in US history dropped to an anemic 13 percent. The Annenberg Policy Center reported in 2019 that only 39 percent of Americans could name the three branches of government, while its 2017 study showed that 37 percent could not name a single right in the First Amendment. How can we “keep” a republic, as Benjamin Franklin put it, if we don’t know what a republic is? At a deeper level, the crisis is not simply about facts and information. If the next generations of Americans do not come to understand that our history and principles are good and that they merit their affection, our experiment in self-government could fail. Action is needed now to reverse the trend.

Democracy's Discontent and Civic Learning

Democracy's Discontent and Civic Learning PDF Author: Charles S. White
Publisher: IAP
ISBN: 1641133406
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 315

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Book Description
Around the globe, democracy is under assault. For a dozen years, global freedom has followed a downward slope, according to Freedom House. Once viewed as the world’s model of freedom, the United States has slipped in world ratings of democracy. For a rising portion of the world’s population, faith in democracy is flagging. At the same time, a wave of nationalism and xenophobia is rising in the West, questioning democracy’s ability to meet the needs of its citizens. The contributors to this volume examine democracy’s discontent from a variety of perspectives. What forces have produced the extreme partisanship and polarization roiling America’s civic life and politics? How has today’s populist movement challenged democratic norms and institutions? What role has social media played in democracy’s discontent and its defense? How do we overcome persistent racism in the face of emboldened White supremacist and anti-immigrant agitation? Across the pages of this book, teachers, teacher educators, and education policy makers will recognize a common theme in responding to democracy’s discontent – the need to rebuild the nation’s civic infrastructure. Research on best practices in civic learning and engagement serve as a guide to transforming how we prepare citizens for democratic deliberation and civic action. Creative and effective teaching materials and approaches await only the will to invest the needed time and support. Repairing our civic infrastructure will help to restore confidence in our civic capabilities and trust in our ability to work together for the public good. Without a serious recommitment to the civic mission of schools, the nation will be ill prepared to defend against those within and beyond our borders who are intent on undermining democracy.

Schooling for Democracy in a Time of Global Crisis

Schooling for Democracy in a Time of Global Crisis PDF Author: Stewart Riddle
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 9780367636425
Category : Democracy and education
Languages : en
Pages : 160

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Book Description
This book combines democratic theory with education practice to address the problem of a schooling that is for democracy, and points to the possibilities, limits and tensions of attempting to re-imagine education in more inclusive, collective and sustainable ways through democratic action.

Democracy at a Crossroads

Democracy at a Crossroads PDF Author: Gregory L. Samuels
Publisher: IAP
ISBN: 1641137185
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 261

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Book Description
At a time of questionable civility in American politics, democratic education appears to be at a crossroads. As we consider how to best explore democracy and foster a more civically-engaged populace in the current socio-political context, it is critical to examine what frames our educational systems, policies, and practices and shapes our civic identity. While teachers struggle with decreased instructional time for social studies and the demands of standardized tests, the social sciences are often pushed to the margins. Reflecting on how to negotiate local, state, national, and global tensions related to policy and practice, educators work to do what is best to equip students to foster democratic citizenship and ideals. Social sciences educators are uniquely positioned to embrace a journey that upholds democratic ideals of equality, freedom, and justice, while simultaneously critiquing inequity and injustice in schools and our society. The contributors to this volume situate a variety of discussions within the context of the crossroads and explore how to negotiate, translate, and reconceptualize our own beliefs and positionings in ways that positively influence and empower students, teachers, teacher educators, and education policy makers. Studies are presented related to civic education, cross-cultural interpretations, emotional citizenship, international economics, and race-consciousness, as well as those that discuss how to challenge dominant narratives and negotiate educational policies and practices.