Students need civics education
For any incoming college freshman, stumbling onto campus the first day has to be a disorienting experience. There’s so much you don’t know, ranging from where to eat to where your classes are to why your roommate insists on only changing his socks every three days.
But there are certain things the university requires you to know. The University of Wisconsin-Madison requires three orientation programs for all new students; one on alcohol awareness, one on violence prevention program and one on diversity.
Of course, “diversity” on campus rarely includes tolerance of conservative viewpoints. That is why, in addition to these three seminars, new students should be required to attend a program explaining both the First Amendment and the tolerance for viewpoint diversity.
Such training might help avoid situations like the one in 2016 when conservative controversialist Ben Shapiro appeared on campus, only to be surrounded by 18 activists yelling “Safety!” Across America, universities have been setting up so-called “free-speech zones” that merely serve to restrict speech, not enhance it.
Further, it should be mandatory for all students to take courses relating to civic education and the U.S. Constitution. According to a recent study, only 18% of American colleges and universities require their graduates to take a foundational course in U.S. history or U.S. government, and at UW-Madison, history majors are not required to take a single class on American History.
This de-emphasis of education in government and history has led to a collapse in general civic knowledge in America. According to a recent poll by the Annenberg Public Policy Center, nearly 40% of Americans could not name any of the rights protected under the First Amendment.
A 2016 study by the American Council of Trustees and Alumni found that half of all college graduates couldn’t name the term length for either members of Congress or senators, and only slightly more than 20% could name James Madison as the primary author of the Constitution. Most preposterously, 10% of college graduates believed television jurist “Judge Judy” sat on the U.S. Supreme Court.
This corrosion of civic education is manifesting itself in the types of leaders Americans are choosing and in what citizens expect of those leaders once they take office. It is no wonder voters flock to a strongman promising only he can change America’s laws for the better; ignorance of the proper role of Congress and the separation of powers makes this possible.
By the time they’ve graduated, all college students should have analyzed the text and history of the Constitution. They should have read the Federalist papers, Alexis de Tocqueville’s “Democracy in America,” and other important foundational documents: It’s a matter of empowering our citizens by teaching them their rights and responsibilities.
We are failing to educate students about American institutions. If uncorrected, this failure will lead to greater political ignorance, polarization and a greater disconnect between those with power and those without.