Teacher Advocacy Project Promises to Do Civics for Civics
Research Roundup: Preparing for Civic Responsibility in Our Digital Age
In the News
On the Road
Coalition Member Spotlight: ActiVote
November All-Member Meeting Recap
New Members
Teacher Advocacy Project Promises to Do Civics for Civics
CivXNow works year-round to strengthen K–12 civic education policies at the local, state, and federal levels. We do this in partnership with our 315+ member organizations and the many stakeholders they represent and embody, frontline civic educators most prominently. Educators are our most effective advocates because they are experts at the craft and teach in every state and legislative district in the country.
In meetings with congressional and state legislative offices, educators present firsthand accounts of their experiences teaching civics in a polarized political environment where the subject is too often marginalized. Moreover, they point to the potential benefits of strengthened policies, including improved classroom resources, access to ongoing professional development opportunities, and engaging student programs.
In this vein, CivXNow is proud to announce its Teacher Advocacy Project (TAP). With the leadership of over 25 participating member organizations, we are recruiting interested educators and developing training modules and materials to assist with eventual advocacy. Through TAP, participants will form peer relationships, access specialized toolkits, join leading organizations in the civic learning field, feel empowered to press for positive change, and model civic behaviors for students and the surrounding community. Know an educator who would like to be involved?
For those attending the National Council for the Social Studies annual conference in Nashville this weekend, Shawn Healy and Lisa Boudreau of iCivics will be leading a session on Saturday, December 2 at 3:30 p.m. ET titled “Doing Civics for Civics: Social Studies Teachers on the Frontlines Advancing Stronger Civic Education.” During this session, participants will:
Get the latest information on the federal push to maintain funding for civic and history education for Fiscal Year 2024 and more ambitious efforts to prioritize and strengthen K–12 civic education through generational national investments;
Examine case studies of successful state efforts to strengthen civics, exploring how these efforts can be emulated closer to home, including concrete legislative opportunities for spring 2024 state legislative sessions; and
Emerge empowered to tell stories of effective practice at the classroom level and the link to stronger state and federal policies in ensuring the strength of our constitutional democracy for future generations.
If we miss you in Nashville, rest assured that this is the first of many opportunities, virtual and in person, to participate in TAP and “do civics for civics.” In February, we will host virtual training sessions in advance of Civic Learning Week (March 11–15, 2024), when a series of actions will commence as we make the case for civics to sustain and strengthen our constitutional democracy. “Get TAPped” into the effort by signing up on our advocate form and use this marketing kit to promote the effort with your networks.
Research Roundup: Preparing for Civic Responsibility in Our Digital Age
In 2020, DemocracyReady NY published Developing Digital Citizens, which included policy recommendations for the Empire State to strengthen media and information literacy. We found them compelling and generalizable to all 50 states, so they informed CivXNow’s State Policy Menu. Earlier this month, DemocracyReady NY released a subsequent report titled Preparing for Civic Responsibility in our Digital Age, providing a framework for educators to incorporate media and information skills across the curriculum.
The authors double down on the importance of media and information literacy as generative artificial intelligence (AI) proliferates. These tools, they write, “further complicate the picture, enabling the easy creation of fake images, video and sound, as well as text without attributions, critical thinking, or creative effort.”
Navigating this rapidly evolving environment requires a strong ethical foundation, as the authors argue, but also anchor skills, which the report proceeds to define by grade bands. The anchors include analysis of media messages, reflection on the impact of media upon one’s self and others, and creating media for information and social purposes.
The Internet has become the modern public square as the report aptly notes, where today’s political and social issues are contested. Media and information literacy is therefore critical to informed, effective engagement in our constitutional democracy. Our friends at DemocracyReady NY did the field a great service once more by providing this comprehensive framework for district, school, and classroom implementation.
In the News
As we head into the cold winter months, the following news stories warmly demonstrate the growing national momentum for civics, including debate about civics that includes many different viewpoints:
NPR takes a look at a new series of music videos from Nickelodeon, ATTN:, and iCivics that teach kids the basics of civics, backed by First Lady Jill Biden and Former First Lady Laura Bush.
George Washington University’s Michael J. Feuer argues in this piece in Education Week that teaching about common civic issues can help enrich classrooms.
In this piece in Forbes, Rick Hess looks at what should be the true focus of civic education.
Johns Hopkins University has released a heatmap that shows the cities that are best at providing opportunities for civic engagement.
On the Road
The Jack Miller Center hosted its 2nd annual National Summit on Civic Education earlier this month in Philadelphia. CivXNow was well-represented among panelists and attendees.
The Students Learn Students Vote Coalition’s 2023 National Student Vote Summit was held at the University of Maryland, College Park earlier this month. Attendees heard from campus student leaders, higher education faculty and staff, philanthropic partners, and nonprofit organizations including CivXNow members engaging in the democracy movement.
The NCoC’s Annual Conference on Citizenship is happening today in Washington, DC! Members of the CivXNow team are joining leaders in the civic engagement, artificial intelligence, and local news fields to discuss this year’s theme, The Future of Citizenship. As a key part of the programming, CivXNow members will be examining the future of civic learning and how we are working to improve the health of our democracy.
Coalition Member Spotlight: ActiVote
Understanding what elected officials believe and how young people can engage can be challenging. There are so many different sources of information, and it can be hard to find and engage with credible, non-partisan information.
Our coalition partner, ActiVote, helps leverage the best technology to deepen understanding of issues, history, and candidates that support them.
ActiVote recently added a daily civics quiz to its voter education platform with the goal to further educate their users, hundreds of thousands of voters, about not just elections and policy and government — but now also civics. As part of this new program, they are looking for ways to advance the broader movement, and in this case, would like to be able to promote other groups doing work in the space by having them as the feature partner for a specific day's civics quiz. This would provide low-effort, free promotion, and awareness of the work organizational partners are doing. If you are interested in learning more about ActiVote’s work, contact them here.
November All Member Meeting Recap
The November CivXNow meeting was the last gathering of all of our members for the year. At this meeting we discussed key collective impact activities among partners:
AI Policy Discussions — The working group concluded its first stage of work, shared at the last Research and Best Practices Brown Bag. Those interested in joining future conversations can sign up here and register for monthly brown bags here.
Teacher Advocacy Project Launch — We shared the official kickoff of the Teacher Advocacy Project (TAP) and invited coalition members to spread the word to educators using this marketing toolkit.
Celebrating Our Members
CivXNow continues to grow, now officially standing at more than 315 member organizations! The latest addition is:
We remain deeply appreciative of member efforts and all that we accomplish together. Our goal is to aggregate and activate large networks of support to expand and re-imagine civic education as a force for civic strength. To our members, thank you for your partnership.
If your organization is interested in joining CivXNow or in learning more, please contact us at CivXNow@icivics.org.
Our Mission
CivXNow is a coalition of partners from diverse viewpoints working to create a culture shift that elevates civic education and engagement as a national priority in order to protect and strengthen America’s constitutional democracy. This includes building a shared commitment to ensure that all young people are prepared to assume their rights and responsibilities to participate in civic life and address the issues facing students, their families, and communities in our increasingly dynamic, polarized, and digital society.
To achieve this goal, CivXNow advocates for bipartisan federal and state legislation that supports implementation of state and local policies that reimagine and deliver relevant, inclusive, and engaging K–12 civic learning, both in- and out-of-school.
A Team Effort
The CivXNow team produces this newsletter each month.
We are grateful for the energy, time, and guidance of the CivXNow Advisory Council and to many, many others who support individual projects.
