Civics And Citizenship

This Course Guide provides an overview of all content and tools in the print and online resources. It also offers teachers resources for instructional planning and assessment.

Practice answering questions on U.S. history and government in preparation for the U.S. citizenship test.

The book highlights current issues influencing civic and citizenship education and their theoretical underpinnings. It provides an overview of the key features influencing ‘democratic deconsolidation’ , suggests ways in which civic and citizenship education needs to be reframed in order to fit this new political environment, and demonstrates how social media will play a significant role in any future for civic and citizenship education. Currently, democratic institutions are under attack, democratic values are threatened, and there is a wide-scale retreat from the liberal consensus that has underpinned liberal democracies internationally. These trends can be seen in events like, Brexit, the election of a right-wing populist President of the United States and, anti-democratic governments in parts of Europe. It is this change in the direction of political ideology that is currently ‘deconsolidating democracy’ and thus challenging traditional approaches to civic and citizenship education. What is urgently needed is an understanding of these current trends and their implications for thinking in new ways about civic and citizenship education in the 21st century.

The International Civic and Citizenship Education Study (ICCS) investigates the ways in which young people are prepared to undertake their roles as citizens in a range of countries in the second decade of the 21st century. ICCS 2016 is a continuation of a study initiated in 2009. This document outlines the framework and assessment design for the ICCS 2016. ICCS 2016 will report on student knowledge and understanding of key aspects of civics and citizenship, as well as student attitudes to, and engagement with, civic life. This survey is intended to respond to enduring and emerging challenges of educating young people in a world where contexts of democracy and civic participation continue to change. New developments include the increase in the use of social media as a tool for civic engagement, growing concerns about global threats and sustainable development, as well as recognition of the role of schools in fostering peaceful ways of interaction between young people. iccs 2016="" is="" sponsored="" by="" the="" international="" association="" for="" evaluation="" of="" educational="" achievement="" (iea).="" over="" past="" 50="" years,="" iea="" has="" conducted="" comparative="" research="" studies="" in="" a="" range="" domains="" focusing="" on="" policies,="" practices,="" and="" outcomes="" many="" countries="" around="" world.="" prior="" to="" iccs="" 2016,="" three="" civic="" citizenship="" education,="" with="" first="" survey="" implemented="" 1971,="" second="" one="" 1999,="" third="" 2009.="" ="" p

The book is organized around four sections. The first section is an introduction to the problem of defining the scope and foundations of the development of moral personality and social engagement, in particular, the development of civic and ethical attitudes and prosocial behavior. The second section presents a comparative analysis of education policies in Mexico, Chile and Colombia, in particular the way the curricula of civic and citizenship education is designed and implemented. The section also describes and analyzes the way this subject is taught in the classrooms of the primary, secondary and high school levels in the three countries. The third section includes the results of research projects in Civics and Citizenship Education conducted with different theoretical and methodological models of analysis. This last section includes some of the best practices of Civic Education that have been developed in Mexico, Colombia, and Chile.

This open access book presents an in-depth analysis of data from ICCS. An international group of scholars critically address the state of civic and citizenship education in the four Nordic countries that participated in the IEA International Civic and Citizenship Education Study (ICCS) in 2009 and 2016. The findings are of particular relevance to educators at all levels, from school education through to teacher education. Nordic countries have long traditions of democracy and their students have performed relatively well in the ICCS assessments. Nonetheless, citizenship education continues to evolve and has received increasing attention in recent educational reforms, indicating policymakers understanding that schools play an important role in establishing democratic values among future citizens. Data from ICCS can be used to analyze, discuss, and reflect on the status of civic and citizenship education and can contribute to the discourse on the potential role of education in contributing to sustainable democracies for a common future. However, teaching citizenship and learning democracy are two different things. While young people can be taught about democracy in school, it is vital that schools work together with the wider community in which youth operate to strengthen civic understanding and values for all young people regardless of their social and economic background.

Twenty-five leaders from the higher education and service-learning sectors provide insight into what works in building citizenship through civic engagement on their campuses and communities. From small colleges to large universities, these strong voices demonstrate that American democracy is very much active and prepared for the 21st century.