The Democracy and Values Education Section within the Education Division recently presented the Council of Europe's document Democratic Governance Of Schools to college coordinators with the aim of getting this tool into all schools.
The objective is to help school leaders analyse and evaluate the current position regarding the principles of democracy. The section is also drafting guidelines to help schools formulate a Democratic Citizenship School Policy.
Josephine Vassallo, education officer on democracy and values education, explained how this document will help schools understand how they contribute to their students' education, and therefore how they prepare their students for adult citizenship in democracy, from the everyday running of a school, to the ways people behave in it.
The document emphasises the three main principles of democracy - active participation, pluralism and valuing diversity, and human rights values - and outlines key areas of school governance. This is also in line with the requirements of the National Minimum Curriculum.
The initiative forms part of a wider project to create Democratic Citizenship Schools, based on a Council of Europe project entitled Education for Democratic Citizenship (EDC) and Human Rights Education (HRE), a lifelong learning process of practices and activities which equip young people and adults to play an active role in democratic life and exercise their rights and responsibilities in society. The manual, The Democratic Governance Of Schools, is the result of the project entering its third phase of implementing theory into practice, placing a special emphasis on social inclusion and respect for human rights.
Some schools have already developed their school plans to become Democratic Citizenship Schools. One of them is Dun Guzepp Zammit Brighella Boys' Junior Lyceum of Hamrun, whose students took part in various activities, including Eko-Skola, Clean Up the World campaign, a visit to the law courts, and the commemorations of World Aids Day, World Holocaust Day, and the EU's 50th anniversary.
In another school, St Theresa Girls' Junior Lyceum of Mriehel, students took an active part in the drafting of the school discipline policy, took part in Scoops, and have formed the Green Club which runs a recycling project.
Through their plan, these schools lay their emphasis on quality education for all students, identifying each of the stakeholders in the school and working on the role of each, Ms Vassallo explained. Students attending these schools are aware that they have a role in society and through being active participants in the decisions that are taken within and outside the school they can be role models and active citizens.
The initiatives undertaken by the schools are the result of the commitment shown by heads of schools and subject and link teachers who have integrated such activities within their teaching load. In October, college coordinators are expected to inform the education officer on the developments and their plans for the way forward to promote the democratic governance of school. This data will be shared at the Council of Europe National Coordinators' Meeting in Dublin in December.
"Children are no longer merely recipients of knowledge. Education is not just preparing children to become active citizens when they are older; it's about acknowledging that they are part of society, are aware of the world in which they live and are eager to take their place in it. Through learning and discussion, schoolchildren are already forming concepts of fairness and attitudes to the law, rules, decision-making, authority, their local environment and social responsibility. There are clear conceptual parallels between what happens in the political world and the events that children experience on a day-to-day basis in the classroom."
Ms Vassallo explained how the concept of citizenship ranged from normal day-to-day activities to more sensitive issues:
"From an early age, they are putting together their world view from an assortment of sources, so they need help to make sense of all this. Many issues arise in the world of children's everyday experiences, such as prejudice - calling each other names based on racial or cultural differences or because they just look/act differently; discrimination - excluding others from play or refusing to work with them; environmental awareness - using materials unwisely, wastefulness, dropping litter...
"Educators can help children develop the skills that will enable them to deal with them. It's an education which involves both the cognitive and experiential learning.
"We need to give children the experience to actively learn facts, concepts and events that are relevant.
"So the school ethos and classroom management ought to be based on the values of justice and democracy; it involves creating an experiential learning environment where children feel comfortable and confident enough to take part," Ms Vassallo said.
To download a copy of the manual Democratic Governance Of Schools, visit http://www.coe.int/t/dg4/education/edc/Source/Pdf/Documents/2007_Tool2demgovschools_en.pdf.