The Power to Change the World: A Teaching Unit on Student Activism in History and Today

To help, you might gauge what your students know — or think they know — about their rights. Invite them to work in small groups to brainstorm answers to these questions, perhaps via a KWL chart:

• Do people under 18 have the same rights as adults? If not, how do they differ — and why?

• Do students under 18 have the same rights in school as they do out of school? If not, what examples can you give?

After students have shared their thoughts and questions, invite them to read “School Walkouts in the Wake of ‘Parkland’ — Protected by the First Amendment or Not?,” a piece from the Newseum that offers helpful context and history:

Marches, walkouts and sit-ins are the embodiment of our core freedoms: the right to speak out, to assemble peaceably and petition our government for change. Such protests recall powerful moments in the civil rights movement, when energized groups of young people caught the nation’s attention and successfully pushed for social and political change.

The student voices in the Parkland movement also call to mind the circumstances around the landmark 1969 Supreme Court decision Tinker v. Des Moines Independent School District, which also involved teens, schools and the freedom to protest.

Then, have students follow this overview up with another Newseum resource, ”Classroom Walk-Outs and School Protests: Everything you need to know whether you’re a student, parent, teacher, school administrator, or lawyer” or with the ACLU’s page on “Students’ Rights: Speech, Walkouts, and Other Protests.” Still another resource? The new Youth in Front site, a community-created online learning resource, with advice from experienced youth activists and allies.

Challenge students to return to the original questions for which they brainstormed answers and correct or add detail to anything they now understand better. How would they summarize their answers? What questions are they left with? Where can they find answers?

As a final activity for this part of the unit, students might produce a piece for their school website or newspaper clarifying student rights and responsibilities in the context of student activism on gun violence. To do this, they might interview school or district administrators, teachers and students; consult written school policy; and learn more about their school or community’s history of related student activism.

Update, March 15:

Your students can see videos and photos of and read about the March 14 walkout in “National School Walkout: Thousands Protest Against Gun Violence Across the U.S.” We have also posted a companion Student Opinion question, “Do You Think It Is Important for Teenagers to Participate in Political Activism?”