A civics lesson they won’t forget
By Skip Carpenter
Do you remember the moment that you were inspired to become a teacher—the moment you realized learning was more than something that happened in a classroom, the moment you realized you could really make a difference in your students’ lives?
There are certain transformative moments in every person’s life, and I consider myself lucky to have been able to witness one of these moments firsthand last January. I was with a group of students and teachers from California who had traveled to Washington, D.C., to witness the Inauguration of President Obama. As part of their Smithsonian Student Travel tour, they had arranged a visit with former Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor.
Justice O’Connor reiterated the importance of what the students had just witnessed—a peaceful transfer of power from one president to another, a historic Inauguration and a real-life civics lesson. She spoke to them about the importance of taking an active interest in their civics lessons and challenged their superintendent to do more to promote civics education in schools.
In fact, Justice O’Connor is so passionate about the importance of civics education programs in schools that she has created a website of free interactive civics resources for teachers (www.ourcourts.org). The need for civic literacy is clear— only one-third of Americans can name the three branches of government and less than 15 percent can identify a chief justice. However, the names of the American Idol judges are common knowledge.
As I listened to Justice O’Connor speak and watched the students eagerly ask her questions and engage with her, the importance of educational travel really hit home. When students have the opportunity to travel, to step outside of their comfort zones and to see the places they learn about in school, their classroom lessons take on new meanings. Civics homework is no longer merely another thing to slog through before they can hang out with their friends, but it suddenly has meaning that is relevant to their lives. These students will remember their Smithsonian Student Travel Inauguration experience for the rest of their lives.
It is exactly for this reason that Smithsonian Student Travel is dedicated to helping as many teachers and their students explore America. Our tours are operated by EF Education First, the world’s largest private education company, under a licensing agreement with the Smithsonian Institution, the world’s largest museum and research complex. By combining EF’s unmatched travel expertise and 45 years of experience with the Smithsonian’s vast educational resources, Smithsonian Student Travel provides the best educational travel experience for you and your students. Plus, all of our interactive tours are accredited, which means that students can earn high school credit and teachers can earn professional development credit just for traveling with us and completing associated coursework.
As the president of Smithsonian Student Travel and as a parent myself, I understand the importance of equipping children with the skills they will need to compete in the global economy. That’s why we work to develop tours that not only inspire students outside of the classroom, but also develop important 21st century skills like civic literacy, critical thinking, problem solving and adaptability. We strive to provide students with experiences that are not only educational, but also have the potential to alter the course of their lives, and sometimes I am lucky enough to witness these moments in action.
Bio:
Skip Carpenter is the president of Smithsonian Student Travel. Prior to working at Smithsonian Student Travel, he was vice president of EF Educational Tours. He lives in Massachusetts with his wife and three children.