When it comes to understanding our government, we often find ourselves asking, "What would Sharon say?" So we did. We invited Sharon McMahon, America's favorite government teacher and the force behind @SharonSaysS, to help us unpack why civics education in the U.S. has been defunded, sidelined, and under-taught for decades.

Sharon shares eye-opening insights about a troubling reality: many students graduate with little more than a single semester of civics, leaving them unequipped to understand how their government actually works. This lack of knowledge isn't just an educational failure it's a civic crisis. When citizens don't understand the basics of how power is structured or how change happens, we risk not only disengagement, but also a national security vulnerability and a weakening of our democracy itself.

How can we make America better if we don't understand how America works? How can we expect meaningful progress if the next generation doesn't grasp the role of local elections or how laws are made?

When people aren't educated about their own system of government, cynicism grows. Trust erodes. And disengagement becomes the norm—followed by frustration and the belief that everything is rigged.

We dive into the case for rebuilding a consistent, nationwide civics curriculum—and the enormous challenge of doing so in a country where education policy is decided by 50 separate state boards and over 14,000 local school boards.

This conversation matters. Please listen, learn, and share with your community!

Quotes:

"We have under-educated our citizens for existence in a very complex democracy."

"We need to understand the problem before we can make meaningful change."

"The civil rights movement didn't just happen because a bunch of members of Congress were like, what the right thing to do?"

-Sharon McMahon

"How are we supposed to make America great again if we don't understand how it works?" ----Polina Rubin

Zoom In:

• 06:49 Why aren't people saying in government that maybe we should prioritize civics education

• 08:10 The United States has an incredibly decentralized education system compared to other democracies

• 13:27 Whether the federal government should be involved in curriculum decisions is hotly debated

• 20:37 Elimination of Department of Justice or Department of Education could negatively impact students

• 23:23 Thoughts on the costs of education in the US compared to other countries

• 29:31 Every other developed nation takes far more steps to abate childhood poverty than we do

• 31:51 If you have two parents, you're more likely to not be in poverty

PLEASE HELP US OUT BY SHARING THIS EPISODE WITH A FRIEND!

Follow us on Instagram at @meantforit

https://www.instagram.com/meantforit/?hl=en

Sign up for our newsletter here: https://meantforit.substack.com/

Visit our website at www.meantforit.com

Guest ideas? Partnership ideas? Comments? Email us directly [email protected]