Volume VIII: School-University-Community Collaboration for Civic Education and Engagement in the Democratic Project
Edited by:
R. Martin Reardon, East Carolina University &
Jack Leonard, University of Massachusetts, Boston (retired)
The Campaign for the Civic Mission of Schools (2011) lamented the “lack of high-quality civic education in America’s schools [that] leaves millions of citizens without the wherewithal to make sense of our system of government” (p. 4). Preus et al. (2016) cited literature to support their observation of “a decline in high-quality civic education and a low rate of civic engagement of young people” (p. 67). Shapiro and Brown (2018) asserted that “civic knowledge and public engagement is at an all-time low” (p. 1). Writing as a college senior, Flaherty (2020) urged educators to “bravely interpret . . . national, local, and even school-level incidents as chances for enhanced civic education and to discuss them with students in both formal and casual settings” (p. 6).
During 2020, the world has witnessed the travail of American civic life including extrajudicial killings, violent protests and associated deaths, social upheaval accompanying an acrimonious national election season with a bitterly contested outcome, and a pandemic of historic proportions that has public health officials pleading for individuals to comply with public health recommendations. The brave educators whom Flaherty invoked have no lack of material to motivate thoughtful engagement with the process of civic education.
We invite chapter proposals from brave educators who are engaged in school-university-community collaborative educational research focused on any aspect of civic education writ large (e.g., adult education, community empowerment through education, post-secondary education, K-12 education, or educational policy development). We welcome proposals that discuss research projects that have been completed or that are still in progress, but all proposals should clearly indicate the engagement of stakeholders from each of the school, university, and community contexts.
We welcome chapter proposals of no more than 500 words in Microsoft Word double-spaced, Times New Roman 12 pt. font, APA (7th ed.): March 1, 2021 deadline. Please cite at least 10 sources and include a reference page. The proposal cover page must contain the author’s full contact information (for coauthored proposals, please list all authors’ contact information and indicate the corresponding author). Please email chapter proposals as Microsoft Word attachments to both Martin Reardon (reardonr@ecu.edu) and Jack Leonard (jack.leonard@umb.edu). Prior inquiries are welcome.
We will communicate decisions about acceptance by March 29, 2021 and provide a Manual for Authors at that time.