Focus Areas

Civics create educated citizens

California State PTA wants to make civic learning a priority in school reform. Education in California isn’t just about preparing our children for college and careers. We must also teach our children how to be responsible citizens in a democracy. As Thomas Jefferson said:

“The qualifications for self-government are not innate. They are the result of habit and training.”

IT’S TIME FOR A CIVICS TURNAROUND

A recent report by the California Task Force on K-12 Civic Learning found that, by nearly every measure — news readership, voting, political engagement, philanthropy, volunteering, church attendance — civic engagement has been declining since the end of World War II. We believe civics education is so important that it should start in kindergarten — and not wait for a single class in the 12th grade.

VALUES, SKILLS AND KNOWLEDGE FOR A HEALTHY SOCIETY

The Task Force outlined three key areas for civic education:

VALUES

  • Demonstrate concern for the rights and well-being of others
  • Tolerate, appreciate and seek out a variety of perspectives
  • Have a sense of civic duty at local, state, national and global levels, and
  • Are aware of the power to act and be predisposed to take action to change things for the better.

SKILLS

  • Be able to gather and process information, listen well, think critically, speak in public and engage in discussion and debate
  • Be able to collaborate, build consensus and take collective action to address community issues
  • Be able to vote, perform jury duty and communicate with policy-makers
  • Be able to critically evaluate campaign advertising.

KNOWLEDGE

  • Understand ethics, history, geography, law and economics
  • Possess financial literacy and digital-media literacy
  • Understand constitutional concepts such as separation of powers and due process
  • Understand the concepts of diversity, privilege and power
  • Understand local, state, national and global issues of the day
  • Understand democratic processes and how our government works.

SIX PROVEN PRACTICES

The Task Force also outlined six proven practices of civic learning:

  • Classroom instruction in government, history, geography, law, democracy and economics, striking a balance between teaching important facts and documents—such as the U.S. Constitution and the Bill of Rights—and demonstrating their relevance to today’s society
  • Discussion of current events and controversial issues, including their relevance to young people’s lives
  • Service learning experiences that are directly linked to curriculum and instruction and that give students a chance to apply what they are learning through informed civic action
  • Extracurricular activities that give students opportunities to get involved in their schools, communities and local government and to work together toward common goals
  • Student participation in school governance, to cultivate a sense of responsibility and give young people a real voice in how their classrooms and schools are run
  • Simulations of democratic processes, such as formal debates, voting, mock trials, Model United Nations and simulations of legislative deliberation.

The Power of Civics Education

The power of civics education was front and center at our recent convention when California State PTA Past President Carol Kocivar sat down to interview Chief Justice of California Hon. Tani G. Cantil-Sakauye. Take a look!

Chief Justice from California State PTA on Vimeo.

EDUCATION FOR A LIFETIME OF ENGAGEMENT

SacUpdateThumbnailCivics education teaches students to think critically, develop research skills, assess and synthesize information, and present coherent arguments based on data: skills for a lifetime of engagement in our society. For more information on civics in California schools, please contact the Vice President for Education: education@capta.org.

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

CALIFORNIA STATE PTA RESOLUTIONS ON CIVICS EDUCATION