Civics Central: the LWVBAE Study of Civics Education and Related Materials

Our two year study into how Civics is taught in Berkeley, Albany and Emeryville public schools is reported in our study report, CivicsReport. During and after the study we gathered and produced useful materials and did related activities– listed below and in our other Civics pages.

Teachers, students, parents, and citizens–the resources on our Civics Ed pages are for you.  To explore, click on the links under Civics Education at the bottom of every page and within the texts. Since filing our report in 2006, our Civics Education Action Committee has sponsored:

• a resource list for use by teachers and students wanting to study the 1911 CA Suffrage campaign
• a presentation to Political Science classes at Berkeley City College to mark the 100th anniversary of woman’s suffrage in California, and the 40th anniversary of the 26th amendment to the U.S. Constitution granting suffrage to 18-20 year olds throughout the U.S.
• a mock election at Albany High on October 22, 2010
• a mock election at Berkeley High on October 20-21, 2010  
• this Constitution Day presentation on the findings of a 2006 poll that showed only 1/10th of one percent of US adults could name all five freedoms protected by the First Amendment, while 22% could name the five members of Fox TV’s fictional Simpson family.
• Background readings for the the March 2010 League Conversation at the Albany Library on the question, How Well Are Schools Preparing Kids for their Roles as Citizens?
• a Twitter stream that summarizes the day by day events at the Constitutional Convention of 1787 (http://twitter.com/philly1787) – see our flyer. And for those who find Twitter too limiting, you may read the complete summary in chronological order at http://www.classroomtools.com/philly1787.html
• a mock election at Berkeley High in conjunction with the November 2008 Presidential election 
• a mock election at Albany High in conjunction with the November 2008 Presidential election 
• a Constitution Day slide show designed to celebrate September 17 with students and teachers; and also one designed to show teens how the Constitution effects them each day. Here is the link to a shorter version of the latter presentation.
• a mock presidential primary at Berkeley High in conjunction with the Feb. 5, 2008 CA Presidential Primary election 
• a Why Vote? contest in the public high schools of our three cities 
• a mock election at Albany High in conjunction with the November 2006 Gubernatorial election