Month: March 2022

¡Vamos a jugar! Let’s play!

Posted on by Luke O'Connor

In 2016, the U.S. House of Representatives recognized April as National Bilingual/Multilingual Learner Advocacy Month. English and multilingual learners are one of the fastest-growing populations in U.S. schools. 

According to the U.S. Department of Education, there are currently more than 5 million English (ELs) and multilingual learners (MLs) in the public school system and 75% of them (about 3.8 million) are Spanish speakers.

In 2017, iCivics began creating resources designed specifically to support ELs/MLs as they learn content and develop their language skills simultaneously. We convened a council of EL/ML experts at the U.S. Supreme Court in Washington, D.C., and they helped us brainstorm ways to make the game Do I Have A Right? more accessible for our students. The new game featured supports—both inside and outside of the game—including the option to play in Spanish.

We added these supports to ensure that our resources are adaptable and appropriate. These materials:

  • build on students’ strengths
  • challenge and support multilingual learners
  • offer engaging opportunities to learn including practice with reading, writing, listening, and speaking
  • have supports/scaffolds as needed
  • help build a classroom culture that is a welcoming place where students can speak respectfully to one another, diverse perspectives/viewpoints

As part of our mission, iCivics wants to encourage multilingual learners to become engaged members of their communities, within and beyond the classroom.

 ¿Quė? ¡¡10 JUEGOS!! What? 10 Games!! 

We now have 10 games with supports for ELs/MLs and the option to play in Spanish, including English-language voiceover, glossary, decision support tools, and a content guide, as well as pre- and post-game activities found in the game-specific extension packs. (See all 10 games listed on our ELL landing page.) Our newest game is Convene the Council, or Convocar al consejo in Spanish, with an Extension Pack that includes pre- and post-game activities and instruction. 

 ¡Y hay más! And there’s more!

Lau v. Nichols Lesson Plan

This mini-lesson covers the basics of the Supreme Court’s decision that required public schools to provide language supports to English and multilingual learners. 

Make iCivics Lessons accessible and EL student-friendly with Kami

Whether your classroom is online, hybrid, or in-person, EL-student-friendly and accessible learning are more important than ever. This blog post highlights a few tools from Kami that help students engage with iCivics lessons in an inclusive way.

Written by Kristen Chapron

Kristen Chapron is Senior Editor of Digital Learning and ELL at iCivics. She has worked on all 10 bilingual games and looks forward to creating even more materials for English and multilingual learners. ¡Adelante! Let’s go!

A Touch of SCOTUS: 9 New Cases Added to Landmark Library

Posted on by Luke O'Connor

I’ve always loved teaching cases from the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) in my U.S. History or Government classes. They’re engaging, they can foster informed discussions, and they can demonstrate what a branch of the government actually does. And for students, they can really hit home, which is what can make SCOTUS cases the secret sauce for your curriculum.

I remember teaching Loving v. Virginia (1967) to my sophomores one year. That’s the case that outlawed bans on interracial marriage. While the class was reading the case summary, one of my biracial students looked up and said, “Hey, this is me,” as he pointed to his paper. “This case is about me and my family.” I confirmed that it was indeed. As we started to review the case details and Virginia’s argument in particular, the room filled with guffaws, tsks, and sounds of tooth sucking. Students were not happy. 

I didn’t reveal the Court’s decision just yet. Instead, with some carefully planned questions, I led the class in a discussion. It got a little heated, but not in a bad way. Rather, the class as a whole was “ticked off” that the government could say who you were allowed to marry. When I finally revealed the Court’s decision, the room exploded in applause, high fives, and pumped fists. The biracial student who had spoken earlier crossed his arms across his chest and nodded with a confident pride. “I like this case,” he said.

As educators, we all know if a student sees themselves in a lesson, they are far more likely to engage and learn. That was one of the goals behind iCivics adding nine new SCOTUS mini-lessons to our Landmark Library. We wanted to include voices that often don’t get heard, give students the opportunity to see how the government affects lives, and provide stories of people students can relate to. 

With the range of topics these cases cover, it’s not hard to find a place to weave them into your curriculum, even if they’re not listed in your state standards. If you’re teaching U.S. History, U.S. Government, or civics, these cases can bring depth and context to a given time period. Whether you’re studying post-Civil War westward expansion [Elk v. Wilkins (1884)], the Chinese Exclusion Act [U.S. v. Wong Kim Ark (1898)], or civil rights [Loving v. Virginia (1967)], these cases open the door for discussions about discrimination and inequality and demonstrate how laws and government decisions directly affect people’s lives and choices. 

These cases also help you bring some of our most important federal laws to life by showing students how they protect them in everyday situations. Illustrate how amazing the Civil Rights Act of 1964 is by exploring how it helped make English language learner supports a requirement in public schools [Lau v. Nichols (1974)], and protected a teenager’s right to get a job when a company refused to hire her because she wore a hijab [EEOC v. Abercrombie & Fitch (2015)]. Or show how powerful the Americans with Disabilities Act is that even the Professional Golf Association must comply [PGA Tour, Inc. v. Martin (2001)].

And, of course, what’s old is new again, and these cases allow you to make great connections to contemporary issues. When I taught current events, I spent a lot of time searching for student resources that would provide them with informed arguments about a topic. These SCOTUS cases do just that. Having taught in a diverse classroom, I would have loved to see my students become impassioned while exploring issues of women’s equality [U.S. v. Virginia (1996)], religious freedom [Lyng v. Northwest Indian Cemetery Protective Association (1988)], and gay marriage [Obergefell v. Hodges (2015)]. 

I hope you will dig into our Landmark Library and explore these new cases. They help students learn about their rights, hear different perspectives, and realize that there are always (at least) two sides to an issue. More importantly, these cases let students see themselves in the story and, in most, observe an example of the government working for them. I can’t think of anything more empowering or rewarding than that.

Written by Lora De Salvo

Lora De Salvo is a Curriculum Associate at iCivics. She has 16 years of experience teaching U.S. history and U.S. government courses at the two-year college and high school levels. She has also worked as a training specialist with the Anti-Defamation League facilitating anti-bias and anti-bullying programs with middle and high school students.

An extraordinary investment in civic education at a pivotal moment

Posted on by icivics

At a moment when the need for better civic education has never been more clear, philanthropists MacKenzie Scott and Dan Jewett stepped up and gave iCivics the largest single donation the organization has ever received. Like all of their philanthropy, this was an unsolicited gift to fund the organization’s important work as it deems best.

Scott has repeatedly said that she does not want their donations to be her, but rather about empowering others to make changes this world needs. And that is truly what we believe this investment will make possible.

It’s an extraordinary investment made in an extraordinary way, at a pivotal moment.

At a time of great division, Scott and Jewett have committed to civic education, a proven-effective, long-term way to strengthen our nation’s civic health—one that the majority of Americans, Republicans and Democrats alike, agree can help heal this country.

This gift is a significant stake in iCivics’ ambitious strategic plan to further its work as the leading provider of and advocate for more and better civic learning, and its commitment to elevating civic education as a national priority and making quality and equitable civic education a centerpiece of modern education.

Founded in 2009 by U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor, iCivics is now the nation’s leading provider of high-quality, nonpartisan, effective, and engaging civic education resources. Our award-winning, free resources are used by 145,000 teachers nationwide to teach the majority of middle and high school students in the United States—9 million and counting each year.

But just as importantly, we have become a leading voice in a growing national movement around civic learning. We founded and lead the CivXNow Coalition of more than 200 organizations working to raise up civic education through bipartisan policy on the state and federal levels; and we are working to implement the seminal Educating for American Democracy initiative with a national network of teachers, scholars, students, and leaders from private and public sectors representing viewpoint, professional, and demographic diversity.

MacKenzie Scott’s and Dan Jewett’s investment will foster our work to ensure that each and every student in the United States has access to a high-quality civic education that prepares and inspires them to be informed and engaged members of society.

This kind of support demonstrates the kind of faith in the power of civic education and trust that our supporters have put in iCivics to help build a civic learning ecosystem that will sustain democracy in the United States for generations to come.

We are deeply grateful to Mackenzie Scott and Dan Jewett for their incredible support of our work.

Louise Dubé
Executive Director, iCivics

Help Our Fellows Learn About the State of Civic Education

Posted on by Luke O'Connor

How do you define “civics” or “civic education”? The Equity in Civics Youth Fellowship is calling on all students across the country to help answer this question and provide insight into the current state of civic education.

The Equity in Civics Youth Fellowship launched the #CivicsForUS Listening Tour as an online survey open to all students in 6th grade through college. This anonymous survey will help our Youth Fellows learn more about what their peers across the country are experiencing regarding civic education. Fellows will use this data to continue highlighting the need for civic education that is equitable and relevant to all students in the United States.

“The Listening Tour will allow us to gather insight regarding the state of civic education in our country. We will be more informed on the similarities and differences within our communities and inspired with a sense of problem-solving as we strive to examine ways to make civics education equitable.” -Sophie Schmidt, Equity in Civics Youth Fellow from Mississippi.

Our Youth Fellows have been busy sharing this nationwide survey with their communities. So far, we have collected more than 300 responses from students across 29 states, Washington D.C, and Puerto Rico. However, we need your help to reach as many students as possible. The survey takes about 5 minutes to complete and will be open until April 15, 2022

As a former social studies teacher, I would encourage other educators to share this survey with their students. This survey will allow students to lend their unique voices to the conversation surrounding high-quality, equitable civic education. Our youth are important stakeholders in their civic education, and their experiences can help organizations like iCivics see what matters to students.

Whether you have your students complete the survey as a bellringer or encourage them to complete it outside of class, you will help our Youth Fellows learn more about the state of civic education across the nation and take the best steps toward achieving an equitable education.

Written by Michael Reyes

Born in Miami, Florida, Michael has nearly three years of teaching experience in his hometown. At iCivics, Michael manages the Equity in Civics Youth Fellowship and the Youth As Civics Experts Network. He supports our Youth Fellows in finding and using their voices towards their civic passion, a similar experience he went through in high school.

New Curriculum Unit: The Legal Reference Library

Posted on by Luke O'Connor

Sometimes the textbook definition isn’t enough. Our new Legal Reference Library consists of eight mini-lessons that provide students with a deep understanding of important laws, rights, and legal concepts in a flash.

How well do your students understand the USA Patriot Act of 2001, the Equal Protection Clause, and the Voting Rights Act of 1965? Do these important legal concepts even get a paragraph in your textbook? We won’t be surprised if your answer is no. And yet, these laws — along with many others — are critical for understanding what our rights are. Our Legal Reference Library will help your students explore why these laws or legal concepts were created and how they are used today.

Part infographic and part written text, these mini-lessons present difficult concepts in a digestible way and provide the foundation for informed classroom discussions. Each lesson consists of a one-page reading and a page of activities to reinforce the concepts learned. You can use the mini-lessons to:

  • Expand on concepts introduced in student textbooks.
  • Enhance an existing lesson or compliment the study of a Supreme Court case from our Landmark Library.
  • Use it as a stand-alone lesson or assign it as homework.
  • Prompt rich, informed discussions about current events.

Dive into the Legal Reference Library and discover new ways to get students engaged in learning about their rights.

Explore the Library