If students are to fulfill their obligations and rights as U.S. citizens they must develop the ability to make careful judgements, based on a reasoned historical perspective and a meaningful conception of the basic democratic values underlying citizenship in our constitutional order. To this end, an agenda of 12 core civic values that are fundamental to the theory and practice of democratic citzenship in the United States has been devised. Called "The Twelve Tables of Civism," this agenda includes six obligations of citizenship: justice, equality, authority, participation, truth, and patriotism and six rights of citizenship: freedom, diversity, privacy, due process, property, and human rights. An in-depth discussion of each of these values, their place in the U.S. political system, and the nature of both their true and corrupted forms is given. Schools have an unparalleled opportunity to influence an entire generation of high school youth during the coming years, especially during the Constitution's bicentennial celebration. The National Competition on the Constitution and the Bill of Rights, sponsored by the U.S. Bicentennial Commission and the Center for Civic Education, is one such opportunity to invigorate the civic life of schools. Project "Civitas," conducted by the Center for Civic Education and the Council for the Advancement of Citizenship, has also been initiated, and is designed to draw up and disseminate an exemplary civic education curriculum. Twenty-three references and a list of thirteen selected readings are included. (PPB)