From Classroom to Community: Civics Education and Political Participation in Australia.

The Rule of Law Education Centre made a Submission to the Committee as well as speaking to the Joint Standing Committee during their Public Hearings.

Comments on the Report ‘From Classroom to Community’

The Report is a credit to the Senator the Hon Carol Brown who, as Chair of the Committee, has written a very thorough report.

It is a wake-up call to all MP’s and Education Departments about their responsibility to ensure our education programs prioritise a commitment to parliamentary democracy through explicit and compulsory civics and citizenship education.

The Report includes the recommendation for a nationally mandated standalone civics and citizenship curriculum and other national initiatives. These are important priorities but ultimately just wish-dreams under our Constitution that has each State (and Territory) responsible for the education, and therefore, civics content they teach.

To counter this, the Report has followed our suggestion that the “State curriculum be reviewed against a nationally agreed benchmark to ensure sufficient content is included” and has recommended the “Australian Government, working through National Cabinet, annually collect data from each state and territory outlining how the civics and citizenship component of the Australian Curriculum is being implemented.”  If these recommendations are adopted, the States will annually report (hopefully based on an agreed benchmark of content) on the civics and citizenship education (CCE) that is implemented in their respective curricula.   This review should provide some accountability and transparency as to whether the States are taking seriously their obligation to ensure their students are informed and active citizens.

The Recommendations include a minimum of 10 hours of CCE for years 9 and 10, and a citizenship course for all year 11 and 12 students. There is no detail of the content, but it is hoped that this includes benchmark content that is broader than how to vote, and includes important concepts of our system of government, the role of laws and Courts, and shared Australian democratic values.

There will be complaints that the curriculum is too crowded and that these changes are too burdensome on teachers and schools. We need to remember that civics and citizenship is the one area that must be included as a priority for the education of Australians in our democracy. Students, no matter what state they are in, what school they go to, what subjects they choose, their heritage or background, must be provided with the shared knowledge of what holds our society together and enables us to live freely and safely.

However, curriculum content is only part of the story.

The report highlights a clear plea from teachers involved in the inquiry – they need quality resources and support to teach key civics content and to facilitate respectful debate in their classrooms. In response, the Report recommends high-quality, nationally aligned professional development (PD) resources for teachers. It also calls for mandatory civics and citizenship education, along with debate-based learning, to be included in all PD for Humanities and Social Sciences (HASS) teachers.

While this is a positive step, restricting CCE PD to HASS teachers downgrades the broader significance of CCE. Civics is a cross-curricula priority that extends beyond HASS Subjects.

As stated in our submission: “If civics is to be made a curriculum priority, it must also be made a teaching practice priority to ensure our teachers are properly equipped with the relevant knowledge and have adequate access to professional learning opportunities that support explicit and effective teaching of civics content. In addition, civics and citizenship education should be implemented for all teachers in all subject areas, so they can model active and engaged citizenship within their school communities and be enabled to confidently teach civics content regardless of their subject specialisation.”

Students can develop their understanding of government, laws, politics, rights and responsibilities in English, Art, PE and many other subjects. Therefore, CCE PD should be mandatory for all teachers and not just those in HASS.

Finally, CCE is not just about being a ‘good, lawful’ citizen. Citizens in a democracy also need to be equipped, where necessary, to hold those in power to account when they do not act according to the law. To do this, CCE follows a continuum that starts with explicit teaching on the value of government, laws and history. With this shared knowledge, citizens can make decisions about information/disinformation,  explore ideas and have respectful debate.

Preparing young Australians for their democratic and civic responsibilities is a matter for the whole Australian community. We need our MP’s and Education Departments to prioritise civics education in the curriculum and to support our teachers by ensuring adequate training is provided. Universities must ensure that teacher graduates are equipped, and community organisations, including teacher groups, and non-partisan groups like the Rule of Law Education Centre, should also be involved in this effort.

The goal of civics and citizenship education is to foster a unified nation that upholds democracy and respects the law. The recommendations in this report move us closer to this vision.