“We the People is the reason I became a social studies teacher. The course, supplemented by required
involvement in the academic team, uncovered my zest for researching, writing, and communicating. It revealed the merits of learning communities and self-efficacy. Today, the We the People experience defines me as a teacher as I now coach my own team and apply the program precepts throughout my teaching. This program offers invaluable learning experiences through competition and student-driven learning, propelling participants to exponential growth.”
We the People
About We the People
The Citizen and the Constitution is an instructional program for high, middle, and elementary school students which teaches the history and principles of the American constitutional democracy while enhancing students’ understanding of government. Students discover the contemporary relevance of the Constitution and the Bill of Rights at the same time. The program is based on materials developed by the Center for Civic Education and is nationally acclaimed by educators. We the People is aligned to the Indiana Academic Standards for Social Studies and English Language Arts.
We the People has a built-in authentic performance assessment: simulated congressional hearings. The simulated hearings allow students to demonstrate their knowledge and understanding of constitutional principles. Students will have the opportunity to evaluate, take, and defend positions on relevant historical and contemporary issues.
The hearing questions for the middle and high state competitions will be released toward the beginning of the 2024-25 school year. Please check the competition and showcase information section to download copies when they are released.
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Middle School Results 2023:
State Champion: Fishers Junior High School
2nd Fall Creek Junior High School
3rd Forest Ridge Academy
Individual Unit Awards:
Unit 1 – St. Richards
Unit 2 – Castle South Middle School
Unit 3 – Woodside Middle School
Unit 4 – Helfrich B
Unit 5 – St. Malachy
Unit 6 – Carroll Middle School, Culbertson Class
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High School Results 2023:
State Champion – Hamilton Southeastern High School
2nd Fishers High School
3rd Plainfield High School
Individual Unit Awards:
Unit 1 – Homestead High School
Unit 2 – New Palestine High School
Unit 3 – Shepard Academy
Unit 4 – Castle High School
Unit 5 – Franklin Central High School
Unit 6 – Mississinewa High School
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Format of Simulated Congressional Hearings
Students act as expert witnesses and “testify” their constitutional knowledge in the format of simulated congressional hearings. A volunteer judging panel, comprised of constitutional scholars, attorneys, judges, local officials, teachers, and policymakers, evaluate students’ responses.
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Preparation
A class is divided into six groups, based on the six units of the curriculum. Each group typically has 3-6 students, depending on the size of the class. Each group works collaboratively to prepare answers to all the questions for the unit. Students review materials in the We the People textbook and research other materials, preparing a response to the question for each unit and to get ready to answer follow up questions related to the initial question.
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Hearing (10 minutes per question)
Groups of students orally respond to questions for four minutes. The judging panel asks students follow-up questions and students respond for six minutes. The judging panel members assess the prepared oral presentation and the responses to the follow-up questions using a scoring rubric.
The Impact of the We the People Program
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Director of Civic Education
Tim Kalgreen
tkalgreen@inbarfoundation.org -
Civic Education Program Manager
Joseph O’Connor
joconnor@inbarfoundation.org