The Civic Educator

When COVID-19 prompted schools to physically close last spring, one of your first thoughts was probably, “How am I going to teach remotely?” More specifically, “How am I going to teach civics remotely?”

Virtual learning poses a lot of problems, and teachers around the country struggled to address those issues all spring. As the fall draws closer, it’s become increasingly clear that distance learning is not a thing of the past. It’s here to stay.

Throughout the country, many school districts are going remote in one way or another. Of the country’s 50 largest school district, almost all of them are re-opening with some form of remote instruction. Here in New Jersey, close to a third of the state’s school districts are starting the year completely virtual.

So clearly we’re in for at least one more school year of this craziness. And with students going back to school over the next few weeks, this is a great time to think about the challenges and opportunities this creates for teaching civics.

Challenges for Teaching Civics Remotely

First, let’s think about some of the challenges that remote teaching creates for civics education. Here are just three challenges you might face this year.

Modified schedules may mean less time for civics. Going online may make it more difficult to facilitate discussions. Your students may also have access to fewer experiential learning opportunities and extracurricular activities.

Shortened Schedules Mean Less Time

Each school and district is approaching this crisis differently, but one common approach is to reduce live instructional time. In a hybrid schedule, this might be a shortened session school day that lets out before lunch. In a virtual schedule, this might be an abbreviated day to reduce screen time.

At the elementary level, that is likely going to increase the emphasis on the “core” – a.k.a. tested – subjects and leave even less time than usual for civics and social studies. At the middle and high school level, it’s going to exacerbate the problem where there’s already too much content in the curriculum and not enough time.

So trying to find the time for civics will definitely be part of the problem.

Limited Opportunities for Student Discussion

Virtual learning is also going to mean fewer opportunities for students to have discussions. In some cases, districts may limit synchronous learning opportunities. In other cases, you might encouraged to use live teaching time for lectures or direct instruction. Even if your district does allow you to use a platform like Zoom, there’s definitely a learning curve. Facilitating a discussion online is not the same as facilitating a live discussion in a classroom.

Creating a space for discussion and helping students learn how to participate in civil discourse is an important element of civics education. While you can do this online, it definitely won’t be easy.

Fewer Enrichment Opportunities

Another important element of civics education is the many forms of experiential learning available to students – be it extracurricular activities, student government, or field trips.

As schools try to limit the interactions between students, I’m sure many of these opportunities will be reduced. You can create virtual opportunities to replace some of these experiences, but not everything can be done remotely. I wonder how activities like Model U.N. and Model Congress will play out this year.

Opportunities Created by Virtual Learning

On the other hand, restructuring a class to operate virtually can create some opportunities. If you can take advantage of them, it won’t be all bad.

Here are three potential opportunities to think about. You can make up for a lack of live classroom discussion by using discussion boards. You can take advantage of videoconferencing to invite guest speakers. And you can make the most of your online learning platform by embracing the flipped classroom model.

Discussion Boards and Asynchronous Conversations

While distance learning will make it more difficult to have traditional classroom discussions, you might find it easier to incorporate asynchronous conversations through the use of discussion boards. These are a common aspect of online college courses.

In some ways, this can be even better than live discussions. Students have more time to think and compose their thoughts in writing. They won’t be put on the spot to say something. Quieter students can participate more easily, and out-going students will be less likely to dominate the conversation.

Of course, the challenge is still to make sure that there’s a real discussion going on. This is true whether you’re having a discussion online or in class.

Incorporating Guest Speakers

One great way to make things “real” is to bring in a guest speaker. For example, a government official can teach your class a lot just by showing up, talking to them, and answering their questions.

The toughest part about this in normal times is getting a guest speaker to commit the amount of time it takes them to physically come to your school and speak with your class. If your class is happening on Zoom or Google Meets, it is so much easier for that person to hop on a videoconference for 20 minutes than it is to leave their office and physically come to a school.

If you make it a priority to incorporate guest speakers in your class, I would imagine you’d have a much easier time doing this via remote learning than in person.

Flipping the Classroom

The idea of flipping the classroom isn’t new, but it can be difficult in some situations. If your students don’t all have access to technology, for example, you can’t expect them to watch videos or complete assignments at home.

But with virtual learning, you’re pretty much forced to adapt to a flipped classroom model. You’re likely going to have less time with your students, and presumably the district will have ensured that they all have access to technology.

So this can be a great opportunity to have them do something on their own schedule – i.e. watch CNN10 or play a game from iCivics – and then use the time you have together to discuss and reflect on that activity.

What Are Your Tips for Teaching Civics?

I’m curious to hear from you, though. How are you planning on teaching civics this year? How are you going to adapt to the requirements of remote learning and virtual teaching?