An Assessment Playbook for Civics

Civics has been lamentably lost in the shuffle in this now-decades-long, high-stakes testing era. However, researchers Laura S. Hamilton and W. Christopher Brandt contend that states, districts, and schools can creatively assess civic learning to ensure universal access, high quality, and students’ civic preparedness in their March 2026 report, Testing Democracy: How Large-Scale Assessment Systems Can Support Civic Learning (Center for Assessment).

The researchers cite CivxNow state policy scan data showing 29 states with some form of civic assessments, yet most employ some version of the U.S. Naturalization Test, an instrument not designed to assess standards proficiency nor course completion. By contrast, Florida’s high-stakes end-of-course assessments in middle and high school civics and American government, respectively, are the exception.

Civic seals, profiled in this month’s feature article are an incentive-based approach by which a growing body of states are assessing students’ civic preparedness. Seals hold significant promise as states and districts seek to measure desired student competencies like deliberation across differences  and community engagement.

States, districts, and schools also draw upon school climate surveys to assess students’ civic learning opportunities, along with student participation in advanced courses. Taken together, there is no unified approach by which civics is assessed nationally, although recent news of state-level data from the next NAEP Civics Assessment in 2028 is a major step, yet insufficient by itself.

The researchers recommend that:

• Education leaders engage key stakeholders in conversation about local civic learning priorities;
• A theory of action flows from these conversations, connecting civic learning opportunities with intended student outcomes;
• Civics is integrated into large-scale reading and English/Language Arts (ELA) assessments; and
• This holistic approach to assessment informs ongoing civics-focused school improvement processes.

Thanks to the contributions of Hamilton and Brandt, the civic learning field has a new playbook to strengthen and broaden civic assessment. In turn, this will help to ensure universal access to high-quality civic learning and students’ preparation for informed, effective, and lifelong engagement in our constitutional democracy.

Culturally Divisive Conflict Costly to School Districts Across the United States

Culturally divisive conflicts cost school districts across the United States a collective $3.2 billion annually, according to a national survey of superintendents conducted by researchers John Rogers, Rachel White, Robert Shand, and Joseph Kahne, with results published in a recent issue of the Peabody Journal of Education (2026, Vol. 101, No. 1, pp.6–19). The analysis of culturally divisive conflicts centers on teaching about issues of race and racism, rights and protections for LGTBQ+ students, and student access to a full range of books.

Direct costs accrued due to culturally divisive conflicts include enhanced security measures, media and community outreach, school board and government relations, and staff turnover. These costs were borne disproportionately by the degree of conflict experienced by a district, ranging from $25 per pupil for low-conflict districts to $80 per pupil for high-conflict districts. 

These estimates do not account for the indirect costs, namely staff time redirected from otherwise productive tasks to manage conflicts instead. Moreover, superintendents bear a significant burden in weathering culturally divisive conflicts: 30% of superintendents feared for their own or their family’s personal safety during the 2023–2024 school year, half experienced at least once instance of harassment, and 10% received death threats or experienced property vandalism. 

The authors conclude that culturally divisive conflicts are costly and highly disruptive of efforts to prepare the next generation for informed and effective engagement in our constitutional democracy. While they acknowledge that debates about how and what our children are taught in our diverse, politically heterogeneous country are inevitable, the authors insist that these conflicts be resolved civilly through established channels of local governance, most prominently school boards. Parents, members of the public, and school board members themselves should practice pluralism and model civic friendship. And we must invest in the capacity of educators, school leaders, and board members to manage culturally divisive conflicts as part of collegiate training and their ongoing professional development.

 Open Classrooms Key to Students’ Civic Development

Penn State Education Policy Studies scholar Ari Kim finds that open classroom climates can help students surmount social inequalities as they develop civic knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors in her January 2026 research article Civic Capital in Uneven and Uncertain Times. The author defines open climates as classrooms where political discussions are encouraged, pluralistic perspectives presented, and respectful debates about current public issues are commonplace.

Kim’s study draws from an international sample of 8th grade students across 15 countries. The author finds that while students bring varying levels of civic capital into schools depending upon their family and socioeconomic backgrounds, classroom interventions can serve as a great equalizer, yielding positive growth in civic knowledge, efficacy, and participation. Moreover, while civic knowledge and efficacy declined over the course of the study, civic participation rose, a product of lowered barriers to entry via technology and changing sociopolitical contexts.

This study has significant implications for practice and policy:

• Given the importance of open classrooms, educators’ professional learning should emphasize strategies for structured engagement with controversial issues and centering student voice.
• As civic engagement assumes increasingly digital forms, information literacy is a core component of students’ civic development.
• Post-pandemic, we must attend to students’ civic knowledge and build a sense of belonging and commitment to the common good. Pedagogical strategies like those detailed above and throughout the Roadmap to Educating for American Democracy should become the new norm.

AI Corner

The 2026 AI Index Report from the Stanford Institute for Human-Centered Artificial Intelligence (HAI) highlights a critical gap in civic readiness. While four out of five U.S. students now use generative AI for their schoolwork, only half of middle and high schools have formal AI policies in place. This disparity underscores the urgent need for robust AI literacy in K–12 education. To prepare the next generation for a landscape in which AI is no longer a niche technology, but a fundamental part of the workforce and public discourse, we must move beyond incidental use and toward intentional instruction. By integrating AI literacy into our schools, we empower students to not only navigate these tools effectively but also to understand the ethical implications and societal impacts of the technology shaping their future.

Key Takeaways from the education section of the report:

• The Usage Gap: 80% of students are using AI for research and brainstorming, yet only 6% of teachers report having clear guidance or policies from their districts.
• Global Momentum: National mandates for AI education are rising globally, with countries like China and the United Arab Emirates implementing formal curricula for the 2025–26 school year to ensure national competitiveness.
• Literacy vs. Engineering: There is a global trend of “AI literacy” (understanding and using AI) growing faster than technical “AI engineering” skills, signaling that AI is becoming a universal civic skill rather than just a technical one.

Ultimately, fostering a deep understanding of AI is not just a technical requirement, but a civic necessity, ensuring that students, educators, future voters, and community members can critically evaluate information and participate meaningfully in an increasingly digital democracy.

We were pleased to showcase the following research initiatives and ideas at this year’s Civic Learning Week National Forum: 

• AI Literacy for Responsible Use and Civic Engagement (MIT Media Lab/MIT RAISE)
• Civic Profile (Hoover Institution and the Center for Revitalizing American Institutions)
• Reimagining Assessment to Promote Civic Learning and Engagement (National Center for the Improvement of Educational Assessment)
• Shifting Civics Learning Opportunities in U.S. Public Schools (RAND)
• Two-Generation Civic Learning: Evidence and Promise (NYU Metro Center)

Thank you to our colleagues for sharing important and thought-provoking work with the civic learning community!