• Civic life, politics, and government;
• Foundations of the American political system;
• The Constitution;
• The relationship between the United States and other nations, and other world affairs; and
• Roles of citizens in American democracy.

• Intellectual - ability to describe and analyze information and evaluate, take, and defend positions on public issues;
• Participatory - monitor and influence civic life by working with others, expressing ideas, and managing conflict;
• Civic dispositions - ideals helped by citizens such as the belief in the rights and responsibilities of individuals in society and participation in elections.

• Voting in Presidential elections was down from 62.8% in 1960 to 48.9% in 1996. The decline in voting during off year elections is roughly equivalent. This has occurred despite the fact that registration requirements have been relaxed and more groups have been enfranchised. "Very little of the net decline in voting is attributable to individual change, and virtually all of it is generational. Throughout their lives and whatever their station in life and their level of political interest, baby boomers and their children have been less likely to vote than their parents and grandparents." (Putnam, 2000, p. 34). Only 38% of 18 to 25 year-olds voted in 2000. This trend, however, was reversed in the 2004 election, when at least 20.9 million Americans under the age of 30 voted, an increase of 4.6 million over 2000 (Circle, 2004).
• A Roper poll conducted each month from 1974 to 1998 asked Americans, "Have you recently been taking a good deal of interest in current events and what's happening in the world today, some interest, or not very much interest?" Figures revealed a drop from 50% to 38%. This was confirmed by DDB Needham Life Style polls that solicited extent of agreement with the statement, "I am interested in politics." Interest declined from 52% in 1975-1976 to 42% in 1998-1999 because younger generations were less interested.
• The rate of political party identification declined from 75% to 65% from 1960 to 1990 (Putnam, 2000, p. 38) and attendance at a political rally or speech declined from 12% in 1970 to under 6% in 1995 (Putnam, 2000, p. 41).
• A UCLA study found that only 28% of entering college freshmen in the fall of 2000 reported an interest in "keeping up to date on political affairs," down from 60.3% in 1966.
• "The frequency of virtually every form of community involvement measured in the Roper polls declined significantly, from the most common-petition signing-to the least common, running for office. Americans are playing virtually every aspect of the civic game less frequently today than we did two decades ago" (Putnam, 2000, p. 41).
• Communal forms of activity, such as attending local meetings or joining local organizations, declined just as precipitously. From the mid 1970s to 1995, attendance at a public meeting on town or school affairs declined from 23% to 12% and serving on a local committee declined from 10% to 6% (Putnam, 2000, p. 43, citing Roper polls and other surveys).
• According to Roper polls, from 1973-1974 to 1993-1994, there has been a decline by 23% of those writing to Congresspersons, by 22% of those signing a petition, and by 14% writing to a newspaper to express an opinion.
• "The faction of the public who engaged in none of the dozen forms of civic participation rose by more than one-third over this period (from 46% in 1973 to 64% in 1994), while the band of civic activists who engaged in at least three different types of activity was cut nearly in half (from 20% to 11%). Moreover, these trends appear consistently in all sections of the population and all areas of the country…" (Putnam, 2000, p. 46).

• Across many large civic organizations (e.g., Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, Elks, Lions, League of Women Voters, Masons, Hadassah), membership rates have experienced a sustained decline since 1969 and have, on average, 50% less membership (Putnam, 2000, p. 55).
• The General Social Survey shows that membership in at least one formal organization (e.g., church, labor groups, fraternal organizations, veteran groups) fell from 75% to 70% from the mid 1970s to the mid 1990s (Putnam, 2000, p. 59). However, active participation in these organizations declined significantly, typically by more than half (Putnam, 2000, p. 61).
• In terms of hours per month, the average American's investment in organizational life, excluding religion, declined from 3.7 hours per month in 1965 to 2.3 in 1985 and 1995 (Putnam, 2000, p. 62).

• In general, Putnam notes the trend that we have become more of a nation of observers than a nation of doers. "Our evidence also suggests that across a very wide range of activities, the last several decades have witnessed a striking diminution of regular contacts with our friends and neighbors. We spend less time in conversation over meals, we exchange visits less often, we engage less often in leisure activities that encourage casual social interaction, we spend more time watching (admittedly, some of it in the presence of others) and less time doing. We know our neighbors less well, and we see old friends less often. In short, it is not merely 'do good' civic activities that engage us less, but also informal connecting" (Putnam, 2000, p. 115).

• Total giving by individuals as a fraction of national income fell from 2.26% in 1964 to 1.61% in 1998 (Putnam, 2000, p. 123).
• In 1975-1976, more than 40% of American adults said that they had worked on a community project during the past year, while in 1998-1999, less than one-third said they did so (Putnam, 2000, pp. 127-128). However, the same sample of people who said that they volunteered more often (i.e., were "involved in any charity or social service activities, such as helping the poor, the sick, or the elderly") rose from 26% in 1977 to 46% in 1991. Much of the group that increased volunteerism, however, was 60 years old or older (Putnam, 2000, p. 128). People under age 25, however, also dramatically increased volunteerism over this period of time, though participation in community projects for this age group also declined by almost 50%.
• "A wide range of evidence…suggests that young Americans in the 1990s displayed a commitment to volunteerism without parallel among their immediate predecessors. This development is the most promising sign of any that I have discovered that America might be on the cusp of a new period of civic renewal, especially if this youthful volunteerism persists into adulthood and begins to expand beyond individual caregiving to broader engagement with social and political issues" (Putnam, 2000, p. 133).

• 88% of respondents reported some sort of religious affiliation and 84% said that religion played an important role in their lives. Respondents engaged in religion were more likely to also be involved in civic groups, to vote more, to be more active in community groups, to give blood, to socialize, and to have a wider circle of friends. They are more politically conservative than their secular peers.
• Respondents from more racially and ethnically diverse neighborhoods are less likely to trust other people, connect with other people even informally, to participate in politics, and to connect across class lines. Within ethnically diverse areas, those with a college education are four to five times more likely to be politically involved than those with a high school education.
• Social connectedness is "a much stronger predictor of perceived quality of life in a community than the community's income or educational level. In the five communities surveyed having the highest social trust, 52% of residents rated their community as an excellent place to live…. In the five communities with the lowest levels of trust, only 31% felt good about their quality of life" (Saguaro Seminar, 1999, p. 7).

"During the past generation, our families have come under intense pressure, and many have crumbled. Neighborhood and community ties have frayed. Many of our streets and public spaces have become unsafe. Our public schools are mediocre for most students and catastrophic failures for many. Our character-forming institutions are enfeebled. Much of our popular culture is vulgar, violent, and mindless. Much of our public square is coarse and uncivil. Political participation is at depressed levels last seen in the 1920s. Public trust in our leaders and institutions has plunged." (p. 1)

"Too many of us have become passive and disengaged. Too many of us lack confidence in our capacity to make basic moral and civic judgments, to join with our neighbors to do the work of the community, to make a difference. Never have we had so many opportunities for participation, yet rarely have we felt so powerless. Indeed, according to sociologist Alan Wolfe, an unpleasant feature of contemporary middle-class morality is a 'perverse pleasure in powerlessness.' In a time that cries out for civic action, we are in danger of becoming a nation of spectators." (p. 1)

"A generation ago we realized that the degradation of our physical environment was the result of countless millions of decisions, by individual citizens as well as large corporations, and that if we really wanted to clean it up we would have to change our habits as well as our laws. The degradation of our civic environment stems from similar causes and requires similar remedies. It is legitimate and honorable for a free people to work as hard to protect its moral ecology as its natural environment. As citizens, we must ask more of ourselves." (p. 2)

• 93% of fourth grade students could identify Clinton as president; 74% knew that laws were to be applied equally to all citizens; 43% knew that the President signs bills into law; and 15% identified two services that the government funds with tax revenues.
• 81% of eighth grade students knew that Martin Luther King, Jr. was a person concerned about the injustice of segregation laws; 58% understood that people had rights beyond those cited in the Constitution; 26% identified two ways that citizens can be involved in Presidential campaigns; and 6% described two ways that the country benefited by having a Constitution.
• 90% of students in their senior year of high school knew that the elderly were concerned about Social Security; 60% identified a legitimate way to protest local policies; 45% knew that the President and Department of State have the greatest authority over foreign policy; and 30% understood the Supreme Court's power of judicial review to protect the rights of minority groups.

• Underlying skills necessary for this include understanding distinctions between public, nonprofit, and private sectors of society, understanding the context for events and issues, and acquiring and thoughtfully reviewing news;
• Deliberating about public policy issues. Underlying skills are the ability to think critically about issues and understand multiple perspectives on issues;
• Interacting with other citizens to promote personal and common interests. Underlying skills are the ability to understand democratic society and collective decision making as a norm for democracy, the capacity to articulate individual perspectives and interests, working with others to define common objectives, and creating and following a work plan to accomplish a goal; and
• Influencing policy decisions on public issues. Underlying skills are identifying decision makers and institutions, and understanding appropriate vehicles for influencing decisions.

• Learning about things in society that need changing and personal responsibility, justice orientation, increased capacity, and interest in politics;
• Learning about how to improve my community and justice orientation, increased commitment, and increased capacity;
• Talking about issues that matter and increased commitment, increased capacity, and interest in politics; and
• Working on issues that matter and participatory citizenship, social trust, having good ideas that would help others, and increased commitment.

• Choosing a current issue of concern or need in the local community in cooperation with their teachers;
• Investigating the issue through their community's history;
• Comparing local findings with learning about the issue in U.S. history;
• Looking at how the issue is impacted by government documents such as the Bill of Rights;
• Designing and conducting quality service-learning activities to work on the issue and strengthen their community; and
• Creating a public display to educate the community and celebrate their collaborative service projects.

• Linked to class goals;
• Explicitly focused on skills needed for effective democratic engagement such as problem analysis, collaborative problem-solving, civic dialogue, and the ability to work within the political system to improve society; and
• Given sufficient time and/or student participation.