A call to justice: the importance of civic education.

Before attempting to engage in a discussion of the importance of civic education, it is necessary to understand just what the concept encompasses. The word civic originates from the Latin word civis, meaning citizen. (1) At the heart of civic education, is the concept that we must understand what it means to be a citizen. One definition explains that "civics refers to education in the obligations and the rights of the citizen." (2) Another defines civics as "the branch of political science that deals with civic affairs and the rights and duties of citizens." (3) Yet another states that civics is "the study of local government and of the rights and duties of citizenship." (4) What all of these definitions share is the concept that while citizenship may afford us access to many rights and freedoms, it also demands of us that we fulfill certain duties and obligations. The importance of civic education is that without a populace informed about their civic duties, the rights and freedoms promised by our constitutional structure may not be realized. A brief look at the current state of civic education among the general population demonstrates that there is indeed cause for alarm.

Students today are being overwhelmed with the widely popular concept of reality television. Our students know more about "contestants" and "reality players" than the fabric of our real society. They can describe in detail the reality television programs, and contestants; they have voted for the "idols" crowned. However, these same students are woefully ignorant about our constitutional democracy. It has been reported that just over half of all Americans can correctly identify the three branches of government. (5) More than one in five believes that the three branches of government are the Republican, Democrat, and Independent branches. (6) Fewer than half of all Americans can correctly identify the meaning of the separation of powers. (7) An equally small percentage of Americans can identify the role of the judiciary in the federal government. (8) Only one in 1,000 Americans can correctly identify the five freedoms protected by the First Amendment, but 221 of every 1,000 Americans can correctly identify all five members of the Simpson's cartoon family. (9) The reality is that our young people and future generations must understand that it is our constitutional framework and the freedom and liberty it provides which constitute the glue that holds this society together. If we are unable to make today's youth as enthusiastic, educated, and concerned about and involved with our constitutional democracy as they currently are about reality television "idols," the promise of our constitutional framework and the protection of individual rights and freedoms created by that framework may be in jeopardy.

Our constitutional framework did not emerge by accident but was, instead, the product of the experiences, careful analysis, and thoughtful consideration of great legal scholars and philosophers who blended multiple concepts to create the foundation of our nation. The framers devised a structure with the sole purpose of fulfilling the promises of the freedom and liberty for each citizen. The Constitution is a blueprint for connecting our large and diverse society into peaceful coexistence. It protects the small from the large and the large from the masses and mobs. This is a reality that we must in some way impart to today's youth, the next generation which will be charged with ensuring these values remain vital.

Our Constitution inevitably reflected the political climate that informed the birth of our nation. The Constitution was framed by people outraged at perceived abuses of power by an omnipotent monarchy under which the people had no say in decisions that directly affected their daily lives. The framers created a system in which the citizens were granted the great power of the ballot, the power to vote representatives into and, if necessary, out of office. They also created a system in which crimes were to be addressed by the government only after a jury composed of citizens decided that a wrong had been committed by the person charged.

In sharp contrast to Americans today, the earliest American citizens likely viewed their civic duties as opportunities for self-governance. To them, the power to vote and serve on a jury was no less important than the direct citizen participation of a pure democracy. It is perhaps the representative nature of our democracy that has caused far too many Americans to come to view our government as something removed from their daily lives and over which they have very little power. Unfortunately, it appears that these attitudes are likely being passed on to the youth of today.

As time has distanced us from the political climate in which the Constitution was written, civic virtues have become viewed by many Americans as burdens rather than opportunities. Most Americans dread a call to jury duty and a dishearteningly small percentage register to vote and actually vote in most elections. During the 2004 elections, a record 64 percent of United States citizens over the age of 18 voted. (10) The media reported this record voter turnout but also noted that, according to this figure, over 78 million eligible American voters remained absent from the election process. (11) Even more importantly with regard to the youth of America, voter turnout for Americans age 18 to 24 was only 42 percent and that figure represented a 10 percent increase from the two previous presidential election years of 2000 and 1996. (12)

The apathetic or sometimes even disdainful attitude that far too many American citizens demonstrate about their civic duties underscores the dire need for civic education in our schools. The newest generation of citizens must understand the power inherent in the diligent and informed exercise of their power to vote. Without a deep understanding of the balance created by our Constitution and the critical role each element holds to maintain this balance, the next generation may not realize the danger inherent in complacency, the loss of participation, and the likely dominance of interest groups created by such apathy. Our young people need to learn that our constitutional framework can only be maintained through constant vigilance. Through civic education, they must understand that they alone are the guardians of our future freedom. We must emphasize that while the rights and freedoms guarded by the Constitution remain static, society does not.

American society is growing in both numbers and diversity. Many are coming to America from other countries seeking the freedom and liberty promised by our constitutional framework. Without the educational background necessary to understand how the structure of our Constitution protects the freedom and rights of all people, the next generation of Americans will be ill-equipped to peacefully coexist and the delicate balance will be destroyed. We need to share the respect for minorities, whether racial, religious, or political, that is inherent in our constitutional framework if the next generation is to continue that tradition. The ultimate goal of the Constitution is that a diverse society is able to live together and thrive while protecting the rights of the individual to think, speak, do, and live as they please individually.

Dramatic advances in technology witnessed by the next generation also underscore the need for heightened vigilance with regard to constitutional values and freedoms. While technology may have allowed us to answer questions that we never before knew even existed, we still struggle living together as a society if that technology application is without values. Schools focus on math and science in a hope that future generations will be able to answer even more questions than have ever before existed about the human body, disease, and the world around us. However, the value of prolonging life is eviscerated if people cannot find ways to coexist peacefully with the fundamental freedoms and liberties protected. We must find ways to channel technology to improve the human condition and not permit technology to destroy our values or structures. What is the point of great American advances in technology if the powerful making those advances and applying the technology sit back which each is based will survive not by chance but by educational endeavors. I suggest the framers would not idly sit and allow technology, no matter how convenient or beneficial it may prove, to erode the rights that they worked so hard to provide under the framework of our Constitution. We must recognize and advance base values for the implementation of society, rather than allowing technology itself to be our guide. We must emphasize to the next generation that we cannot passively allow technology to diminish the values guarded by our constitutional framework.

It is the duty of the current generation, especially those of us privileged to have been formally schooled in the values and structure created by the Constitution, to provide the next generation with the analytic tools and the knowledge to guard these constitutional values in the face of current problems. Each generation must understand the citizen's duty to ensure the continued viability of our constitutional republic.

Justice Teaching

I firmly believe that no lawyer, judge, or public official would be unreceptive to educators' requests for information about Florida's justice system and our governmental institutions. My experience in the schools has taught me that most educators welcome this type of unique educational experience for students, but teachers and community leaders simply have no local structure for developing such partnerships with the legal and judicial communities.

To address this local disconnect, during my tenure as chief justice, I have established Justice Teaching, a formal structure that will connect judges and other willing legal professionals with educators desiring a unique, personal, justice-related educational experience for students. Justice Teaching will consist of a select committee with at least one justice from the Supreme Court of Florida, one judge from each of the district courts of appeal, and one judge from each of the circuit courts. Each judge will serve in a formal capacity to ensure that Justice Teaching will function on a continuing basis to recruit volunteers and provide continuing educational programs for our schools on a consistent basis.

These judges will serve as a critical resource both to interested members of the legal community and to educators. They will be responsible for creating a structure to connect with persons responsible for civic and social study programs in each school district to inform those individuals of the availability of the Justice Teaching program. Our ultimate vision is to have, within two years, a trained professional resource person available to provide these supplemental civic education programs to each and every school in Florida. Further, it is my hope that attorneys and judges will ultimately begin to view educating the next generation as part of our fundamental civic responsibility as members of our society and officers of the court and Constitution.

Each of the judges in the core Justice Teaching framework will be responsible for reaching out to the legal community in his or her area and to motivate other judges and local attorneys to become part of Justice Teaching. These judges will provide an avenue for educational outreach into our schools that many of the more than 78,000 members of The Florida Bar may have been seeking, but have been unable to attain. At the same time, this educational outreach will be accomplished in a manner that does not detract from the legal responsibilities of judges or attorneys but enhances trust and confidence in the institutions of this democracy and the core values upon which each has been based.

Through this structure, judges, lawyers, and other professionals will be trained in educational methods to effectively convey knowledge of our constitutional structure and the judicial system to students in a manner that provides an exciting, interactive educational experience.

These professionals will understand that information may not be conveyed most effectively through the telling of "war stories" about his or her legal conquests, but through challenging our students to intellectually and verbally explore together the underlying values of our constitutional framework. The professional's goal will be to guide the students' own self-discovery using the unique knowledge and experience of our judicial system. The purpose of these educational interactions will not be to tell Florida's students what to think, but to encourage all to think independently--to assist them in developing analytical skills. All participants will receive structured training and materials to ensure that, each time they enter a classroom, they will be confident that the students will receive a meaningful and personal educational experience. At the same time, these professionals will be able to share with the students their experiences in resolving human conflict through our courts and the justice system and the importance of the institutions of this democracy. As more professionals are trained and proceed to educate Florida's students, the access of the average Florida citizen to information concerning our government through our legal professionals and teachers will grow exponentially.

Each generation of Floridians deserves access to this critical information to logically make informed decisions about our society's future. Through Justice Teaching, the education of Florida's students and, in turn, the civic knowledge of our general populace, will grow geometrically as more attorneys, judges, professionals, and educators become involved. While the impact of Justice Teaching will not be felt overnight, we sincerely believe that in the long term it will have a fundamental impact on the youth and citizens of our state in an educationally positive manner. This may be a change in the culture and perception of "Justice" entering the realm of education and the lives of our students, but the potential rewards far exceed the risk. We call on all to invest in the future. Share your knowledge and experience with our most precious resource, the youth of today who are the promise of tomorrow.

(1) Civic, The Free Dictionary, http://www.thefreeedictionary.com/civic (last visited July 7, 2006).

(2) Civics, Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Civics (last visited May 30, 2006).

(3) Civics, The Free Dictionary, http://www.thefreeedictionary.com/civics (last visited July 7, 2006).

(4) Civics, Allwords.com, http://www.allwords.com/word-civics.html (last visited July 7, 2006).

(5) Civics Education, prepared for The American Bar Association, Defending Liberty and Pursuing Justice, July 2005 at Executive Summary.

(6) See id.

(7) See id.

(8) See id.

(9) Michael B. Hyman, Proving Homer Simpson Wrong, available at http://www.chicagobar.org/ro/042006/pres.htm (last visited June 6, 2006).

(10) See U.S. Voter Turnout Up in 2004, Census Bureau Reports, U.S. Census Bureau News, available at http://census.gov/Press-Release/www/releases/archives/voting/004986.html (last visited June 9, 2006).

(11) See Brian Faler, Election Turnout in 2004 Was Highest Since 1968, available at http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wpdyn/A10492-2005Jan14.html (last visited June 10, 2006).

(12) See Youth Voting, Child Trends Data-Bank, available at http://www.childtrendsdatabank.org/indicators/83Voting.cfm (last visited June 11, 2006).

When students visited the Florida Supreme Court during 2006 Law Week, they received a lesson in "Separate Branches, Balanced Powers."

"This year's theme emphasized what the Founders intended and accomplished in creating a government of separate powers," said Stephen Shenkman, president of the Florida Law Related Education Association, Inc.

During the lunch for students, their families, and teachers, hosted by Barbara Pariente, former chief justice, students read their essays and showed their artwork which demonstrated from their individual perspectives the three branches of government.

Sabina Gonzalez, a first grader from Miami, described her picture: "Some people make the laws. Some people explain the laws. Some people make us obey the laws. This makes our country fair. The see-saw stays balanced when the three parts are working together."

by Chief Justice R. Fred Lewis 

Chief Justice R. Fred Lewis was appointed to the Supreme Court of Florida on December 7, 1998. Lewis attended Florida Southern College and later moved to Miami to attend the University of Miami Law School where he graduated in 1972. Chief Justice Lewis volunteers regularly in the Florida Law Related Education program working with Florida teachers and students. He is involved in a program of actively teaching and working in schools throughout Florida to promote a better understanding of government institutions and providing open access to judicial officers. Lewis became chief justice on June 30, 2006.