Falmouth Public Schools provides a comprehensive civics education program for students in grades K-12. Rather than isolate civic learning in social studies classes, Falmouth has adopted an interdisciplinary approach where all grade levels, content areas, and even extracurricular opportunities address different aspects of civics education.
Beginning in kindergarten, students in Falmouth learn and practice democratic values such as responsibility, justice, and fairness. Students have the opportunity to begin applying these values in their coursework and classroom routines. As students progress from elementary school to the middle grades, their understanding of civics grows. Through their course work, students explore political trends throughout history and important concepts like representative government, separation of powers, and civic duty. At Falmouth High School, the Social Studies Department focuses on civics standards in World History and United States History courses. Teachers build on these standards by inviting class speakers to share their perspectives with students; past guests have included members of local political parties and town government officials. Civics education in Falmouth Schools continues until the day students graduate.
Developing civic skills and knowledge among citizens is vital to sustaining a democracy and Falmouth Public Schools has embraced its responsibility to promote civic engagement and political participation among all students. The Civic Learning Plan document (available on this page) provides an in-depth look at where all civics standards are addressed in the curriculum and the subsequent appendices provide documentation of experiences that the district offers in which the frameworks are further addressed and enhanced.