Carson Relling

Professor Lindaman
Social Studies Teaching CAPSTONE
9 December 2019
Civic Deliberation Paper
Civic deliberation is an essential tool, opportunity, and skill that teachers can utilize in

the classroom. This concept is defined as polite and empathetic discussion that enhanced civic

skills for learners in a classroom. Civic Deliberation is especially relevant in the social studies

classroom, where teachers can apply discussion to enhance student understanding of

important events. Primary sources also present an opportunity to utilize discussion in the

classroom. I wish to present three reasons why every school, and social studies program, should

utilize civic deliberation in their curriculum. Civic deliberation increases classroom participation,

empathetic learning, and civic skills.

Classroom participation is the first important element that is positively affected by civic

deliberation. Classroom participation is an essential part of creating a knowledgeable and

inclusive classroom for diverse students. Many times, in the class, there are a select few that

answer prompts, questions and other forms of informal assessments. While this helps move the

class along quickly it prevents the majority of students from achieving the same level of

engagement. Admittedly, there are still many students that occasionally raise their hands to

engage and contribute to the class, but still don’t get the same level of learning exposure as

other participants. Additionally, there are a number of completely silent students that do not

participate due to shyness or that don’t have the initiative to interact with the class during

lecture. “To get the most out of service-learning, Leek argues, students need to acquire not only
political knowledge, but also the skill set necessary for effective political engagement. And that,

of course, is where debate comes in” (Hogan et al.).  Civic deliberation relies on discussion,

which allows additional opportunities to prompt students to speak. Students that otherwise

would not speak get the opportunity to interact with their peers. Students with strong opinions

are especially engaged by the idea of discussion as the topic may revolve around a controversial

issue. “Young people tend to be intrigued by social and political issues, particularly those that

affect them” (Avery et al.). Classroom participation, especially in regard to important issues can

increase information retention. Students are more likely to remember information if they

directly participate in the classroom. Discussion also helps increase retention. Active

participation helps students remember events and arguments that happened during discussion

by having the students listen as a direct participant.

Empathetic learning is another benefit of civic discussion. Empathetic learning involves

students accepting and learning about different perspectives and opinions. In civic deliberation,

students of many different backgrounds, cultures, upbringings, and ethnicities lend their

perspectives to the discussion. The exposure to a myriad of ideas helps students understand

their classmates better and creates an opportunity for empathy. Students are more kind to

each other after hearing the reasoning for their political and personal opinions. Even when

discussing controversial issues students can discuss calmly and intelligently with the guidance of

an informed moderator. In addition to increased student empathy, the diverse point of views

that students offer can lend additional learning to learners. According to Luis Moll’s Funds of

Knowledge concept, each learner has a unique and valuable knowledge base to lend to the

class. “Their ethnographic analyses of these families revealed that members had experience,
knowledge, and skills in agriculture, plant cultivation, mining, economic, household

management, medicinal folk remedies, religion, plant cultivation, animal husbandry, mechanics,

carpentry, masonry, and electrical wiring that did not come from formal schooling”

(Wysocki). Learners each have personal communities, cultures, and household dynamics that

can contribute valuable knowledge to discussions or just normal classroom interactions. For

example, a Latino/a student may have additional cultural knowledge about Latin American

culture and customs that can be invaluable to the class. Another example is if a learner has

knowledge about low income families due to an unfortunate situation in their own family. The

Funds of Knowledge that each student brings to the classroom in civic deliberation can not only

contribute to empathetic learning but can also enhance the perspective and knowledge of

teachers and other students. Empathy is especially important at the age of high school learners

because they are going through the identity versus role confusion stage of social development.

This stage was proposed by educational theorist Erik Erikson. In this stage students are

evaluating what their place in the social sphere is and how it competes with their own

individualism. It is much easier to understand others and student’s own place in society when

their peers are more empathetic and understanding to them.

Civic skills are also amplified by civic deliberation. Civic skills like polite discussion, turn

order, and evidence utilization are just a few of the tools that students learn during civic

deliberation. Civic skills like active listening and participation are also amplified by civic

deliberation. “. Going beyond the legalistic political information dispensed in traditional civics

courses, speech and debate pedagogies help students develop substantive knowledge about

important political controversies, along with the skills and confidence they need to engage in
civic life” (Hogan et al.). Civic skills are important for not only the classroom, but for daily adult

life. Political engagement is a major part of society. Informed voting, political deliberation with

coworkers, and news stories are just a few of the important ways that civic engagement is used

in everyday life. Civic skills also help specifically with social studies classes. These skills allow

students to more actively participate in the classroom and understand political events that are

covered in the classroom.

Civic deliberation is beneficial to students for a variety of reasons. Civic deliberation

helps to foster classroom participation, empathetic learning, and civic skills for use in modern

society. These skills can help students become more involved in the classroom while connecting

to their peers and assisting with future skills needed for adult life. Not only does civic

deliberation assist in all these assets of learning, but it also is relatively simply to plan for in the

classroom. Additionally, there are a variety of interactive assessments that can be used to grade

students in the classroom.

Planning for civic deliberation is also quite simple. All a teacher needs to do is pick a

relevant topic either to world news or specific course curriculum. The teacher then creates a

classroom structure that can stimulate discussion. This can involve making a circle out of desks

or separating the classroom into two sides decided by the different stances on an issue.

In terms of assessment, teachers can do either informal assessments or formal

assessments. Informal assessments would involve grading students on their participation in the

discussion or on the validity of points that individuals make. Validity of points can be evaluated

based on evidence cited or thoroughness of arguments. In terms of formal assessments, a

teacher can ask students to write an essay or answer a set of questions based on the discussion.

This assessment can make sure students can retain the information they were exposed to.
 Works Cited

Avery, P., Levy, S., & Simmons, A. (2013). Deliberating Controversial Public Issues as Part of

Civic Education. Social Studies, 104(3), 105–114.

https://doi.org/10.1080/00377996.2012.691571

Hogan, J., Kurr, J., Johnson, J., & Bergmaier, M. (2016). Speech and Debate as Civic Education.

Communication Education, 65(4), 377–381.

https://doi.org/10.1080/03634523.2016.1203002

Wysocki, N. (2019). Cultural Reflections. Retrieved December 5, 2019, from

https://winona.grtep.com/index.cfm/culturalreflections/page.