In our April 5, 2026, blog, we proposed six points that could be added to standard civic education for people of all ages. Continuing in that spirit, we propose several more.
Write to us at team@cffad.org and let us know what you think.
- Political conflict and disagreement are normal features of society.
- Governments are created by people to make decisions – about security, justice, public services, and other forms of problem-solving.
- There is no guarantee that a government will feel obligated to make decisions that satisfy most people or even just your people. They might want to serve only themselves.
- No form of government is perfect: there are inevitable trade-offs involved.
- There is no guarantee that a government will always operate by permanent rules.
- There will always be opportunistic people trying to influence who will make decisions and how.
- Some people are tempted to use violence when they see no other way to get a better government.
Discussing these realities helps motivate two fundamental questions:
- What kind of government is most likely to satisfy the most people and therefore the least likely to provoke violence, and
- What does it take to defend it against the inevitable opportunists who will try to bend it only to their own needs?
When I taught civics we spent a lot of class time on our founding documents. Particularly the Declaration of Independence, The Constitution, and Bill of Rights. These documents are what bind us together as a country. Unlike other countries the U.S. from its establishment was multi racial. Multi ethnic, and had many different religions. The study of our founding documents are the cornerstone of the U.S..
Hi Stephen, thanks for your reply! You can find many, many references to founding documents in our courses on Congress, the presidency, the judiciary, and federalism. Unfortunately, we are seeing many people who are unswayed by these documents and who might appreciate a different approach to thinking about the value and potential of the American system of government. We wonder if some of the topics we listed in our recent blog might be relevant to such folks.