i’m ready for college and my career…..but am i ready for the real world? guiding question how...
TRANSCRIPT
I’M READY FOR COLLEGE AND MY CAREER…..BUT AM I READY FOR THE
REAL WORLD?
Guiding Question
How can we best develop students into active, informed, culturally sensitive, well-rounded citizens?
Intelligence plus character-that is the goal of true education ~Martin Luther King Jr.
HOW CIVICS IS TAUGHT IN AMERICA
79% percent of teachers think it is “definitely important” for students to be critical users of news.
Only 37% believe students must be active members of community
Source: http://www.civicyouth.org/how-civics-is-taught-in-america-a-national-survey-of-civics-and-u-s-government-teachers/?cat_id=10
NAEP TEST (NATIONAL ASSESSMENT OF EDUCATIONAL PROGRESS CIVICS ASSESSMENT)
2/3 of all American students scored below proficient.
Only 1/3 of 8th graders could identify the historical purpose of the Declaration of Independence
In 2006, in the midst of both midterm election and the Iraq war, fewer than half of Americans could name the three branches of government, and only four in ten young people (aged 18 to 24) could find Iraq on the map.
In 2008 –Only 56.8% of eligible voters voted. Nearly 100 million American who were eligible to vote did NOT!
Source: CIRCLE – The Center for Information & Research on Civic Learning and Engagement:
CIVIC ACHIEVEMENT GAP African-American & Hispanic
students are twice as likely as their white students to score below proficient on national civics assessments. A similar civic knowledge gap exists between America’s wealthiest and poorest students
Eligible minorities vote at about two-thirds the rate of their white counterparts.
Families that make above $75,000/year are twice as likely to vote (and six times as likely to be politically active) as families that make below $15,000/year
NORTH CAROLINA CIVIC HEALTH INDEX
Young people are the least civically engaged of any age group in North Carolina.
Voluntary and social organizations are led by a small and homogeneous group of older, college-educated, mostly white residents who are involved in religious organizations.
Few young people, Hispanics and African Americans are participating in groups or organizations.
Adults with some college education are more than twice as likely as those with no college experience to access the news frequently and engage in political discussions with others.
http://floridacivichealth.com/CompareFlorida
WHY SHOULD WE WANT COMPETENT CITIZENS
Informed and Thoughtful: Appreciates history and process of democracy with an awareness of public and community issues
Participate in their Communities: Contributes to society through public service and works together to overcome problems
Act Politically: Effectively organizes people to address social issues, solve problems in groups, speak in public, petition, or protest to influence public policy
Have Moral and Civic Virtues: Exhibits concern for the rights and welfare of others; Values diverse perspectives and personally contributes to make a difference
BENEFITS OF CIVIC LEARNING
Reduces the dropout rate
Increases understanding of public issues and participation in civic activities
Promotes a positive school climate that teaches the importance of community, respectful dialogue, leadership, and creative problem solving and collaboration.
Instills 21st century competencies that employers value such as critical thinking, collaboration, and work ethic.
SCHOOL CULTURE AND CLASSROOM INSTRUCTION
State Standards: K-12 Civic Learning
Mission and Vision Statement
Require Civic Participation
Student Government Youth Voice Class Meetings Student Newspaper Peer Tutoring Classroom Roles Reflection
Treat civic learning as interdisciplinary skills that happen across all subjects areas
Community Partnerships
Measure Progress
Select issues relevant that are linked to core curricular goals Teach students skills needed to participate in taking action on
issues Develop firm ground rules to ensure discussions are inclusive and
productive Ensure students have necessary background information to
consider multiple and complex perspectives before discussion Allow students to understand an issue to form opinions grounded in
evidence Articulate proactively to parents, administrators, and community
rationale for including issues
TEACHING CONTROVERSIAL ISSUES
Pros and Cons of Controversial Issues Promotes critical thinking, education, and informed
citizenship by presenting controversial issues in a straightforward, nonpartisan, primarily pro-con format
Teachable Moment Classroom Lessons Lessons that foster social responsibility through
controversial issues The Choices Program
Curriculum on current and historical international issues. In each unit, students consider multiple viewpoints on a contested issue.
REQUIREMENT OF HIGH QUALITY SERVICE LEARNING
Grounded in content standards, but pursues civic outcomes, rather than only academic gains
Allow students to engage in meaningful work on public issues
Give students a role in choosing their own projects
Provide opportunities to reflect on the service that prompts analysis about oneself and one’s relationship to society.
See service learning as a broader philosophy toward education, not just a program for a finite period in one course
Service Learning Service Learning
Collecting can food for a food drive
Studying nutrition and a healthy diet
Investigating food security in the community and partnering with local governments and non-profits organizations on forums to discuss the issue and how to increase food access
SERVICE LEARNING RESOURCES • National Service Learning
• Campus Compact
• TN Campus Compact
• Corporation for National and Community Service
• Campus-Community Partnerships for Health
• Guilford County-Service Learning Lesson Plans
• Guilford County Service Learning Handbook
A CASE STUDY IN NC: GUILDFORD COUNTY SCHOOLS (GCS)
• Guilford County Schools Character Development Initiative
• 3rd largest district
• 127 schools with 72,000 students
GCS DIVERSITY
41%
35.19%
13.46%
5.81%
3.83%
72,191 students (20th day enrollment)*does not include pre-K
Student Demographics 2014-2015
GUILFORD COUNTY SCHOOLS 2008 2012
Graduation Rate 79% 84.5%
Reading Test (3-8) 55% 68.1%
Math Test (3-8) 71.4% 82.1%
Science (Grade 5) 42.5% 70.4%
Science (Grade 8) 51.2% 71.7%
End of Course Test 62.7% 79.7%
Schools of Excellence 1 School 19 Schools
Low Performing Schools
10 Schools 1 School
Out of School Suspensions
7000 4312
PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT FOR LEADERS AND STUDENT RECOGNITION
• Summer Leadership Institute
• Day of Service by our Leaders (set the example) –understand the issues of the community
• Beginning Teachers Training
• Service-Learning Summer Institute
• Training for Other Departments
• Counselors/School Social Workers• High School Service-Learning Program (Cool to Serve)
• Celebration of Character
NATIONAL ORGANIZATION WITH LOCAL CHAPTERS
Youth Leadership YMCA of the USA
Close Up
Girl Scouts of America
Boy Scouts of America
Freedoms Foundation
Community Service Kiwanis—Key Club
Rotary—Interact Clubs
Ruritan—Ruri-teens
Civitan—Junior Civitan
Student Governance Model United Nations
National Association of Secondary Sch
ool Principals
National Association of Student
Councils
Youth Voice National Forensic League
National Scholastic Press Association
National History Day
American Bar Association
RESOURCES Center for Civic Education
Center for Information & Research on Civic Learning & Engagement (CIRCLE)
Character Education Partnership
City Year
Close-Up Foundation
Coalition fro Community Schools
Future Civic Leaders
Generation Citizen
iCivics
Kids Voting USA
Mikva Challenge
Lou Frey Institute for Political and Government, Florida Joint Center for Citizenship
National Conference on Citizenship
National Constitution Day
National Council for the Social Studies
National History Day
National Service Learning Partnership
Partnership for twenty-first Century Skills
Do Something
RESEARCH Campaign for the Civic Mission of Schools
CIRCLE – The Center for Information & Research on Civic Learning and Engagement:
NCLCE – National Center for Learning and Civic Engagement:
U.S. Department of Education, Office of the Under Secretary and Office of Postsecondary Education, Advancing Civic Learning and Engagement in Democracy: A Road Map and Call to Action, Washington, D.C., 2012. Charlane Fay Starks, “Connecting
Civic Education to Civil Right and Responsibility: A Strategy for Reducing High School Dropout Among African American Students,” (2010)
Alberto Dávila and Marie Mora, CIRCLE Working Paper 52: Civic Engagement and High School Academic Progress: An Analysis Using NELS Data,” (2007)
How Civics Is Taught In America
North Carolina Civic Health Index 2010
Florida's Civic Health