Everyone agrees that American students need better civics education.

Civic knowledge in America is abysmal. Fewer than half of American adults can name the three branches of government—and a quarter can’t name any branch at all.

Likewise, a quarter of Americans couldn’t name any of the five freedoms guaranteed under the First Amendment.

That’s why supporters of civics education might be inclined to celebrate the recent announcement that a private initiative called Educating for American Democracy would award $600,000 in grants for K–5 pilot implementation projects to applicants from California, Georgia, Missouri, New York, and Wisconsin.

But for supporters of true civics education, popping the champagne in this case would be a grave mistake.

“EAD is a wolf in sheep’s clothing,” warns Mark Bauerlein, a professor emeritus at Emory University. In his telling, the seemingly innocuous goals of Educating for American Democracy, such as inculcating an “inquisitive mindset towards civics and history,” mask a more radical agenda. As Bauerlein explains:

Yes, [Educating for American Democracy] contains a few traditionalist elements that deflect the charge of anti-conservatism. Overall, however, the EAD Roadmap circumscribes those elements with identity politics that left-wing teachers can plunder all year long. Here is what EAD really means by “inquisitive mindset”: a takedown........

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