Public Schools in this county are funded via a combination of local, state, and federal dollars which have been raised through our taxes.  In my opinion, the previous fact is the key factor when determining what should be the purpose of public schools and what differentiates them from private schools which can attempt to pursue a wide array of unique purposes. If the public is paying for schools, then the schools mission should be one that benefits the public. “What benefits the public” is admittedly a vague idea that is up to different interpretations. It is my contention that the central public benefit that schools can provide is educating students so they have the skills and knowledge to fulfill their responsibilities as citizens. This leads us to looking at exactly what are the responsibilities of United States citizens. Below, are the official responsibilities of United States Citizens listed by the Federal Government.

1.      Support and defend The Constitution

2.      Stay informed of the issues affecting your community

3.      Participate in the democratic process

4.      Respect and obey federal, state, and local laws.

5.      Respect the rights, beliefs, and opinions of others.

6.      Participate in your local community

7.      Pay income and other taxes honestly and on time to federal, state, and local authorities.

8.      Serve on a jury duty when called upon.

9.      Defend the country if the need should arise.  ("Citizenship rights and," 2010)

The above list may seem limiting to some, but I believe that the skills and knowledge required to fulfill these duties includes a wide curriculum that touches upon everything from Math and English to Science and Physical Fitness. In the following paragraphs, I will discuss potential criticism of this purpose of public schooling, how my life led me to this purpose for schooling, and how my vision for a school that fits this purpose would look like in practice.

            There is a glaring issue in my stated purpose for public schooling that I must address off the bat. Not every student in our public schools is a citizen of the United States. There is a sizable population of students that are legal immigrants and undocumented or illegal (depending on you’re the term you prefer to use) immigrants in our public school system. If the purpose of public schools is for students to be able to fulfill their responsibilities as citizens, why should students who are not citizens go to public schools or be allowed to go to public school? There are many reasons why even students who are not citizens should understand and be able to perform the responsibilities of citizens of the country. First and foremost, students who are immigrants may one day wish to become full citizens and knowing what that entails will benefit them in that process and benefit the public as a whole after they become citizens and begin fully participating in public life. On the other hand, there will be students who for whatever reason choose not to become citizens or are unable to become citizens even if they wish to. This population of students should receive an education that gives them a full understanding of what being an American Citizen entails so they can have a more accurate picture of our system of government and our citizenry. This provides a public good in that it can counter false characterizations of how the United States functions and what the country stands for that immigrant population might encounter. In addition, even if someone is not a full citizen with the ability to vote or serve on a jury, they may wish to participate in aspects of public civic life like participating in their local community in various ways or discussing/debating issues in the public discourse.

            A second potential counter argument against my purpose for public schools is that not everyone wants to participate in public life. A student may say when they grow up their plan is to move into the woods, never vote, hunt/grow their own food, never pay taxes, and generally withdraw from public life. Why should such a student go to school? To that question, I say that such extreme cases of completely leaving public life are extremely rare and maybe such a student should drop out and pursue their own goals when they reach the age to do so. Second, there are some responsibilities of citizenry such as performing jury duty or paying their taxes which people are compelled to do by law with potential fines or jail time if a citizen refuses to perform them. Regarding participating in other civic responsibilities and public life which they are not required to by law, I would wager to guess that the vast majority of people  may not perpetually carry out all of their aforementioned responsibilities as citizens, but most  participate in civic life at some point.

How I came To my Purpose of Education

            In the interest of full disclosure, I am most likely biased in my current and pretty much lifelong belief that public education’s primary purpose is to prepare citizens for their civic responsibility due to my odd precocious interest in civics. One of my most vivid memories in my educational career was in third grade during the 1992 presidential elections; I was perpetually a pintsize persnickety political punk who drove his teacher crazy by always correcting her when she often said “the candidate who got the most votes in the election would win” by reminding her that the presidency was awarded to the candidate who got 270 votes in the Electoral College and not necessarily the candidate with the most votes. Later on when I reached my teen years and even into adult hood I got increasingly dismayed by the amount of people I encountered who were disengaged from the public discourse and civic life. The non-anecdotal statistics I encountered such as that about half of eligible voters usually do not vote in national elections  ("National voter turnout," 2010)and even less in local election further cemented my view that too many citizens where not having their voices heard. As I pursued a career in education, I vowed to advocate in my own classroom and to other educators that we need to do a better job to get students engaged in civic life. Some might argue that this is narcissistic of me and that I am just trying to foist my interests and beliefs onto others. They might have a slight case, but I also fear what happens to a country when the population is less civically engaged. When there are less people engaged in civic life and less voices being heard in the public discourse, there is a higher possibility of power being consolidated into smaller pockets of people which leads us closer to being an autocracy than a functioning democracy. Consequently, if you believe democracy is the best and most just form of government, (or as Churchill put it “Democracy is the worst form of government, except of all the others that have been tried”) than you should want as many citizens as possible to be civically engaged.

            Aside from my personal beliefs about the value of Democracy, my attitudes regarding civically based education has been refined and reinforced by other thinkers. For example, I have been influenced by The Forum For Education and Democracy which is a group that advocates an educational philosophy that “promotes the democratic role of public education and the preparation of engaged and thoughtful democratic citizens.” ("The Forum For," 2010) Some of education leaders who contribute to this group are John Goodlad and Linda Darling Hammond. I especially like how they connect education that promotes students civic understanding and engagement with higher order skills such as thinking critically, writing persuasively, engaging in inquiry, and solving problems in the social world. These are the type of skills that I believe are most important in our ever changing world where rote fact memorization is not as important since anyone with an internet connection has access to colossal amounts of information and facts. This leads us to the final part of this paper.

Democracy High School: A School Designed For Students To Gain The Knowledge and Skills To Fulfill Their Civic Responsibilities.

        Public Education spans from kindergarten through twelfth grade. My vision for an education based around preparing students to fulfill their civic responsibilities could encompass that entire period, but in an interest of brevity, I will focus on outlining how a high school would be structured and the types of curriculum and pedagogy one would see at said high school to achieve those goals. I call this school Democracy High School.

        Democracy High School would feature project based curriculum in all subjects that in some way dealt with an aspect of fulfilling a civic responsibility. Students would have to create project proposals, get the projects approved by board of teachers and fellow students, research their projects, and present them for public viewing. In order to give a more concrete idea of what I mean by this, I will now list a few of subjects one would see in a typical high school curriculum along with projects that concurrently help the students learn skills and knowledge in both that particular subject domain and that are also connected to being able to fulfill the responsibilities of a citizen.

Biology

·         The issue of Stem Cell Research is one that has been hotly debated in the public discourse the past few years and is something that current and future policy makers and voters will have to make informed decisions about. In a biology class, a student might undertake a project where they research what exactly stem cell research hopes to accomplish, its potential for success in curing diseases, the moral implications of the practice and more; then they will present their research to their fellow students, teachers, and the public.

Algebra/Calculus

·         The issue of Social Security reform is looming over the county’s head. How are our social security benefits calculated? What are the pros and cons of allowing people to invest part of their social security benefits in the stock market? Should we raise the social security age? To really understand and analyze all of these important questions facing our country, one needs to understand complex mathematical concepts such as algebra and calculus. Students will learn these concepts and use them to understand and evaluate issues such as Social Security reform or our potential reforms of our  taxation system.

Art/Music/Drama

·         Students will create a work of art that critiques an aspect of society they wish to change.

Physical Education:

·         Students will research the types of unique physical challenges that soldiers currently serving in Afghanistan are facing and create an exercise and nutrition plan that would help soldiers meet those challenges. Students may also wish attempt to implement these fitness plans in their own life.

US History

·         Students will research the process involved to amend the United States Constitution and then propose a new amendment to the Constitution or potentially repealing a current amendment; students will then debate and discuss their proposals with their fellow students in class. 

I will end it there, but there are countless examples of projects in each subject that can be connected with the 9 responsibilities of citizens listed at the start of this paper.

Assessment of students would be based on the accuracy of the information in their project, the process they used to complete their project, the coherence of the project, and their ability to present their findings to the public.  Students will also be assessed on their respectful critiques and questions for their fellow student’s projects when they are presented. All this fits into the tenants of citizen responsibilities of being aware of issues, involved in the community, and respectful of others beliefs.

            Finally I will focus on how the structure of the school will help students build the skills and knowledge they need to fulfill their civic responsibilities as well as proving students with tangible examples of how fulfilling civic duties effects their live and the lives of their friends, family, country, and community.   Most High Schools have some sort of student council with little actual power; the defining feature of Democracy High School will be that students will elect fellow students to be part of various school boards which will wield actual power at the school. For example, students elected to the Discipline Board would have to hear evidence and approve or disapprove of any suspensions or expulsions of students. Students elected to the Budget Committee would work with local education officials on creating a budget for the school and would have veto power against a budget they did not approve of. Students elected to the Project Committee would approve or disapprove or their fellow students project proposals. Students elected to the Staffing Committee would be part of the process of interviewing and approving the hiring of new teachers.     

            Upon graduating Democracy High School, students will have completed projects related to their civic responsibilities. Additionally, they will have real experience effecting how their school is run via the election of various committees. These two aspects of the school will combine to give them the knowledge and skills they need to fulfill their responsibilities as adult citizens. 

Works Cited

Citizenship rights and responsibilities. (2010). Retrieved from http://www.uscis.gov/portal/site/uscis/menuitem.749cabd81f5ffc8fba713d10526e0aa0/?vgnextoid=39d2df6bdd42a210VgnVCM100000b92ca60aRCRD&vgnextchannel=39d2df6bdd42a210VgnVCM100000b92ca60aRCRD

National voter turnout in federal elections: 1960–2008. (2010). Retrieved from www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0781453.html

The forum for education and democracy . (2010, November 1 1). Retrieved from http://forumforeducation.org/