Article about Mr. Primeaux's involvement with California On My ...

LearningAboutLibertylAURA MORTON / for the Daily JournalRobyn Utt, an Encinitas grade school instructor, left, and Spencer Wright,a non-practicing attorneywho teaches in Stockton, interact withjudges and lawyers at the Judicial Council's summer institute,designed to hone teachers' classroom skills.Story on Page 2.

ProgramGivesI,Teachersthe 'BigIdea of Democracy'By Pat BroderickDaily Journal Staff WriterPresident Abraham Lincoln - ontrial for exceeding his Constitution;tlpowers- was found not guiltyearlier this month on all 11counts.They ranged from violating civilliberties to "needlessly bringing thewar and destruction to the civilianpopulationof the South."This bit of revisionist history wasperformed bya group ofK-12teacherson the third day of the California OnMy Honor program, a collaborationbetween California State UniversitySan Marcos and the Judicial Councilof California-AdministrativeOfficeofthe Courts.Some 50 civics teachers fromaround the state are participatingtlMs year in the summer institute,designed to hone their classroomskills. Interacting with judges andlawyers, the teachers also learn howto inspire their students with suchattention-getting methods as theaterand cartooning.Most of Cynthia Sternquist's studentsat Magnolia Learning Center,an alternative school for troubledyoungsters in EI Monte in Los AngelesCounty, have experienced thecourt system in one way or another,...either through foster care or havingincarcerated parents."They are students who have themost difficulty sitting in the classroom,"said Sternquist, who teachesgrades 4-8. "They want to be incharge. You have to pretend you'renot teaching them."This year, the institute presentedtwo sessions: at Cal State, from June30 to July 3; and at the Earl WarrenBuilding in San Francisco, from July8 to 11. In October, a follow-upsessionis planned so that the teacherscan share the lesson plans they havedeveloped.According to Fran Chadwick, theprogram's managing director and assistantprofessor of CalState's Collegeof Education, an alarming number ofthe American public can't identifythefivefreedoms guaranteed bythe FirstAmendment, covering speech, religion,.press, assembly and the rightto petition."This is not a course, it's a movement.about changing things," saidChadwick, who served as the dramacoach. "It's notjust rote memorizationof facts and dates, but understandingthe big idea of democracy."This teaching method is especiallyhelpful for youngsters whose secondlanguage is English, said Julie Pernudi,who teaches second grade atTwin Lakes Elementary School in EIMonte and played Lincoln's defensecounsel."The role playing and visuals areso important," she said. "They don'tevenknow that they're learning."And kids love to ham it up, observedMeredith Mills, a fifth-gradeteacher at EI Camino Creek Elementary.Schoolin the EncinitasUnifiedSchoolDistrict. .'1his is a great wayto educate studentsthat courts arenot just punitiveentities. They can be~,eneficialto people.'Gregg Primeau,GardenGroveHigh Schoolteacher"Kids are less intimidatedthanadults," she said.But the grown-up teachers whoperformed that day,- including the"bailiff,"clad in a Hawaiian shirt andpowdered wig - seemed to savortheir roles.One teacher-leader and "chief justice,"who presided over the Lincolntrial, is Spencer Wright, a non-practicingattorney who teaches grades 9-12at the Venture Academy in Stockton.He also teaches a pre-law class andcoaches a mock trial team at theschool."This is different from almost anyconference I have ever been to,"Wright said. "It lets me reflect on myteaching and how I can improve, bydesigning lessons that really makean impact."In agreement is another groupleader, Robyn Litt, a sixth-gradeteacher in the Encinitas Union SchoolDistrict, who has been involved sincethe summer institute started in 2006. '"It just gets better and better," Littsaid. "My understanding grows everysingle time."Sowing the seeds for the programback in 1999 was Superior CourtJudge Richard G. Cline, who, at thetime, was scrambling to prepare for aclass offourth-graders who'dbe droppingby his Vista courtroom."What is an old guy going to do,other than bore them to death talkingto them?" Cline recalled thinking atthe time.So, he penned a script, with partsfor the kids, and told the teacher to'/keep it a secret."The kids thought this was a fieldtrip to a building,"he said. "Theywalkin to a trial and are sworn in by thebailiff. It worked out pretty good, andI got to thinking aboutit."The next year, Cline obtained officialstatus for the program from thecourt and, in 2003, enlisted the aid ofthe North County Bar Association tocreate a foundation to help fund theprogram.Cline next decided to get teachersinvolved and contacted local universities.In 2005, Cal State San Marcosheeded the call and Cline met withChadwick.The result was a collaborationamong Cal State, the NCBAand the court to create the summerinstitute.Since 2006, the Judicial Council hassteadily increased its funding forthe program, this year contributingmorethan$170,000in a contractwithCal State, and creating a NorthernCaliforniainstitute. Each ofthe teachersreceive a $500 stipend.In addition to bolstering civicsteaching,MaryV.J.Cataldo, a partnerin the CarlsbadofficeofProcopio,Cory, Hargreaves & Savitch,hopes it will inspire some students toconsider law as' a profession."Most people have a very skewedperception about what lawyers do,"said Cataldo, a founding director ofthe institute. "Lawyers have a terriblePR problem."Gregg Primeaux; a group leaderwho teaches civics 'and world historyat Garden GroveHigh School inOrange County, sees this in his ownclassroom."Most kids have a very negativeview of the court and the wholejudicialsystem," he said. "This is a greatway to educate students that courtsare notjust punitiveentities.They canbe beneficialto people."Cline is pleased with the program'sprogress, hoping that it ultimatelywill change public perceptions aboutthe legal profession."All they get is nonsense on TV,"Cline said, citing "Judge Judy" as aprime example."It's atrocious, Cline said. "Theythink that's howit is -lawyers interruptingeach other, peopleyelling andscreaming in court, judges who arebought. It's totally detrimental to the'proper functioning of our system."The program can make a difference,said group leader HeidiSchlotfeldt, who teaches grades 2-8at Spencer ValleyElementary Schoolnear Julian."Apathy or ignorance are prettywidespread," she said. "But if wecan get to the kids and start themout as young citizens, they can takethat knowledge when they becomeadults."paCbroderick@dailyjournal.comReprintsForReprints, E-Prints and Framesof articles in The Daily Journal,please contact Jeremy Eliis at je I,remye@scoopreprintsource.com,(800) 767-3263 Ext.307 or onlineat www.scoopreprintsource.com.Los Angeles Dally Journal(ISSN:0362-5575)Established as a daily newspaper in 1888.Official newspaper of the City of Los Angelesand the Countyof Los Angeles.Published daily except Saturdays, Sundaysand New Year's Day, Dr. Martin Luther KingJr. Day, Presidents' Day, Memorial Oay.Independence Day, Labor Day, ThanksgivingDay and Christmas Day by Daily JournalCorporation. 91'5 East First Street. LosAngeles,Calif.,90012. (213) 229-5300.Periodicals postage paid at Los Angeles,California. Adjudicated a newspaperof generalcirculation, Los Angeles Superior Court No.59775 and B-33522. 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