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James Madison Legacy Project

Civics and Government Teachers!

The Michigan Center for Civic Education invites you to join a premier group of secondary teachers in a professional learning opportunity focused on the We the People: The Citizen and the Constitution program. MCCE was awarded funding by the Center for Civic Education through a grant from the U.S. Department of Education, Supporting Effective Educator Development (SEED). The grant supports professional development to qualifying Michigan Teachers.

The James Madison Legacy Project (JMLP) will provide you opportunities to:

  • learn with Constitutional scholars,
  • enhance student-centered teaching and learning,
  • receive a classroom set of We the People: The Citizen and the Constitution instructional resources valued over $400 plus online resources,
  • receive $500 stipend upon full participation plus travel stipends, lodging, meals, and substitute reimbursement,
  • earn SCECH or graduate credit (for a fee),
  • contribute to meaningful research on best practices in civic education. and
  • collaborate with experienced mentor teachers.

In exchange, you will be asked to:

  • infuse a minimum of 40 hours of We the People: The Citizen and the Constitution curriculum and instruction into your designated classes,
  • participate in our Professional Learning Community, an online discussion of We the People: The Citizen and the Constitution curriculum and instruction,
  • invite MCCE staff and mentor teachers to observe and support classroom instruction and curriculum,
  • take a teacher knowledge pre and post-test,
  • administer student knowledge pre- and post- test to the same group of students,
  • involve students in the curricular culminating activity: simulated congressional hearing(s), and
  • collect, provide, and share data from classes or students (consistent with the IRB process).

If accepted, you will join Michigan JMLP Cohort 3, a federally funded research and learning initiative. The Project is designed to measure both the impact the professional learning and curriculum has for teachers and the impact the program has on student learning and political efficacy, especially in high-need student populations.

Important Program Dates:

  • Summer Institute: July 23-28, 2017 – Lansing, MI
  • November 16-17, 2017 – Grand Rapids, MI
  • January 11-12, 2018 – Lansing, MI

*Exact agenda for November 16 and January 11 is in development so as to minimize the days teachers need to be out of the classroom.

We the People: The Citizen and the Constitution Content Focus

Unit 1: What are the Philosophical and Historical Foundations of the American Political System?
Unit 2: How did the Framers Create the Constitution?
Unit 3: How has the Constitution been Changed to Further the Ideals Contained in the Declaration of Independence?
Unit 4: How have the Values and Principles Embodied in the Constitution Shaped American Institutions and Practices?
Unit 5: What Rights does the Bill of Rights Protect?
Unit 6: What Challenges might Face American Constitutional Democracy in the Twenty-First Century?

For additional information, please contact the Michigan Center for Civic Education at jmlp@miciviced.org. Or, call Ellen Zwarensteyn, MCCE Professional Learning Coordinator at 248-321-4842.

MCCE champions education for active and informed engagement in the practice of democracy.

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306 Townsend Street Lansing, MI 48933

(248) 321-4842

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