by Meg Butterworth
“It may be an easy thing to make a Republic; but it is a very laborious thing to make Republicans; and woe to the republic that rests upon no better foundations than ignorance, selfishness, and passion.”
Those were the cautionary words of Horace Mann, whom many regard as the founder of American education. Although spoken in 1848, his words are profoundly relevant today as we precariously inch our way into 2021, reeling from the January 6 attack on the Capitol and questioning how 2020’s devastating events will define our future under the new Biden administration. Media sources daily debate how we will overcome our political tribalism, racist past and present, government distrust, and rampant disinformation campaigns. It’s heavy. Why didn’t we heed Mann’s warnings?
Whatever happened to civics class? You know, the study of the rights and duties of citizenship?
Continue reading A Civics Revival In Education