Students as Place-Makers: A Case Study on Action Civics and Place

Abstract

In this study, we aimed to understand the role of place in how young people come to understand civic life. We implemented and studied an action civics curriculum at two sites to explore the connections between place and youth civic identity. We found that (1) place informs students’ conceptualizations of community responsibility and collective action, (2) place can help students see community issues in expansive and critical ways, and (3) attention to place during instruction can encourage young people to identify as civic agents. We suggest that a pedagogical emphasis between place and action civics helps students imagine themselves as builders of their socio-material reality and contributes to their civic knowledge, skills, and dispositions.