Civics & Citizenship - Learning about democracy Wk 2
In this unit we are exploring all things democracy...
As a nation, Australia aims for all young people to become
active and informed citizens (Ministerial Council
on Education, Employment, Training and Youth Affairs [MCEETYA], 2008).
Civic and Citizenship Education (CCE) is an integral part of the Australian
Curriculum as it provides students with the knowledge, skills and experiences required to be
active and empowered citizens in Australia’s democratic society and globally (Tudball, 2010).
5L will explore the following:
Through videos, researching websites, class discussion, concept maps, worksheets and class activities students will; learn what democracy is, explore the key values of a democratic system, explore the freedoms and responsibilities of living in a democracy, and examine the roles and responsibilities of the three levels of government. They will experience the preferential voting system through a class vote activity, they will uncover the difference between rules and laws, why we have laws, and the people involved. Students will then work together to inform or make a change in the school or community of an issue that is important to them. It could be shade covers on the playgrounds at the local park, etc.
Below are some of the activities children
will complete.
Students will use the concept map in the first lesson, which
we will revisit later in the unit. This will show how their understanding and
knowledge of democracy has developed.
(Parliamentary Education Office, 2018)
(For Teachers For Students, 2017a) (For Teachers For Students, 2017b)
This unit also links to the English curriculum, the General
Capabilities of; ICT, critical and creative thinking, personal and social
capability, ethical understanding, and potentially Cross Curricular priorities
depending on what issue students choose to address.
At the end of this unit, students will be able to:
v
Understand
the processes of Australia’s legal system and the key players in a democracy
v
Locate
and collect information
v
Interpret
information
v
Work
effectively in groups
v
Identify
a local issue and plan for action to find a solution
v
Use
and understand citizenship concepts and terminology
How can you support your child’s learning?
Where possible give them the chance to make some decisions and argue their points. This is known as democratic parenting.
It could be something as small as picking a movie or deciding what is for dinner.
The Family Education (2018) website offers some helpful ideas on how to
incorporate democracy in your home. https://www.familyeducation.com/life/parent-child-relationships/democracy-begins-home
The Australian Electoral Commission (2019) website is a
wealth of knowledge for democracy information. https://education.aec.gov.au/
Thank you for reading and if you have anything you would
like to discuss please come and see me.
Lara
References
Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority.
[ACARA] (2016,
December 16). The Australian curriculum: Civics and Citizenship (Version 8.3).
All year levels. Retrieved from
December 16). The Australian curriculum: Civics and Citizenship (Version 8.3).
All year levels. Retrieved from
Australian Electoral Commission (2019). AEC for schools. Retrieved from
Family Education (2018). Democracy
begins at home. Retrieved from
For Teacher For Students (2017). Democracy Down Under. Retrieved from
Ministerial Council on Education, Employment,
Training and Youth Affairs
[MCEETYA].
(2008). Melbourne declaration on educational goals for young
Australians. Retrieved from
Parliamentary Education Office [PEO]. (2018). Year 5 Unit: Concept map [Image].
Retrieved from
Retrieved from
Tudball, L. (2010). Putting civics and citizenship education back on the
education
agenda : Responding to global imperatives and learning from international
research. Social Educator, 28(3). Retrieved from
agenda : Responding to global imperatives and learning from international
research. Social Educator, 28(3). Retrieved from
Hey, Lana, what a wonderful blog, I love the overall appearance of it. Your images show what activities your students will complete in class to parents and guardians. This definitely will present a link to allow parents to be involved in their child's education.
ReplyDeleteI feel that in which you have structured your text you have used language which some parents might not understand or feel is to complicated to read leading them to become un-engaged in reading the blog. Love the activities too, very appropriate for grade 5. Just a thought, what would you do for students who might not be able to complete the tasks? Definitely going to see if I can use them in my future career as a teacher.
Alex J
Hi Lara,
ReplyDeleteThank-you for sharing your blog with me :) I really enjoyed reading your blog, your writing is strong and relevant to the topic.
I really like your presentation, examples of graphic organisers, activities and connections to General Capabilities.
I agree with Alex that you have approached this blog in an assessment manner and asking parents to refer to the Australian Curriculum may be to much (Do you remember looking at this document for the first time OVERWHELMING!).
Great first draft and I commend you on offering supportive webpages for parents to visit.
Well done Lara and I look forward to working with you :)
Thanks Kim
Thank-you for sharing your AT1.1 blog draft with me Lara! I really enjoyed reading your blog and your writing is very engaging, on topic and I commend you on this.
ReplyDeleteI feel you have addressed all requirements outlined in the task description and assessment rubric. I have made comments throughout your draft highlighting a thorough description of purpose-knowledge and skill outcomes, pedagogy approaches, linking the unit to the curriculum, graphic organizers and supporting web sites.
The main three points that I will mention is have you considered your target audience? As a pre-service teacher I fully understand your unit but I wonder if parents would have the same knowledge. I think briefly mentioning the curriculum is fine but asking parents to refer to the document is a large ask considering the diversity of Parents/Carer.
Secondly, I can not hear your voice throughout parts of your blog. I feel it is overshadowed by all the direct and indirect quotations. I am a parent and if I communicate with my child’s teacher via a blog, I want to connect with you more on a personal/professional level (I hope that makes sense? Not just professional). You have put together an amazing unit of work Lara! I want you to tell me about it not refer to the curriculum. I trust you as my child’s teacher that you are for filling the requirements of the curriculum.
Lastly, you might want to check that you have not exceeded the 10% direct quotations limit.
Overall, your draft blog post is thorough and purposeful. I hope my feedback is helpful and I look forward to reading your next blog.
Thanks Kim 😊