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…

The conventional way of thinking about politics keeps us from studying the important work that citizens must do to achieve political efficacy. Students learn the procedures of government as if politics were a spectator sport. While everyone learns about the politics of government, there is little discussion about the politics of the public. Unless…

The basic paradox of citizenship education in the United States is that the first steps toward the rational, autonomous, critical-minded citizen required by a democracy are necessarily non-rational and based on an unquestioned deference to authority. The movement from the morality of authority to the morality of principle constitutes the challenge…

Like other institutions, schools are occupied by people whose duties and liberties are in conflict. Understanding the Bill of Rights can help resolve school problems as well as major social problems outside the court system. Students should value the first eight constitutional amendments as not tied to majority rule and should study them…

Lessons and learning activities to teach children in the primary grades about citizenship responsibility and social decision making are provided. Active learning is emphasized. Section I contains five lessons, for use in kindergarten and grade 1, that deal with the themes of freedom and responsibility. The activities focus on home life and the…

Because most countries in the western hemisphere have rejected authoritarian governments and economic policies for more democratic governments and freer economies, schools have a responsibility to help maintain democracy by teaching their students to take an active role in deciding both their political and economic futures. Healthy democracies…

The belief in citizen participation, along with the values of liberty and equality, have shaped the U.S. character and are reflected in the nation's institutions and behavior. This participation is manifested by electoral participation, citizen action, citizen involvement, obligatory participation, volunteer service, and mutual self-help. To take…

This document reports on a civics attitudes questionnaire that was piloted for the purpose of developing psychometrically sound measures of the socio-political attitudes of Japanese middle school students and climate in Japanese middle school classrooms. Studies of Japanese education have produced mixed opinions about the civic dispositions of…

Democratic ideals are not known instinctively, but must be purposely taught, for an educated, informed citizenry is vital to the well-being of every democracy. The essential assumptions and values of democracy include the principle of inalienable rights, respect for certain institutions such as a representative government, an independent…

Informed observers, from the political right to the left, believe that citizen education requires reform. While its effects on public life may be unclear, democratic theory insists that education is required as a condition of democracy itself. Most often, students are given information about the founding of the government, its structure, and due…

This collection of seven papers focused on the topic citizenship as a part of social studies education. The titles of the papers are: "Old Glory, the Constitution, and Responsible Americanism: Elementary School Citizenship Education During World War II" (Sherry L. Field); "Shaping Model Citizens through Rituals of Good Manners: Examples from…

This lesson plan for instruction in geography addresses three social studies standards (People, Places and Environments; Culture; Civic Ideals and Values) and seven geography standards (development of mental maps; physical and human characteristics of places; people create regions to interpret the earth's complexity; patterns and networks of…

This study, part of a larger research project on political socialization in Europe, examines the role of educational materials in informing individuals in the Netherlands about the political system of the European Community. The report covers five topics: (1) educational materials; (2) educational materials in an ends-means model of formal…

This paper contends that the issues of constitutional government debated during the founding of the United States should be in the core curriculum of any school that seeks to educate students to become responsible citizens of a constitutional democracy. For purposes of teaching students, the issues debated by founding-era political thinkers can be…

Presents a paper delivered in Poland in 1989 and in five additional Eastern European cities in 1990. Defines democracy and suggests ways to teach about democratic government. Explores education's role in a democracy. Encourages student participation in student government, classroom discussion, community service, and research projects to give them…