Even at 12 years old, Sriram Yalavarthy sees the unbreakable thread between history and the current moment, something he’s long loved learning about in social studies classes going back to the founding of the United States.
“Learning that the past actually happened” is what Sriram said fascinates him the most. “It’s not just a story we tell every single day, and it affects us today still.”
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Colorado students in the Denver metro area, Arvada, Buena Vista, Craig and Pueblo put their civics knowledge to the test last month in local contests. Three winners from each community advanced to Friday’s bee, hosted by the Colorado Chamber of Commerce, which wants to strengthen students’ understanding of how government functions and help them see that they will set the foundation and tone for the next decades of democracy.
“If they believe that our democracy is in trouble, and if they don’t understand how government works, then they can’t change the process, they can’t influence the process,” said Loren Furman, president and CEO of the Colorado Chamber of Commerce.