Legislators

Legislators and other policymakers are important partners both in creating educational policy affecting the teaching of civics, government, and law and as an important resource to civics, government and law-related instruction at all levels.

The NCSL Trust for Representative Democracy has developed a database for state legislation concerning civic education. This database is intended to capture state legislative efforts to address civic education-related issues and includes brief summaries of the legislation, bill number, status and the bill sponsor.

Civic Education State Legislation Database

For information about state efforts to promote citizenship education, visit the Education Commission of the States, State Policies to Support Citizenship Education.

The site includes reports from all 50 states on:

• High School Graduation Requirements – Citizenship
• Civics or Citizenship Education Standards and Curriculum Frameworks
• Citizenship Education – Inclusion in Assessment and Accountability Systems
• Civics, Citizenship or Social Studies Addressed in Other State Statutes or Administrative Code

Classroom Resources

Many lessons and resources are available to legislators asked to visit classrooms. The National Conference of State Legislators (NCSL) has developed lessons at all grade levels for the America’s Legislators Back to School Program designed to teach young people what it’s like to be a state legislator, and the processes, pressures, debate, negotiation, and compromise that are the fabric of American democracy.

Click here for a list of curricular materials developed for the Representative Democracy in American program by the National Conference of State Legislators, the Center on Congress at Indiana University, and the Center for Civic Education.