Author Description

This particular book is worktext A for episodes 1 through 7 of the series. In September 1996, the U.S. Department of Justice, Immigration and Naturalization Service, the Departments of Educationof several key states, and INTELECOM―internationally respected educational television producer―announced their intent to create a series to teach the fundamental concepts of civics, government, and history to prospective citizens of the United States. The series, On Common Ground, is a companion to Crossroads Cafe, the widely acclaimed television and print series, now airing on PBS, that teaches English to limited speakers of the language. The primary reason for creating On Common Ground is to allow people whose busy schedules do not permit them to attend traditional classes to learn at a distance. But the series is equally at home in the secondary, college, or adult school classroom, as well as in a variety of community-based programs. The goal of On Common Ground is to provide the conceptual base that will foster responsible citizenship and encourage further learning, whatever the age or background of the student. The emphasis is not on memorization of isolated facts―the sixteenth president of the United States or the particular design of the U.S. flag during the period of the Spanish-American War―but rather on what it means to be a citizen of this country, and the rights and responsibilities associated with citizenship. The historical underpinnings of the nation are linked to the themes that are addressed. The Turning Points segments that conclude each episode focus on one or more events in the history of the United States that prove to be significant to the theme of the episode.