NSW public schools will make teaching students about Australian democracy and the legal system mandatory.
The planned move is being made under a revised curriculum that aims to boost knowledge of our nation’s democratic systems – with children being introduced to lessons about this important part of Australian life as early as kindergarten.
A call for a consultation about the overhauled history and human society and its environment syllabuses was released on Monday 26 February and will be open for two weeks.
It will mandate that key events in federation, the Constitution, the development of constitutional law, voting and the significance of parliamentary democracy, will all become part of learning for Australian school students.
Currently, unless students elect to study commerce in years nine and 10, students can complete their secondary school education without any meaningful knowledge about the basics of Australia’s democratic system.
Before questioning democracy, it’s important to understand it
The shakeup comes at a time when a growing number of Australians are questioning whether democracy is the best system for governing a country, with a study from Canberra’s Australian National University (ANU) revealing one in seven Australian adults believe “we should get rid of elections and parliaments and have experts make decisions on behalf of the people”.
The changes to the syllabus will see kindergarten students learn how people are connected to places and groups, with students at primary school progressing to study national symbols and emblems in Australia in years one and two. Students in those year levels will also learn about how participating in the community contributes to a shared sense of identity.
For students in years five and six, learning about the origins and features of Australia’s democratic system, such as the concept of the rule of law, and the Australian parliamentary system, will be covered.
They will also learn the purpose of the Australian constitution and the origin of the principle that all people are equal before the law and must obey the law.
Training for teachers is needed to roll-out changes
Australia: making a nation was previously an optional topic that will be mandatory and help students in years nine and 10 students gain an understanding of how democracy – and the Australian legal system – functions.
Sally Layson is Rule of Law Education Centre chief executive and says she welcomes the fact teaching these core foundations of Australian society will be explicit and compulsory in years nine and 10 because it allows students to further develop their understanding of legal and democratic systems.
But she also believes that expecting young teachers to teach it effectively will require some support and training.
“The point we’re really pushing with (NSW) education minister Prue Car [is] we think there should be a dedicated unit in teacher education degrees because it hasn’t been in the curriculum since 2012,” Ms Layson says.
“If you put it in the history syllabus, teachers have got to really know it. Teachers want to teach it well … Teachers in their late 20s, early 30s, they haven’t learned it, and we need to train them well for it to be effective.”
