Teaching & Learning
One way MDI meets its mission is through teaching and learning initiatives that address civic education and engagement in PreK-12 and higher education. MDI’s Teaching and Learning initiatives align with the University of Maryland Strategic Plan, Fearlessly Forward: In Pursuit of Excellence and Impact for the Public Good, especially the pillars of reimagining learning, partnering for the public good, taking on grand challenges, and investing in people.
Designing and Delivering Teaching Materials and Professional Development for Elementary and Secondary Teachers
MDI team members use their research and expertise in partnership with PreK-12 educators to improve civic education opportunities for students across Maryland and beyond. MDI accomplishes this piece of its mission by providing professional development opportunities to PreK-12 educators, developing innovative curricula, and partnering with those providing civic education both in and out of schools.
MDI faculty and graduate students are leading the Digital Civic Inquiry Project, which is a collaboration with the DC Office of the State Superintendent of Education and the Close Up Foundation and will support eighth-grade teachers in adopting an innovative curricular approach, digital civic inquiry. Through digital civic inquiries, students engage in scaffolded research about civic issues like access to affordable housing or minimum wage increases. Students learn to locate and evaluate a range of digital sources, use credible sources to inform their developing opinions, discuss what they learn about the issue and potential policy solutions, and plan to take action to advocate for their preferred solutions.
This project is supported by an American History and Civics National Activities Grant from the U.S. Department of Education.
MDI Team Members: Sarah McGrew | Elizabeth Reynolds | Lena Morreale Scott
Deep and growing political polarizations threaten to thwart understanding of how science and civics education can promote a common good. MDI team members are addressing how people develop socially and learn about the climate crisis and sustainability and how to reason scientifically, civically, and critically when encountering conflicting sources and claims related to sustainable development. Learn more about the project and download classroom-ready instructional materials.
In addition to MDI funding, this project is supported--in part--by the National Science Foundation under Grant No. DRL-2201012.
MDI Team Members: Doug Lombardi | Sarah McGrew
Many elementary-aged students spend substantial time on digital devices both in and out of school. Yet, educational efforts to confront mis- and disinformation have yet to focus on this age group. MDI faculty and graduate students will develop materials, trainings, and evaluation measures to test pedagogical approaches that align with early social and cognitive development to support students’ early capacity to detect misinformation.
MDI Team Members: Jenna Alton | Luke Butler | Sarah McGrew | Doug Lombardi | Elizabeth Reynolds
Through their leadership of the Maryland Civic Education Coalition, MDI faculty and graduate students organize, design, and deliver numerous professional development sessions each year, including organizing an annual Civic Education and Engagement Leadership Summit. Their activities spotlight best practices in teaching civic engagement across various academic disciplines and for students in pre-kindergarten through higher education (P-20).
MDI Team Members: Sarah McGrew | Julie Miller | Lena Morreale Scott
Civic Education in Higher Education
The University of Maryland System, the American Association of Colleges and Universities (AAC&U), State Higher Education Executive Offices (SHEEO), and others assert that civic education is an essential mission for higher education and that through civic learning for an engaged democracy, students develop democratic knowledge, ethical responsibility, equity engagement, and high-value problem-solving skills that are essential for participating in a democratic society and adapting to a changing workplace. MDI faculty agree that civics should be taught in a range of courses, from core, introductory courses to upper-level and capstone courses related to students’ majors. Their engagement and leadership in the Civic Learning for an Engaged Democracy coalition and the University System of Maryland have brought new ideas for civic learning to UMD and helped strengthen national networks of higher education scholars and practitioners.
MDI faculty designed a new, non-traditional course for current media and democracy program managers around the world. “Applied Media Research on Democratic Engagement” tackles the evolving landscape of journalism research, including the role of AI in journalism, media consumption via social media, and the role of journalism in democracy in the 21st century. The course is led by journalism faculty and includes seminars in education and political science taught by MDI team members.
This work is supported by a grant from Internews.
MDI Team Members: Mike Hanmer | Sarah McGrew | Sarah Oates
MDI faculty and graduate students are collaborating with faculty and staff in Student Affairs to develop and pilot two professional development courses for UMD faculty and instructors who wish to infuse or expand their teaching of civic knowledge, skills, and experiences into their courses and expand their use of high impact pedagogy and practices such as dialogue across difference, community-engaged and service learning, digital, data, and media literacy, civic inquiry, and problem-solving with diverse partners. The project is intended for those who teach “gen ed” courses, I-series courses, upper-level courses in various majors, capstone courses, and courses taught through Living-Learning communities. It is open to all faculty, but we are particularly interested in working with faculty who teach students in majors least likely to vote or participate in civic engagement experiences.
This pilot program is supported by a grant from the University System of Maryland.
MDI Team Members: Paul Brown | Julie Miller | Lena Morreale Scott
MDI faculty, staff, and partners launched The Laufer Democracy Internship Program, which matches top UMD students with highly impactful, paid summer internships that are also deeply aligned with the interdisciplinary research led by MDI scholars and strategic partners. Designed with the goal of providing equitable experiential learning opportunities to all students from all socioeconomic backgrounds, the internships are paid and include a travel stipend. The internship program provides an extraordinary career-building experience for students while strengthening community research partnerships through which MDI scholars produce critically important knowledge for our democracy. Students who complete the program will be prepared both for a career in the worth of strengthening democracy and uniquely qualified to support the work of MDI scholars at their former placement site. For its pilot year in 2024, the Laufer Democracy Internships are themed around MDI’s interdisciplinary work to mobilize voters ahead of the 2024 presidential election.
This pilot program is supported by a grant from Marsha and Henry Laufer.
MDI Team Members: Michael Hanmer | Sam Novey | Lena Morreale Scott