Listen: BRI Team Appears On Education Podcasts

The Bill of Rights Institute offers several podcasts as part of the more than 4,000 free resources we offer educators. Recently, a pair of BRI staff members appeared on education-related podcasts to discuss the importance of civics education.

Earlier this month, BRI Senior Teaching Fellow Tony Williams participated in a panel discussion on Constituting America’s “Constitutional Chats” podcast. The discussion focused on the significance of the phrase “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness” from the Declaration of Independence, and the role of its author Thomas Jefferson.

Williams began the discussion by describing the Declaration as a “collective document,” that started with deliberation by the Second Continental Congress in 1775. He also mentioned that the Declaration was influenced by John Locke, a British philosopher, and his Second Treatise of Government that was published in 1690. It outlined the principles of natural rights, government by consent, and the right to revolution.

“The influences are many on the Founders, and they wove them together in this document,” Williams said of the Declaration of Independence.

He also noted Locke’s participation in The Enlightenment in the late 17th century as another influence, as well as the creation of the Magna Carta in England in 1215.

“They weren’t just professors in the ivory tower … they were very well-educated in classical learning and they put that learning to good use,” Williams said of Jefferson and the other Founders who helped to draft of the Declaration, including James Madison. His “Declaration of Rights” was adopted by the state of Virginia in 1776 and influenced how the Declaration of Independence was written.

Late last month, Rachel Davison Humphries, BRI’s senior director of civic learning initiatives, appeared on the “Front of the Class” podcast to discuss her journey into the education field, the significance of civics education, and how BRI assists educators nationwide.

“Civics is the study of the role of government in civil society and how different institutions support self-governance in a society,” Humphries said during the podcast. She mentioned BRI’s lesson on abolitionist John Brown from our Heroes and Villains curriculum as one of her favorites and said civics education also teaches students about their responsibilities as citizens.

Humphries also shared a story from her time as a teacher in Guatemala and helping a struggling student. When asked what advice she would give to teachers, Humphries emphasized the importance of collaboration between educators.

“When in doubt, co-create,” she said.