Laws created under the Harm Principle are written to protect people from being harmed by others. Laws against violent crime and property crime fall into this category. Just as laws are created, they can also be abused.

Florida’s “Stand Your Ground” law is an example of a Harm Principle law.  When laws are flawed or unclear, it is imperative that they be repealed.   For example, former Governor Jeb Bush stated that the “Stand Your Ground” law does not apply to the Trayvon Martin case. In the tragic death of 17-year old Martin, the Sanford Police Department cited the “Stand Your Ground” law as being the reason for not arresting George Zimmerman.  However, Bush said the law means “stand your ground; it does not mean chase after someone who has turned his back,” as reported in the Martin case. To ensure that laws are written in the best interest of all people, American students must be taught at an early age the value of government policies and civic responsibility.  In fact, they must learn and participate in civic activities to help define U.S. policies in the best interest of all humankind.

So the questions to be asked are: What should be the civic mission of U.S. public schools? What are some steps the U.S. government proposes that schools take to help expand and elevate civic learning and engagement in the democratic process?

Just as schools are responsible for preparing students for college and careers, they are equally responsible for preparing students for civic learning and democratic engagement. This is supported by the National Task Force on Civic Learning and Democratic Engagement, the American Commonwealth Partnership and the Campaign for the Civic Mission of Schools in its 2011 report, Guardian of Democracy: The Civic Mission of Schools. This report notes that civic learning promotes civic knowledge, skills, and dispositions and builds the 21st century competencies that employers value of workers and is associated with a better school environment and lower student dropout rates according to the U.S. Department of Education (USDOE).

In contrast, a study of the National Assessment of Education Progress reported low academic performance in civics by elementary and secondary students, a significant achievement gap between racial and ethnic groups and a decline in civic knowledge of seniors in high schools between 2006 and 2010.  The McCormick Tribune Foundation also reported in 2007 that the U.S. ranked 139th in voter participation compared to 172 democracies suggesting that Americans are inadequately involved in civic actions. With public school students lacking civic readiness and inactivity in community involvement, the USDOE proposes nine steps to help expand and elevate civic learning and engagement in democracy. Four of these steps include (1) identifying additional civic indicators, (2) supporting civic learning for a well-rounded K-12 curriculum, (3) highlighting and promoting student and family participation in education programs and policies at the federal and local levels and (4) leveraging federal investments and public-private partnerships.

In the first step, USDOE expresses a need for organizations such as National Longitudinal Study to assess the effectiveness of students’ knowledge in civics as an indicator to understand what they are learning in school and provide appropriate educational programs to meet their needs. Secondly, USDOE emphasizes the importance of a well-rounded education with civic and service-learning components through a competitive program called Effective Teaching and Learning for a Well-Rounded Education. The program is to be part of the reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act. In the third step, USDOE proposes to make government more transparent, collaborative and participatory in policymaking and implementing programs such as the School Improvement Grants and Promise Neighborhood to help address and provide solutions to issues confronting American communities. In the fourth step, USDOE seeks to have grantees and grant recipients to incorporate civic learning and democratic engagement activities in federally appropriated education programs as feasible.

The USDOE’s  nine steps for expanding  and elevating civic learning and engagement applies to public education K-20 and is an integral part of President Barrack Obama’s administration goal of 2020 that U.S. schools will have the highest proportion of college graduates in the world. Today’s students appear to have fallen further away from political and social involvement.  It is quite evident that students know and use social media but they do not know social responsibility. So programs such as those recommended by USDOE are essential for expanding the school curriculum to elevate civic learning and engagement in the democratic process.

Too often, our communities are oblivious to government policies and community issues until there is a calamity. American students need service-learning activities to better understand the world. They need exposure to civic responsibility at an early age to become an integral part of the political process to prevent laws such as “Stand Your Ground” from being written and, subsequently, misinterpreted whether intentional or unintentional. The Trayvon Martin case is an example of the law that is being misinterpreted and misused.  We call upon all people to raise their civic voices and demand a law that is appropriate for all humankind.

Dr. Ronald Holmes is the author of the book, Education Questions to be Answered.  He is the President of The Holmes Education Post, an education focused internet newspaper. Holmes is the National Superintendent of Education for the National Save the Family Now Movement, Inc., a former teacher, school administrator, and district superintendent and can be reached at the following website address: [email protected]