Is+'civic+engagement'+opposed+to+'real'+social+change?

**Is "civic engagement" opposed to "real" social change?** Kathleen Maas Weigert, Carolyn Farrell, BVM, Professor of Women and Leadership, Assistant to the Provost for Social Justice Initiatives, Loyola University Chicago [kmaasweigert@luc.edu]



**Keywords:** Civic engagement, social justice, democracy

**Track:** Theoretical or conceptual frameworks to advance research

**Format:** Conversation hour  **Date & time:** Thursday 3:20-4:30 **Location:** Crystal Room

**Summary:** Does the frame of 'civic engagement' militate against 'real' social change?

Scholars/researchers/teachers in higher education are obliged to think about the frames we use to understand and advance social change. Consideration should be given to the missions of higher education in general and our home institutions in particular. For some of us, the societal context demands something more: a frame of social justice and the crying needs of our world.

In exploring this idea, there are four main kinds of literature that are influencing my thinking. First is empirical data we have on incoming first-year, first-time college students through the research of the Higher Education Research Institute at UCLA as well as data from C.I.R.C.L.E. and Campus Compact on civic engagement. Some of the studies suggest, for example, that college students are not as engaged in the political/public arena as is necessary for a healthy democracy. The kinds of programs educators create, for example in high school, can yield different kinds of the ‘good’ citizen (Westheimer & Kahne 2004). Some recent research on digital media literacy education suggests that engagement with new media “has the potential to help strengthen young people’s participation in civic and political life” (Kahne, Timpany Feezell, & Lee, 2010:2).

It is my hope that a frank, vibrant conversation will stimulate the thinking of all of us who participate in the conversation, and perhaps lead us in new, creative directions for our research and teaching that advances the social change our society so desperately needs.

**References:** Ehrlich, T. (Ed.). (2000). //Civic responsibility and higher education//. Phoenix, AZ: American Council on Education Oryx Press.

Fischer, M., Nackenoff, C., & Chmielewski, W. (Eds.). (2009). //Jane Addams and the practice of democracy//. Urbana and Chicago: University of Illinois Press.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 140%;">Jacoby, B. & Associates. (2009). //Civic engagement in higher education: Concepts and practices//. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 140%;">Kahne, J., Timpany Feezell, J., & and Lee, N. (2010). //Digital media literacy education and online civic and political participation//. Digital Media Library Central Working Papers/Youth & Participatory Politics. Paper available at [|__http://www.dmlcentral.net/resources/4429__].

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 140%;">Knight, L. (2005). //Citizen Jane Adams and the struggle for democracy//. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 140%;">Knight, L. (2010). //Jane Addams: Spirit in action//. NY: W.W. Norton.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 140%;">London, S. (2010). //Doing democracy: How a network of grassroots organizations is strengthening community, building capacity, and shaping a new kind of civic education//. Dayton, OH: The Kettering Foundation.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 140%;">Miller, D. (1999). //Principles of social justice//. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 140%;">Westheimer, J. & Kahne, J. (2004). “Educating the ‘good ‘citizen: political choices and pedagogical goals. “ //PS// April 2004: 241-247.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 140%;">Young, I. (1990). //Justice and the politics of difference//. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 140%;">Young, I. (2000). //Inclusion and democracy//. Oxford, England: Oxford University Press.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 140%;">Young, I. (2011). //Responsibility for justice.// Oxford, England: Oxford University Press.

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