Ask your state representative to add civics education to the House education omnibus (HF1065)
The League of Women Voters of Minnesota believes all Minnesota children should have equal access to a good public education. LWVMN also believes that schools have a crucial role in preparing students to be informed and engaged citizens. Civics education should focus on knowledge and understanding of governments (e.g., local, state, national and other forms),
including their structures, functions, and effects.
Please call or email your House Representative and ask them to support adding civics education to the House omnibus education bill (HF1065). To email through LWVMN see the Action Alert here:
https://www.lwvmn.org/take-action
Here are some suggested talking points:
- Civics education is critical to strengthening American democracy.
- A long-standing tension exists in schools between educating students to be skilled workers and educating students to be responsible citizens; both goals are important and must work in tandem.
- Civics instruction is not consistent statewide and varies by: the time allocated for instruction; whether civics is a separate course or civics content standards are embedded in another social studies course; what grade 9 to 12 students receive instruction (requiring a civics course in 11th or 12th grade, when students are almost-voters, makes civics instruction immediate and real); and students who take civics in 9th grade may never take another civics related course in high school.
- Civic literacy is key to transforming knowledge into practice. A high quality civics education offers ALL students opportunities to engage in model democratic processes, participate in the civic life of their communities, and learn from their experiences.
- Improving civics education should have nonpartisan support across the political spectrum; strengthening American democracy is an interest we should all share in common.
