(The hill) – Students across the country are getting mock elections, nine-week campaign courses and field trips to the polls, where many high school seniors will vote for the first time on Tuesday.
For school leaders and teachers, election years are a great opportunity to educate students about the importance of their civic duty and to have meaningful discussions with those who disagree.
Katie Law, principal of Arapahoe Charter High School, a compact school in Wyoming with just 50 students that primarily serves tribal communities, is looking forward to taking her six 18-year-olds to the polls on Tuesday during the school day.
“We actually have a polling place here on campus, so we might stop first where it’s a little quieter so they can fill out their forms without having to worry too much about it. But then I’ll take them to other polling locations around the county just to people watch and see,” Law said.
“I try to get a little ahead of them so I can tell the other people I see, ‘Hey, I have a few first-time voters.’ And when the kids come in, they get excited by the other people there voting and say, ‘Congratulations on voting for the first time,'” she added.
Law then provides students with a “first voter” sign to take a photo with before taking them to lunch and Starbucks after their trip.
She said she wanted to make Election Day special because “if you can keep those traditions, you’ll always be engaged. You’ll always be informed and your voice will be heard.”
A Tufts University analysis found that 41 million Generation Z Americans will be able to choose between former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris in the election, with more than 8 million of them estimated to be first-time voters.
Larger schools may not always be as practical, but they also live the democratic spirit.
“We don’t really have any big, concrete plans for Election Day. The vast majority of our students are under 18, so we won’t be letting many people go, like at a big release event. But we started doing some school-wide winter voter registration campaigns before the primary season,” said Matt Haney, principal of Mount Desert Island High School.
Haney’s school also offered a special quarter-long election year course this year, which he said covered “not only the presidential election, but also state politics, local politics and some congressional issues.”
“But we as a school also try to spend a lot of time talking about civil discourse and how we agree and disagree,” he added.
Erin Hollis, an 18-year-old from Mount Desert Island, said she plans to vote Tuesday after the school day.
“This is my first time voting. I turned 18 in September. […] I look forward to it. I’m definitely, you know, being able to vote this year, I’ve been a lot more busy in researching this election,” said Hollis, who took her school’s AP U.S. History course and currently sits on the AP Government and Policy.
A group of 17-year-old students from Mount Desert Island spoke to The Hill about their experiences talking about political issues in class, emphasizing the excitement that comes with discussing politics in the current climate, but also praising the environment the school created has to disagree Be respectful of other students and teachers.
“I think a lot of people, at least our age, became very politically active after the 2016 election, when we were in fourth grade. So I think we’ve really become very politically aware of the candidates and particularly the candidates this year, much earlier than I think a lot of kids normally would or maybe should. But I’ve definitely noticed that most kids at school come to class with very strong opinions about, like, who they would vote for, who they’re voting for, and they definitely talk about it – like I’ve never had us a teacher like him from sharing our political views,” said Cecilia Blackett.
Students praised their teachers for how they handle controversial topics in class and “teach us the language to use and not just how to just throw out our opinion, but how to actually have an informed opinion,” Blackett said.
And these lessons can have impact both at home and in the classroom.
“I also grew up in a very political household,” said Mahala Cooper, another 17-year-old student. “My parents are very strong in their political views, and during quarantine we all had a lot of arguments,” like Trump and things like that. And I guess having these conversations with my parents really strengthened our relationship over time because we often disagreed, but now, as time goes on, we respect each other and our views a lot more, and as I’m more educated, I can also understand what different views they have and what policies they believe in.”
A recent ABC News/Ipsos poll showed Harris leading Trump by 14 points among juvenile voters, with broader national and swing-state polls showing the two candidates essentially tied.
Shelagh McLoughlin, a social studies teacher at Mount Desert Island, will go to the polls with the students so students can see how the process works, regardless of whether they are ancient enough to vote this year.
“I’m excited about it. It’s one of my favorite trips to take students because it’s like an eye-opening moment when they look around with, you know, wide eyes,” McLoughlin said.
And students say they are grateful for the opportunity to learn about the election this year.
“I think we’re really lucky at this school to have a place where we can talk about politics,” said senior Olivia Mitchell.
“Because I’ve always felt the same way about political things, but now I really feel like I’m more informed about how the system works and how voting works. “I didn’t really know much about it before this year,” she added.
Even for students who are far from voting age, schools ensure that they get a taste of what it will be like to one day participate in the political system.
Kristy Zaleta, principal of Rogers Park Middle School in Connecticut, said her faculty held a mock election with its 900 students to give children the most realistic experience possible by setting up polling stations in classrooms.
To go into the “polling station,” the students “had a pretend security guard, so to speak, to make sure they didn’t bother the people waiting in line. They waited in line. They came in. They left with their registration card that they had received. They went to the polling station so our children worked there and looked for their names. They highlighted their names or crossed out the fact that they voted. They took the little card they had and sent it to the next station where they voted and got a sticker,” Zaleta said.
Harris won the middle school vote 53 percent to 47 percent.
Zaleta stressed the need to keep discussions civil.
“We want to teach people how to disagree in a comfortable way, and so it’s okay if you and I have a different opinion on a policy or a different opinion on an issue. We have to respect each other’s opinions,” she said.
“I think it’s a credit to the teachers who have really made sure that all voices are heard and that it’s okay to disagree, but we do it in a comfortable way,” she added.
