What's New in Civic Education and Youth Civic Engagement Work .... (October 2003 Archive Section)

 

October 31, 2003

• The Journal of Community Practice has announced a call for papers in the special issue "Youth Participation and Community Change." They expect that the issue will develop knowledge of youth-led, adult-led, and intergenerational initiatives that focus on youth participation and seek manuscripts from practitioners, researchers and educators from diverse disciplines and fields. All manuscripts will receive anonymous peer review and final acceptance is subject to the decision of the Guest Editors and Editors of the Journal of Community Practice. Manuscripts must be submitted by July 1, 2004. To read the full announcement go to: Call for Papers. For more information email jcp@wayne.edu.

  October 30, 2003

• The Center for Civic Engagement has developed College Convention 2004 to bring a large group of politically informed, motivated college and high school students together in a convention atmosphere featuring presidential candidates as well as consultants, staffers, interest groups, media and entertainment personalities and sponsors. From January 7-10, 2004 students from across the country will convene at the Center of New Hampshire Holiday Inn in Manchester, New Hampshire. For more information go to:
  http://www.nec.edu/cc2k4 www.nec.edu/cc2k4; CC2K4@nec.edu or CC2K4@nec.edu.
  

  October 29, 2003

• On Saturday, 18to35's President Jonathan Zaff challenged young adults to make their voice heard on the public policy issues that affect them most: "I propose that from this day forward we turn the idea of 'Getting Out the Vote' on its head and focus instead on 'Getting Out the Voice' of young adults in America," said Dr. Zaff.

  Giving the keynote address at the Vermont Campus Compact Student Leaders conference Dr. Zaff also challenged both the Democratic presidential candidates and President Bush to listen to the voices of these young Americans: "The 70 million Young Americans between 18 and 35 years of age - and the 30 million between 18 and 25 - represent a crucial, and available, swing vote in the upcoming primaries and the subsequent general presidential election," added Dr. Zaff. "In our 50-50 nation, with the Democratic and Republican parties roughly at parity, whichever party captures these voters will gain a potentially decisive advantage." Dr. Zaff cited the recent Harvard Institute of Politics poll that shows a small lead for President Bush over the Democratic nominee, but with 27% still undecided.

  Dr. Zaff continued, "Young adults are civically engaged, yet politically dormant. With the country at political parity, elected officials and candidates want our vote, but they need to earn our support by giving us a reason to cast our vote for them. Giving us a sense of purpose in the political process. Likewise, it is our responsibility to challenge them to listen to us - our responsibility to move our issues and needs to the forefront of policy debates. It's our responsibility to Get Out the Voice." For a full copy of the speech go to: http://www.18to35.org.
  
  18to35 is a national non-partisan policy organization dedicated to engaging young adults in public policy debates and moving their issues and needs to the forefront of policy debates. To learn more about 18to35 and 18to35's programs, contact 18to35 by e-mail at media@18to35.org or phone (202) 543-0828.
  

  October 28, 2003

• The following new youth engagement items have been added to The Pew Charitable Trust's website at http://www.pewtrusts.com:

  Reaching out to non-voters is no easy task "Non-voters would be easy to dismiss, except for the fact they're about half of the voting age population. "Young people don't vote because nobody asks them to vote," said Tobi Walker, an expert in youth voter participation for The Pew Charitable Trusts." By Kevin Graman, The Spokesman-Review, October 12, 2003
  
  Wanted: Young Voters. This article explores the efficacy of commercial phone banks as a way to mobilize young voters. The author looks at the activities of the Youth Vote Coalition and their evaluation by researchers at Yale University. Campaigns and Elections, October 20, 2003
  

  October 27, 2003

• The Dirksen Center's "Congress for Kids" provides our users with more detailed information and activities, focusing exclusively on the federal government and elections. The site is designed for students in grades fourth through high school, other students, teachers, parents, and interested citizens may use the site's functionality for free. And they have uploaded 3 new introductory quizzes. Instructional areas include:

  - Independence (e.g., democracy, democracy vs. autocracy, the original thirteen colonies, the Declaration of Independence, Articles of Confederation)

  - U.S. Constitution (e.g., delegates to the constitutional convention, writing the Constitution, the Great Compromise, signing the Constitution, ratifying the Constitution, Bill of Rights, powers of the federal government, three branches of government, checks and balances, the Amendments, women - right to vote)

  - The Legislative Branch (e.g., House of Representatives, the Senate, making laws, the veto)

  - The Executive Branch (e.g., the president, the president's job, the president's cabinet, the president and Congress, impeachment, the president has fun)

  - The Judicial Branch (e.g., Supreme Court, the justices, dealing with segregation)

  - Elections (e.g., election day, voting, election of the president, candidates, political parties, the primary election, national conventions, the campaign, polling places, the Electoral College, the Electoral map, inaugurations)

  For more information go to: http://www.congressforkids.net
  

  October 24, 2003

• The second Massachusetts Summit on Civic Learning entitled "Reclaiming the Civic Mission of Our Schools" will be held today, Friday, October 24, 2003 at the Historic Old Senate Chamber, State House in Boston. For more information go to: http://www.senatormoore.com/
  
  
• Md. Social Studies Curriculum Is Too Little of Too Much. A few years ago, I had occasion to look at some of the standardized tests other countries give their high school students. The most revealing was from France, because the exam writers clearly expected that as they approach adulthood, all students would have grappled with a few key issues in modern French history: the causes and effects of World War I; the causes and effects of World War II; and whatever the heck that whole colonization and decolonization of Africa and Asia were about... by Karin Chenoweth, Oct. 23, 2003. The Washington Post

• October 23, 2003

• A reminder that a webcast will be available for the Nonprofit Studies Program, Campbell Public Affairs Institute at The Maxwell School of Syracuse University will be hosting the symposium "Gifts of Time in America's Communities" on October 24 from 9:30 am - 12:30 pm. This symposium, the first of two that will be organized by the Nonprofit Studies Program in 2003-2004, will focus on two questions: What mobilizes volunteerism? What are the characteristics of communities that are engaged, and those that are not? Presentations by prominent speakers and panel discussions will center on the state of volunteerism, needs for the future, and policies to encourage greater participation. Papers are also available at http://nonprofit.campbellinstitute.org
  
  
• The International Conference on Civic Education (to be held November 16-18, in New Orleans) will draw together researchers with a common interest in civic education, and contains eighty panels and seventy-five informal roundtables with almost five hundred people on the program. This research includes work on service-learning, moral education, character education, as well as policy research and work on the civic capacity and skills of citizens. The conference is inter-disciplinary and includes faculty from Education, Political Science, Sociology, Public Policy, Psychology and Evaluation, as well as practitioners. It is relevant to scholars from other countries including research from many different countries. For more information on the conference, including hotel information, travel information, registration information, please go to the website: http://www.indiana.edu/~civiced.

  October 22, 2003

• Beginning this fall, First Amendment Schools: Educating for Freedom and Responsibility (FAS) is accepting applications for a new First Amendment Affiliate Schools program. FAS is a national school reform initiative co-sponsored by the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development (ASCD) and the First Amendment Center. The goal is to help all schools model and apply First Amendment principles throughout their communities. Currently have eleven First Amendment Project Schools are committed to becoming laboratories for freedom and democracy. Now, in addition to the Project School program, they are expanding the network to include schools that are interested in affiliating with this work.

  There is no fee for joining the network. First Amendment Affiliate Schools receive a range of free benefits and services, including eligibility for grants to support "best practices" that implement the principles of the project. Affiliate Schools are asked to model and apply the four principles of the FAS Vision Statement. A full list of FAS Affiliate School benefits and responsibilities may be found on the FAS Affiliate School application.

  For more information about the project, or to download additional applications, please visit http://www.firstamendmentschools.org or contact Sam Chaltain at (703) 284-2808 or schaltain@freedomforum.org.
  

  October 21, 2003

• The New York Times Learning Network Lesson Plan, developed in partnership with The Bank Street College of Education in New York City, presents "Electing Economies: Examining the Connection Between the Economy and Presidential Elections." In this lesson plan, based on The New York Times article " A Bright Economy? Only the Voters Know for Sure," by Richard W. Stevenson, students examine the economic and political challenges the past six presidents have faced during their terms of office, and how those challenges may or may not have impacted their chances for re-election. For the complete lesson plan, as well as other information on the site see http://www.nytimes.com/learning/. To read the article, go to: http://www.nytimes.com/learning/teachers/featured_articles/20031020monday.html.

  October 20, 2003

• The Century Foundation recently launched Liberal Ink, a weekly newsletter for young progressives. It will highlight events, news items, and other information for students and young professionals. LibLog, a feature of Liberal Ink, will facilitate online conversations on timely political issues. To see the newsletter visit http://www.centuryinstitute.org/LiberalInk/
  

• National History Day (NHD), in cooperation with the Commission for the 50th anniversary of the Supreme Court's 1954 landmark decision Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas, invites students in grades 6 - 12 to participate in a national essay contest in conjunction with the National History Day competition. Brown was composed of five cases from Delaware, Kansas, South Carolina, Virginia and Washington, DC. There were almost 200 total plaintiffs, community activists at each site, and more than a dozen attorneys involved in these historic cases. Maryland was the first legally segregated state to implement the Brown decision in the fall of 1954, one year ahead of the court's deadline.

  As part of the 2003-2004 National History Day program, students are encouraged to write an essay with supporting research that examines the Brown decision and its ongoing impact. The essay must relate to the 2003-2004 NHD theme "Exploration, Encounter, Exchange in History and should follow the National History Day rules for the paper category, which can be found on the Web site www.nationalhistoryday.org. Winning essays writers will be informed in early May, 2003. The official announcement will be made on May 17, 2004 at a Brown v. Board 50th Anniversary ceremony. The first place winner will receive $1,000, second place will receive $500 and third place will receive $340. Travel to attend the anniversary ceremony will be provided for the first place winning student and their parents. To enter go to http://www.nationalhistoryday.org/brownvboard.htm for information.
  

  October 17, 2003

• In its latest e-newsletter, the Youth Activism Project announced "There is now an official, permanent Legislative Youth Advisory Council in Maine - to the best of our knowledge, the first and only one in the country. Unlike other youth councils that advise governors, or programs where students participate in mock legislative sessions, this one has the power to conduct public hearings, draft bills, and make recommendations on pending proposals under consideration by the State Legislature." Other announcements include:
  - Online Video of the Month: The National Conference of State Legislatures' 16-minute online video called "Your Ideas Count" hosted by Sean Duffy from MTV's Real World Boston stars. The National Conference also offers links to every Statehouse, including to so-called Kids' Pages Most of these are geared for younger children but Minnesota's has a section for young adults. http://www.leg.state.mn.us/leg/youth/getinvolved.asp
  - Youth Award of the Month: The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards for anyone in grades 5-12, including home schoolers, who has conducted a volunteer service activity within the past year is eligible to apply. Applications must be made through a school principal or a designated youth-serving organization such as a county 4-H organization or the Volunteer Center National Network. Each state honoree receives $1,000 and all-expense paid trip to DC and each national winner will receive an additional $5,000. Deadline: October 31, 2003. Contact: Prudential Financial at 1-888-450-9961 or http://www.prudential.com/media/managed/appPDF.pdf
  For more information on the Youth Activism Project go to: http://www.youthactivism.com/
  

  October 16, 2003

• The Funders' Collaborative on Youth Organizing announces their new quarterly newsletter - PIPELINE in an effort to provide more timely updates about their work, developments in the field and other issues. In this first issue, you will find: Program updates about recent and upcoming FCYO activities; Voices from the Field: Insights from youth organizing practitioners; Briefings/Conferences - recent and upcoming education opportunities; and New and forthcoming resources. For more information go to: http://www.fcyo.org/index.html
  
  
• State may require service for its merit scholarship. Illinois has a $1,000 Merit Recognition Scholarships that goes to any student who graduates in the top 5 percent of his or her class and attends a public university in Illinois. Governor Rod Blagojevich's proposal, which he will push in the spring legislative session, would add the new requirement for scholarship winners to do a minimum of 50 hours of service to collect the money. By Ray Long and Ana Beatriz Cholo. Chicago Tribune

  October 14, 2003

• The following new youth engagement items have been added to The Pew Charitable Trust's website at http://www.pewtrusts.com.

  - Citizenship: A Challenge for All Generations: A report from the National Conference of State Legislatures. This report is based on a national public opinion survey comparing the attitudes of 15-26 year-olds to those of older people toward citizenship and representative democracy. In addition to enriching the data from earlier reports about the generational gap in civic engagement, knowledge and dispositions, the report provides striking new findings that high school civics or government classes have a positive effect on the political participation of young people. The full report and a press summary are available at http://www.ncsl.org/trust. October 7, 2003

  - Civic education database: Database for searching pending state legislation on civic education by state, keyword and a variety of other criteria. The National Conference of State Legislatures launched a Web-based database that allows users to search pending state legislation on civic education by state, keyword and a variety of other criteria. The database can be used to find out, for example, that 40 states considered bills relating to civic education in 2003 and that 11 were enacted. The database will be updated every two weeks throughout 2004 as states respond to the recent Congressional Conference on Civic Education with new legislation. October 7, 2003
  

  - Young voters could tip mayor's race: An op-ed from The Philadelphia Inquirer. Young adults represent a surprisingly large bloc of potential voters. According to the most recent census figures, 15 percent of Philadelphia's voting-age population is between 18 and 24 years old, and approximately 25 percent--or one in four--is under 30. In addition, young adults are swing voters, traditionally independent in their party choice and often willing to cross party lines, making them ideal for candidates looking to attract new supporters. Ocotber 5, 2003

  October 13, 2003

• The 2003 YouthElect Conference will be held at the Cook Conference Center on the Louisana State University campus in Baton Rouge. It is designed to empower even more students to impact their communities by connecting them with proven strategies they can use to integrate themselves into the political process.

  The conference registration fee is only $35. Groups of five or more from the same university will also receive a discount of $5 per person on their registration. Some of the conference speakers are: Christopher Portman, 20 year old mayor of Mercer, PA Joyce Chen, the youngest Asian-American in elected office Jesse Laslovich, University of Montana senior and state representative Alisha Thomas, the youngest African-American woman in elected office Ganesh Sitaraman, 21 year old co-author of the book Invisible Citizens: Youth Politics After September 11

  For a complete list of the 14 conference speakers, and for more information about the conference, please visit: http://www.youthelect.org.

  YouthElect is a non-partisan, not-for-profit organization dedicated to increasing political participation among America's youth by increasing opportunities for their involvement and educating young people on the benefits of political participation. YouthElect accomplishes its mission through training, publishing, and research. YouthElect is a student run and supported organization.
  

  October 10, 2003

• The new issue of the Carnegie Reporter contains a story about civic education. Irasema Salcido, founder and principal of the Cesar Chavez Public Charter High School for Public Policy--which focuses on teaching young people how to become public policy advocates and organizers--is interviewed. For more information go to: http://www.carnegie.org/reporter/index.html.
  

• The Midwest Political Science Association (MSPA) is an academic association with thousands of members across the United States as well as dozens of other countries. Founded in 1939, the MPSA is dedicated to the advancement of scholarship in all areas of political science. The MPSA publishes one of the top journals in the field, the American Journal of Political Science and hosts a large research conference with over 460 panels and 2,600 presenters. Membership in the MPSA provides you with a calendar year subscription to the AJPS as well as a reduced registration fee at the Annual National Conference. Programs from the past decade of the MPSA are available on-line at: http://www.indiana.edu/~mpsa/conferences/pastconf.html
  

  October 8, 2003

• The National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL), in partnership with the Center for Civic Education and the Center on Congress at Indiana University, has just released new report, Citizenship: A Challenge for All Generations, based on a national public opinion survey comparing the attitudes of 15-26 year-olds to those of older people toward citizenship and representative democracy. In addition to enriching the data from earlier reports about the generational gap in civic engagement, knowledge and dispositions, the report provides striking new findings that high school civics or government classes have a positive effect on the political participation of young people. The full report and a press summary are available at http://www.ncsl.org/trust.

  NCSL has also recently launched a new database on the Web that allows users to search pending state legislation on civic education by state, keyword and a variety of other criteria. The database can be used to find out, for example, that 40 states considered bills relating to civic education in 2003 and that 11 were enacted. The database will be updated every two weeks throughout 2004 as states respond to the recent Congressional Conference on Civic Education with new legislation. It can be found at http://www.ncsl.org/public/trust/civicedlegis.htm.
  

• State Education Standards Weak in U.S. History - "In a state-by-state analysis of K-12 education standards in U.S. history only six states earned As, while 23 received Fs, according to a report released by the Thomas B. Fordham Institute..." September 24, 2003.

  October 7, 2003

• National Center for Learning and Citizenship (NCLC) has added several new sources to their website at http://www.ecs.org/nclc. Along with the streaming videos from the 2003 National Forum on Education Policy and the Education Leadership Colloquium included are:
  - NCLC Executive Board Members Doug Hart and Suellen Reed on service-learning and citizenship education
  - A review of the keynote by Anthony Welch, National Service-Learning Partnership chair and National Center for Learning Citizenship board member, delivered at the Education Commission of the States Education Leadership Colloquium on the Civic Mission of American Education in July 2003.
  - The ECS StateNote: Pledge of Allegiance - Seventeen states enacted new pledge laws or amended policies in the 2002 or 2003 legislative session. This ECS StateNote includes charts and notes on different aspects of state requirements concerning the Pledge of Allegiance.
  - An interview with Inez Tenenbaum, South Carolina Superintendent of Education. Inez Tenenbaum describes why she believes service-learning and citizenship education are intertwined, highlights South Carolina's decision to utilize service-learning as its primary strategy in youth development and shows how service-learning transforms classroom learning into relevant opportunities for students to contribute in their communities.
  - An interview with Elizabeth Burmaster, Wisconsin Superintendent of Public Instruction. Elizabeth Burmaster discusses how service-learning engages students, connects them to their community and is an especially relevant methodology for teaching citizenship education.

  Also, the next Citizenship Matters will be released this month, if you have information to share on citizenship education please send it to Jennifer Piscatelli (jpiscatelli@ecs.org)
  

  October 6, 2003

• The CivicMind announces three new features:
  - Five Ways to Boost Your Civic Participation provides concrete suggestions for taking your civic life from entry level to active participation at: http://www.civicmind.com/qboost.htm
  - The CivicMind Award for improving civic participation and education about the legal system goes to the Legal Services Corporation at http://www.civicmind.com/wlgserv.htm
  - Traits of Civic Leadership offers highlights from my recent speeches to the YMCA Civic Initiative Conference and the Montana Governor's Conference on Aging at http://www.civicmind.com/ideas.htm

  For more information on the civic mind contact Wendy Bay Lewis at thecivicmind@aol.com.
  

  October 3, 2003

• The New York Times Learning Network Lesson Plan, developed in partnership with The Bank Street College of Education in New York City, presents "What Constitutes a State?: Learning About State Constitutions and How to Amend Them." In this one hour lesson plan, based on The New York Times article "Hue and Cry Replaces Yawns in Vote on Texas Constitution" by Ralph Blumenthal, students examine the differences between various state constitutions in the United States. Then, using their own "constitutional language," they write a preamble and three articles for a constitution intended for their school or local community. For the complete lesson plan, as well as other information on the site see http://www.nytimes.com/learning/. To read the article, go to: http://www.nytimes.com/learning/teachers/featured_articles/20030915monday.html

  October 2, 2003

• The Nonprofit Studies Program, Campbell Public Affairs Institute at The Maxwell School of Syracuse University will be hosting the symposium "Gifts of Time in America's Communities" on October 24 from 9:30 am - 12:30 pm. This symposium, the first of two that will be organized by the Nonprofit Studies Program in 2003-2004, will focus on two questions: What mobilizes volunteerism? What are the characteristics of communities that are engaged, and those that are not? Presentations by prominent speakers and panel discussions will center on the state of volunteerism, needs for the future, and policies to encourage greater participation. The program includes:

  -- Welcome: Arthur Brooks (Maxwell School), Director, Nonprofit Studies Program
  -- Leslie Lenkowsky (Indiana University-Purdue University, Indianapolis): "Can Government Build Community? Lessons from the National Service Program"
  -- Jeffrey Brudney (University of Georgia): "The Volunteer Center National Network: All It Can Be?"
  -- Mary Tschirhart (Maxwell School): "Corporate Community Service Programs: Enhancing Community Capacity?" (co-authored with Lynda St. Clair)
  -- Peter Frumkin (The Kennedy School at Harvard University): "Building Volunteer Capacity: The Drivers of Successful Corporate and Service Partnerships at City Year" (co-authored with Lazar Treschan) -- Panel discussion: Judith Saidel (The State University of New York at
  Albany), David Van Slyke (Georgia State University)
  -- Closing remarks: Arthur Brooks (Maxwell School)

  The symposium is open to the public. More information is available at: http://npo.campbellinstitute.org
  

  October 1 , 2003

• Speak Up Day, on October 29, will be a widespread effort to reach out to students across the U.S. and to learn how they are using technology and the Internet during an online event organized by NetDay, a national non-profit organization. Public and non-public schools everywhere-in rural communities, inner city schools and suburban areas---will lead classroom discussions and students will complete a short survey online. NetDay will report the results to participants, partners, and to the U.S. Department of Education for inclusion in the National Technology Education Plan to "Speak Up," a school only needs a computer with a network connection, a teacher to register the class's participation and students with ideas to share. Schools will register prior to the event, receive a template with a series of questions and teacher and classroom support materials to guide them through the process. On the day of the event the comments pertaining to the questions will be submitted on line through a specific NetDay website.

  Schools can register to participate at www.netday.org starting September 22. If you have any questions about Speak Up Day, please contact Julie Evans, Julie@netday.org, Irene Spero, irene@netday.org, or Karen Greenwood kareng@netday.org.