[Congressional Bills 112th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 181 Introduced in House (IH)]

112th CONGRESS
  1st Session
H. RES. 181

Honoring the memory of Christina-Taylor Green by encouraging schools to 
      teach civic education and civil discourse in public schools.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             March 17, 2011

    Ms. Moore (for herself, Mrs. Myrick, Ms. Wasserman Schultz, Mr. 
     Grijalva, Mr. Kucinich, Mr. Rush, Mr. McGovern, Mr. Brady of 
  Pennsylvania, Ms. Jackson Lee of Texas, Ms. Hirono, Ms. Norton, Mr. 
Cleaver, Ms. Bass of California, and Mr. Baca) submitted the following 
 resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Education and the 
                               Workforce

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
Honoring the memory of Christina-Taylor Green by encouraging schools to 
      teach civic education and civil discourse in public schools.

Whereas Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords held a ``Congress on the Corner'' town 
        meeting in her Tucson, Arizona district, where a man killed six people 
        and injured others;
Whereas among the people killed was Christina-Taylor Green, who was nine years 
        old and born on September 11, 2001;
Whereas Christina-Taylor Green was a student who showed great interest in civic 
        life, government, and politics, as reflected in her election to the 
        student council at Mesa Verde Elementary school and her self-motivated 
        interest to attend Congresswoman Giffords' event;
Whereas the Green family is hoping that the memory of Christina will live on 
        through the message that inspiration in politics, civics, and debate 
        begins at an early age in school, at home, and in the community;
Whereas there is a bipartisan consensus that discourse about issues of the day, 
        including political, governmental, religious, and other controversial 
        matters, has become too coarse, angry, and counter-productive in 
        resolving issues important to the way Americans live their lives;
Whereas there is no suggestion, evidence, or implication that any angry public 
        debate led to the tragedy in Tucson, but from that tragedy can come 
        opportunity;
Whereas the coarseness of American debate is attributable to people of all 
        political and ideological groups;
Whereas education about civics and how to participate in a civil debate about 
        controversial issues has practically disappeared from public school 
        classrooms;
Whereas it is the nature of discussion about civics in the classroom, not merely 
        its presence or frequency, that correlates with greater civic knowledge 
        and engagement;
Whereas according to the Campaign for the Civic Mission of Schools, over the 
        past 25 years students have become less interested in political 
        discussion and public issues, and more cynical about and alienated from 
        politics;
Whereas empirical evidence demonstrates a strong link between civic education 
        and participation in community and public service, and according to the 
        Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement, 
        students who take courses in civics are at least 50 percent more likely 
        to volunteer and to help solve community problems;
Whereas students who participate in classroom civil debate are, according to the 
        Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement, 
        more civically engaged, being at least 60 percent more likely to follow 
        the news, sign a written petition, and be involved in organizations 
        outside school;
Whereas, according to a study by the Center for Information and Research on 
        Civic Learning and Engagement, students involved in civic activities to 
        fulfill a class requirement are 22 percent more likely to graduate from 
        college;
Whereas a 2008 report by Dr. David Campbell of the University of Notre Dame 
        demonstrated that there is a causal link between classroom civil debate 
        and community and public service;
Whereas Dr. Campbell held that discourse and debate is ``the lifeblood of 
        participatory democracy'', and found that ``a classroom environment 
        which fosters a free, open, and respectful exchange of ideas is 
        positively related to young people's level of knowledge about democratic 
        processes'';
Whereas Professor E. Hess, Ph.D., University of Wisconsin-Madison, said, ``A 
        more enlightened and democracy-sustaining approach is to teach all young 
        people to engage in high-quality public talk about controversial 
        political issues.'';
Whereas President George W. Bush, in his inauguration speech in 2001, said, 
        ``Civility is not a tactic or a sentiment. It is the determined choice 
        of trust over cynicism, of community over chaos.''; and
Whereas President Barack Obama, in Tucson on January 12, 2011, said, ``It's 
        important for us to pause for a moment and make sure that we're talking 
        with each other in a way that heals, not in a way that wounds.'': Now, 
        therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
            (1) recognizes the importance of returning the teaching of 
        civic education and civil discourse to schools, especially for 
        students in grades 6 through 12;
            (2) recognizes that there are numerous nonpartisan 
        organizations around the Nation to help schools teach civic 
        education and civil discourse;
            (3) encourages the Secretary of Education to direct schools 
        receiving Federal funding to include instruction in civic 
        education and civil discourse, and to ensure online access to 
        free educational materials to assist schools in teaching about 
        civic education and civil discourse;
            (4) encourages schools and teachers to conduct educational 
        programming on the importance and methods of civic education 
        and civil discourse; and
            (5) believes that education about civics and civil 
        discourse is a fitting way to honor and memorialize the life of 
        Christina-Taylor Green.
                                 <all>