Voting Education In U.S. Public High Schools

Article by Audrey McMahon, TPT Staff Writer

Voting education in high schools is essential to young voters’ involvement in elections. However, there is some debate as to whether U.S. public schools are adequately preparing students to be involved in the electoral process. Schools play a central role in education and civic engagement, and as many have argued, should be doing more to promote such engagement.

High schools undoubtedly have a significant amount of impact on teenagers and young adults. Something that’s often associated with schools is education. When people think of education, they often think of math, science, history, and the like. However, schools are also responsible for preparing teens for life after graduation. This might come in the form of food class, foreign languages, and English language arts. Voting is something that every adult U.S. citizen should be encouraged to do, especially eligible teenagers, who are new to the process. Because of this, the importance of voting should be taught for at least 30 minutes each school year. This can take place during homeroom or a history or government class. Racial disparities in voting are also higher among youth (Socialstudies.org). If more teenagers were taught about the importance of voting, and that their vote matters, there’s a better chance that Gen Z will be heard more clearly in upcoming elections. The youth has a voice and is given the opportunity to use it, but without education, it will not be as loud as it needs to be, and many who do vote will be uninformed. By teaching civic engagement through voting in schools, the U.S. can better promote a well-informed electorate, while strengthening democracy through a new generation. The way the government is run affects the entire nation, including youths, and they will be heard through advocacy and voting.

In the book “Making Young Voters: Converting Civic Attitudes into Civic Action,” by D. Sunshine Hillygus and John B. Holbein, a compelling case is made that the reason many young, eligible adults don’t vote isn’t because they don’t care about politics. It’s because they lack the confidence and education needed to make a good, well-inofrmed voter. They don’t know how to translate their ideas and feelings about government into something productive because the public school systems have failed them on matters of civic engagement. An overwhelming amount of statistics are showing a weak understanding of politics and voting among U.S. high school students. This is being brought to light, with the national youth turnout for 2022 being 23%, much higher than 2014, but lower than the 2018 cycle. With so much propaganda and fake news on the internet clouding their perspectives, unbiased voter’s education is essential. Priori truths, such as the importance of democracy, universal suffrage, the need for fair representation, and that each individual vote carries equal weight, are critical points to be shared. This will ensure that schools do not try and sway their students one way or another, but rather to make up their own minds about it. To create a meaningful change that expresses the ideals of the youth, the youth must first be educated. 

One common counterargument is that it’s the parents’ responsibility. However, this argument neglects to acknowledge that not all teenagers have parents or involved guardian. Not everybody has an adult in their life who is involved enough to educate them on something so unmentioned as the voting process. Additionally, not everybody’s parents vote, but that doesn’t mean the teen shouldn’t be given the information necessary to make an educated decision. High schoolers from immagrant and hispanic families are also, statistically, much less likely to vote than White or Black adults. These disparities were even more dramatic among youth. However, if everybody is given the same information at school, whether their families understand the process or not, they will be able to comprehend what voting is and why it’s so important.

Another counterargument that’s often mentioned is that the requirement of public schools to provide at least so long of voting instruction infringes on personal rights by removing the option to not offer it. However, the requirement isn’t that students vote, or that they consider a certain party or candidate more than another, it’s simply helping teens prepare for a big decision, which will come up every four years of their adult lives, assuming they’re eligable. The instructor of this will likely be a principal, homeroom teacher, or social studies teacher, who will speak and offer resources and other programs that are available online or in their area. Therefore, it would not infringe on personal rights and is only designed to share information about voting to teenagers who are either able to vote or will be in the near future.

In addition to this in-school program, related initiatives and organizations should be promoted and created. One of these is Good Trouble Young Future Leaders of Tomorrow, a group of student advocated for civil rights and civic engagement, including voting, among students. Another good example is the Youth Voter Movement, which is a project of League of Women Voters (LWV). To further the cause, they “host student-led registration drives at high schools, colleges, and other venues registering and pre-registering students (starting at age 16 in some states) to vote.”

In conclusion, it’s essential that public high schools in the United States teach their students about voting within this democracy. An increase in educated youth means a fresh wave of well-informed voters. Public high schools in the United States are generally not doing much to promote such civic engagement among teenagers, and it’s an issue that needs to be addressed, especially in the digital age, with all of its misinformation and persuasion.

Sources:

https://www.edweek.org/teaching-learning/how-schools-can-prepare-students-to-vote-for-the-first-time/2024/01

https://www.edweek.org/teaching-learning/how-schools-can-be-more-effective-at-growing-young-voters/2020/02 

https://www.socialstudies.org/social-education/76/6/should-schools-teach-students-vote-yes

https://www.un.org/womenwatch/osagi/wps/publication/Chapter5.htm

https://funderscommittee.org/files/high_school_voter_registration_programs.pdf 

https://www.science.org/content/article/u-s-teacher-training-program-boosts-voting-among-young-adults

https://circle.tufts.edu/2022-election-center

https://youthvotermovement.org/

https://www.getn2goodtrouble.com/