By Hill                                              H.C.R. No. 122
         77R4887 JLZ-D                           
                             HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
 1-1           WHEREAS, A stable, viable, and cohesive society depends on
 1-2     the contributions of numerous individuals who, regardless of
 1-3     personal interests or backgrounds, understand the importance of a
 1-4     common good, are bound by a common set of values, share a common
 1-5     purpose, and actively support the processes and institutions that
 1-6     shape and define that society; and
 1-7           WHEREAS, Furthermore, a free, vigorous, and enduring nation
 1-8     built on democratic principles of governance depends on an informed
 1-9     citizenry that is aware and protective of its rights and privileges
1-10     and that participates fully in all of its public functions, both to
1-11     preserve the nation and to safeguard individual liberties; and
1-12           WHEREAS, A key to the vitality of public participation in our
1-13     democracy is a widespread knowledge and appreciation of certain
1-14     basic documents that set forth the ideas, principles, and values
1-15     that form the bedrock not only of American government but of
1-16     American society itself, namely, the Declaration of Independence,
1-17     the United States Constitution, and the Federalist Papers; and
1-18           WHEREAS, Lacking knowledge of these documents, or a
1-19     misunderstanding of the principles and ideas they express,
1-20     undermines our ability to defend those principles and protect the
1-21     rights and liberties we derive from them; to remain wilfully
1-22     uninformed is to abdicate a large portion of our collective civic
1-23     responsibility and to forfeit the power that democracy confers on
1-24     us as individuals; and
 2-1           WHEREAS, Absent this awareness of our nation's history, it
 2-2     becomes far too easy to believe that engagement in the civic life
 2-3     around us is not only optional, but largely irrelevant to one's
 2-4     daily life; making this mistake leads one to squander opportunities
 2-5     to speak and be heard, to be counted in ways that truly matter, and
 2-6     to shape the institutions that serve us; and
 2-7           WHEREAS, The basis of American society--a government of the
 2-8     people, by the people, and for the people--is in essence a social
 2-9     contract; this contract remains viable only as long as individuals
2-10     hold in high esteem character traits such as trustworthiness,
2-11     respect, responsibility, fairness, compassion, good citizenship,
2-12     and a myriad other deeply rooted personal values that guide the
2-13     individual's social interactions with the world; and
2-14           WHEREAS, It is perhaps not mere coincidence that we have seen
2-15     increases in disciplinary problems among adolescents, including
2-16     irresponsible and antisocial behavior such as violence on school
2-17     campuses, teenage pregnancies, and drug use, at the same time that
2-18     adults have shown a dwindling interest in their communities' civic
2-19     affairs, culminating in the historically low voter turnouts in many
2-20     local, state, and national elections in recent years; and
2-21           WHEREAS, Recognizing the dangers posed by a citizenry that is
2-22     not mindful of certain fundamental values and traditions, the Texas
2-23     Legislature, in laying out the curriculum requirements for the
2-24     state's public schools, includes a provision in the Education Code
2-25     that states "A primary purpose of the public school curriculum is
2-26     to prepare thoughtful, active citizens who understand the
2-27     importance of patriotism and can function productively in a free
 3-1     enterprise society with appreciation for the basic democratic
 3-2     values of our state and national heritage"; and
 3-3           WHEREAS, The framework for the state's required curriculum is
 3-4     a document known as the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills
 3-5     (TEKS), in which the State Board of Education sets forth standards
 3-6     for those things a student must know and be able to do in each
 3-7     subject at each grade level; the TEKS for social studies includes
 3-8     student performance standards to be demonstrated in several areas,
 3-9     including U.S. history, government, and citizenship; and
3-10           WHEREAS, The TEKS document does not require students to be
3-11     exposed to the Declaration of Independence or the U.S. Constitution
3-12     until they reach the fifth grade, and even then does not explicitly
3-13     require students to read the actual documents; similarly, exposure
3-14     to the Federalist Papers is not required until students reach the
3-15     eighth grade; and
3-16           WHEREAS, The members of this legislature believe that the
3-17     public schools and the institutions that govern them do the state
3-18     and the nation a great disservice by minimizing the importance of
3-19     those documents that are the foundation of our representative
3-20     government; now, therefore, be it
3-21           RESOLVED, That the 77th Legislature of the State of Texas
3-22     hereby urge the public schools of this state to set aside one day
3-23     each school year for reading and discussion, at each grade and at
3-24     the level of understanding most appropriate to that grade, of the
3-25     Declaration of Independence, the U.S. Constitution, and the
3-26     Federalist Papers; and, be it further
3-27           RESOLVED, That the legislature also encourage school
 4-1     districts to develop and implement character education programs
 4-2     that foster good citizenship as well as promote and instill in our
 4-3     schoolchildren positive character traits and values essential to
 4-4     the success of the individual and the good of society.