#democraticclassroom

If I’m going, to be honest, I have to admit that democracy is a topic I have never given much thought to. Prior to watching the documentary called What is Democracy? by Astra Taylor, I’d say the only thing I knew was that democracy is a system used to dictate politics and allow citizens to vote for the platforms that they believe will make their country better. I find the topic of politics to be a messy and intimidating place to explore. I dislike the dualities and extremes that exist within politics and the tension that it can create between people. 

When it comes to voting in a democratic society, I have witnessed the hearing of two sides that people often hold. One side is the belief people have that voting won’t make a difference and the other side is that voting is crucial to being an active citizen. In the middle, I assume there lie folks who are just uneducated and even uninterested. If I take a look at my own involvement in politics and democracy, I can remember only a handful of times that I have voted in the past ten years. Mostly because of a mix of the things I mentioned above.

Although in the past I may not have actively sought out information on local politics or global politics, I have always been someone who when presented the information through education or conversations with others, shows interest in listening and learning. Sometimes this has led me to do further research of my own to further educate myself on certain topics and other times I was happy to listen and learn at that moment, but not interested enough to go deeper. 

Throughout the film What is Democracy? it’s discussed that democracy is supposed to protect the well-being of all people, both rich and poor, and provide justice for everyone but in reality, many people are being left out, especially people of color. And that voter suppression is a real thing. This made me reflect on Canada’s democracy and voting rights. The requirements say you must have proof of legal Canadian citizenship, be of 18 years of age and show ‘acceptable’ proof of identity and address. This excludes those who are permanent residents of Canada and who contribute to the economy and society. I read further about voter suppression affecting Indigenous citizens of Canada's accessibility to voting poll stations. To me, these two examples aren’t at all inclusive of what democracy should be. 

As I become more aware of political issues and further my understanding of what democracy is, I am beginning to think about what this means in relation to the education system and my part in it. If democracy is to be defined as it was discussed in Astra Taylor’s film: Protecting the well being and justice for all people; then I feel as an educator it is beneficial to bring democracy into the classroom and build a democratic envrionment where all students voices are equally heard and supported. An article from Edutopia talks about a democratic classroom as a safe and inclusive place that is co-constructed and promotes social responsibility and engagement with oneself and others. I feel that this kind of environment fosters many positive characteristics that tie in with Dewey’s ideas on progressive education; self-expression, growth, positive relationships, collaborative learning and community building. And this is the type of environment I hope to support as a future educator.