Lesson 2

Essential Question

Background

Civic Responsibility is comprised of actions and attitudes associated with democratic governance and social participation. Civic responsibility can include participation in government, church, volunteers and memberships of voluntary associations. Actions of civic responsibility can be displayed in advocacy for various causes, such as political, economic, civil, or environmental issues.
Although civic responsibility has existed for centuries in society, it became part of the blueprint for democracy in 1787 with the ratification of the United States Constitution. The American political system was intentionally created to rest on a foundation of individual liberty, freedom of religion, representative democracy, equal opportunity, and equal protection under the law. But individual liberty depends on a free society. A society relies on individuals to do certain things that advance the cause of liberty, promote the common good, and make government "by the people" possible.

The importance of civic responsibility is integral to the success of democracy. By engaging in civic responsibility, citizens ensure and uphold certain democratic values written in the United States Constitution and the Bill of Rights. Those values or duties include justice, freedom, equality, diversity, authority, privacy, due process, property, participation, truth, patriotism, human rights, rule of law, tolerance, mutual assistance, self restraint and self respect. Schools teach civic responsibility to students with the goal to produce responsible citizens and active participants in community and government.

Instructional Strategies

Strategy 1

Gathering Information: Conducting a Survey

Brainstorm with students responses to this question:

What could be learned about responsible citizenship through a survey?
Introduce students to the basic concepts of a survey:

Printable Student View

     Steps in conducting a survey:

  1. Clarify the purposes: Why are we doing this survey?
  2. Define the study population: Who should take this survey?
  3. Sampling and estimating the sample size: How many people should take this survey so that there is a true sample?
  4. Decide what information to collect What do we want to know from this survey?
  5. Decide how to measure the information: What questions do we ask to get this information?
  6. Collect the data: Which method do we use to collect the data?
  7. Record, analyze, and interpret the data: What method of recording do we use? What do we know from this survey?

Group the students into groups of 4 or 5 students.

Each group will use the steps to create a survey on civic responsibility.

First, each group will provide the information needed for the first four steps.

After each group has completed the first four steps, give each group the Survey Form that has three questions already created. Ask them to add questions to the survey that are needed.

Printable Student View

1. What does a responsible citizen do?

2. What would the community look like if most people were responsible citizens?

3. What can be done to encourage people to be responsible citizens?

Note to teacher: You may go to surveymonkey to start an online survey for the class. A basic registration is free and easy to use. Teachers will be able to collect the responses for the class to analyze.

Check for Understanding = Formative Assessment

Each group will share a copy of its summary of the data with the other groups and answer this question:
  • How are your responses similar to or different from the responses of the other surveys?

Strategy 2

Extending and Refining: Timed-Pair Paraphrasing

Place students in groups of two. Have each student read an essay on responsible citizenship.

Note to teacher: These online 6th grade student essays on citizenship may be used.

Have students individually read an essay. Then one student should explain to the other what makes a good (responsible) citizen, according to the essay. Give the first student two minutes. If the first student stops sharing, the second student should ask questions.

This strategy requires all students to participate in the discussion.

Check for Understanding = Formative Assessment

  • Has your understanding of what makes a good citizen changed after reading the essays from other students? Why or why not?

Strategy 3

Extending & Refining Information: A-B-C Graffiti

Put students into groups of 2-4 students

Have each group draw a rectangular box at the top of a sheet of paper.

Give the following directions to each group:

Example:

Once students have written terms for each column, have each group agree on the best 3 terms that describe 'citizenship.' Ask the group to circle the top 3 and debrief by sharing with the class.

Check for Understanding = Formative Assessment

  • Why is citizenship a responsibility? Support your answer with an example.

Strategy 4

Application: Socratic Seminar

Students should read in advance of the seminar this text on citizenship in advance of the seminar.

Printable Student View

Citizenship is in a certain sense a full-time job. Which is why it is hard, because Americans also have other jobs - they've got families, they've got to earn a living. Citizenship is, at its best, a full-time job. It means taking ongoing responsibility for all of the communities in which you live: your family, your neighborhood, your church, your school, your synagogue, the town, the state, the nation, and of course increasingly now we talk about a genuine responsibility to the whole globe environmentally as well. Those are tremendous responsibilities and they do make a person pay a real price. People get tired out, they don't want to have the time for it, so it takes that kind of civic work. It's a work that is not finished when a person votes - people think somehow "Now I've been a good citizen, I voted, now I can go home again." But voting is the first step towards citizenship, not the last step.

-- Adapted from a Benjamin Barber quotation found at: http://www.soton.ac.uk

Have each student "interact" with the text before the Socratic Seminar takes place. This interaction is reading the text and highlighting, underlining, making notes, noting questions, etc. should serve as an entrance ticket to the Seminar.

Evidence of this interaction will serve as the entrance ticket to the Seminar.

The teacher facilitates the seminar and begins by asking the students to respond to these open-ended questions.

What makes a responsible citizen?
How do I know if I am a responsible citizen?
What happens if enough people are not responsible citizens?
Note to the teachers: The role of the teacher (facilitator) also includes: setting clear expectations and a positive climate where students can speak in positive environment, arranging the classroom in a circle, and redirecting discussion back to the text when tangents begin. The role of the students includes thoughtfully listening and speaking. However, the seminar itself is not graded and students should be allowed to be silent if they would like. The assigned text is the common experience that binds the group together, so the discussion should revolve around it. The facilitator should frequently pose the question, "Where did you find that in the text?" so that everyone understands the evidence for their opinion. However, the students should realize that during most Socratic Seminars there is no one right answer. The goal is to critically think about the concept or topic and create meaning.

http://www.studyguide.org/socratic_seminar.htm

http://www.ncsu.edu/literacyjunction/html/tutorialsocratic.html

http://www.greece.k12.ny.us/instruction/

 

At the conclusion of the seminar the teacher should debrief the students.

Note to the teacher:
For information on writing rubrics for Socratic Seminars consult this website:
http://www.greece.k12.ny.us/instruction/ela/SocraticSeminars/seminarrubrics.htm

Printable Student View

Check for Understanding = Formative Assessment

  • Think of a situation where you saw someone not act as a responsible citizen. Explain the consequences of poor citizenship for the community.
  • How can we encourage responsible citizenship? Should there be personal consequences if someone is not a responsible citizen?