A new curriculum aimed at teaching civility to middle school students is now available to Ohio teachers.

The seven-lesson package of activities was developed by the Ohio Center for Law-Related Education (OCLRE) with support from the Thomas J. Moyer Legacy Committee of the Ohio State Bar Association (OSBA) and funded by the Ohio State Bar Foundation. It’s designed to help students gain knowledge to start a service learning project in their schools and teach peers how to be civil to each other through mediation.

The OSBA’s Moyer Legacy Committee is named for the late Ohio Supreme Court chief justice.

“Civility was at the heart of all that Chief Justice Moyer believed, and we want to insure that his lessons are shared with the next generation of Ohioans,” said Moyer Committee Chair Barbara Howard. “The new civility curriculum supports several model state standards and provides a creative way to engage students in making civility a regular part of their lives. Working with OCLRE to implement the new curriculum is a natural fit as they already work closely with Ohio schools.”

The civility project lessons include:

• What Is Civility?
• Acts of Civility Around School
• Citizens’ Rights and Responsibilities
• Communication and Conflict Resolution

“Working with middle and high school students on issues like civics and civility is the focus of the Ohio Center for Law-Related Education,” said OCLRE Executive Director Lisa Eschleman. “This new civility curriculum provides invaluable tools for teachers and students to participate in a very unique program that fosters civility and is aligned with Ohio’s learning standards. We are very excited to have this new teaching tool and look forward to working with schools across Ohio to implement the new curriculum.”

The curriculum can be used in the classroom or as a project for OCLRE’s Youth for Justice program.

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