Center for Civic Education

Calabasas, California, 91302

Last updated on November 1, 2024

Grant awarded by

TPS Eastern Region

Region

East

Organization Type

Non-profit Organization

Congressional District(s)

32

Fiscal Year Of First Grant

FY 2024 [10/01/23 - 09/30/24]

Contributing Organization(s)

Massachusetts Center for Civic Education

Organization description

Since 1965, the Center for Civic Education has been dedicated to fostering an enlightened and responsible citizenry through high-quality civic education for students and educators in grades K-12. As the nation’s leader in developing, implementing, and evaluating civic curricula and professional learning, the Center is committed to promoting equity in civic education. Our programs emphasize student-driven questions, immersive experiential learning, and civil dialogue.

The Center’s instructional materials are designed to support equity in civic education by fostering:

Learner-led inquiry and investigations
Engaging, experiential learning opportunities
Constructive civil dialogue and informed civic engagement

In recent years, the Center has expanded beyond traditional textbooks to embrace a more innovative approach, integrating the 5E model of inquiry into social studies. Our curriculum framework now defines and unifies all Center curricular materials, print and digital, clarifying the essential learning outcomes for students and educators alike. This framework emphasizes the civic knowledge, skills, and dispositions that underpin impactful civic education, preparing students for active, informed citizenship. The Center enhances its curriculum’s adaptability and relevance, by creating HQIMs that empowers educators to foster meaningful civic awareness and engagement in the classroom and their communities.

Project description

Through our partnership with the Library of Congress’ Teaching with Primary Sources grant, the Center will increase the use of inclusive, inquiry-based, student-centered learning strategies and bolster teachers’ skills and commitment to implementing best practices in social studies education to improve student outcomes. We will simultaneously elevate evidence-based critical thinking through primary-source analysis of select Library materials, focusing on foundational democratic concepts in American history. We will fortify program accessibility for historically marginalized, and underrepresented populations, and increase regional reach.

Project Objectives:

Create four no-cost, high-quality inquiry lessons—Civic Inquiries in Foundations of Democracy (CIFD)—focused on the foundations of democratic concepts that address regional, culturally responsive topics
Provide content and pedagogical training for teachers (grades 4–8)
Promote younger students’ exposure to primary-source documents and the founding of American democracy
Collaborate with state partners to gauge critical needs and engage teachers in local and underserved communities.

TPS project focus

Curriculum
Rubrics
Teaching Materials
Webinars
Workshops

Content focus

Civics
Equity and Inclusion
History

Audience

Classroom teachers
Curriculum coordinators
Librarians/Media specialists
Students
Teacher candidates/Student teachers

Level(s)

K-5
3 - 5

Population focus

African Americans
Asian Americans
English language learners
Jewish Americans
Learners with disabilities
LGBTQIA+
Low income
Men and boys
Muslim Americans
Native American/Indigenous
Rural
Urban
Women and girls