The Opinionnaire on Political Institutions and Participation (OPIP) was designed to measure six dimensions of the overall construct of political attitude. Three studies were undertaken to determine the validity and reliability of the instrument, and the OPIP was found to be a valid and reliable instrument for research and evaluations using…

During the decade that followed World War II, social studies education in the United States was affected by many societal changes, particularly the new socio-political climate and a widespread discontent with the state of postwar public education. By the mid 1950s there was a crisis atmosphere regarding U.S. education contributed to by limited…

Data culled from five 1980s studies show that youth today are committed to rewarding careers, good jobs, traditional values, marriage, and family. They are fixated on personal bread-and-butter issues and turn away from community and group problems. (RM)

Although students are told about the principles of democracy, they get few chances to experience democratic participation. Analyzes five research efforts spanning 45 years which attempted to study democratic practices in schools and how such practices affect attitudes and behavior. Results indicate that democratic education is both possible and…

A broad survey of democratic political attitudes of United States and West German students was developed jointly by the Governmental Education Division of the Vinson Institute of Government at the University of Georgia and the Bundeszentrale fur politische Bildung in Bonn. This survey sought to probe twelfth-year students' attitudes toward…

Evaluation results from the Improving Citizenship Education (ICE) Project are presented. The purpose of the ICE project was to design and test a model for improving the political/citizenship knowledge and attitudes of K-12 students by infusing citizenship education into an existing social studies curriculum. This evaluation examined the…

Compares political attitudes of West German and U.S. twelfth-year students 16 to 18 years old. Analyzes 39 items of an 80-item questionnaire from a cross-sectional survey of 552 West German and 483 U.S. students. Finds that West German students are more questioning and realistic than U.S. students. (KO)

This paper examines four major research studies spanning approximately 45 years which provide solid evidence that democratic schooling is possible and is an extremely important factor in the education of young citizens for a democratic society. The objectives, methodology, limitations, and results of each study are examined. From the studies, the…

This paper describes and evaluates a citizenship education project for elementary and secondary schools. The specific purpose of the project was to develop and test a model to improve political knowledge and attitudes of students by systematically infusing political/citizenship education into existing elementary and secondary social studies…

This examination of political and social attitudes of American youth in the 1980's begins with a comparison of the youth of the 1960's with the youth of the 1970's. Results from four major studies are presented and a composite picture of youth in the eighties is presented. Findings show that the personal and professional values of American…

The late 1970s can be characterized as an era of practical concerns in civic education. There is a trend toward useful applied learning which can be evaluated by the actions or skills it produces. Current civic education programs are similar to curriculum reform efforts of the 1930s in that they are committed to educating citizens to function…