Rethinking Civic Education in High Schools: Professor Whitters' UICE Award

By Deborah Fagan

Professor Mark Whitters

A recent award from the Upshur Institute has allowed Professor Mark Whitters to bring his Reacting to the Past pedagogy to local Michigan schools. Professor Whitters is a religious historian who believes passionately in experimental pedagogy. He is working on finding ways of decentering teachers so that students take more responsibility for their learning. 

The Jiu-Hwa Lo Upshur Institute for Civic Education (UICE) was founded in 2022 to promote innovative methods of teaching and learning in History and Social Studies. Located in the Department of History and Philosophy at Eastern Michigan University, the UICE was created by a $500,000 gift from Professor Emerita Jiu-Hwa Lo Upshur. It is currently headed by Professor of Teacher Education Brigid Beaubien. In Fall 2023, the UICE awarded it first awards to faculty at EMU, and one of these went to Professor Mark Whitters. 

 Over the last ten years, Professor Whitters has been examining the use of various games in his History courses at EMU. Through these classes, Whitters identifies students who are passionate about the material, and he invites them to become coaches for his next round of students. This is a completely extracurricular activity. These volunteer students receive a brief training and help in planning the games for the next class. These students also work on adapting the games for high schoolers.

Professor Whitters’ received an award from the Upshur Institute for a project titled “Rethinking Civic Education in High Schools: A New Strategy, Part 1.” This award has allowed him to bridge Reacting to the Past games taught at EMU and those taught in local high schools. His goal is to start a revolution in the way history is taught. Believing that Generation Alpha is not interested in “old-fashioned” way of learning history, he is adamant about the need for creative approaches to teaching history, social studies, and the humanities. Whitters believes that using games in the classroom as a means of engaging the students is a useful path forward.

The UICE’s award has allowed Professor Whitters to take several Reacting to the Past games into high schools in Monroe and Jackson, Michigan. The most popular game centers on Athens in the time of Socrates. It focuses on engaging students in a debate on whether Socrates should be convicted of the crime of atheism and corrupting the youth. Each student is assigned to a political party, such as radical democrats and moderate democrats. Using these platforms, the students formulate an argument. Then, they discuss the issue among themselves in an attempt to convince indeterminants and to come to a decision. Engaging students in this way is fascinating and Whitters has observed positive impacts on the high school students. 

Hoping to expand his research, Professor Whitters is currently working on a game focusing on ninth-century Islam. In the coming months, he will assist in running a teaching conference focusing on enriching the high school learning experience. Whitters has been collaborating with the head of the Woodrow Wilson Center for Democracy and Grand Valley State University, hoping to expand this program and reach more students. He continues to pursue his goal of starting a revolution in the way that history is taught, invigorating Generation Alpha to be interested in history, social studies, and the humanities.