David J. Bobb
In 1957, the United States had its “Sputnik moment.”
As the Soviet Sputnik satellite orbited the Earth, Americans became fearful that we were falling behind technologically. The response was a massive prioritization of science, technology, engineering, and math—or what became known as “STEM” education.
Today, America needs another Sputnik moment.
It is time for civics to become the new STEM.
There was a great deal of hand-wringing when the 2022 report from the National Assessment of Educational Progress showed only 22% of eighth-graders were proficient in civics.
As alarming as that figure may be, it does not tell the full story of how civic learning loss is affecting America’s young people.
Civics classes teach students more than how to vote or how a bill becomes a law. In the best civics classes, students grapple with complex ideas and arguments about our principles, our governance, current events, and more.
They learn to think critically, work through disagreements, engage civilly, and apply knowledge to solve problems. These are known in the workplace as “soft” skills, and they are in high demand among employers.
A survey from the American Association of Colleges and Universities asked nearly 500 executives and hiring managers what matters most to them. More than 80% said soft skills like critical thinking, civic engagement skills, ethical judgment and reasoning, and the ability to communicate with people from different backgrounds were important.
Civics classes are like laboratories for helping young people develop these soft skills. As one North Carolina teacher told us, civics is “a course in critical thinking and analysis, understanding various perspectives, and expanding beyond one’s own thoughts.”
These are soft skills employers covet, but for decades American schools have deprioritized civics. Only eight states require a full year of civics, and many states simply wedge a small amount of civics into other classes.
When we deprioritize civics, we prevent young people from fully developing the soft skills they need to thrive in their communities and in the workplace.
And employers have noticed.
In a 2024 Harris Poll survey conducted for Fortune magazine, 82% of managers said their new Generation Z employees’ soft skills needed improvement.
And our young people know they need help. In that same Harris Poll survey, 59% of Generation Z employees said they did not know who to turn to for help with soft skills.
These young people are not failing us. We all failed them.
At the Bill of Rights Institute, we work with more than 80,000 civics and history teachers, who support more than eight million students per year. We have seen firsthand the frustration among teachers as civics has been deprioritized in schools, depriving students of essential knowledge and skills.
While schools have touted the importance of “career readiness,” many have not placed enough emphasis on classes like civics that provide students with skills they need in literally any career.
We must change not only how we prioritize civics but how we communicate about it to students. If we want students to be passionate about civics, they need to understand what is in it for them.
Civics provides students an opportunity to learn about our country, our founding principles, and their rights and responsibilities as citizens. But it can also be viewed through a career readiness framework, and students should understand civic education helps them develop soft skills that employers value.
The revitalization of civics in schools can and should be America’s new Sputnik moment. This is going to require collaboration among educators, administrators, parents, and concerned community members at the local level, where most funding and curricular decisions are made.
That work must begin now because we are already leaving too many young people behind.
David J. Bobb, Ph.D. is president and CEO of the Bill of Rights Institute, a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization that works to advance civic and history education.
