INSIGHTS - Fostering Communities of Educated, Informed and Engaged Citizens Robert R. McCormick Foundation
WINTER 2012 »SUBSCRIBE
Find us on Twitter Find us on Facebook Find us on Youtube
VIEW AS A WEB PAGE
 
IN THIS EDITION

School-Based Civic Learning A Cure for Illinois' Ailing Civic Health

On measures of voting, volunteering, and working with neighbors to solve a problem in their community, Illinois residents, and Millennials in particular, rank poorly compared with our national peers.

READ MORE >>

Illinois High Schools Model Exemplary Civic Learning

Illinois Democracy Schools provide numerous opportunities for students to participate in the democratic process through a range of classes and clubs.

READ MORE >>

Mikva Challenge: Youth Civic Engagement in Action

As a member of the Mikva Challenge Mayoral Youth Commission, Agustin Flores had the opportunity to voice youth input to city and school leaders and effect policy change for Chicago's youth.

READ MORE >>

 
SPOTLIGHT ON
Civic Learning & Engagement

At a time when stakes are high on major issues facing our nation, it was exciting to see strong youth engagement during this year’s presidential election. According to The Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement (CIRCLE), 23 million young people, aged 18 to 29, or roughly half of eligible youth, cast their vote in this election cycle, up 1% from the historic 2008 election. While encouraging, this positive trend is not enough.

READ FULL LETTER >>

Sincerely,
David Hiller signature
David D. Hiller
President & CEO
David Hiller, President & CEO
 
School-Based Civic Learning A Cure for Illinois' Ailing Civic Health
By Shawn Healy, Civic Learning & Engagement Scholar, McCormick Foundation Civics Program

Illinois’ civic health is fragile. On measures of voting, volunteering, and working with neighbors to solve a problem in their community, Illinois residents, and Millennials in particular, rank poorly compared with our national peers.

Illinois’ poor civic health weakens our democracy and widens the disconnect between elected officials and the citizens they represent. At the same time, the scale of the state’s problems has grown as its civil society atrophies, weakening our collective capacity to address them.

School-based civic learning serves as the most promising prescription for our sick patient. America’s public schools were founded for the purpose of preparing the next generation of citizens for their civic roles and responsibilities in our cities, state and nation.

Research by the Chicago Consortium on School Research shows that what happens in the classroom is vitally important in developing civic-minded young people. High-quality civic learning opportunities develop the civic knowledge, skills, and dispositions necessary for informed, effective engagement in our democracy. They simultaneously build skills transferable to the 21st century work place, improve school climate, and reduce the persistent drop-out rate.

Illinois needs schools that live their original civic mission and prepare students for college, career, and civic life. We need school leaders who stress civic learning through development of professional faculty and staff capacity, and teachers who weave proven civic learning practices throughout the formal curriculum. Our schools must foster a climate that nurtures and models civic dispositions and build reciprocal relationships within the surrounding community.

Illinois’ political crisis is solvable, and the answer is in the hands of its youngest citizens. Our schools are well-positioned to educate our youth for democracy and turn the tide towards restoration of our state’s civic health.




Additional information: 

Guardian of Democracy: The Civic Mission of Schools. National Campaign for the Civic Mission of Schools. October 2011.

No Excuses: Eleven Schools and the Districts That Make Preparing Students for Citizenship a Priority, and How Others Can Do It, Too. American Bar Association. August 2010.

Paths to 21st Century Competencies Through Civic Education Classrooms. American Bar Association. October 2009.

Understanding a Diverse Generation: Youth Civic Engagement in the United States. Center for Information Research on Civic Learning and Engagement. November 2011.

 
Illinois High Schools Model Exemplary Civic Learning
By Shawn Healy, Civic Learning & Engagement Scholar, McCormick Foundation Civics Program

Compared to other states in the country, Illinois has some of the weakest civic learning requirements for high school students. According to the Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement (CIRCLE), every state, Illinois included, addresses civics and government in its social studies standards. However, Illinois is one of only 10 states that doesn’t require a stand-alone course in civics or government. Moreover, Illinois is not among the 21 states that test social studies in standardized fashion, or the eight that test specifically in civics or government.

Fortunately, select schools throughout Illinois and within Chicago Public Schools are reversing this trend and restoring their civic mission by offering high-quality civic learning opportunities to all students. Through the Democracy Schools Initiative of the Illinois Civic Mission Coalition, a consortium supported by the McCormick Foundation, 17 Illinois high schools have successfully completed a school-wide civic assessment and have been subsequently recognized as Democracy Schools since 2006.

Illinois Democracy Schools provide numerous opportunities for students to participate in the democratic process through a range of classes and clubs. From class discussion on current issues and democratic simulations to extracurricular and service learning opportunities, students are able to experience first-hand the critical role they can play in shaping their government and society.

In August, Chicago Public Schools, in partnership with the McCormick Foundation, announced the Global Citizenship Initiative (GCI), an unprecedented effort to strengthen civic learning in an urban school district. Beginning in September, 15 CPS high schools introduced a civics/financial literacy course for seniors and a student leadership and governance project, and began integrating service-learning and civic action practices in social studies classrooms.

Through the GCI and the Democracy Schools Initiative, more than 30 Illinois high schools serving nearly 60,000 students have strengthened their civic learning programs and helped prepare their students for their civic roles and responsibilities in the community. These models stand worthy of national replication as schools strive to live their civic mission.

There is also important work being done at the college level. Earlier this year, the American Association of Colleges and Universities (AAC&U) released the Crucible Moment report, which addresses the civic role of higher education. Chicago was fortunate to hold AAC&U’s first Civic Learning and Democratic Engagement (CLDE) Action Collaborative, which brought together 18 area higher education institutions and nonprofits such as Interfaith Youth Core and Illinois Campus Compact to help educators forge partnerships and develop action plans for strengthening civic learning and democratic engagement at their institutions.




Additional information:

WATCH: CPS Global Citizenship Initiative pilot launch video.

Prepping CPS Students to be Future Leaders. Details on the participating schools and pilot program.

McCormick Foundation's Democracy Schools Page. Learn more about designated schools, and resources for teachers, administrators and policymakers.

 
Mikva Challenge:
Youth Civic Engagement in Action 

Mikva Challenge believes that democracy is a verb. The nonprofit challenges Chicago youth to abandon the notion that democracy is an abstract concept and embrace it is an act of participation.

Founded in 1997, the organization is a tribute to former U.S. Congressman and federal judge Abner Mikva and his wife Zoe, a lifelong education activist. In 2000, Brian Brady joined Mikva Challenge as executive director and has grown it from a volunteer organization serving 120 students in eight schools to a 22 staff member group with more than 5,100 students from 101 high schools.

The organization involves Chicago youth in ‘real world’ elections, activism, and policy-making programs to ignite passion in the political process, a transformative experience for students and communities alike.

Agustin Flores, a 20-year-old South Side native, is an example of how young adults learn civics best. As a member of the Mikva Challenge Mayoral Youth Commission, Flores had the opportunity to voice youth input to city and school leaders and effect policy change for Chicago’s youth.

Through research, Flores uncovered a pressing transportation issue among his peers related to reduced rate Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) fare cards. In presenting his proposal to CTA President Forrest Claypool and Mayor Rahm Emanuel, Flores was able to offer a solution, which created a healthy dialogue, and ultimately led to the implementation of a free fare pilot program for low-income students in hopes of improving school attendance. The effectiveness of the program is currently being evaluated by the University of Chicago, the Mikva Challenge Mayoral Youth Commission and the Mayor.

In a video interview for the Foundation, Brady and Flores recount their experience with Mayor Emanuel and share that the best way for youth to learn leadership and democracy is through action.

 
205 N. Michigan Ave., Suite 4300 Chicago, IL 60601 | 312.445.5000 | info@mccormickfoundation.org

Click here to unsubscribe to this newsletter.

View this newsletter as a web page.
If you no longer wish to receive these emails, please update your Email Preferences. View our Privacy Policy.