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Education Dive
Media literacy, finding common ground key for civics ed
Shawna De La Rosa
Nov. 11, 2020
Dive Brief:
The Francis Parker School in San Diego implemented curricula teaching
students between junior kindergarten and 12th grade how to engage in
civil discussion, as well as how to decipher fact from fiction and
navigate differences, District Administration reports.
During the 2020 presidential election cycle, for example, students
didn’t debate as Republicans or Democrats, but rather learned how to
discuss their feelings, fact check, and find truth and common ground.
Faculty received professional development on the curricula before it
launched, and school instructors, librarians and clinical workers
assist by teaching students how to respond productively and think
critically through emotional moments.
Dive Insight:
As a politically charged election — and year — comes to a close,
organizations are making resources available to schools to help
teachers reinforce civil dialogue. For example, the Bill of Rights
Institute (BRI) provides free online resources and professional
development for teachers of civics and history. It partnered with
OpenStax at Rice University to launch "Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit
of Happiness: A History of the American Experiment," meant to challenge
students with difficult questions about history and civics.
Earlier this year, Chief Justice John Roberts of the U.S. Supreme Court
reinforced the importance of teaching civics in his 2019 report,
writing that “civic education has fallen by the wayside.” He urged
educators to take advantage of available curricula and courtroom
experiences.
A 2020 report by the American Academy of Arts and Sciences recommends
teaching civics to all K-12 students. To round out learning and deepen
understanding, it suggested curricula include civics projects, service
learning, student government, debate training and participatory
budgeting.
In recent years, there has also been an emphasis on news and media
literacy, or teaching students to think critically about the sources
and accuracy of the information they receive. These lessons can help
students sift through current events to determine what is fact and
fiction.
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