The Measure of Citizenship isn’t an Exit Exam – It’s Participating in Our Democracy
Pennsylvania legislators just flunked civics – big time.
Once again, instead of offering real solutions to eradicate the ignorance of the coming generation, they clothed themselves in their own.
A bi-partisan group of 47 state lawmakers is proposing forcing all public school students to pass a test on citizenship in order to qualify for a diploma.
House Bill 1858 would require all K-12 schools receiving tax dollars — including charters schools and cybercharters — to give their students the same 100-question test that immigrants seeking U.S. citizenship will have to pass starting in 2020. Any student who doesn’t get a sufficient score will not receive a diploma or GED equivalency.
While it is admirable that legislators are concerned that high school students don’t know enough about civics, it’s unfortunate that they think the solution is another standardized test.
After all, what does being a good citizen have to do with a multiple choice exam?
Citizenship is about political independence. It’s about exercising your rights, not memorizing them. It’s about engaging in the political process, not spitting back facts about what kind of tree George Washington chopped down. It’s about using the principals of self-determination to rise up to the level of personal and community involvement, of individual sovereignty and home rule.
This involves actually teaching civics, a subject that has been cut to the quick in our schools to make room for an increasing amount of test-prep in math and reading. ItThe Measure of Citizenship isn’t an Exit Exam – It’s Participating in Our Democracy | gadflyonthewallblog: