Ex-justice O’Connor gives schools poor civics marks
NEW YORK — An “unintended consequence’’ of the No Child Left Behind initiative has been a decrease in civics knowledge, former Supreme Court justice Sandra Day O’Connor said yesterday, promoting computer games that try to make learning about government fun.
She made the remarks at a conference where she was promoting iCivics.org, a website that targets middle-school students.
“Barely one-third of Americans can even name the three branches of government, much less say what they do,’’ O’Connor said.
“Less than one-fifth of high school seniors can explain how civic participation benefits our government. Less than that can say what the Declaration of Independence is, and it’s right there in the title. I’m worried,’’ she said.
Games on iCivics include “Do I Have A Right?’’, in which the player runs a firm specializing in constitutional law; “Executive Command,’’ which offers a chance to play president; “Supreme Decision,’’ about the Supreme Court; “Branches of