1. Why should a student study America's heritage?
The Founding Fathers understood that our constitutional system and the liberty it protects could endure only if Americans retained an understanding of our founding principles. As this survey demonstrates, civic knowledge goes hand-in-hand with civic engagement.
2. Shouldn't civic education be the concern of primary and secondary schools and not institutions of higher learning?
Elementary schools, high schools, and colleges all have roles to play in teaching about America's history and institutions. Because colleges are educating America's future leaders, they have a duty to preserve and deepen the knowledge of America's heritage that students bring from high school.
3. Won't taking college courses on America's history and institutions subtract from a student's ability to study things that will help him make a living in the real world?
Life is not only about earning money. It also consists of parenting a family, relationships with friends and neighbors, and participating in public life. Students take 40 or more courses while earning an undergraduate degree. Surely, there is room in the curriculum for courses that enrich a student's knowledge in those areas that tend to enrich civic engagement.
4. Many colleges focus on teaching students how to think critically. Why should these schools be concerned if students fail to demonstrate rudimentary knowledge about America's heritage?
To think critically about a subject, one must first know the facts of a subject. A college student who does not know the basics about America's history and institutions cannot think critically about the questions that will determine America's future.
5. Students at elite colleges tend to specialize and to deal with advanced materials in their courses. Why should these colleges be concerned if students fail to remember basic facts about America's heritage?
Advanced studies ought to reinforce and build on a student's knowledge of the basics. Just as a student studying advanced math needs to remember how to add, a student studying the history of the civil rights movement needs to remember what was said in the Declaration of Independence.