New Canaan Students Experience Legislative Process at Nation's Capitol

From New Canaan Country School:

New Canaan Country School seventh-graders delved into the world of lawmaking during their three-day trip to Washington D.C. earlier this month. Inside the Capitol Building, the students debated issues of immigration, the minimum wage and healthcare during a Mock Congress. Using knowledge from their history classes, they explored the links between the past, present and future of the United States.

The trip served as a capstone project for the seventh grade. “We wanted them to see first-hand what it means to be part of a democratic society,” said teacher Will McDonough. “We also wanted them to have a shared experience that dealt with the theme of compromise.”

“I got a real understanding of how laws are made and where they are made,” said student Dillon Mims. “It’s so different than just hearing it in the news.”

They also met legislators and lobbyists, including US Rep. Jim Himes (CT-4) and US Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand of New York, who discussed the importance of debate and dialogue in making laws. “I don’t learn anything from people who agree with me,” Congressman Himes told the students

During their Mock Congress, which entailed committee work and on-the-spot research, the group put forth four bills— only one passed; the rest were killed.

“It is really hard to pass a bill, to get everyone on the same page,” said student Amrit Samara.

The students also toured memorials and museums. They were asked to reflect on the “Three Faces of Democracy” as they visited the Thomas Jefferson Memorial, the FDR Memorial and the Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial. They considered the ideas of state versus federal government, big government and individual protection under the law—notions that each of these national figures respectively represented. At the National 9/11 Pentagon Memorial, students discussed the balance of security and liberty. They also visited the Newseum to explore the role of the press in a democracy.

After returning home, the students spent their first day back in school building on the skills they learned. Working in groups, they dug deep into specific aspects of immigration: Should Congress establish a pathway to citizenship for undocumented immigrants? Should the U.S. invest in more border security? Should the U.S. allow more skilled workers into the country?

After debating the issues and coming up with arguments, the groups were then asked to negotiate and hammer out a final resolution.

“It was key that the students experience the messy, hard, behind-the-scenes part of the legislative process,” said teacher Charles Khuen. “We want them to understand that it’s the part when no one is watching that sometimes matters the most.”

Further information is available through the New Canaan Country School website.