Student activity programs should be an integral part of education. Movements to limit student participation in activities by academic eligibility requirements do not take into account research that shows that the most consistent predictor of a person's life success is achievement in cocurricular activities.(MD)

This bibliography is intended to assist program directors and teachers in selecting English language/Civics texts for their own particular populations and goals. Data on 36 student texts and any accompanying teachers' manuals (9 in all) and 5 reference books in print in 2001 are contained in the current bibliography, as well as two videotapes.…

To gauge the civic knowledge and skills of the nation's 4th-, 8th-, and 12th-grade students, an assessment has been scheduled for 2006 by the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP). This assessment will enable NAEP to report on trends in civics achievement from 1998 to 2006. The National Assessment Governing Board (NAGB), NAEP's…

Adopted by the California State Board of Education on June 10, 1988, this handbook outlines the legal rights and responsibilities that school personnel have and their educational responsibilities in such areas as morality, democratic values, and religion in the schools. Section I, "Moral Values and Public Education," addresses the issues…

Maintains that, from very different points on the ideological spectrum, citizenship and citizenship education have been added to the political agenda. Argues that political theory, distinct from descriptive civics, is more relevant to the political development of citizens. (CFR)

Observes that the increasing interdependence of global cultures and economies requires a heightened sense of responsibility among all the participants. Calls for a nondenominational spiritual renewal, especially in the fields of politics and the mass media. Maintains that consensus and understanding can occur without loss of autonomy. (MJP)

Minimum standards for elementary and secondary schools require that courses of study provide for the following topics: citizenship, human relations education, and multicultural education. It is educationally profitable to view these as three interdependent perspectives which shape a citizen's participation in democratic life. Cultivating these…

Commitment is combined to classic learning with innovative citizenship education grounded in public debate by the Northtown Academy campus of Chicago International Charter School (CICS). KIPP Academics rely on academic pressure and tough love to help students meet state standards.

Asserts that character education in the schools should be framed by the civic principles of the U.S. Constitution and the Bill of Rights. Paraphrases these principles as "rights, responsibilities, and respect." Addresses parental misgivings about possible religious content and conflict. (MJP)

This collection of research findings by several organizations quantifies public ignorance of the U.S. Constitution and the success of the "We the People...The Citizen and the Constitution Program" in addressing the problem. Surveys by the American Bar Association, the Hearst Corporation, the National Assessment of Education Progress, the…

In February 1990, the President and state governors proclaimed a set of six national education goals to prompt profound improvements in schools and student achievement by the year 2000. These six goals reflect widely held concerns that most Americans have not been receiving the kind of education they need to meet the challenges of twenty-first…

Describes a program called the Character Education Curriculum developed by the American Institute for Character Education that is the most widely used plan for teaching the basic traits of character, conduct, and citizenship. (MD)

This paper provides an overview of U.S. Department of Education programs authorized and funded under federal law. It includes information as well on the laboratories, centers, and other facilities funded by the Department that provide important resources for education. Readers will find funding information, contact information, and a web site for…

Asserts that social studies in North America has been defined most often as fundamentally concerned with preparing students for participation in civic life. Reviews research and summarizes findings on citizenship education in English Canada since 1988. (CFR)

There are two currents of social studies reform. One involves the search for an appropriate social studies core and is spearheaded by state governments and scholarly organizations. The second reform movement flows toward a social studies curriculum based on urgent domestic issues and the realities of global interdependence. The cross-purposes of…