‘We the People’ produces citizens

AFEW YEARS BACK, I ASKED A PARENT OF A high

school senior how her daughter’s participation in a particular

citizenship education program had affected their family.

“Six months ago,” the mom said, “my daughter wouldn’t look

an adult in the eye to ask if he wanted fries with their

burger. Now, she’s arguing points of Constitutional law with college

professors and federal court judges.”

The topic in question was We the People: The Citizen and the

Constitution, a program which was launched in 1987 as the educational

component of the five-year Bicentennial of the U.S.

Constitution. I became involved in We the People just a year later,

when I was asked to help judge a We the People competition, a

mock congressional hearing in which students are challenged on

their knowledge of the Constitution and its unique history in

America.

I am writing about We the People in this publication because

the program has entered a new realm – serving as the very foundation

for the educational program at the new Shortridge High

School. There’s a story on page 26 to that effect. This essay was

sparked by the thought that – without further explanation – most

people would not understand what a truly remarkable event the

Shortridge experiment is.

I understand, because of my years as a judge at the district and

state level of We the People competition, and because for 10 years

I produced a newsletter for the program. As We the People’s

newsletter editor, I not only observed the program first-hand, but

also talked to people such as the aforementioned mom who was

so proud of her daughter’s development.

What I have also come to realize over those many years is that

describing We the People to someone totally unfamiliar with the

program can be a daunting task. The program isn’t about facts and

figures. It’s not about how many judges sit on the Supreme Court,

or how many desks there are in the U.S. House of

Representatives. It’s not about what year the Bill of Rights was

ratified into the Constitution, nor about what year the

Constitutional Convention was convened.

No, We the People is about the core principles of the

Constitution, about how those principles have evolved through the

nation’s history. It’s about ways the Constitution has been

changed to further the ideals contained in the Declaration of

Independence. It’s about how the values and principles embodied

in the Constitution have shaped American institutions and practices.

Students learn what rights the Bill of Rights protect, and

they learn about and talk about challenges facing the American

constitutional democracy in the 21st Century.

They learn how the Founding Fathers were influenced by their

Judeo-Christian heritage, what role the ancient Greeks played, and

how Enlightenment philosophers such as Montesquieu laid the

foundation for the great American experiment. They learn how the

14th Amendment is viewed by many as the most important, most

influential amendment of all – about

how it not only greatly expanded the

impact the Bill of Rights has on all of

us, but also gave us the idea of “equal

protection.”

An aside: These are politically polarized

times, so many observers might

first ask if the program is partisan. One

of its amazing strengths is that We the

People is absolutely not – a fact backed

by its continual bipartisan support in

Congress. We the People discusses subjects

from all viewpoints, educating students

to the many points of view which

have played roles in the nation’s development.

As a result, when the students reach

those competitive hearings, they respond

to complicated questions with in-depth

answers which may reference sources

from John Locke to James Madison,

from Justice Marshall to Justice

Brandeis. If the subject is limits on free

speech during a war, they might talk

about a Supreme Court case,

Brandenburg v. Ohio. If the subject is

segregation and education, they might

talk about the Separate but Equal

Doctrine and also Brown v. Board of Education. If the question is

about the creation of the Constitution itself, they might talk about

the New Jersey Plan, the Virginia Plan, the Three-Fifths

Compromise, bills of attainder, or the Supremacy Clause.

How We the People teaches students is the key to its success,

and a key to its longevity well beyond the original five-year plan.

It is a key to the fact that Indiana has been at the forefront of the

national effort ever since, largely because the Indiana State Bar

Association recognized its worth early on and backed up that support

with dollars to ensure that classes involved in the program

don’t have to fund-raise to take part in the competitions. Since

then, other groups such as the Indiana Judge’s Association and the

Indiana Bar Foundation have gotten on board, and today it is the

Bar Foundation which is chief steward of the program.

Because of those organizations’ commitment, Indiana has led

the way in many aspects of We the People, including creating the

first summer institute for teachers. I remember one such teacher,

who after learning what he did during the week-long intensive

training offered this comment: “I want to go home and call every

student I ever had – and apologize.”

Students have remarkable observations themselves. One

Lawrence Central student said she had gained a newfound love of

the nation’s governmental system and couldn’t wait for her

younger sister to take the class. “You’re not just learning the

material,” she said. “You see how it works in everyday life. You

see that it is real people who run this government. You think, ‘If

they can do it, I can do it.’”

The biggest problem with We the People, however, is that the

program is not in nearly enough schools. (It is taught at the ele-

BABBLIIN’’

BROOKS

Musings from the editor

about life downtown

(or just about anything else

he wants to write about.)

By Bill Brooks

‘We the People’

produces citizens

SHORTRIDGE / page 4

mentary and middle school levels, as well.) Teachers, perhaps

intimidated by the material or unwilling to go outside their longstanding

lesson plans, are generally not eager to recognize its

proven worth. Fortunately, some teachers have been willing to

meet the challenge, such as the late Karl Schneider, who took an

Arsenal Technical High School class to third-place in the national

competition at Washington, D.C., in the earlier days of the program.

Or Toby Elmore, who continued the We the People tradition

at Tech. Or teachers at Lawrence Central and Hamilton

Southeastern, who have won state titles to earn that coveted and

challenging trip to D.C.

Consider this comment from a Hamilton Southeastern

student: “All high school students should be learning what we

do,” he said. “This really opened my eyes to the importance of

each individual being a participant in government.”

I have talked to many students who call We the People “the

best class” they’ve had in their four years of high school. I’ve

talked to others who were surprised they were willing to work as

hard as they did, because they enjoyed the subject matter so much.

I’ve talked to students who said they improved their writing skills

and their researching skills, and learned how to work in teams.

Said one: “We put in a lot of hours – but the things we are getting

out of it are just priceless.”

In the end, each student takes away from the We the People

class what they put into it. But if we are to have low expectations

(and, in education, don’t we always?), let the low expectation be

this: That students learn the fallacy of what many citizens

believe, that our nation is where “majority rules.” No, it is not.

James Madison, chief architect of the Constitution, worried in The

Federalist Papers about the tyranny of the majority – and crafted a

system of government that worked to ensure that minority factions

could thrive.

Fortunately, We the People isn’t a low-expectation sort of program.

Students learn to go well beyond the bumper stickers, well

beyond the sound bites, well beyond petty ill-informed arguments.

They learn the merits of civic virtue. They learn that civic virtue is

essential to the success of our democracy. They walk out the door

as better citizens than many of us will ever dream of being.

As a result, the hallowed doors of Shortridge High School just

got taller. AFEW YEARS BACK, I ASKED A PARENT OF A high school senior how her daughter’s participation in a particular citizenship education program had affected their family. “Six months ago,” the mom said, “my daughter wouldn’t look an adult in the eye to ask if he wanted fries with their burger. Now, she’s arguing points of Constitutional law with college professors and federal court judges.” The topic in question was We the People: The Citizen and the Constitution, a program which was launched in 1987 as the educational component of the five-year Bicentennial of the U.S. Constitution. I became involved in We the People just a year later, when I was asked to help judge a We the People competition, a mock congressional hearing in which students are challenged on their knowledge of the Constitution and its unique history in America. I am writing about We the People in this publication because the program has entered a new realm – serving as the very foundation for the educational program at the new Shortridge High School. There’s a story on page 26 to that effect. This essay was sparked by the thought that – without further explanation – most people would not understand what a truly remarkable event the Shortridge experiment is. I understand, because of my years as a judge at the district and state level of We the People competition, and because for 10 years I produced a newsletter for the program. As We the People’s newsletter editor, I not only observed the program first-hand, but also talked to people such as the aforementioned mom who was so proud of her daughter’s development. What I have also come to realize over those many years is that describing We the People to someone totally unfamiliar with the program can be a daunting task. The program isn’t about facts and figures. It’s not about how many judges sit on the Supreme Court, or how many desks there are in the U.S. House of Representatives. It’s not about what year the Bill of Rights was ratified into the Constitution, nor about what year the Constitutional Convention was convened. No, We the People is about the core principles of the Constitution, about how those principles have evolved through the nation’s history. It’s about ways the Constitution has been changed to further the ideals contained in the Declaration of Independence. It’s about how the values and principles embodied in the Constitution have shaped American institutions and practices. Students learn what rights the Bill of Rights protect, and they learn about and talk about challenges facing the American constitutional democracy in the 21st Century. They learn how the Founding Fathers were influenced by their Judeo-Christian heritage, what role the ancient Greeks played, and how Enlightenment philosophers such as Montesquieu laid the foundation for the great American experiment. They learn how the 14th Amendment is viewed by many as the most important, most influential amendment of all – about how it not only greatly expanded the impact the Bill of Rights has on all of us, but also gave us the idea of “equal protection.” An aside: These are politically polarized times, so many observers might first ask if the program is partisan. One of its amazing strengths is that We the People is absolutely not – a fact backed by its continual bipartisan support in Congress. We the People discusses subjects from all viewpoints, educating students to the many points of view which have played roles in the nation’s development. As a result, when the students reach those competitive hearings, they respond to complicated questions with in-depth answers which may reference sources from John Locke to James Madison, from Justice Marshall to Justice Brandeis. If the subject is limits on free speech during a war, they might talk about a Supreme Court case, Brandenburg v. Ohio. If the subject is segregation and education, they might talk about the Separate but Equal Doctrine and also Brown v. Board of Education. If the question is about the creation of the Constitution itself, they might talk about the New Jersey Plan, the Virginia Plan, the Three-Fifths Compromise, bills of attainder, or the Supremacy Clause. How We the People teaches students is the key to its success, and a key to its longevity well beyond the original five-year plan. It is a key to the fact that Indiana has been at the forefront of the national effort ever since, largely because the Indiana State Bar Association recognized its worth early on and backed up that support with dollars to ensure that classes involved in the program don’t have to fund-raise to take part in the competitions. Since then, other groups such as the Indiana Judge’s Association and the Indiana Bar Foundation have gotten on board, and today it is the Bar Foundation which is chief steward of the program. Because of those organizations’ commitment, Indiana has led the way in many aspects of We the People, including creating the first summer institute for teachers. I remember one such teacher, who after learning what he did during the week-long intensive training offered this comment: “I want to go home and call every student I ever had – and apologize.” Students have remarkable observations themselves. One Lawrence Central student said she had gained a newfound love of the nation’s governmental system and couldn’t wait for her younger sister to take the class. “You’re not just learning the material,” she said. “You see how it works in everyday life. You see that it is real people who run this government. You think, ‘If they can do it, I can do it.’” The biggest problem with We the People, however, is that the program is not in nearly enough schools. (It is taught at the ele- BABBLIIN’’ BROOKS Musings from the editor about life downtown (or just about anything else he wants to write about.) By Bill Brooks ‘We the People’ produces citizens SHORTRIDGE / page 4 mentary and middle school levels, as well.) Teachers, perhaps intimidated by the material or unwilling to go outside their longstanding lesson plans, are generally not eager to recognize its proven worth. Fortunately, some teachers have been willing to meet the challenge, such as the late Karl Schneider, who took an Arsenal Technical High School class to third-place in the national competition at Washington, D.C., in the earlier days of the program. Or Toby Elmore, who continued the We the People tradition at Tech. Or teachers at Lawrence Central and Hamilton Southeastern, who have won state titles to earn that coveted and challenging trip to D.C. Consider this comment from a Hamilton Southeastern student: “All high school students should be learning what we do,” he said. “This really opened my eyes to the importance of each individual being a participant in government.” I have talked to many students who call We the People “the best class” they’ve had in their four years of high school. I’ve talked to others who were surprised they were willing to work as hard as they did, because they enjoyed the subject matter so much. I’ve talked to students who said they improved their writing skills and their researching skills, and learned how to work in teams. Said one: “We put in a lot of hours – but the things we are getting out of it are just priceless.” In the end, each student takes away from the We the People class what they put into it. But if we are to have low expectations (and, in education, don’t we always?), let the low expectation be this: That students learn the fallacy of what many citizens believe, that our nation is where “majority rules.” No, it is not. James Madison, chief architect of the Constitution, worried in The Federalist Papers about the tyranny of the majority – and crafted a system of government that worked to ensure that minority factions could thrive. Fortunately, We the People isn’t a low-expectation sort of program. Students learn to go well beyond the bumper stickers, well beyond the sound bites, well beyond petty ill-informed arguments. They learn the merits of civic virtue. They learn that civic
virtue is essential to the success of our democracy. They walk out the door as better citizens than many of us will ever dream of being. As a result, the hallowed doors of Shortridge High School just got taller.