ASCD Shares Civic Learning Recommendations
ASCD recently sent feedback to the U.S. Department of Education on reinvigorating civic learning and engagement across the country. This feedback is a response to the department's call for suggestions on four provisions in its road map for advancing civic learning (PDF).
Research and test scores show that our students lack knowledge of the U.S. government system and their civic responsibilities, but many schools struggle to prioritize civic learning amid competing academic concerns. ASCD believes that civic learning is an essential component of a whole child approach to education that gives students a voice in a safe and supportive environment and ensures that they understand their opportunities in and obligations to their schools, their communities, and the nation.
The association's recommendations include
- Encouraging states, districts, and schools to balance classroom instruction in history, government, economics, law, and democracy with out-of-class opportunities to participate in service-learning programs and civic engagement activities.
- Ensuring civic learning is recognized as a core academic subject within ESEA.
- Increasing opportunities for ongoing teacher professional development in civics.
- Encouraging states to adopt high standards in civic learning, with student assessments based on these