While most adults don’t view preparing students to be engaged citizens as the top goal for K-12 education, new survey results from the Public Policy Institute of California (PPIC) show that for majorities of Californians and public school parents, civic education is still considered a very high or high priority.
A report released in June by PPIC showed that civics education came in fourth among respondents’ views of five top goals for California’s K-12 public schools. Ahead of civics ed was teaching students the basics (40 percent), teaching them life skills (21 percent) and preparing young people for college (16 percent). Just 11 percent said preparing students to be engaged citizens was the most important priority.
Still, 67 percent of respondents did rate preparing students to be engaged citizens as a “very high” or “high” priority.
“We live in a time of deep polarization, but the importance of understanding basic facts about our government and our democracy can and should unite us all. We join with many other organizations across the state seeking to elevate civic education and engagement activities for California’s young people,” wrote the report’s authors, PPIC President and CEO Tani Cantil-Sakauye, and Mark Baldassare, PPIC survey director.
“Without civic education as a priority in high schools, young people may lack broad knowledge about the role and structure of government at the local, state, and national levels,” they continued. “If this is the case, young people would be left with very little information about how to create change or solve problems in their communities. And this lack of knowledge breeds distrust and disengagement. We believe this challenge can be addressed with good information — a sharp contrast to the misinformation and disinformation readily available online today — and with programs that actively teach the skills of civility and working across differences.”
Key findings
- Elements of civics education viewed by survey respondents as “very” important or “somewhat” important for students to learn about include the U.S. Constitution (92 percent); California elections and voter registration (87 percent); how to find information and detect disinformation about elections (86 percent); the leadership role of the U.S. in the world (85 percent); California Constitution (84 percent); how to evaluate and discuss different political viewpoints (82 percent); and doing community service outside of the classroom (77 percent)
- Parents surveyed largely agreed that their local public schools are doing a good or excellent job of preparing students to be engaged citizens (70 percent), for college (75 percent) and for careers (66 percent)
Researchers noted that although some differences emerge among regional, partisan and demographic groups around ranking the key elements of civic education, survey respondents generally support and see the value of civic education in K-12 public schools.
However, they acknowledged that given everything asked and/or required of California’s public schools, raising the profile of civic education remains a challenge.
The report calls on state and local policymakers to prioritize promoting and growing participation in the State Seal of Civic Engagement.
Additionally, “statewide education entities — from the California Department of Education to the State Board of Education to the California School Boards Association — could share information about successful local and regional civics programs and how to scale them,” they wrote. “Moreover, including youth voices in the state’s new Engaged California initiative and other public forums — including citizens’ assemblies and deliberative polling — should be a priority and could help students get ready for a more engaged future.”
Keep an eye out for the summer edition of California Schools, which includes a Q&A with PPIC President and CEO Tani Cantil-Sakauye in which she further discusses civics education.
