Simonsen students tackle US Constitution

Karen Distler, left, listens as Lilly Gore, right, delivers her presentation Friday at Jefferson City's Simonsen 9th Grade Center. Students in the integrated class Perspectives of Citizenship have developed a Constitutional Rights Museum that allowed visitors to view the students' research and conclusions. Distler, a literacy coach with the Jefferson City Public Schools, talked with students about their proposed amendments. The other students in this group are, from background left: Isaiah Martin, Carter Thompson, Ryan Sturm, Ileah Chambly and Charles Uptegrove.
Karen Distler, left, listens as Lilly Gore, right, delivers her presentation Friday at Jefferson City's Simonsen 9th Grade Center. Students in the integrated class Perspectives of Citizenship have developed a Constitutional Rights Museum that allowed visitors to view the students' research and conclusions. Distler, a literacy coach with the Jefferson City Public Schools, talked with students about their proposed amendments. The other students in this group are, from background left: Isaiah Martin, Carter Thompson, Ryan Sturm, Ileah Chambly and Charles Uptegrove.

Can police access information from a personal cell phone? Does the Second Amendment protect all Americans' rights to own automatic weapons? Can students be compelled to recite Bible verses daily in public school?

Those questions - and hundreds more - were probed by Simonsen 9th Grade Center students over the past four weeks as part of a larger lesson on the U.S. Constitution. They showcased what they have learned in a "Constitutional Rights Museum" held Friday in the Jefferson City school's library.

The students were divided into teams of four to six individuals. Each group explored in-depth one of the Constitution's 27 amendments - comparing and contrasting related court cases, explaining the amendment's pros and cons and writing fictional narratives.

On Friday, they shared what they'd learned via multimedia presentations to adults who dropped by the museum to hear what the teens had to say.

Madison Peth's four-person group studied the clause of the First Amendment, which states: "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise of..."

Peth's peers compared the 1925 Scopes "Monkey" Trial - in which high school science teacher John Scopes was found guilty and fined $100 for purportedly teaching evolution, in violation of a Tennessee law - to the Abington School District vs. Schempp case - in which the U.S. Supreme Court declared school-sponsored Bible reading unconstitutional.

"The district was having students read and recite 10 verses every morning," Peth explained.

Ileah Chambly's team - the Amendment Crusaders - took on the Fourth Amendment, which prohibits unreasonable searches and seizures and requires any warrant to be judicially sanctioned and supported by probable cause.

Chambly complained that, too often, police may have a warrant for a home search, but use it to scrutinize American citizens' phones, finding evidence of wrongdoing unrelated to the initial investigation.

"And they are getting charged with crimes with the evidence police find," she said.

She said it was interesting to compare and contrast how the Fourth Amendment was applied in the past to today. Part of the exercise was to impress on students the relevance of the U.S. Constitution to their lives.

"We wanted to inform people about how their rights are being infringed, right now," said Ryan Sturm. "We wanted to make sure no one gets stopped and frisked for no reason. We also want to make sure that no one is falsely accused."

Another team examined the 14th Amendment, which was passed during Reconstruction and limits the actions of all state and local officials. The teens particularly examined the clause that bans government from denying people the "equal protection of the laws."

That group drew comparisons between the 1954 Supreme Court decision in Brown vs. Board of Education - when the court decided separate public schools for black and white children were unconstitutional - and the situation in Ferguson today.

Several students in the group argued that Michael Brown may have been racially profiled before he was killed.

"Kids understand, better than adults, that racial profiling happens," said Ria Totsikas.

The lesson was part of Simonsen's "Perspectives of Citizenship" course, an integrated class that provides students with an English credit, a social studies credit and a half credit of computer applications. Each 90-minute section is basically two classes in one, although the students aren't always working on the same tasks simultaneously.

The classes are co-taught by Amanda Aspey (English), Jimmy Janes (social studies) and Arian Huhmann (computers).

Principal Ben Meldrum said it's the second year Simonsen has offered integrated classes. He noted projects like this one - which allow the teens to cooperate together, rather than learn by more-traditional seat work - allow students to engage in their learning.

"If you ask them, "Do you prefer this model of learning?' 95 percent of them will say they do," Meldrum said, adding he was proud of the students' effort this week. "They really took ownership in their work, and it allows them to go more in-depth with their research."

It was a sentiment echoed by the students in the room, who all looked engaged in the work they had accomplished.

Raequan Davis said he likes project-based learning because it requires him to do more research, and thus learn more.

"You're really thinking about what you're learning," he said.