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Testing Civics: State-Level Civic Education Requirements and Political Knowledge

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  15 November 2016

DAVID E. CAMPBELL  and
RICHARD G. NIEMI
DAVID E. CAMPBELL*
Affiliation:
University of Notre Dame
RICHARD G. NIEMI*
Affiliation:
University of Rochester
*
David E. Campbell is Packey J. Dee Professor of American Democracy, Department of Political Science, 217 O'Shaughnessy Hall, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN 46556 ([email protected]).
Richard G. Niemi is Don Alonzo Watson Professor Emeritus of Political Science, Department of Political Science, University of Rochester, Rochester, NY 14627 ([email protected]).
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Abstract

Do state-level exams in civics have a positive impact on young people's civic knowledge? We hypothesize that civics exams have the biggest effect in states where they are a requirement for high school graduation—the incentive hypothesis. We further hypothesize that civics requirements have the biggest effect on young people with less exposure to information about the U.S. political system at home, specifically Latinos and, especially, immigrants—the compensation hypothesis. We test these hypotheses with the 2006 and 2010 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) civics test administered to high school students, and with a large national survey of 18–24 year-olds. Across the two datasets, we find modest support for the incentive hypothesis and strong support for the compensation hypothesis.

Type
Research Article
Information
American Political Science Review , Volume 110 , Issue 3 , August 2016 , pp. 495 - 511
Copyright
Copyright © American Political Science Association 2016 

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