Only 29 percent of the nation's college freshmen believe that keeping up with political affairs is important, compared with almost 60 percent in 1966, according to a UCLA study. Moreover, Americans 18 to 20 years old are far less likely to register and vote than those 21 and over, according to Census Bureau statistics. Dismayed by such attitudes, Sen. John McCain based his presidential campaign and his fight for campaign finance reform on the belief that young people are turning their backs on a corrupt political system. A few more civics lessons couldn't hurt. In San Diego, constitutional issues are supposed to be included in other history classes.
Kids learn how to behave in a democracy that way.
But Solo believes their memory will soon improve. In California, the SAT 9 standardized test, taken by all students in second through 11th grade, mainly measures performance in basic reading, writing and computation skills. But beginning this year, the test will be augmented with history and social science for students in ninth, 10th and 11th grades. They're holding debates and mock votes, making history and government come alive. They do it because they believe in civics, he points out, not because Sacramento collects statistics.