Technology today: breaking rather than binding

Technology hasn't revived public life, but it has devastated it. My Gen-Xers are now middle age and are being replaced by a younger generation that is even more enthralled by technology. Today's social media platforms --Twitter, Facebook, and all the comment sections that are brimming with death threats have replaced conversation with argument, debate and the rage of. The promise I made 20 years ago is no longer true. These new tools force us to be in front of screens and from our communities, and our closest friends. The voluntary seclusion has ignited the anger of tribalism, fueled tribalism and triggered online mobs. We're now a nation of skeptics. Just one-third Americans believe they are "very great" or even an "good deal" of trust and faith in the wisdom of their neighbors. Just 18 percent are confident in the government's ability in its ability to "do the right thing. This distrust leads to inaction: Just 29 percent or less of Americans participated during the 2016 presidential primary. This is not surprising but the reason for this suspicion and inertia are widespread civic ignorance. Only 43 percent of Americans can identify the name of a single Supreme Court Justice, and 37 percent can't even name just one among the rights granted by the First Amendment. The shambles of the system has resulted in the alarming rise of political hatred. The paradox is that behind the anger is a chance, as anger can trigger the action of others. The issue is that anger can cause problems however it is rarely a catalyst for getting things accomplished. Teaching civics to an inclusive society My radical suggestion: If you are looking for civility, you should teach civics. The goal is that we can turn the political rage into something beneficial for our democracy by building civic skills, knowledge and capacity. A quality civic education can build all three: it provides young people with a solid understanding of democracy and the ability to apply that knowledge within their communities to address problems, and also the confidence that their efforts will have a positive impact. The importance of civic education was under-appreciated throughout the years in K-12 until last September when the Campaign for the Civic Mission of Schools, iCivics as well as other groups demanded its revival by launching an initiative to ensure students with a the highest quality civic education in each school. In the September 2017 Democracy Now Summit, 20 organizations have publicly pledged to improving civic literacy serving, civic engagement, and voter participation among young Americans. In the course of that occasion, we at the College Board committed to creating the "civic certificate" for students who successfully complete the civics required in the revamped Advanced Placement US Government and Politics course. This action was prompted by the redesign in 2016 of the SAT Suite of Assessments, in which it is now the Reading section of each test requires students to read and discuss the text of US Constitutional documents (such like the US Constitution) or a dialogue they influenced (such like Martin Luther King 's Letter from Birmingham Jail or the Seneca Falls convention). We believe that the concepts that were at the core of the American founding are just as crucial in the present as they were then 200 years ago. it is our job as educators to help make them a reality again. We at the College Board is therefore also working with organizations like Generation Citizen and We.org to help teachers and students create projects that are relevant to their lives and communities. We also work together with National Constitution Center's Interactive Constitution to offer the most effective constitutional thinking in both the left and the right to students and teachers for no cost. Of course, civics isn't only for kids. A larger campaign for civic engagement can encourage everyone else to take a break from our screens, connect with the common thread of our lives, and improve civility. Organisations like Better Angels and Difficult Conversations connect people to have a civil discussion about complex problems. National service organizations like The Service Year Alliance which aims to boost numbers of college students who participate in an entire year of volunteer work by a whopping 100,000 to 65,000 and brings diverse youth together to solve tough issues facing communities.