REAL WORLD RESULTS

We continue to partner with GC because of the experiences it provides to our students. Like many young people, many of our students view civics as an “adult” activity that largely centers around voting. Through GC, students expand their definition of civic engagement and practice the skills needed to be informed, active citizens that advocate for themselves and their communities.

While note all of our students achieved their goal by the end of the semester, the process of identifying a problem, collaborating with diverse stakeholders to craft a solution, and actually taking action to address the concern is invaluable and these skills transfer far beyond the civics classroom.

The coaching has allowed our teachers to feel more successful when faciliting the GC curriculum. Many programs only provide lesson plans but GC’s coaching structure ensures our staff is prepared to facilitate the curriculum while also having real-time support to overcome the challenges and setbacks that often accompany grassroots activism.

I think that, especially in the current environment, students have always recognized that they had “power” but in my experience, didn’t always have a productive outlet for their complaints or things they wanted to change; the experience was hopelessness for solving problems and/or thinking that someone else was responsible. This project helped them understand how to own their experience and take responsibility for their experience and community in a way that I have not seen before. I would say the “a-ha!” moment was about 3 weeks into the project when a student said, “wait – we’re *actually* DOING this? I thought this was just pretend.” Apparently that feeling was similar across all of the classes, as the rest of the day students were kind of shocked they’d actually be contacting representatives and decision makers to make their goal actually happen. Once we got over the initial shock of “doing something real” and “they won’t listen to us” comments – students really started to own the project and their ideas and their justifications; they started to develop an understanding of their responsibility in the communities to which they belong. It was such a great thing to see, I was really proud of them and maybe shocked a little bit myself about the shift I saw and felt in their behavior, language, and demeanor.

I was surprised that some students were more engaged in this project than our day to day history lessons. I would say about 50% grew in awareness of how to be civically involved–reaching out to stakeholders and decision makers and understanding how local government works.

“The GC curriculum is a civic engagement curriculum but also can be used as a skill and capacity-building curriculum, which is true among our students. Participation in GC projects has significantly increased students’ critical thinking abilities, especially regarding issues that directly impact their lives and communities. Given that GC projects often require collaborative effort, the students were more exposed to teamwork, and we observed improved teamwork abilities.”