Big Idea:Informed participation in local government both stimulates and upholds the principles of democracy.

Essential Question: What are the characteristics of an informed Canadian citizen participating in a municipal election or school board election?

Making Your DecisionAn informed election decision is based upon personal priorities and information critically gathered and analyzed from a broad range of sources, experiences, and interactions.

Hook 5-10 min.Consider the story of four individuals who have arrived at a polling station to cast ballots for their local municipal and school board elections, found on Handout 7.1. Discuss which of these people should be allowed to vote in each election as well as who is most prepared to vote in each election. What does this example tell you about the people who will actually be participating in elections?

Essential Learning 20-30 min.1. Using Handouts 7.2 and 7.3, review your personal values, experiences and developments during

the election campaign, and your knowledge of each municipal and school board candidate in order to prioritize the candidates in order of their suitability to represent your vision for your community.

2. Propose how an individual might determine that they have enough information to make an informed decision as a voter.

3. From this set of activities, review what you have discussed and learned about the value of informed participation in elections.

Extended Learning 20-30 min.Option A: Your actions and words can be a means of voting. When you buy a certain chocolate bar, shop at a particular store, or choose one option from a selection of many, you are identifying that thing, place, or concept as more worthy than the other options. Select and act upon a way to “vote” for a particular candidate using your words or actions. (ex. initiate a political discussion with friends or at home, post a lawn sign, participate in a rally, write a letter to the editor of a local newspaper, participate in a candidate’s election campaign)

Option B: Use the items you have been collecting in your portfolio to evaluate the importance that class activities, personal values, election issues, and developments in the municipal and school board election campaigns have had on your decision to vote for a particular candidate.

Option C:Develop an impartial pamphlet that an eligible voter could use in order to become knowledgeable about the issues, candidates, and campaign platforms for the upcoming election as well as appropriate methods and locations for voting. Use this pamphlet as a tool to help an eligible voter prepare to vote and acquire the knowledge that every informed voter should demonstrate before casting a ballot.

Key Termsinformed; priority

Essential Questions

What information am I using to back up my voting decision for a particular candidate? In general, what should I know and/or have done before I make a voting decision?Do I feel I have enough information to vote?

Teacher PreparationSelect teaching strategies for essential learning activitiesMake class copies of required handoutsBook computer lab, if desiredPreview websites to be used for class activities, if desired (see chapter on Additional Resources)Select extended learning activity and teaching strategies, if desired

Assessment Students should provide evidence that they have the ability to synthesize personal values, knowledge of candidates, and knowledge of election issues in order to make an informed judgment as to the candidate that would best represent the students’ personal vision for their community.

Handout 7.1: Heading to The PollsConsider the following story about four individuals participating in the municipal election.

Sammie, Jannah, Noel, and Florence all arrived at the Legion Hall at roughly the same time. Noel was showing his driver’s licence to a poll clerk when Jannah held the door open for Sammie and Florence to enter the hall.

The inside of the Legion Hall was full people who had finished work for the day and were voting in the municipal election on their way home to dinner. The hall was full of movement, but most people spoke in low tones, as if they were in a library.

As Noel took his ballot to a voting screen, he wondered who he would vote for. Noel had been planning on staying home for the afternoon since he was not even aware that an election campaign was occurring, but his housemates were headed to the polling station, so he has decided to cast a ballot based purely on gut feeling. He tried to remember if there were any election posters he had seen on the walk over the polling station.

After receiving his ballot, Sammie strode to a voting screen recently vacated by an elderly woman. Sammie had been following one candidate running for city councillor very closely; after reading the candidate’s election platform closely and meeting the candidate on a number of occasions, Sammie was certain he would be not voting for that candidate. He scanned the ballot looking for another name he recognized.

When Florence opened her ballot behind the voting screen, she was still a little undecided about who she would elect. Florence had met only two of three candidates running for councillor in person and one of four candidates running for school board trustee, but she had also been keeping up on developments in both the municipal and school board campaigns by reading the newspaper every morning. She bit her bottom lip as she slowly marked an “X” beside the names of her selected candidates.

As Jannah stepped out from behind the polling screen, she had a determined look on her face. Jannah had only been following the school board candidates; she was very passionate about education and had shared heated exchanges with each the school board candidates over the course of the past month. She had made her choice about the best candidate though – no changing her mind now. As she watched the ballot slide into the ballot box, she wondered if the municipal candidate she had checked off was any good.

Noel was already well on his way to his apartment when Sammie, Florence, and Jannah walked out the door and made their separate ways home. They would have to wait until the following day to find out who had been elected.

Discuss which of these people you think should be allowed to vote in each election as well as who is most prepared to vote in each election. What does this example tell you about the people who participate in elections?

Handout 7.2: Decision-Making Inventory – Municipal ElectionReview your personal values, experiences and developments occurring during the election campaign, and your knowledge of each municipal candidate to prioritize the candidates in order of their suitability to represent your vision for your community. Qualities I look for in a school leader

Things that are important to me at school

Things that are important to me in my life

Things that are important to you in my community

Qualities I look for in a community leader

Election issues that are most important to me

Candidate:

What I like most about this candidate is that…

What I like least about this candidate is that…

My Ranking of Municipal Candidates

Handout 7.3: Decision-Making Inventory – School Board ElectionReview your personal values, experiences and developments occurring during the election campaign, and your knowledge of each municipal candidate to prioritize the candidates in order of their suitability to represent your vision for your community.

Things that are important to me at school

Things that are important to me in my life

Things that are important to you in my community

Qualities I look for in a school leader

Election issues that are most important to me

Candidate:

What I like most about this candidate is that…

What I like least about this candidate is that…

My Ranking of School Board Candidates