Descriptions of lessons within each of three computer-based curricula for high school students (U.S. government, U.S. history, and introductory economics) are presented in this instructor's manual. Each curriculum is divided into lesson units and covers basic concepts. The reading-level is approximately tenth grade. Each unit consists of a pretest…

These two chapters offer a rationale for the inclusion of civic education as a nexus of community college general education. The first chapter provides an introductory overview of various issues related to general education reform and the new emphasis among educators and critics on postsecondary civic or citizenship education. This chapter offers…

A series of articles celebrating the Bicentennial of the Constitution is presented in two volumes. The first article in Volume 1 is an interview by Bernard Murchland with Barbara Jordan discussing the effectiveness of the original Constitution. The second article, "If I Were President," is an interview by Bernard Murchland with Studs…

The current trend to include the relationships of science and technology to human societies in the social studies curriculum is the focus of this ERIC Digest. The Digest discusses: (1) major themes in education on science/technology/society (STS); (2) the rationale for emphasizing STS in the social studies; and (3) how to include STS in the…

The conventional way of thinking about politics keeps us from studying the important work that citizens must do to achieve political efficacy. Students learn the procedures of government as if politics were a spectator sport. While everyone learns about the politics of government, there is little discussion about the politics of the public. Unless…

The basic paradox of citizenship education in the United States is that the first steps toward the rational, autonomous, critical-minded citizen required by a democracy are necessarily non-rational and based on an unquestioned deference to authority. The movement from the morality of authority to the morality of principle constitutes the challenge…

Arranged in five chapters, this handbook provides teachers with a variety of short-term modular, and semester-long voter education programs suitable for use at either the elementary or secondary level. The first chapter, an introduction, provides an overview of the status of student voter education programs and recommends possible roles for…

Descriptions of college programs that integrate civic issues and responsibilities are provided, along with an essay entitled "Liberal Education's Civic Agenda," by Arthur Levine and David Haselkorn. The essay recommends a curriculum that emphasizes such things as basic skills and problem solving, and values and ethics. The program…

This document contains nine individualized learning packages for use by elementary and secondary students on the forms and functions of local, county, and state governmental units. The learning activities packages and teacher's guides in this bulletin were developed during a citizenship education workshop. The units explore use of county agencies,…

This research report studies the impact of informal extracurricular activities and formal social studies curriculum on the political socialization process of high school students. The hypothesis is that involvement in extracurricular activities, school partisan political activities, and exposure to formal course work in social studies is…

A 7-week summer institute for 22 high school social studies teachers of varying racial, religious, and geographical background is believed to have achieved its objectives of providing basic instruction in the role of the Negro in the American political process and translating this content into usable forms for the civics classroom.…

Prepared by a committee of secondary social studies teachers, this publication is designed to show how selected economic concepts can be implemented into the present framework of social studies, grades 7-12, in almost any school system. The same two basic concepts which serve as the core for all the units prepared are: 1) limited resources plus…

Major conceptual concerns guiding contemporary political socialization research with children and adolescents are: content of value orientations; nature of the political learning process; sources or agents from which the young acquire their orientations; the acquisition of political and non-political values/skills; impingement of non-political…

This report summarizes the evaluation of a national conference on "Education and Citizenship: Responsibilities for the Common Good" held in Kansas City, Missouri, on September 20-23, 1976. Participants were 400 persons who are interested or involved in political education. The conference involved speeches and papers from experts and…

Recounts the political, economic, social, and governmental situations surrounding Shays' Rebellion, the 1786 farmer's uprising in Massachusetts which, among other things, demonstrated the need for a stronger federal government. Concludes with contemporary analogies and the statement that, in a free society, the conflict between the legitimate…