Civics Initiative
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A summary of Utah’s education choice options (and how they help depoliticize the classroom)
What does Utah’s current education choice landscape look like? The range of education choice programs and policies include vouchers, tax credits and tax credit scholarships, public school choice, and a diverse blend of taxpayer-funded online options.
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History, memory and the importance of reflecting on 9/11
As we reflect upon September 11, 2001, consider the history and the memory of the day. Both are important – and combined, they argue that we as grateful Americans must do a better job of teaching our past to the…
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Civics can help solve the problems of surging COVID cases, hospitalizations
If we are to do better in the future and maintain the American experiment in self-governance, it will be at least partly due to improved civics education.
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The core concepts of critical race theory
This post informs readers about the main ideas of critical race theory by describing them in the words of critical race theorists, without intending any commentary on those ideas. The descriptions below should not be viewed as either critique or…
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Learning about America through primary sources: Marbury v. Madison
Aside from the fact that Marbury v. Madison is broadly studied for its impact in establishing judicial review – making it a fundamental element in American governance – students should understand the principle it illustrates so they can identify it…
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Protecting against politicizing the classroom: A Q&A on curriculum transparency
“There is no one silver bullet to defeating the rise of politics in the classroom, but academic (curriculum) transparency would put a decisive stop to the ability of schools to smuggle controversial content in absent parental awareness.“
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Mask mandate uproar is a civics lesson in real time
Whatever the next mask mandate dispute or controversy may be, it should remind us of the importance of understanding how our government works. The more we lose that understanding, the more that mask mandates and similar issues will feel like…
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Learning about America through primary sources: The Federalist Papers
The Federalist Papers are a civics education in and of themselves. Written with the intent to explain particulars in the Constitution, the collection of essays helps readers today understand the mechanisms found within the Constitution and the political and philosophical…
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‘It’s better to aim high’: Q&A on Utah State School Board’s revision of social studies standards
States with “exemplary” civics and history standards typically include four elements. This is the conclusion from a Sutherland Institute Q&A with Fordham Institute senior researcher David Griffith, who co-authored a recent analysis of every state’s civics and history standards, in…
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Sutherland encourages education vision that sees beyond CRT
A debate of this magnitude, and of such consequence in the long term, calls for a more disciplined and principled approach. It demands that we as a state apply the lessons of history, civics, and the principles of freedom –…