Post AP Government & Politics students competed in a district-wide competition for the academic contest called “We the People,” in which they demonstrated their knowledge of the U.S. government. In this competition, which took place on Wednesday, November 29, students partook in a simulated congressional hearing and testified in front of a panel of judges who put their knowledge of government to the test.   

Students worked in groups of three to four and chose from six fields of study ranging from topics such as philosophical and historical foundations of government to individual civil rights and liberties. Every group had to prepare a four-minute long statement for each of the competition’s three potential prompts. On competition day, the panel of judges randomly choose one of the prompts and read the students’ four-minute, pre-written statement. Afterwards, students had to answer six minutes of follow-up questions on the spot, requiring them to be well-versed in each topic’s relevant court cases, quotations, facts, figures, and historical events.

Mrs. Everett, the Post AP Government & Politics teacher, explained the significance of this competition as a part of her own high school experience, “I was a participant in this program when I was a student, and it is part of what made me decide to become a teacher.”

As it did for Mrs. Everett, this competition allows students to explore their true passion for politics and vastly expand their governmental knowledge, giving them an opportunity to further explore the field of politics.

“It was an exciting experience and really helped me enhance my knowledge of the foundations of our country, and I am looking forward to competing at states in February,” said junior Ethan Berman.

Students prepared throughout the first semester for this intense competition, and it paid off. Pine Crest’s Post AP Government & Politics class won this year’s district competition and will now compete in the state level competition on February 2nd. If they are successful there, they will continue on to compete at the national competition in April.