Rehumanizing civic education through authentic classroom curriculum

• In Event: AERA Roundtable Session Thursday 2:15 pm - Gold 4
  In Roundtable Session: History, Social Studies, and (Critical) Inquiry

Abstract

U.S. K-12 teachers are increasingly self-censoring political and cultural topics with or without legislative restrictions. In states with limitations on civic educational content and instruction, the Rights of the Learner have been harmed. This changing context prompted our inquiry: How do ethical civic simulations create rehumanizing authentic civic experiences and promote the Rights of the Learner? This presentation shares our critical content analysis of secondary civics simulation curricula. Purposeful selection emphasizing participatory action civics, rehumanizing pedagogy, and ethical simulation were used to choose the curricula. The findings indicate that simulations meeting five of the nine constructs promoted action civics including active and empathic listening, supporting student voice and autonomy, building connections, and developing skills for political engagement.

Authors

• Ann Marie Ryan, University of Texas - San Antonio

• Samantha Leihsing, University of Texas - San Antonio

• Heather C Ramirez, University of Texas - San Antonio

• David Vela, University of Texas - San Antonio