A sharp critique of our failure to teach civics effectively and a roadmap to a better way.

Schools make citizens. Yet the typical American student is stunningly ignorant of history and government: In 2022, the National Assessment of Educational Progress found that only 20 percent scored a “proficient” level in civics. In The Cradle of Citizenship, James Traub chronicles a year of observing public schools across the country, mapping the polarized pedagogical landscape that fails to teach in–depth civics knowledge—of the Constitution, the Declaration of Independence, the country’s founding, and more. Traub examines the history of civic education, the debates between partisans of the 1619 Project and 1776 Report, and the state of Florida’s “war on ‘woke.’” He also finds sources of hope, both in new attempts to bridge the ideological divide and in more traditional forms of instruction that emphasize knowledge and promote deep engagement with works of history and literature. The Cradle of Citizenship combines a withering critique of conventional schooling with a vision of civics education as it should be.

About the Author:

James Traub has written extensively for America’s leading publications, including the New Yorker and the New York Times Magazine. His most recent book, True Believer: Hubert Humphrey’s Quest for a More Just America, was longlisted for the National Book Critics Circle Award. He lives in New York.