Nurturing Democracy: Shellharbour Forum

Active and informed citizens…are committed to national values of democracy, equity and justice, and participate in Australia’s civic life.     Melbourne Declaration The Student Representative Council (SRC) hosted a forum today for the candidates seeking election in the state electorate of Shellharbour where our school is located. The event was packed, attended by all senior […]

I Voted!

There have been many posts about our school’s nurturing democracy program over the last few years at my blog, including this one about our plan to hold formal elections conducted by the Australian Electoral Commission (AEC). Today, we made significant progress in assisting students to learn about how preferential voting works in our country as almost 900 […]

Democracy at school

Does your school hold authentically democratic elections? The Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) is conducting our school elections for the first time in 2014 as our ‘Nurturing Democracy’ program continues into its third year. Students from Year 7-11 will experience the same voting protocols that their parents recently followed at the 2013 federal election. Students will […]

Nurturing Democracy

“The tone of modern political discourse [in Australia] has caused younger generations to become disillusioned with government, and by extrapolation, with democracy.”  SOURCE  “In a result that confirmed the surprise findings of our 2012 Poll, only 59% of Australians say that ‘democracy is preferable to any other kind of government’, and more than one in […]

Not a list (a reflective post with 2013 in mind)

“The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The second best time is now.” “Fight evil, read books.” These two quotes are my favourites for the year. Pithy and profound, they seem to share great truths with some hope that one can start doing something positive right now. When so many issues […]

Our Democracy & Authentic Learning

 “The best time to plant a tree is twenty years ago. The second best time is now.” I am tempted to write that nurturing democracy has never been more important. It always has been but one senses that in established successful democracies, like Australia, we take much for granted, especially regarding the practical cogs and mechanisms that […]

Local communities & democracy

How do students learn about democracy? Engaging with the people and processes, ideas and the realities of democratic systems, in an authentic manner, has to be at least as important as historical or theoretical knowledge. Our school genuinely wants students to learn about civil society and our democratic governance, wherever possible, by having real experience […]

‘Democracy Day’

The purpose of school is often debated, sometimes poorly, without any clear or  convincing Big Picture view being sketched for the community. Literacy and numeracy, technical and social skills are honorably mentioned, along with the needs of our economy. However much these skills serve the needs of the individual, it is how we belong effectively, […]

What can we learn from Francis Fukuyama?

The purpose of this book is to fill in some of the gaps of this historical amnesia, by giving an account of where basic political institutions came from in societies that now take them for granted. The three categories of institutions in question are the ones just described: 1. the state 2. the rule of […]

Australia and Denmark

Carsten’s blog post led me to write today.   cc licensed ( BY NC SD ) flickr photo shared by attila acs In the last few months, on returning from Denmark, I have often tried to articulate what are the similarities and differences between our nations. The events and coverage of Australia Day 2012 encapsulate […]

The Melbourne Declaration, Democracy and School

…please strive to maximise [my daughters’] potential…so that they can contribute to and enjoy the fruits of living within an Australian society that is fair, just, tolerant, honourable, knowledgeable, prosperous and happy. Dr Paul Brock Goal 2: All young Australians become successful learners, confident and creative individuals, and active and informed citizens          ‘Melbourne Declaration’ The Melbourne Declaration on the […]

Education and Democracy

cc licensed ( BY NC SD ) flickr photo shared by Darcy Moore The vibrant student participation at Viborg Katedralskole in the wider life of the Danish community continues to delight and impress. The Danish election is on the 15th September and students are very actively engaged, in a variety of platforms, with the political dialogue of […]