Reflections

Introduction:             As our nation grapples with the rise of authoritarianism, our school children remain woefully unprepared to demonstrate the qualities of capable citizenship and uphold the sanctity of our democratic institutions. Just 23% of 8 th graders scored at proficient or above on the 2014 NAEP civics examination, a dismal score reflective of the declining importance placed on civics within the national consciousness over the past half century. [i] The crisis has been further exacerbated in the standards and accountability era; with the onset of No Child Left Behind in 2001, schools were compelled to place heightened importance on Math and ELA to the detriment of instructional time devoted to history, civics, economics, and the arts. [ii] Students of color and students living in poverty experience what has been described as a “Civic Empowerment Gap”, demonstrating reduced achievement on civics and history examinations, voting and participating in the p