Simulated Congressional Hearing

Participants hold a simulated congressional hearing as the culminating activity for the We the People program. The entire class, working in cooperative teams, prepares and presents statements before a panel of community representatives who serve as congressional committee members. Students then answer questions posed by committee members. The format provides students an opportunity to demonstrate their knowledge and understanding of constitutional principles while providing teachers with an excellent means of assessing performance.

Teachers may engage their students in the simulated hearing activity at the following levels:

Elementary and Middle School level classes may conduct noncompetitive hearings in front of a class or auditorium-size audience with community members acting as judges.

Teachers at the High School level may conduct a noncompetitive hearing, but are encouraged to participate in the nationwide competitive program. High school competition begins at the congressional district level with teams from each school vying for the district championship. District winners go on to compete at the Virginia State Competition held annually. The class with the highest overall score will receive an all-expense paid trip to Washington, D.C., to represent Virginia at the We the People national finals, where some hearings take place in congressional hearing rooms on Capitol Hill.

More than 1,200 high school students and their teachers participate annually in the We the People national finals. While in Washington, students also have the opportunity to visit historic sites and meet with members of Congress and other dignitaries.

Questions for the high school competition are revised annually, and include a discussion of contemporary constitutional issues.

Congressional Hearing Questions

The congressional hearing questions for the different levels of school are presented below in downloadable PDF that requires the Adobe Reader.