tag:theconversation.com,2011:/global/topics/democratic-education-9691/articlesDemocratic education – The Conversation2021-06-13T11:27:32Ztag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1617952021-06-13T11:27:32Z2021-06-13T11:27:32ZThe problem with online learning? It doesn’t teach people to think<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/405726/original/file-20210610-13-1fe9gcl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C377%2C6306%2C3813&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Instead of asking how universities might benefit from shifting courses online permanently, we ought to ask how students might suffer from fewer opportunities for lived experience and practice.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Shutterstock)</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>The modern research university was designed <a href="https://www.economist.com/special-report/1997/10/02/inside-the-knowledge-factory">to produce new knowledge</a> and to pass that knowledge on to students. North American universities over the last 100 years have been exceptionally good at that task. </p>
<p>But this is not all that universities can do or should do. The COVID-19 pandemic has made it even easier to reduce <a href="https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2020/04/coronavirus-education-global-covid19-online-digital-learning/">teaching to knowledge dissemination</a> and to obscure other, equally important, forms of education that help students be better citizens, thinkers, writers and collaborators. </p>
<p>These other forms of education are the cornerstone of human flourishing and democratic participation.</p>
<p>This is a problem.</p>
<h2>Practical wisdom</h2>
<p>The Ancient Greeks relied on a distinction between <a href="https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/episteme-techne/#:%7E:text=Epist%C3%AAm%C3%AA%20is%20the%20Greek%20word,as%20either%20craft%20or%20art.&text=At%20the%20other%20end%20of,must%20be%20learned%20by%20practice.">“knowing-that” (<em>episteme</em>) and “knowing-how” (<em>techne</em>)</a>. This was the difference between an abstract body of theoretical knowledge about an area of interest and the practical wisdom necessary to carry out a specific task. </p>
<p>In music, for instance, we might call this the difference between knowing what pitch means, what notes are or the other aspects of music theory that help explain how to play — and knowing how to play an instrument like the piano really well. </p>
<figure class="align-right ">
<img alt="Students stand in a line on campus wearing face masks." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/405769/original/file-20210610-27-1dj9yc6.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/405769/original/file-20210610-27-1dj9yc6.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=900&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/405769/original/file-20210610-27-1dj9yc6.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=900&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/405769/original/file-20210610-27-1dj9yc6.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=900&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/405769/original/file-20210610-27-1dj9yc6.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1131&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/405769/original/file-20210610-27-1dj9yc6.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1131&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/405769/original/file-20210610-27-1dj9yc6.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1131&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Students at Western University wait for a COVID-19 test in London, Ont., in September 2020.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">THE CANADIAN PRESS/Geoff Robins</span></span>
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</figure>
<p>For American philosopher <a href="https://www.toolshero.com/change-management/john-dewey-theory/">John Dewey</a>, this amounts to the difference between an education that focuses on information and an education that focuses on habits of thinking and deliberation.</p>
<p>In <em><a href="https://books.google.ca/books/about/How_We_Think.html?id=6-fof53Kq00C&redir_esc=y">How We Think</a></em> and <em><a href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/852/852-h/852-h.htm">Democracy and Education</a></em>, Dewey prioritized teaching how to solve problems over bodies of knowledge because he knew that improved thinking skills would produce better outcomes for students and for public life. </p>
<p>Dewey believed that acquiring knowing-how habits, like critical thinking, problem-solving and close reading, required interaction and imitation. The practices of reading, speaking and thinking were all intertwined for Dewey, and all required practice and reflection. Practising these related skills would improve our decision-making, as individuals and as communities.</p>
<p>The kind of imitation he had in mind — people imitating each other — is impossible in a remote setting. </p>
<p>Dewey also thought curiosity, along with a recognition of, and confrontation with, real problems set people in the direction of improved thinking. These were modelled by teachers through engagement and interaction with students. </p>
<p><em>How We Think</em> also argues that teaching students habits of using language for the purposes of persuasion is a central part of education. This drew Dewey’s work quite close to classical conceptions of rhetoric, or the teaching of how to speak and write effectively (including the emphasis on <a href="http://rhetoric.byu.edu/Pedagogy/Imitation.htm">imitation</a> as central to mastering the <em>techne</em> of communication). </p>
<p>These commitments were necessarily embodied in live practice in the classroom.</p>
<h2>Know-how compromised online</h2>
<p>The modern research university, since the late 19th century, has tended to prioritize “knowing-that” over “knowing-how” in a wide range of different disciplines (despite Dewey’s attempt to articulate an alternative). </p>
<p>Urban studies and planning professor <a href="https://archivesspace.mit.edu/repositories/2/resources/1026">Donald Schon’s work</a> at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology on <a href="https://www.routledge.com/The-Reflective-Practitioner-How-Professionals-Think-in-Action/Schon/p/book/9781857423198">reflective practice</a> was an attempt to correct this over-emphasis and apply Dewey’s approach to contemporary curricula. But the emphasis on “knowing-that” persists. </p>
<p>Remote learning is well suited to the kinds of education that focus on abstract theoretical knowledge and not “know-how.” And this is exactly the problem with those forms of learning — and why we ought to resist being seduced by them.</p>
<p>Some researchers argue that the adequacy of online learning is demonstrated by the fact that a <a href="https://olj.onlinelearningconsortium.org/index.php/olj/article/view/887">cohort of students might achieve the same grades in an online setting</a> as in an in-person setting. This justifies the assumption that there <a href="https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1062940.pdf">is no significant difference in academic performance</a> between the two settings. </p>
<p>But my analysis of how people learn, grounded in rhetorical studies and Dewey’s emphasis on embodied and practical forms of democratic education, and also in my own experience administering a first-year seminar program in a faculty of arts, points to the fact that it is much harder to teach (and to assess) the “knowing-how” skills that will matter more to students’ future success. </p>
<p>These include learning outcomes like knowing how to analyze data, collaboration with peers, self-reflection and reading and writing. </p>
<h2>Drowning in specialized knowledge</h2>
<p><a href="https://www.insidehighered.com/blogs/technology-and-learning/6-attributes-academic-discipline">Specialized bodies of knowledge are everywhere now</a>, not just in lecture halls or within the ivy-covered walls of elite institutions. If you want knowledge about advanced python programming or mycology, you can find it online through a range of different media for free. This is why silicon valley gurus can <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/quora/2017/04/10/silicon-valleys-increasing-skepticism-about-the-value-of-a-college-education/?sh=7829e67e535b">question the value of a degree from an expensive university</a>. </p>
<p>The threat to the university is this: boundless “knowing-that” is readily and easily available to any student because of the very same media that have made the transition to remote teaching easy. But the same is not true for the lived experience required for developing “knowing-how” habits and practices.</p>
<p>As we drown in ever-increasing amounts of available knowledge, our “knowing-how” forms of wisdom continue to suffer. This is true for elementary school students that need school to learn how to navigate social relationships and for university students trying to learn how to use the scientific method or perform a critical, close reading of a poem.</p>
<h2>Careful and close readings</h2>
<p>To teach a student how to carefully read a text, for example, is a responsibility of the university. But this feels unlikely in remote learning environments. Dewey’s focus on the importance of the interaction between student and teacher, the modelling and imitation of habits of thinking and the necessity of creative and collaborative problem solving in the classroom are all made more difficult in a remote setting. </p>
<p>An isolated 18-year-old, staring at a computer, can learn what a text is supposed to mean but will have a much harder time learning how to perform a careful interpretation. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Two students sit in grass with laptops studying next to each other outdoors." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/405768/original/file-20210610-19-tt8rm4.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/405768/original/file-20210610-19-tt8rm4.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/405768/original/file-20210610-19-tt8rm4.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/405768/original/file-20210610-19-tt8rm4.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/405768/original/file-20210610-19-tt8rm4.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/405768/original/file-20210610-19-tt8rm4.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/405768/original/file-20210610-19-tt8rm4.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Law students Hannah Cho and Justin Capocci study on laptops at Western University in London, Ont.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">THE CANADIAN PRESS/Geoff Robins</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>It is also one of the many “knowing-how” skills that seem so broadly absent in our public culture. Close reading is akin to close listening, which is a requirement of collaboration and a precursor to self-reflection. Journalist Kate Murphy’s <em><a href="https://us.macmillan.com/books/9781250297198">You’re Not Listening</a></em> shows just how complex the embodied task of reading someone else can be and how important listening and reading are for success in all fields. </p>
<h2>What we ought to ask</h2>
<p>Instead of asking how universities might benefit from shifting courses and curricula online permanently, we ought to be asking how students might suffer from fewer opportunities to focus on “knowing-how” and ever-greater commitments to “knowing-that.”</p>
<p>The pandemic has shown that we need finer, more well-honed and well-practised “knowing-how” skills. Skills like: asking thoughtful questions, finding new evidence, testing hypotheses, <a href="https://www.sec-ed.co.uk/best-practice/communication-and-collaboration-skills/">collaborating with diverse others</a>, critically evaluating data or evidence, performing analysis of source material and designing new methods of evaluation. </p>
<p>These forms of wrestling and questioning are largely lost online. They get easily replaced with rote information processing. We should worry about the outcomes associated with that shift.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/161795/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Robert Danisch receives funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada. </span></em></p>We ought to worry that the pandemic has made it even easier to reduce teaching to disseminating knowledge.Robert Danisch, Professor, Department of Communication Arts, University of WaterlooLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1219582019-10-02T10:56:47Z2019-10-02T10:56:47ZDemocracy in crisis – unshackle schools from test results to give children the chance to form opinions<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/293596/original/file-20190923-54759-137vzzt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=38%2C44%2C4211%2C2758&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/download/success?u=http%3A%2F%2Fdownload.shutterstock.com%2Fgatekeeper%2FW3siZSI6MTU2OTI3MTY4MCwiYyI6Il9waG90b19zZXNzaW9uX2lkIiwiZGMiOiJpZGxfNjIxNTkyNTgwIiwiayI6InBob3RvLzYyMTU5MjU4MC9odWdlLmpwZyIsIm0iOjEsImQiOiJzaHV0dGVyc3RvY2stbWVkaWEifSwiUmxYRElyL2VsR1V2cDZ2ZmlGSlJUakQ1dzJrIl0%2Fshutterstock_621592580.jpg&pi=33421636&m=621592580&src=np75_V1uCM1w60SrpDscHw-1-1">Shutterstock/Melting Spot</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>If <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/the-global-crisis-of-democracy-11558105463">political headlines globally</a> are anything to go by, it seems democracy is at risk. Totalitarian views are <a href="https://institute.global/insight/renewing-centre/renewing-centre-topics">on the rise</a>. Far-right parties and leaders <a href="https://theconversation.com/debate-the-rise-of-the-global-rejectionist-party-95576">have gained voters in many countries</a>. And decisions are being made by <a href="https://theconversation.com/is-boris-johnsons-prorogation-legal-why-scottish-and-english-judges-dont-agree-and-why-it-matters-123542">law courts</a> or by <a href="https://www.ucl.ac.uk/european-institute/analysis/2014-15/attack-on-greek-democracy">technical experts</a> from international economic organisations. And people, particularly young people, feel <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/0305764X.2017.1337719">they do not have a say</a>. So it’s not surprising then that governments are turning their attention to <a href="https://publications.europa.eu/en/publication-detail/-/publication/e0f2801c-184c-11e8-ac73-01aa75ed71a1/language-en">schools as a potential cure</a>. </p>
<p>Promoting democracy has always been one of the tasks of schools within democratic systems. But this demand is now on the rise. Indeed, <a href="https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1007%2F978-3-319-73963-2_2.pdf">across the globe</a> teachers in schools are expected to engage students as democratic citizens. It’s hoped such lessons about democracy and what it is to be a good citizen will help to combat growing support for <a href="https://ec.europa.eu/programmes/erasmus-plus/sites/erasmusplus/files/library/fact-sheet-post-paris_en.pdf">totalitarian</a> and <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/news/guidance-on-promoting-british-values-in-schools-published">radical views</a>. </p>
<h2>Wanted: democratic education</h2>
<p>In <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.3102/0034654319862493">my research</a>, I have examined more than 370 academic articles about democratic education. My analysis shows there is much disagreement, even among academics, as to both what democracy means as well as how to educate children and young people into democratic values. </p>
<p>But even despite these disagreements, most researchers agree on something: when students discuss and evaluate viewpoints on topics such as as <a href="https://www.oxfam.org.uk/education/resources/teaching-controversial-issues">globalisation</a> or <a href="https://www.ase.org.uk/resources/teaching-controversial-issues">evolution</a> not only do they learn more about geography or science but they also discover that their voice matters.</p>
<p>Indeed, when topics such as <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/berj.3331">patriotism</a> or <a href="https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1057%2F978-1-137-59733-5_29">historical conflicts</a> are presented as ideas to be debated rather than facts to be learnt, students have time to form opinions and democracy benefits.</p>
<p>Schools can also help to promote democracy when students, parents and teachers are involved in making decisions. At some schools <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/1746197909353567">in Brazil</a>, for example, members of the school community democratically agree on school rules, curriculum and procedures. But limited time and space for controversy and participatory decisions in schools restricts this process – and this needs to change.</p>
<h2>Teaching to the test</h2>
<p>Part of the problem is that in recent decades, there has been an increasing insistence on standardised tests. Even four year olds in England now <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/education/2019/jul/23/testing-four-year-olds-begins-september-parents-in-dark-schools">sit a test</a> in the first ten weeks of school. Most teachers are against this. But as they want their students to do “well”, they end up <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/00131880902891479">teaching to the test</a>. As a consequence, students learn there is a single correct answer for everything, including politics and democracy.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/293602/original/file-20190923-54749-1ahxqug.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/293602/original/file-20190923-54749-1ahxqug.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/293602/original/file-20190923-54749-1ahxqug.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/293602/original/file-20190923-54749-1ahxqug.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/293602/original/file-20190923-54749-1ahxqug.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/293602/original/file-20190923-54749-1ahxqug.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/293602/original/file-20190923-54749-1ahxqug.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Young people need space to discuss and debate topics without worrying about marks or grades.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/download/success?u=http%3A%2F%2Fdownload.shutterstock.com%2Fgatekeeper%2FW3siZSI6MTU2OTI3MjQ4NCwiYyI6Il9waG90b19zZXNzaW9uX2lkIiwiZGMiOiJpZGxfNzc0MTcxMzU4IiwiayI6InBob3RvLzc3NDE3MTM1OC9odWdlLmpwZyIsIm0iOjEsImQiOiJzaHV0dGVyc3RvY2stbWVkaWEifSwiaVExaGVtdXNvaXBBMjFXSTF5bHRHRGs1b01JIl0%2Fshutterstock_774171358.jpg&pi=33421636&m=774171358&src=K5DftEGFwN7kc4oy8MEdMA-1-7">Shutterstock/Monkey Business Images</a></span>
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<p>At the same time as a move towards standardised tests, policymakers worldwide have also pushed for the <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/1477878511409622?casa_token=FTey77pj2IEAAAAA:H7qfs-JL3HrB8iMEHRvvu6qp0d0NM2bIsAD5RhRv4fQgIXMWkdMwLWD9ivcGiD3YDTyFPntmtp0K">constant evaluations</a> of schools themselves. Parents, teachers and students do not discuss school rules, curriculum and procedures that better benefit their community. Instead, they discuss how to respond to <a href="http://file.scirp.org/pdf/CE_2015032414335801.pdf">national and international standards</a> decided upon elsewhere – often by <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1002/berj.3120?casa_token=AGeW_57AzIMAAAAA:4kDjSvnp9stIJEnVhSUt7Hr0gvBsLzXKvpiyWWGqtltgOFA6d0J0zoUemRsrL6OAF5S0TZ3k3U0ZKg">experts from economic organisations</a>. </p>
<p>And these standards are the same for everybody – <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/profile/David_Meens/publication/304580932_meens_howe_NCLB_and_Its_Wake_Bad_News_for_Democracy/links/577415f208aead7ba06e5f3b/meens-howe-NCLB-and-Its-Wake-Bad-News-for-Democracy.pdf">top-down</a>. Meaning that there is no space, time and possibilities for participatory decision making – mainly because there is a more immediate need to be accountable to institutions and their experts. </p>
<h2>A democratic cure?</h2>
<p>Education is not a universal solver. It cannot be seen as a cure all for society because it is part of society. But schools can also be good places to begin the fights to “save” democracies from going into crisis. </p>
<p>Schools have the potential to educate new generations into democratic values. And they are secure places where children and young people can <a href="https://books.google.co.uk/books/about/Radical_Education_and_the_Common_School.html?id=IPBrPgAACAAJ">experiment what it is to be be democratic</a>. Schools can also allow children and young people to learn to agree and disagree – and to defend their views and reach solutions to everyday problems. </p>
<p>It’s clear then that if societies seriously want to promote democracy, the solution is not (only) to teach about democracy and about good citizenship. Governments and policymakers need to give schools the freedom, space and time needed for activities outside of tests, exams and evaluations, so children can see, experience and practice democracy for themselves.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/121958/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Edda Sant does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>When ideas are presented as topics to be debated, rather than as facts to be learnt, students and democracy benefit.Edda Sant, Senior Lecturer in Education Studies, Manchester Metropolitan UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1082582018-12-05T23:40:07Z2018-12-05T23:40:07ZStudent protests show Australian education does get some things right<p>Australia’s education system often suffers a barrage of criticism – claims of <a href="https://theconversation.com/naplan-2018-summary-results-a-few-weeks-late-but-otherwise-little-change-from-previous-years-102096">stagnant or declining NAPLAN results</a>, slippage in <a href="https://theconversation.com/pisa-results-dont-look-good-but-before-we-panic-lets-look-at-what-we-can-learn-from-the-latest-test-69470">international comparisons and rankings</a>, and an irrelevant curriculum, tend to draw the attention of politicians, the media, and the Australian public. </p>
<p>It’s not often we are able to celebrate what’s right in Australia’s education system. But yesterday’s student presence at Parliament house and Friday’s protests where more than 15,OOO Australian students skipped class to demand greater action on climate change should be cause for celebration.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/the-world-needs-a-new-generation-of-citizen-lobbyists-84354">The world needs a new generation of citizen lobbyists</a>
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<p>Far from being concerned about an afternoon off school, parents should feel satisfied schools and teachers are doing their job. Participation in these protests meets many of the key goals of our current education system, including students’ <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/000494410004400205?journalCode=aeda&fbclid=IwAR362y9QhTYqoueJlMKsThvBF1c9QWK1tX877lTZvz36-R1OerI8nb_9qX0&">capacity to engage in, and strengthen, democracy</a>. Rather than proof of a flawed education system, politically active and engaged students are evidence many aspects of our education system are working well.</p>
<h2>Students want action on climate change</h2>
<p>Protests called out the federal government’s lack of action on climate change during the protests. Wednesday’s parliament house rally specifically targeted the <a href="https://theconversation.com/adanis-new-mini-version-of-its-mega-mine-still-faces-some-big-hurdles-108038">Adani coal mine</a> project. Students were also seeking an audience with the prime minister to have their concerns heard.</p>
<p>The government’s response to these protests has been, at best, dismissive. Students’ actions have not been recognised as a genuine attempt to engage in robust democratic debate about climate change. Before Friday’s walk-out, Scott Morrison relegated students to the confines of their classrooms, “what we want”, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2018/nov/26/scott-morrison-tells-students-striking-over-climate-change-to-be-less-activist">he argued</a>, “is more learning in schools and less activism”. </p>
<p>Other members of government have been equally off-hand. Senator James McGrath was more concerned with <a href="https://www.theage.com.au/politics/federal/rioting-is-not-one-of-the-three-rs-liberals-say-protesting-students-should-give-up-ice-creams-20181201-p50jmf.html?platform=hootsuite">a spelling error</a> on a single student’s placard than the basis of their grievance. Resources minister Matt Canavan deemed protests as nothing more than a quick ticket “<a href="https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/climate-change-protest-will-lead-to-dole-queue-minister-tells-students-20181130-p50jbt.html">to the dole queue</a>”.</p>
<p>The government’s response is both misinformed and misdirected. Beyond the obvious lack of recognition of political protest as a fundamental pillar of democracy, and <a href="https://www.ohchr.org/EN/Issues/Pages/EqualParticipation.aspx">means to political change</a>, it also demonstrates a lack of recognition of the goals of Australian schooling, as outlined in our <a href="http://www.curriculum.edu.au/verve/_resources/national_declaration_on_the_educational_goals_for_young_australians.pdf">Melbourne Declaration</a>. </p>
<h2>The Melbourne Declaration and the role of education</h2>
<p>The <a href="http://www.curriculum.edu.au/verve/_resources/national_declaration_on_the_educational_goals_for_young_australians.pdf">Melbourne Declaration on Educational Goals for Young Australians</a> is a document signed by all Australian education ministers which outlines the mandated knowledge, skills and values of schooling for the period 2009-2018. The declaration is a national road map for education and a statement of intent by both federal and state governments, across partisan lines. </p>
<p>The declaration outlines two key goals:</p>
<ol>
<li> Australian schooling promotes both equity and excellence</li>
<li> all young Australians become: successful learners, confident and creative individuals, and active and informed citizens</li>
</ol>
<p>It’s the first goal that gathers public attention as excellence and equity, in the form of measurable academic outcomes, dominates public discussion (think NAPLAN, My School, and PISA). More often than not, we’re told it’s here we’re getting things <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-12-13/australian-school-results-money-inequality/8103250">wrong</a>.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/the-melbourne-declaration-on-educational-goals-for-young-australians-what-it-is-and-why-it-needs-updating-107895">The Melbourne Declaration on Educational Goals for Young Australians: what it is and why it needs updating</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
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<p>In the second goal, the declaration attends to the broad purpose and significance of education. That is, the <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1080/17508487.2013.776990">democratic purpose</a> of education, as an avenue for students’ successful participation in civil society. If events of the last week are anything to go by, our students are all over goal two.</p>
<p>Sustainability is a stated priority in the <a href="http://www.acara.edu.au/curriculum/cross-curriculum-priorities">Australian curriculum</a>. Beyond understanding sustainable patterns of living and impacts of climate change, students are expected to develop skills to inform and persuade others to take action. Through these protests, relevant sections of the Melbourne Declaration read like a tick-list of student achievement. Students have demonstrated:</p>
<ul>
<li> the ability to think deeply and logically, and obtain and evaluate evidence</li>
<li> creativity, innovation, and resourcefulness</li>
<li> the ability to to plan activities independently, collaborate, work in teams and communicate ideas</li>
<li> enterprise and initiative to use their creative abilities</li>
<li> preparation for their roles as community members</li>
<li> the ability to embrace opportunities and make rational and informed decisions about their own lives</li>
<li> a commitment to participate in Australia’s civic life</li>
<li> ability to work for the common good, to sustain and improve natural and social environments</li>
<li> their place as responsible global and local citizens.</li>
</ul>
<p>The Melbourne Declaration is a recognition that education is more than a classroom test and more than measurable results. This is not to suggest the much lauded 3R’s (reading, writing and arithmetic) are not important in education - they are. Rather, it’s an understanding that education and learning is also, and importantly, social, and sometimes immeasurable in nature and practice.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/why-were-building-a-climate-change-game-for-12-year-olds-85983">Why we're building a climate change game for 12-year-olds</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>Australian students’ activities over the past week evidence their knowledge and capabilities in an education system valuing both economic and democratic functions of education. </p>
<p>Rather than dismiss students’ actions as ill-informed or misdirected, or deny their capacity to effectively participate in democratic processes, we should recognise their learning and achievements. Let’s celebrate this achievement in Australian education, and encourage their capacity as active and informed citizens within our democracy. </p>
<p>Australian students understand progress happens when individuals join together to demand change. Politicians, take heed.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/108258/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Far from proof of a flawed education system, politically active school students are evidence our education system is working well.Kellie Bousfield, Lecturer, Charles Sturt UniversityJacquie Tinkler, Lecturer, Charles Sturt UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/970752018-05-28T23:17:06Z2018-05-28T23:17:06ZUniversity funding debates should be broadened to reflect their democratic purpose<p>In 2017, Murdoch University successfully applied to the Fair Work Commission <a href="https://www.fwc.gov.au/document/decision/2017fwca4472">to terminate</a> its Enterprise Agreement. From the <a href="https://www.nteu.org.au/">National Tertiary Education Union</a>’s (NTEU) perspective this was an attack on <a href="http://www.nteu.org.au/article/The-Murdoch-Decision%3A-Termination-of-the-Murdoch-Agreement-%28Advocate-24-03%29-20138">staff salaries and conditions</a> and showed industrial relations law was deeply one-sided.</p>
<p>For university management having the agreement terminated was a legitimate industrial strategy, justified by a need for <a href="http://www.murdoch.edu.au/_document/AHEIA_sector_comms_piece.pdf">flexibility and cost containment</a>. The wider trade union movement supported the NTEU perspective. The Murdoch case contributed to the development of a much wider campaign: “<a href="https://changetherules.org.au/">Change the Rules</a>”. Changing the rules of industrial relations for better pay, fairer conditions and job security. Reversing the trend towards high rates of casualisation and low wage growth.</p>
<p>But the rules of the game, as far as universities are concerned, are set in a wider context. The context of what universities are for and what they are intended to achieve. While their economic purpose is reasonably clear, contemporary Australian policy debates focus primarily on <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-12-18/myefo-university-help-funding-frozen-and-caps-introduced/9268326">how and by whom their teaching is funded</a>. This diminishes understanding of universities’ democratic purpose and wider social mission.</p>
<h2>What is the university for?</h2>
<p>The principal polarising point in the university funding debate is whether <a href="https://campusmorningmail.com.au/birmingham-holds-the-funding-line-while-plibersek-sets-the-price-of-freedom-to-innovate/">demand or central planning</a> should determine the number of people taught. The second is the proportion of the cost that should be met by the state vis-à-vis the student. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/why-our-university-funding-debate-wouldnt-make-sense-to-germans-33077">Why our university funding debate wouldn't make sense to Germans</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>While a proportion of universities’ per student public funding must support research, the funding model’s general assumption is that universities are labour market production lines. Research policy debate is confined to the related ideal of <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/07294360120108340">“industry” purchasing university research</a> to reduce the contributions government must make to the cost of university research. Universities have an incentive to see research as simply a fund-raising activity. </p>
<p>These rules need to change in the interests of stronger democracy. Higher education’s current policy focus understates the idea of universities as public institutions serving a public good. Universities have important and essential contributions to make to democracy’s better functioning. The idea that <a href="https://scholar.harvard.edu/shleifer/files/democracy_final_jeg.pdf">democracy requires an educated population</a> is as old as democracy itself. </p>
<p>Research to support economic prosperity is important, but so is research to support public understanding and capacity to contribute to policy debates. Australia’s research <a href="http://www.arc.gov.au/sites/default/files/filedepot/Public/EI/EI_2018_Framework.pdf">Engagement and Impact</a> evaluation policy understates this by measuring engagement principally in terms of the economic value of relationships with research “end users”.</p>
<h2>Academic freedom</h2>
<p>The university’s most important strength is its intellectual independence, and the academic freedom that assures that independence. Research for government or for industry is not independent. This kind of consultancy work may be legitimate and important, but it ought not compromise the presumption that knowledge cannot fully advance, and the democratic system work as it should, unless research is ideologically independent. It must also be contestable and brought into the public domain for evaluation and debate, and to inform public opinion and decision-making. </p>
<p>There is a public good argument to fund knowledge creation for this democratic purpose, which means academic freedom must be defended at all costs. Yet the University of Melbourne, for example, took steps to weaken that essential characteristic of university research when it <a href="https://www.theage.com.au/national/victoria/university-of-melbourne-staff-to-strike-over-academic-freedom-20180502-p4zctp.html">proposed</a> removing from its Enterprise Agreement the commitment that its academics would “<a href="https://www.theage.com.au/national/victoria/university-of-melbourne-staff-to-strike-over-academic-freedom-20180502-p4zctp.html">engage in critical enquiry, intellectual discourse and public controversy without fear or favour</a>”. This suggests an institution willing to compromise its democratic mission. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/as-melbourne-university-staff-strike-over-academic-freedom-its-time-to-take-the-issue-seriously-96116">As Melbourne University staff strike over academic freedom, it's time to take the issue seriously</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>Academic freedom is important because evidence and reason matter to the formation of public opinion. They matter to the analysis of “fake news”, to counter-balancing an <a href="https://theconversation.com/mixed-media-how-australias-newspapers-became-locked-in-a-war-of-left-versus-right-79001">increasingly partisan</a> Australian private news media at the same time as financial support for the <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-05-08/budget-2018-abc-funding-frozen-in-$84-million-hit-bottom-line/9740690">national public broadcaster is being reduced</a>. </p>
<p>Research that is not independent, that is conducted <em>with</em> fear and favour, is unscholarly. It compromises intellectual integrity and ensures knowledge cannot be a public and democratic good. Research for public good and research sold for private benefit can co-exist, but the latter cannot override the public mission of a public institution.</p>
<p>Universities play an essential role in the development of vocational and professional skills for both the individual and the common good. But if this is all they do, if they are not independently and objectively discovering and disseminating new knowledge for the public good, a society is presuming ignorance as a substitute for robust democracy.</p>
<h2>Understanding power</h2>
<p>There is a <a href="https://theconversation.com/why-universities-must-defend-democracy-83481">public good argument</a> for people to graduate from university with a well-developed understanding of power. Where it comes from and why, who has it and why, and how one influences it for society’s betterment. Highly developed critical thinking skills, the ability to write clearly and present well-informed and reasoned arguments are essential to influencing power. They ought not be the skills of an elite who have the money to buy the time to read, think and deliberate. </p>
<p>This is partly an argument for raising the status and availability of a liberal arts education, either on its own or in conjunction with a professional or vocational degree so that the social imperative to ‘be’ something when you grow up is still satisfied: an idea inculcated in children even before they start school. </p>
<p>One may reasonably wish to be a nurse, a teacher or an accountant but one should also expect to be a citizen. A nurse should be able to contribute to health policy debate. A teacher ought to know more than what must be taught this week. An accountant should know the democratic and social context in which business operates.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/97075/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Dominic O'Sullivan does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Australian higher education policy debates focus primarily on how and by whom universities are funded. This diminishes understanding of universities’ democratic purpose and wider social mission.Dominic O'Sullivan, Associate Professor of Political Science, Charles Sturt UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/881312017-12-12T19:15:45Z2017-12-12T19:15:45ZSchools are not adequately preparing young Australians to participate in our democracy<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/198656/original/file-20171211-9386-g1ceyf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">As young Australians approach voting age they need simple, clear and practical instructions about the mechanics of how government works and how to vote. </span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Australia’s youth are <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2016/aug/12/young-people-are-more-politically-engaged-but-health-is-deteriorating-index">interested in politics</a> and <a href="https://theconversation.com/young-australians-are-engaged-in-political-issues-but-unsure-how-democracy-works-84360">are passionate about issues</a> but, unless we take note of the latest report into civics and citizenship education, their capacity to participate in democracy and shape society in future may be limited.</p>
<p>Since 2004, the National Assessment Program – Civics and Citizenship (<a href="https://www.nap.edu.au/nap-sample-assessments/civics-and-citizenship">NAP-CC</a>) has been administered every three years to a national sample of year six and ten students. It’s used to measure students’ level of knowledge about subjects including Australian government, judiciary and democratic processes, and explores their attitudes towards civic participation. </p>
<p>The 2016 NAP-CC report has just been released and the results show some concerning, but familiar, trends.</p>
<p>As with previous assessments, the percentage of Australian students achieving the proficient standard remains low. This is a point on a scale that represents what has been deemed as a challenging but reasonable expectation of student achievement for their year level. </p>
<p>The report shows 55% of year 6 students achieved at or above the standard. </p>
<p>More problematic is the fact the rate of year 10 students attaining this standard was just 38%. This is the lowest result on record.</p>
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<p><iframe id="cTttl" class="tc-infographic-datawrapper" src="https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/cTttl/3/" height="400px" width="100%" style="border: none" frameborder="0"></iframe></p>
<hr>
<h2>Civics and citizenship is a government priority</h2>
<p>Enhancing young people’s understanding of civics and citizenship has been a priority for <a href="http://www.curriculum.edu.au/verve/_resources/National_Declaration_on_the_Educational_Goals_for_Young_Australians.pdf">successive Australian governments</a>. </p>
<p>The <a href="http://v7-5.australiancurriculum.edu.au/humanities-and-social-sciences/civics-and-citizenship/curriculum/f-10?layout=3#page=3">Australian Curriculum: Civics and Citizenship</a> was developed in 2012/2013 to provide educators with tools to teach students about democracy and civic participation. This curriculum is delivered to students from Year 3 to Year 10. It’s based on the principle that informed and committed citizens will advance a robust democracy and schools play a vital role in preparing young people for the responsibilities of adult citizenship. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/national-curriculum-review-experts-respond-26913">National curriculum review: experts respond</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>This latest report into civics and citizenship education is the first opportunity for educators to see how students are performing under the new curriculum, and the results are disappointing. It shows by Year 10, Australian school students don’t possess the fundamentals deemed necessary to become active, informed citizens. </p>
<p>So what else should be done to help prepare our young people to participate in the democratic process?</p>
<h2>What do young people think?</h2>
<p>We have been undertaking research with recent school leavers aged 18 and 19 about their preparedness to participate in the Australian political process.</p>
<p>Many have told us they’re interested in political issues, but are uncertain about how the system works. </p>
<p>They also believe more could’ve been done to address this knowledge deficit while they were in school.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/young-australians-are-engaged-in-political-issues-but-unsure-how-democracy-works-84360">Young Australians are engaged in political issues, but unsure how democracy works</a>
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</em>
</p>
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<p>These high school graduates reported, while they could recall the subject being covered when they were in primary and early secondary school, they did not remember what had been taught. </p>
<p>The young people we spoke to suggested civics and citizenship education be extended through to Year 12. Interestingly, they wanted it to be viewed more as a life skill (similar to drug and alcohol education, for example) and not an academic subject. </p>
<p>They said young people need support when they’re approaching voting age and it would be useful for schools to assist with enrolment and provide basic information about the system of voting. </p>
<p>As one 18-year-old put it:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>The last time that my high school spoke about politics I was in Year 9. I was 14 years old. I’m not voting yet, it’s not relevant to me, I’m not even 16. I can’t even go to the doctors by myself. </p>
</blockquote>
<p>A simple and clear explanation in late high school would help alleviate the feelings of uncertainty first-time voters can experience when they go to cast a vote at the ballot box.</p>
<p>As another 18-year-old said about her peers:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>So many of my friends said to me, “which box do I tick?” and, “what do you mean I have to go above the line and below the line?”. Basic definitions and terminology is really important.</p>
</blockquote>
<h2>Where to from here?</h2>
<p>The 2016 National Assessment Program – Civics and Citizenship report tells us by Year 10, a majority of school students have little knowledge about Australian civics and democracy. This is concerning, especially as many students don’t encounter the topic later in high school, yet they will be required to vote when they turn 18.</p>
<p>We need to ensure all young people have the basic skills required to engage in Australia’s political process. As young Australians approach voting age they need simple, clear and practical instructions about the mechanics of how government works and how to vote. </p>
<p>School is the best place to teach this and it should be covered in the senior years. Doing so would help more young people become confident and empowered participants in Australia’s democracy.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/88131/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Zlatko Skrbis receives funding from The Australian Research Council. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jacqueline Laughland-Booy and Zareh Ghazarian do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Results from the latest report into civics and citizenship education show by the time students hit year ten, the majority of them have little knowledge about Australian civics and democracy.Zareh Ghazarian, Lecturer, School of Social Sciences, Monash UniversityJacqueline Laughland-Booy, Research Associate in Sociology, Monash UniversityZlatko Skrbis, Senior Pro Vice-Chancellor (Academic), Monash UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/246692014-07-06T21:42:13Z2014-07-06T21:42:13ZDemocratic schooling: teachers leave them kids alone<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/52335/original/tvhtkp2h-1403763342.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Imagine a school where every student has equal say with the teachers, principal and governors.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/naamansaar/3582991124">Flickr/Naaman Saar Stavy</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Imagine a school where the students have equal say with the teachers, principal and governors in all areas of school life. Their say is not limited to being school or house captain, prefect or a member of the Student Representative Council. They have the power to decide how the school runs, in some cases even to hire and fire staff. </p>
<p>Now imagine a school where students would be able to opt in or out of individual classes, to choose what and when they study, and could decide which classes they attend. Theoretically, they could do any class they wanted on any given day and up and leave part way through if they wanted. However, they could still work towards a tertiary entrance score that would allow them to follow pathways into post-school education and training. </p>
<p>Welcome to the world of democratic schooling.</p>
<h2>What are democratic schools?</h2>
<p>Democratic schools exist in Australia. In Queensland, there is the <a href="http://www.pinecommunityschool.org/">Pine Community School</a>, the <a href="http://www.bis.org.au/">Brisbane Independent School</a>, <a href="http://www.maridahdi.qld.edu.au/">Maridahdi</a>, the <a href="http://orgs.tigweb.org/the-booroobin-sudbury-democratic-centre-of-learning/">Booroobin Sudbury School</a> and the <a href="http://www.brischool.com.au/wordpress/">Blackall Range Independent School</a>. In New South Wales, there’s <a href="http://www.currambena.nsw.edu.au/">Currambena</a> and <a href="http://www.kinma.nsw.edu.au/">Kinma</a>. Victoria has the <a href="http://www.hurstbridgelearningcoop.vic.edu.au/">Hurstbridge Learning Coop</a>, the <a href="http://www.sherbrooke.vic.edu.au/">Sherbrooke Community School</a> and <a href="http://www.villageschool.vic.edu.au/">Village Independent School</a>. </p>
<p>Most of these schools cater for primary to year 7 students. However several, including those in Victoria (Village and Sherbrooke) and in Queensland (Blackall Range), offer Prep to Year 12 education. </p>
<p>Students who attend these schools could, theoretically, never have to experience teachers having more say over their education than they do. They generally attempt to match children’s learning with the national curriculum. They do so not by testing the students, rather by looking at what the children are learning and making links to the curriculum documents.</p>
<p>These schools, like all “private schools”, are funded by federal government expenditure and private fees. Often, as these schools may not collect enough in fees, they engage in other fund-raising activities.</p>
<p>There are three types of democratic schools. Those modelled on the <a href="http://www.summerhillschool.co.uk/">Summerhill School</a> in the UK, <a href="http://www.sudval.org/">Sudbury Schools</a> modelled on those schools located in the Sudbury Valley, USA, and Anarchistic Free Schools (yes, from the word anarchy). The latter have not been without <a href="http://www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2013/01/the-strange-story-of-new-yorks-anarchist-school/266224/">controversy</a>. </p>
<p>While Democratic schools are philosophically different, they have more in common with the <a href="https://theconversation.com/unschooling-education-fad-or-real-alternative-12548">unschool movement</a> than they do with traditional, formal schools and are a <a href="http://studentliberation.com/pdfs/Summerhill.pdf">reaction</a> to those schools. Daily life in the classrooms varies and is determined by the <a href="http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=c_1ne8WJUvI">children’s interests</a>. Some schools hold a weekly meeting with the children to vote on the week’s activities and focus.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/53016/original/2m7yggqv-1404447534.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/53016/original/2m7yggqv-1404447534.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/53016/original/2m7yggqv-1404447534.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=410&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/53016/original/2m7yggqv-1404447534.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=410&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/53016/original/2m7yggqv-1404447534.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=410&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/53016/original/2m7yggqv-1404447534.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=515&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/53016/original/2m7yggqv-1404447534.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=515&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/53016/original/2m7yggqv-1404447534.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=515&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">Don’t want to go to school today? Well, you don’t have to.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/naamansaar/2604482861">Flickr/Namaan Saar Stavy</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span>
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<h2>The history of democratic schools</h2>
<p>Possibly the most famous democratic school, and the oldest, is <a href="http://www.summerhillschool.co.uk/about.php">Summerhill School</a> in the UK. It was started by <a href="http://www.summerhillschool.co.uk/asneill.php">AS Neil</a> in <a href="http://www.summerhillschool.co.uk/history.php">1921</a> in <a href="https://www.google.com.au/maps/place/Summerhill+School/@52.211178,1.572825,11z/data=!4m2!3m1!1s0x0:0x40c73a81244d78bc">Suffolk</a>. One of the reasons this school is famous is because of its fight with the UK government. </p>
<p>In 2000, the Department for Education and Employment threatened the school with closure because its Office for Standards in Education inspection was damning. The inspectors demanded major changes to the philosophy that governed the school. Specifically, they did not support the “free child” philosophy of the school and wanted to impose more control over the students.</p>
<p>The school developed a <a href="http://www.summerhillschool.co.uk/summerhills-fight.php">concerted</a> campaign to save itself and wound up at the Royal Courts of Justice in London. It is now the only school with an inspection process that includes staff and student input.</p>
<p>The Sudbury School is the most famous US example of a democratic school. The US has 35 Sudbury Schools and one is in the process of being established in <a href="https://www.facebook.com/SudburySchoolInSydney">Sydney</a>. The <a href="http://www.sudval.com/01_abou_09.html">first Sudbury School</a> was established in 1968 after a group of parents and educational experts decided to establish a school where the focus was on children establishing their own meanings through learning what they <a href="http://www.sudval.com/01_abou_01.html">wanted</a> to learn. The Sudbury Model <a href="http://edition.cnn.com/2011/US/08/03/unschooling.sudbury.education/">shares</a> much with the <a href="https://theconversation.com/unschooling-education-fad-or-real-alternative-12548">unschooling philosophy</a>.</p>
<h2>Benefits</h2>
<p><a href="http://www.jstor.org/discover/10.2307/1084948?uid=3737536&uid=2&uid=4&sid=21103763087627">Studies</a> suggest graduates of democratic schools are no less successful in tertiary education than their traditionally educated peers. One <a href="http://alternativestoschool.com/pdfs/The%20Hannam%20Report.pdf">report</a> on Sudbury Schools suggests graduates have a more positive attitude towards learning, enjoy study more than traditionally schooled peers and have higher self-esteem. </p>
<p>Another report suggests over <a href="http://sudburyschool.com/articles/sudbury-model-education">80%</a> of Sudbury alumni graduated from further education. Similarly, at Summerhill, a <a href="http://selfmanagedlearning.org/Summerhill/RepMain.htm#ViewPar">study</a> found 100% of parents strongly agreed that the school encouraged “children to get involved in more than just their daily lessons” and that it had a positive effect on students.</p>
<h2>Pitfalls</h2>
<p>One of the major problems has to be explaining the education to friends and family. Traditional education shares little in common with the free model espoused by democratic schools and, it must be imagined, people are perplexed by the system. I imagine many friends and relatives would sit somewhere on a spectrum from bemused to horrified.</p>
<p>Home educators often criticise these schools for trying to <a href="http://education.penelopetrunk.com/2013/08/26/democratic-schools-are-stupid/">unschool by proxy</a> and for failing to live up to their goals. Most of the democratic schools set up in the 1960s and 1970s <a href="http://www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2012/12/no-teachers-no-class-no-homework-would-you-send-your-kids-here/265354/">failed</a>.</p>
<h2>Do they work?</h2>
<p>Answering questions about whether they work implies comparisons between democratic and mainstream schools are possible. Comparing them is difficult as democratic schools don’t test their students. For example, Australian students enrolled in democratic schools would generally not take the NAPLAN tests that most students complete.</p>
<p>However, they offer a choice to parents looking for something different, and the campaign to open a Sudbury School in Sydney suggests we may be hearing more about democratic schools in the future.</p>
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<p>This is part of a series on Alternative Schooling. Read the other articles in the series <a href="https://theconversation.com/topics/alternative-schooling">here</a>. If you have any ideas on alternative types of schooling you’d like to know about, or write about, please contact <a href="mailto:alexandra.hansen@thconversation.edu.au">The Conversation.</a></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/24669/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Rebecca English does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Imagine a school where the students have equal say with the teachers, principal and governors in all areas of school life. Their say is not limited to being school or house captain, prefect or a member…Rebecca English, Lecturer in Education, Queensland University of TechnologyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.