This Teacher Council Member Helps Her Students Define America
<p><em>By Christina Forbrush</em></p> <p>When we come back from winter break, I do an assignment with my kids where they finish the sentence “America is…” In this activity, the kids finish the sentence by telling me something they learned about America throughout the course. Since the activity is open-ended, I get expected, vague answers like “America is epic.” This doesn’t show if they even learned anything in class or if they are just tossing out something they believe.</p>
<p>While there are vague or silly answers, there are also answers that show some students are understanding and appreciating that America is more complex than they previously thought. For example, my students say:</p>
<p> America is constantly learning from its mistakes to more fully live up to its ideals.”</p>
<p>“America is proud, which pushes them for more freedom and more land.”</p>
<p>“America is resilient.”</p>
<p>“America is flawed but still full of opportunity.”</p>
<p>“America is driven by nationalism and the value of liberty.”</p>
<p>“America is the product of people willing to die for Freedom.”</p>
<p>Benjamin Franklin famously answered the same question when asked what the new United States government is. He answered, “A republic if you can keep it.”</p>
<p>Which begs the question: How do we keep it? How do we ensure our country’s security and success? America is not just about the initial Constitution, but is dependent on the active and informed involvement of the people. In order to have informed citizens in the future, today’s students need to be taught civics. It focuses on teaching people their rights and responsibilities as citizens. For my class, I focus on how understanding history and the Constitution is the first step in creating a good citizen.</p>
<p>We cannot move forward without the lessons learned from the past. History encompasses and enhances the study of all other disciplines of study. As one analyzes the primary sources of information, you begin to examine people’s choices, thereby understanding the cause and effect of every decision. History also enhances skills, such as high-level thinking, patterns such as the repetition of mistakes, and the connection of subjects and the world.</p>
<p>Specifically, the Constitution teaches the very best ideals, and we cannot remove or forget those. Upholding the Constitution is our responsibility as citizens. The Constitution is the foundation of democracy in America and helps make us great. The Constitution is the highest standard of what it means to be an American. The Constitution can inspire us through the ideals and principles in it, the price that was paid for it, and how it can ensure the values are available to future generations. If we teach the next generation to be inspired by the Constitution’s ideals, then the Constitution will continue to be the living document that pushes us to reach the highest standard in America.</p>
<p>So my answer to my students is “America is your responsibility to protect and uphold.”</p>
<p>It is not enough to just learn about the history of America and the Constitution, but you have to apply that knowledge by being an active and informed citizen. It is up to us to teach civics so students can be responsible for keeping the republic. The only way to ensure the future is to teach students their responsibilities as an American citizen.</p>
<p><em>Christina Forbush is a teacher at Brighton High School in Cottonwood Heights, UT. She is also a member of the Bill of Rights Institute National Teacher Council.</em></p>