Press Release
SALEM – Oregon Secretary of State Kate Brown recently unveiled a new online Civics Tool Kit. The civic education curriculum was developed through a collaboration of efforts by local professors, teachers and Oregon elections staff. The goal is to provide a beginners guide to civics with an Oregon centric view that anyone can access and use.
Secretary Brown talks civics with McNary High School students
According to the most recent national civics examination, fewer than half of American eighth graders know the purpose of the Bill of Rights. In addition, only one in 10 demonstrated acceptable knowledge of the checks and balances among the legislative, executive and judicial branches.
“Democracies can only be sustained by citizens who have the basic knowledge, skills and dispositions – I think our online Civic Toolkit can help,” said Secretary of State Kate Brown. “As your Secretary of State and Oregon’s chief elections officer, it is my duty to engage Oregonians in the political process.”
The toolkit is made up of 10 lessons that cover everything from your rights and responsibilities as a good citizen, the history of voting in Oregon and what you need to know before you register to vote in our great state.
You can find the online Civics Toolkit by logging onto Oregon’s Secretary of State website (Elections Division), clicking on Voter Resources then Civics Toolkit or go directly to: http://www.sos.state.or.us/elections/pages/voterresources/civics-toolkit/index.html.
I was delighted to hear about the Civics Toolkit on Think Out Loud today. They read my comment about lack of it in school.
I would like to suggest that our system of Citizen Participation groups is a great way to introduce kids to REAL civic engagement. I am the Vice Chair of CPO 1 in the Cedar Mill area of unincorporated Washington County. We have been trying for some time to get some connection with our high school so that we could come in and talk to them about what we do, and maybe get some kids to attend one of our meetings. As you probably know, there is a great deal of resistance from educators to add ONE MORE THING to their bloated mandated subject list (for the tests?)
I realize that not all areas have as robust or as independent a system as Washington County, but I believe that some form of citizen involvement is mandated (as Goal One in Land Use) in each county. It could be a ready-made avenue to demonstrate civics.
I’d be happy to discuss and help to develop this idea if there is some interest.
(also please not that the line above this window should specify Email not just Mail)