Partisanship, Participation, and Political Trust as Taught (or Not) in High School History and Government Classes

Reliance on quantitative work has led to understudy of the "underlife" of the classroom. We observed six 11th and 12th grade history and government classrooms, twice a week, for a semester in order to explore whether and how teachers express their personal opinions, permit students to express their opinions, discuss political participation, and exhibit political cynicism. We found that teachers often expressed their opinions, except for their vote for president. Student opinions, however, were frequently suppressed in formal classroom interaction. Discussion of participation was limited, with teachers oblivious to unconventional activity. Frustration, cynicism, and even name-calling were frequently observed in both teachers' and students' political rhetoric. Our observations raise the question of whether increased civics teaching-without major changes in the kind of teaching employed-will inspire greater interest, involvement, and trust in rising generations or whether it will contribute to the very cynicism and indifference it is intended to overcome.