Let’s Require Constitutional Study in Public Schools

The Constitution is still relevant today. We should expose more people to it, so they can make up their minds how they want it to be applied, rather than addressing government with minimal knowledge of how it works.

I count myself immeasurably fortunate that I attended a high school with teachers who made an effort to invest in my education. Years later, many of them still stand out in my mind. Mr. Shipp, for instance, was a sharp-dressing, sharp-witted man who constantly sipped yerba mate tea. I attribute much of my love for American government and politics to his high school civics course.

Before every class, we read a primary source that in some way contributed to modern American political thought – Locke, Hobbes, Bastiat, de Tocqueville, the Federalist Papers. Mr. Shipp then led us in a Socratic dialogue, engaging the ideas in the text and examining how they formed our institutions of government.

Over and over, our class discussion returned to the Constitution of the United States, the document that created these institutions. By examining its text closely in the light of great authors, I came to a better understanding of our country’s distinctive nature. Every clause spoke to the concerns of our nation’s Founders, and the solutions they had devised, with an elegant balance of powers at their center. It was fascinating.

My developing interest in the Constitution motivated me to learn more about America and its government. In college, I scoured the course listings for classes that centered on constitutional law and America’s governing principles. I ended up majoring in the subject.