Congress in the Classroom 2006

Posted by on February 24, 2006

CALL FOR PARTICIPATION: Congress in the Classroom 2006

DEADLINE: March 30, 2006 — APPLY SOON!

Congress in the Classroom is a national, award-winning education program now in its 14th year. Sponsored by The Dirksen Congressional Center, the workshop is dedicated to the exchange of ideas and information on teaching about Congress.

Congress in the Classroom is designed for high school or middle school teachers who teach U.S. history, government, civics, political science, or social studies. Forty teachers from throughout the country will be selected in 2006 to take part in the program.

You will gain experience with The Center’s educational Web site, CongressLink (http://www.congresslink.org), which features online access to lesson plans, student activities, historical materials, related Web sites, and subject matter experts.

Throughout the program you will work with national experts as well as colleagues from across the nation. This combination of firsthand knowledge and peer-to-peer interaction will give you new ideas, materials, and a professionally enriching experience.

In sum, the workshop consists of two types of sessions: those that focus on recent research and scholarship about Congress (and don’t always have an immediate application in the classroom) and those geared to specific ways to teach students about Congress.

The 2006 program will feature a broad overview of Congress with special attention to the mid-year elections of 2006. Tentative session titles are listed below. Additional sessions will be announced as presenters are confirmed.

*A View from Capitol Hill — The Honorable Ray LaHood, (R-IL, 18th District, U.S. House of Representatives)

* Congressional Insight: An Interactive Simulation of a Member’s First Term in the House of Representatives — Bethany Dame, National Association of
Manufacturers

* We Already Know the Winners: The Demise of Congressional General Elections — Harvey Tucker, Texas A&M University

* How Legislators’ Experiences as Candidates Affect Their Behavior as Policymakers in Congress — Tracy Sulkin, University of Illinois

* Ten Things Your Students Should Know about Congress — Frank Mackaman, The Dirksen Congressional Center

* C-SPAN Classroom: Where Content Clicks! — Joanne Wheeler, C-SPAN

* How to Get Your Point Across to Congress Members — Stephanie Vance, AdVanced Communications

* The Dirksen Center Web Suite as a Resource for Teachers — Cindy Koeppel, The Dirksen Congressional Center

* View from the Other End of the Avenue: The Legislative Presidency — Jeffrey Weinberg, Adjunct Faculty, George Washington University and American University

* What We Can Expect from the 2006 Congressional Elections — Lauren Whittington, “Roll Call”

NEW! *The Capitol Hill Experience: From the Viewpoint of American Political Science Association Fellows — Artemus Ward, Northern Illinois University and APSA Fellow, 2002-03, assigned to the House Judiciary Committee

NEW! *Teaching About Civic Competency — Jeffrey Bernstein, Eastern Michigan University

Other Program Highlights:

In addition to the hour-long sessions above, The Center will offer what we call Sound Bites, or 15-minute sessions, on campaign commercials, campaign literature, a film clip of Senator Dirksen explaining the nature of congressional leadership, a new Web feature dealing with the Civil Rights Act of 1964, among other possibilities.

The workshop will take place from Monday, July 31 through Thursday, August 3, 2006, at the Radisson Hotel in Peoria, Illinois. Teachers who are selected for the program will be responsible for (1) a non-refundable $135 registration fee (required to confirm acceptance after notice of selection) and (2) transportation to and from Peoria, Illinois. Many school districts will pay all or a portion of these costs.

The Center pays for three nights lodging at the headquarters hotel (providing a single room for each participant), workshop materials, local transportation, all but three meals, and presenter honoraria and expenses.

Those teachers who are not selected for the program will have an opportunity to register for the Web-based Congress in the Classroom workshop — http://www.congressclass.org.

The deadline for applications is March 30, 2006. Enrollment is competitive and limited to forty. Selection will be determined by The Center. Individuals will be notified of their acceptance status by April 15, 2006.

Take a look at The Dirksen Center Web site – http://www.dirksencenter.org/print_programs_CongressClassroom.htm — to see what participants say about the program and to learn more
about the scheduled sessions and presenters.

Registration:
If you are interested in registering for the Congress in the Classroom 2006 workshop, you can complete an online registration form found at:
http://www.dirksencenter.org/programs_CiCapplication.htm.