It is imperative that civic education be strengthened and restored back to the curriculum.
A new academic year is approaching and across the nation our education system at all levels is plagued by a crisis in civic education. Students, whether K-12 or higher education, are increasingly ignorant when it comes to even the basic knowledge of American History, Government, and Western Civilization. The recent evidence from the National Assessment of Educational Progress, “Nation’s Report Card,” found that “only 23 percent of eighth-graders are proficient or better in civics and a mere 14 percent in U.S. history.” Similarly, the report also found that “only 13 percent of (overall) students scored proficient in history and only 22 percent scored proficient in civics…” Further, “40 percent of students scored below the basic level of knowledge in U.S. history, a decline from 34 percent in 2018.”
Our college students aren’t doing much better. The American Council of Trustees and Alumni’s (ACTA) recent report Losing America’s Memory: Historical Illiteracy 2.0, demonstrates growing ignorance among college students, as well. ACTA’s report and the “Nation’s Report Card” point to a floundering American educational system.
Public education continues to be a leading budget driver for many states. In Iowa, education consumes over half of the General Fund budget. The federal government continues to pour countless taxpayer dollars into education. A lack of funding is not the cause of the crisis in civic education.
A number of factors have led to the decline in civic education. One reason is the heavy emphasis that is placed on science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) courses within the curriculum. STEM courses are considered more important because of their relevance to preparing students for both higher education and the workforce.
Courses in American History, Western Civilization, American Government, and even Economics are often sidelined or not even offered within the curriculum. The Thomas B. Fordham Institute notes that “not all states even require civics courses anymore and many provide precious little: a single semester course in high school, which is too little, too late.”
Another issue is that a revolution has occurred within the curriculum and teaching of civic education. Many colleges and universities are graduating teachers who are increasingly radicalized and who in turn bring that ideology into the classroom. Textbooks and curriculums are often biased.
The current push in many schools is to advance action civics. Action civics “encourages students to participate in protests and demonstrations more than study history and our founding ideals, and understand the structure of American government.” Advocates of action civics argue that this is a “hands on” approach to learning about civic education. However, action civics is nothing more than manipulation and using students for various political causes.
As a result of the various ideologies that are pushed in modern classrooms and textbooks, many students are not just ignorant, but many have become radicalized. Americans are often shocked when they read about students praising socialism and Karl Marx or engaging in anti-American protests on college campuses. Too often, students are taught that the United States is a nation that is rooted in evil. This radicalism even goes beyond the classroom and progressive activists are demanding that statues be torn down and buildings be renamed, among other actions taken against historical figures who do not meet their ideological criteria.
Since 2006, this author has taught undergraduate college level courses in United States History and has witnessed firsthand not only the ignorance, but also the radicalization of students. Going into the 2024 presidential election the United States is an increasingly divided nation. As a nation we no longer share a common heritage, language, or faith. The cultural divide is more significant than the economic divide.
The decline in civic education is making this divide even worse. This is a moral crisis that we must resolve. In The Death of the West, Patrick J. Buchanan wrote: “How does one sever a people’s roots? Answer: Destroy its memory. Deny a people the knowledge of who they are and where they came from . . . Destroy the record of a people’s past, leave it in ignorance of who its ancestors were and what they did, and one can fill the empty vessels of their souls with a new history . . .”
This is why it is imperative that civic education be strengthened and restored back to the curriculum. During the past legislative session, the Iowa legislature passed an important measure that begins to restore the importance of civic education. More reforms will be needed. A good place to start would be in some of the recommendations offered by David Davenport and Jeffrey Sikkenga in A Republic, If We Can Teach It: Fixing America’s Civic Education Crisis. The National Association of Scholars through various initiatives and programs such as the Civics Alliance is also helping to reform and strengthen civic education curriculum.
The late political philosopher Russell Kirk wrote that “many Americans are badly prepared for their task of defending their own convictions and interests and institutions against the grim threat of ideology.” Kirk also argued that “ignorance is a luxury none of us can afford.”
Print a PDF