Why don't young people know more about the basic concepts of the Constitution?

One factor, surely, has been the decline of civic education, which fell out of favor during the 1960s and 1970s. As the Civil Rights and anti–war movements challenged Americans' faith in our system, it was sometimes easier to abandon civics than to find new ways to teach it. And, truth be told, traditional civics education was flawed –– those who yearn for a return to its halcyon days have forgotten how catechistic and dull those lessons often were.

In the search for new ways to teach civics, Virginia's educators have been among the leaders. Since 1995, Virginia's Standards of Learning have provided a framework for testing social studies from third to eleventh grades. The standards explicitly include civics, as well as history and geography. Outstanding programs and teachers have achieved outstanding results, in Virginia and elsewhere. One encouraging sign in Virginia, according to the Montpelier–Colonial Williamsburg survey, is that 18– to–24–year–olds were far more knowledgeable about James Madison than any of the older generations.

Nearly one in five (19.1%) of young Virginians thinks the rule of law is only a somewhat important constitutional principle, and about 15% think limited government and separation of church and state are only somewhat important constitutional principles. In contrast, older Virginians were much better informed, or had more faith in the system. Perhaps because their understanding of the Constitution and their faith in how government works are so shaky, young Virginians are much more likely to think it is time for a new federal constitution. Of the youngest Virginians, 30.1% thought so, compared with only 6.7% of those 55 or older ( Figure 14 ).

A New Constitution?
The only group in Virginia more willing to entertain the idea of a new federal constitution than young people is African Americans. Only 55.7% of African Americans think the Constitution still works today, compared with 91.8% of Whites.

The Montpelier–Colonial Williamsburg survey indicates African Americans' grasp of core constitutional principles was comparable to that of Whites; therefore, the willingness of African Americans to consider a new Constitution does not stem from a failure to understand the document. Republicans are more likely than Democrats to say the Constitution still works today. Only 9% of Republicans say it's time for a new constitution, compared with 29.2% of Democrats.

Education and Voting
Those with no college education have consistently turned out in much lower percentages than those with some college. In 2008, 80.5% of Virginians with some college education voted in the presidential election, up from 76.5% in 2004. Only 53.3% of voters with no college education voted in 2008, up from 46.5% in 2004 but still well behind those with some college.

Lower still are the percentages of Virginia's citizens with no college education who turned out for midterm elections. Only 32.0% voted in 2006, compared with 59.6% with some college education. 9

Vocational Training
Those with vocational training generally report they don't understand the Constitution: only 18.0% said they understood a lot of it, compared with 24.9% of those with a high school education or less, 38.2% of those with some college, 44.5% of college graduates, and 48.9% of those with some graduate study. However, those with vocational training have a better grasp of some constitutional concepts, or at least have more faith in the functioning of the constitutional system, than those with higher education. Asked whether they agreed that elected representatives in Washington are accountable to the voters who elect them, 71.6% of those with vocational or technical training strongly agreed, compared with 45.8% of those with high school or less, 50.5% of those with some college, 47.0% of college graduates, and 45.9% of those with some graduate study. 10

Yet, the findings in this report indicate even more needs to be done. It is beyond the scope of this report to recommend any particular curriculum. The sponsors of this report — The Center for the Constitution at James Madison's Montpelier and The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation — are, however, united in their conviction that civic education is crucial to the future of democracy. And we are confident that it can be engaging and inspiring.

The founders might not have been entirely appalled by young Virginians' willingness to change the Constitution. Madison, though “father” of the Constitution, recognized that a static document could not succeed and became a leading advocate for amending the Constitution to add a Bill of Rights. Thomas Jefferson was philosophically if not practically deeply libertarian, famously writing: “I like a little rebellion now and then.” 6

Yet the founders did not take lightly the dangers of ignorance. They worried that democracy could not survive without an educated people. “A popular government, without popular information or the means of acquiring it, is a farce or a tragedy or both,” wrote Madison. “Knowledge will govern ignorance; and a people who mean to be their own governors must arm themselves with the power which knowledge gives.” 7

More succinctly, as Jefferson put it: “Light and liberty go together.” 8