Keeping Up with SCOTUS

by Mary Ellen Daneels, Civics Instructional Specialist

With the pending confirmation vote in the nomination of Judge Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) and emerging issues related to voting and elections working their way through the court system, keeping up with the courts while navigating a challenging school year can be difficult for #CivicsIntheMiddle educators.

To help teachers follow the evolving court docket, identify essential questions that reflect current and societal issues and topics for moot court simulations, The American Bar Association Division for Public Education is joining with UIC Professor of Law Steven D. Schwinn (@sschwinn) to provide accessible insight into the Supreme Court — from the impact of the election to the cases before the Justices and the drama at oral argument. Classrooms can join these conversations on the ABA Public Education's Twitter for streaming videos (@abapubliced) or visit the ABA Division for Public Education’s YouTube channel. Each installment is less than 30 minutes in length. Current offerings include: For those looking to take a deeper dive into election-related issues before the court, Dr. Schwinn recommends following: Dr. Schwinn is a frequent guest for our IllinoisCivics.org after school Webinars. He will be joining us again on November 11th for a Post Election Analysis of the Impact of the Elections on the Courts and on December 9th to explore the essential question, “Is it time to reset the system of checks and balances?” Visit the IllinoisCivics.org Professional Development Calendar to register for these and other professional development opportunities aligned with the middle and high school civics course requirements. Visit our Webinar Archives to view past webinars about the judicial branch with Dr. Schwinn with links to the classroom resources shared.

What are you doing to help your students engage with the judicial branch? Please comment below. Together, we can prepare all students for college, career, and civic life in tradition, remote and hybrid classrooms.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Let's Talk About the "Required" Constitution Test

Image
by Mary Ellen Daneels, Lead Teacher Mentor As I have traveled around the state of Illinois to support implementation of the high school civics requirement and pending middle school civics legislation , one of the biggest concerns I have heard is, “How will we have time to prepare students for the required Constitution test? I will never have time to cover all 200 questions on the test if I have to make time for student-centered inquiry, discussions, simulations, and service learning!” The Illinois State Board of Education states: American patriotism and the principles of representative government, as enunciated in the American Declaration of Independence, the Constitution of the United States of America and the Constitution of the State of Illinois, and the proper use and display of the American flag, shall be taught in all public schools and other educational institutions supported or maintained in whole or in part by public funds. No student shall receive a certificate
Read more

Resources to Respond to Tragedy and Violence

Image
by Mary Ellen Daneels, Civics Instructional Specialist All educators are civics teachers. Teachers send messages to students about power, justice, and representation by the content we select, the way we engage student voice, the norms we employ, and the stories included in our classroom. We have a responsibility to prioritize our students’ lived experiences, putting Maslow before Bloom , to inform the essential questions we address in our curriculum. When violence or tragedy occurs, classrooms provide a safe venue for students to process, ask questions and be given context to understand current events as they happen. While current events unfold, it is not the time to debate policy. Educators will not have all of the answers to the questions students pose. Teachers can create a classroom space where we can be present, listen, and create a safe environment for our students to do the same. Start with Reflection Your students may be wrestling with a range of emotions. We cannot assum
Read more

Strengthening School Climate through Inclusion

by Sue Khalaieff, Democracy Schools Network Manager Loyola University Chicago’s School of Education has been partnering with several Democracy Schools across the Chicago metropolitan area for the past two years to develop and implement strategies to strengthen school climate through inclusion. This cohort of schools worked closely with Loyola University to identify an intervention that each school wanted to explore and develop and implement an action plan and support each other to move forward. In our final session of the Civics Across the Curriculum series on April 22nd, 2021, participating schools shared their perspectives and learnings from the experience. View a recording of the session. To begin the session, Jon Schmidt , Clinical Assistant Faculty, Loyola University, provided some contextual framing for the cohort’s work by sharing components of multicultural education from James Banks : Inclusive curriculum Equity pedagogy Empowering school culture Knowledge constru
Read more