Complex Thinking During a Middle School Action Civics Summer Camp

Abstract

The benefits of participation in civic education programs during late adolescence have been extensively discussed in literature (Lin, 2015; Ballard et al., 2016; Andolina & Conklin, 2020; Chen & Stoddard, 2020). However, there is limited research on the impact of such programs during early adolescence, a period marked by significant social and cognitive development (Kim, et al., 1996; Rowland, 2022; Niewiadomski et al., 2023). The context for this study is iCivics, a free, five-day action civics summer camp for middle school students, held at a private Christian university. Following an action civics model, students undertook an inquiry project in which they self-identified a community issue they were passionate about and researched this issue each day during camp. 

Methods 

I designed this mixed-methods exploratory case study to examine the following research question through analyses of surveys and exit tickets: 

1. In what ways do campers engage in and demonstrate complex thinking during activities at iCivics camp, especially as it relates to thinking across diverse backgrounds and experiences? 

Participants 

Study participants were male and female students in grades 6-9 from diverse backgrounds. (n = 11; female = 7; male = 4; Black or African American = 5; Asian/Pacific Islander, Black or African American = 1; Caucasian or White = 2; Hispanic or Latino = 3; 6th grade = 4; 7th grade = 1; 8th grade = 3; 9th grade = 3) 

Measures 

On Day 1 of camp, participants completed a pre-camp survey, which aimed to collect demographic information, assess socioeconomic status, and gather students’ initial thoughts on good citizenship. A Likert scale was used to gauge participant responses to statements related to civic topics. On Day 3, campers completed exit tickets created using the ESP+I framework, developed as part of the Cultures of Thinking project at Project Zero (2022). A post-camp survey, administered on Day 5, captured students’ rankings of their top three choices for activities they spent the most and least time on during camp. Answer choices were drawn from Ritchhart’s (2011) Cultures of Thinking Initiative. Inductive coding (Saldaña, 2013) was employed to label qualitative data using codes derived directly from the data. A five-stage qualitative coding process (Bingham, 2023) was carried out. Descriptive statistical methods were utilized to interpret the quantitative data. 

Results 

Recurring themes of curiosity, activism, collaboration, and perspective-taking emerged in camper responses. The main types of thinking campers believed they engaged in were reasoning, explaining, and showing curiosity. At the beginning of camp, the majority of students agreed that they could make a difference in their community. However, by the conclusion of iCivics, most campers felt uncertain or disagreed with their ability to feasibly create change and address major community problems. 

The results of this study suggest that increased complex thinking may lead to reduced efficacy in the short term. While the short timeframe limits the development of long-term skills, it sparks the initial interest and shift in students’ understanding of community issues. These findings will be discussed in terms of the importance of fostering complex thinking through the implementation of quality civic education programs for youth.

Comments from Mentors

Claudia is wonderful. She approached this project with professionalism and a sense of learning and curiosity. I was most impressed with how she was able to take the lead and learn new skills and knowledge when she needed it to advance the project. Her work is valuable in its own right and also was a strong contribution to the broader project and how we think about the iEngage camp.

— Brandy Quinn