Civic Readiness Initiative

Civic Ready students use civic knowledge, skills and mindsets to make decisions and take actions for themselves, their communities, and public good as members of a culturally diverse, democratic society.  Schools, therefore, must provide students meaningful opportunities to develop specific civic knowledge, skills, and mindsets—and to participate in authentic actions and experiences—that are necessary for them to function as productive civic participants within their schools, communities, states, our country and the world.  

Domains of Civic Readiness

Civic readiness is continuously developed throughout students’ prekindergarten - 12th grade education and should include:

Domain Examples

 Fundamental civic knowledge in grade level appropriate forms includes:

• The structure and functioning of government, law, and democracy at the federal, state, local, and school levels, and how to participate therein;    
• Civil and educational rights and responsibilities guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution, the Constitution of the State of New York, and federal, state and local statutes and regulations;  
• History, geography, economics, and current events within our country and in our global society;  
• The impact of individual and collective histories in shaping contemporary issues;   
• View and analyze history and current issues from multiple perspectives
• The importance of civic rights and responsibilities, such as voting, volunteering, serving on a jury, and the importance of ensuring a free press;

Critical intellectual and participatory civic skills students should develop and actions they should take in grade-level appropriate forms include the ability to:

• Demonstrate respect for the rights of others in discussions and classroom debates, and how to respectfully disagree with other viewpoints and provide evidence for a counterargument;
• Participate in activities that focus on a classroom, school, community, state or national issue or problem;
• Identify, describe and contrast the roles of the individual in opportunities for social and political participation in different societies;
• Work to influence those in positions of power to achieve extensions of freedom, social justice, and human rights;
• Fulfill social and political responsibilities associated with participation in a democratic society and the interdependent global community by developing awareness of and/or engaging in the political process;
• Analyze and evaluate news (news literacy), media, social media and other sources of information for accuracy, bias, reliability, and credibility.
• Engagement in working toward the public good

Key civic mindsets students should develop in grade-level appropriate ways include:

• Valuing equity, inclusivity, diversity, and fairness;  
• Recognizing the need to plan for both current needs and the good of future generations;  
• Empathy, compassion, and respect for the views of people with other opinions and perspectives;
• Committing to balancing the common good with individual liberties;  
• Demonstrating a sense of self as an active participant in society, willing to contribute to solving local and/or national problems;
• Respecting fundamental democratic principles, such as freedom of speech, freedom of the press and the rule of law.  

Examples of civic experiences in which students should be able to participate in grade-level appropriate ways include:    

• Completing a civic readiness capstone or, civic engagement project;
• Engaging in service-learning;   
• Engaging in civil discourse around controversial issues;  
• Engaging with news and digital tools, such as social media, responsibly;
• Participating in civic-centered co-curricular and extracurricular activities such as Model UN, Student Government, Debate Club, Moot Court, Student Journalism or Mock Trial;
• Participating in school governance;  
• Voting, volunteering and participating in community organizations and governmental systems, such as community boards, youth advisory councils, etc., to promote continuous improvement;
• Engaging with local officials and government institutions through activities such as providing public comment before a government agency, or meeting with public and elected officials.