Elizabeth Beaumont

Promoting Political Agency, Addressing Political Inequality: A Multilevel Model of Internal Political Efficacy

Some roots of political inequality are planted early in life through linked disparities in individual background and sense of political agency and efficacy. Education often exacerbates these early ...

Introductory Essay: Beyond Civics 101: Rethinking What We Mean by Civic Education

The past two decades have witnessed a growing debate about the civic mission of higher education. Consensus about the importance of educating young people to be effective and responsible citizens has grown, as has despair and acquiescence over trends indicating that even many of our best educated citizens are disengaged from public life. Most students develop little interest in political affairs during adolescence or high school. And, for too many of the increasingly large and diverse numbers of young people who pursue further education, their initial disengagement largely persists during and after college. As political scientists, we are in a particularly strong position to ensure that debate over civic education at all levels, including the college experience, includes a focus on a range of important but often complex—and sometimes controversial—political dimensions of civic education. We can also help ensure that these debates are informed and shaped by the growing body of research and practice linking teaching with political engagement. There are promising signs that the discipline of political science is reclaiming a leading role in studying and promoting a range of practices that can influence the degree to which individuals and groups become politically active. The American Political Science Association’s (APSA) standing committee on civic education made important strides with its influential report, Democracy at Risk, and has begun closer exploration of the civic role of education (Macedo et al. 2005). A second report emerging from a gathering on the civic mission and effects of higher education, cosponsored by the APSA task force and the Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement (CIRCLE) has potential to inspire research on civic education and related topics. This report, ‘‘Higher Education: Civic Mission, Civic Effects,’’ chronicles existing research about students’ political learning and engagement and identifies some of the most pressing research questions for those who teach or who influence the policies of departments, colleges, and relevant professional or political institutions (Levine 2006). While there is growing recognition of the importance of political socialization (Sapiro 2004), as of yet there have been no large-scale studies at the high school or