BRIEF: Civics to visit Fresno Courthouse
Students experience judicial law, atmosphere

By Meredith Monke,
Writer
October 16, 2012

Students enrolled in Civics at FC will participate in a field trip to the Fresno County Courthouse, Oct. 18. On this trip, students will get to personally experience what they have been learning about in class.

This is the tenth trip that FC has taken to the courthouse. The bus will leave the school parking lot at 8:30 a.m. and will return around 11:45 a.m., in time for the end of chapel.

Both Civics teachers, Robert Foshee and social studies teacher Jordana Siebert, will be taking their civics classes on this trip. Foshee explains that the day will allow students to learn more about the legal system.

"We're going to talk to a judge, who's going to tell us about the legal system," Foshee said. "He's going to show us some background about what it takes to become a judge or work in law. We're also going to talk to the bailiffs, and they'll tell us what their job entails, like moving prisoners and keeping the courtroom safe. We are actually going to be able to break off and watch actual court cases. This trip goes along with our class discussions about courtrooms and what they're like."

Foshee also believes this trip is a good opportunity for students to see in person what they have been learning about in class.

"I think it's cool that they'll get to see the information that we're learning about in the book in real life," Foshee said. "This trip will help them know the rules to follow in the courtroom and will show them what it's like to be on a jury."

Siebert thinks this trip will help prepare students for their next unit in class.


"I think it helps students, because it gives them a context of the court system," Siebert said. "We will be starting our court unit right after this trip, so they will have already seen how courts, judges and bailiffs work in action. We'll do the whole court unit and end with a mock trial. They will have already seen a trial beforehand, which will be helpful. This trip will give them a lot of context for everything we're going to be talking about."

Amy Savage, '13, is excited for a change of setting and to expand her knowledge.

"I've never been to the courthouse before, so I'm excited to visit," Savage said. "It will be fun to go on a field trip and get a break from the traditional classroom setting. I'm also looking forward to learning first-hand instead of through a teacher or textbook."

Senior Dominic Mendoza is also looking forward to the experience that this trip will bring.

"I'm really excited to see a real session in court," Mendoza said. "I think we'll get a real life experience of what it's like to be in a courtroom, which is much more hands-on than learning in class."

For more news, read the Oct. 15 article, Lecture series to feature acclaimed speakers.



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