Introduction: Reclaiming Civic Education

Abstract

One of the original purposes of schools in the United States was to prepare students to inherit democracy (Mann, An oration, delivered before the authorities of the City of Boston, July 4, 1842. WB Fowle and N. Capen, 1842; Krutka, 2014). Given the trends in youth civic participation over the last few decades, civic education is not effectively working to support this goal. Research has shown effective civic education practices (e.g., participatory pedagogies, an open classroom climate, service learning), but little civic education follows these suggestions (Torney-Purta et al., Citizenship and education in twenty-eight countries: Civic knowledge and engagement at age fourteen. IEA Secretariat, 2001). Further, most teachers report not having sufficient time, preparation, or resources to teach civics effectively (Hahn, Challenges to civic education in the United States. In J. Torney-Purta, J. Schwille, & J. A. Amadeo (Eds.), Civic education across countries: Twenty-four national case studies from the IEA civic education project (pp. 583–607). IEA Secretariat, 1999). Social media could provide a way for teachers to deepen their teaching of civics by making it more accessible and more relevant, and by having students engage in civic participation in real time.