The Future of the First Amendment The Digital Media, Civic Education, and Free Expression Rights in America's High Schools

by Dautrich, Kenneth; Yalof, David A.; Lopez, Mark Hugo

• ISBN13: 9780742562820
• ISBN10: 0742562824
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2008-05-30
• Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers

Summary

Findings from the high-profile John S. and James L. Knight Foundation-sponsored surveys of over 100,000 high school students in 2004 and 2006 provided a wake-up call to those interested in preserving the future of free expression rights in America. These studies documented the current lack of appreciation for free expression rights among the nation's high school students, and thus raised serious questions about the vitality of those rights as this generation reaches adulthood. In The Future of the First Amendment, the scholars who conducted the Knight studies identify a number of important connections and relationships that education reformers should account for as they seek to raise the status of the First Amendment among the nation's youth. This book documents and explores the ramifications of First Amendment education and student media activities--both traditional and digital--on student support for free expression rights. Linking these curricular and extra-curricular activities to the next generation's tolerance for free expression rights, it provides guidance to educators and policy-makers on methods of improving the next generation's appreciation for these rights which are so central to the health of American democracy.

Author Biography

Mark Jose Lopez is research assistant professor in the School of Public Policy at the University of Maryland.

Table of Contents

Preface	p. ix
Acknowledgments	p. xi
Introduction	p. 1
The American Public, Students, and Free Expression Rights	p. 9
Educating Students about Free Expression Rights	p. 25
The School Curriculum, Student Media, and Attitudes about Freedom of Expression	p. 47
The Invasion of the Bloggers: Coming to a High School Near You	p. 71
The Digital Media and Attitudes about Free Expression Rights	p. 97
Putting the First Amendment First: Policy Implications and the Future of Freedom of Expression	p. 119
Knight Future of the First Amendment 2004 and 2006 Student and Faculty Questionnaires	p. 131
Future of the First Amendment Survey Sampling Methodology	p. 147
Full Multivariate Model Results	p. 149
Selected Bibliography	p. 179
Index	p. 183
About the Authors	p. 189
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