Dissertation Defense Announcement Ph.D. in Education Program: Nattawan Junboonta “Civic Education: The Courts and the Curriculum”

The purpose of this dissertation research was to understand the rationales behind the Second Circuit’s Civic Education Initiative. The study found that the Second Circuit wanted young people to possess basic political knowledge and to become more aware about the workings of the federal government with a special focus on the functions and roles of the judicial branch. More specifically, my research found that (1) the Second Circuit was concerned about the state of young people’s political and procedural knowledge as well as the overall trend of declining institutional trust. These rationales led to the creation of a civic education initiative at the Second Circuit; (2) the overarching goals of the Second Circuit focused on providing accurate political knowledge with the hope of encouraging political participation and engagement. The study revealed that access to the courthouses and court personnel were the two major advantages of the program while logistic limitations, time constraint and institutional boundaries were the disadvantages of having the civic education program at the courthouse; (3) the civic education program at the Second Circuit engaged with high school students through interactive activities and the civic lessons contained elements of constructive learning and deliberative democracy; (4) the Second Circuit wanted participating students to possess an increased in judicial awareness and critical thinking skills through the established program. These two intended learning outcomes were prominent recurring themes in the study; (5) through positive political socialization, the Second Circuit wanted students to view the judicial branch as more than a place of legal punishment. As such the courts focused on providing political and procedural knowledge to participating students with the goal of affirming the importance of the judiciary and through this process uphold the legitimacy of the courts. The major contribution of the case study is to add new insights and perspectives on different ways in which judicial institutions, a non-traditional learning space, can play a role in civic education and contribute to stronger democratic society.