How Healthy is Canadas Democracy?

Criteria for an outstanding assessment Reasonable and supported assessment Assessment is reasonable and fully supported with thoughtful and convincing explanations and examples. It shows you totally understand what makes a good democracy and whats happening in Canada in that regard.

Your challenge is to evaluate the overall health of Canadian democracy and then make three recommendations to improve Canadas democratic health. Step 1: Use the notes you have been recording in your T-chart on the Health of Canadas Democracy throughout this unit to help make your decision. Give Canadas democracy a letter grade (A, B, C, D) for each indicator of a healthy democracy. A = strong, vibrant and healthy democracy B = democracy of decent general health with minor illness(es) or minor concern(s) C = democracy with somewhat serious ailment(s) D = seriously impaired and damaged democracy Step 2: Once you label each indicator, give Canadas democracy and overall letter grade to indicate your overall assessment of the health of Canadas democracy. You must justify ALL your assessments with detailed explanations and examples. Indicator Assess ment Justification of assessment

An active and engaged citizenry

A B C D

Legislative power held and exercised by freely elected representative

A B C D

Free, fair, effective and transparen t voting process

A B C D

Accountabi lity of elected officials

A B C D

Access to informatio n

A B C D

Assessment of overall health of Canadas democracy

A
Overall conclusion statement:

B C

Final Critical Challenge Part II: Recommendations for an Improved Democracy Give three recommendations that you believe will most improve Canadas democratic health. Include a rationale that gives reasons for the recommendations as well as a description of the anticipated benefits once the recommendation is in place.

Criteria for outstanding recommendations Insightful and fully developed rationale Provides a thorough, insightful and convincing rationale which is fully supported with relevant and realistic arguments.

Recommendation

Rationale

Unit B Final Challenge Criteria for Judgment of what makes a healthy democracy

Indicator

Description: what this looks like In a healthy democracy, citizens vote. Democracy is weakened and government is less accountable when people don't vote. Low voter turnout suggests that citizens no longer see the relevance of government to their lives and that they are choosing to withhold their consent. In a healthy democracy there are also opportunities that allow the public to participate and/or consult on government policy and legislation. In a healthy democracy, freely elected representatives determine the policies of the government. Laws and policies are passed by elected officials free from the influence of unelected and undemocratic groups or individuals. Healthy democracies allow multiple political points of view to be expressed and voters have a wide range of choices in the election of political parties and candidates. In a healthy democracy, elected officials reflect the diversity of the citizens they represent. Diversity of representation measures both how open the system is to women and minorities and how well the government represents the needs and concerns of all its citizens. In a healthy democracy, voting and registration must be open to all citizens who meet fair requirements. All votes are counted equally and the election produces results that accurately reflect the choices of the voters. Tabulation (counting) of votes is honest and transparent. In a healthy democracy, frequent and fair elections are essential to maintaining government accountability as they allow citizens the opportunity to vote out a government with which they are unhappy and prevent government corruption, mismanagement and complacency. A completely free and unbiased press is a must in a healthy democracy. In a healthy democracy, citizens have unrestricted access to information relevant to government decisions and actions. In addition, citizens can access information from many different sources so that citizens can see a variety of perspectives and assess the information for themselves

An active and engaged citizenry

Freely elective representatives hold legislative power

Diversity of political viewpoints and of representation

Free, fair, effective and transparent voting process

Accountability of elected officials

Access to information

Government Final Challenge T-chart on the Health of Canadas Democracy Taking notes and writing down your thoughts and conclusions using a T-chart is an effective way to maintain a record of your views. You will track your ideas throughout this unit using the T-chart below to which you can then refer to complete the final unit challenge.

Indicator

Evidence supporting the idea that Canada has a healthy democracy

Evidence supporting the idea that Canada has an unhealthy democracy

An active and engaged citizenry Freely elective representati ves hold legislative power Diversity of political viewpoints and of representati on Free, fair, effective and transparent voting process Accountabili ty of elected officials Access to information

Self- Assessment for Unit B Final Challenge Name_________________ Answer in my own words
What am I supposed to do for this assignment? Whats the point of this assignment? What are the criteria of quality for this assignment What have I done well in light of the criteria? What do I understand well? What needs improvemen t in light of the criteria? What dont I understand well? What will I do to improve this?
Step 1 Reasonable and supported assessment Assessment is reasonable and fully supported with thoughtful and convincing explanations and examples. I totally get how our government works and what makes a good government Provides a thorough, insightful and convincing rationale which is fully supported with relevant and plausible/realistic arguments/benefits. Assessment is reasonable and fully supported with thoughtful explanations and examples. I mostly get how our government works and what makes a good government Provides a thorough rationale which is supported with relevant and plausible/realistic arguments.

Self check
How clearly do I understand what is required? Very clear Fairly clear So so Very confused How clearly do I understand the purpose? Very clear Fairly clear So so Very confused How clearly do I understand the criteria? Very clear Fairly clear So so Very confused How well have I done? Very well Fairly well So so Very poorly

How well have I assessed what I need to do to improve? Very well Fairly well So so Very poorly N/A How useful is my action plan Very useful Fairly useful So so Not useful at all N/A

Assessment is reasonable and supported with relevant explanations and examples. I sort of get how our government works and what makes a good government Provides an adequate rationale which is supported with mostly relevant and plausible/realistic arguments.

Step II Insightful and fully developed rationale

Assessment is somewhat reasonable and supported with somewhat adequate explanation and examples. I dont really get how our government works and what makes a good government Provides a basic rationale which is supported with some relevant and plausible/realistic arguments.

Help understanding the criteria for judgment Now take the quiz to see if youve got a working understanding of the concept of a healthy democracy. Read each of the following statements and decide whether each suggests a healthy or unhealthy democracy. If you make a mistake, the correct answer and an explanation will pop up on your screen. 1. It is Election Day in the country and 45% of eligible voters do not cast a ballot. Healthy Unhealthy If student clicks healthy, the following prompt should appear: If almost half of the eligible voters are choosing not to cast a ballot, it suggests that either they dont see the relevance of government or that they are unhappy with the candidate. When it comes to the effectiveness and importance of the country's democratic processes, only 55% of the population cast ballots to form the next government. It is therefore possible for a bare majority of citizens to decide who forms government. 2. The government is considering passing a controversial law. Before they do, they hold a referendum, asking for public input. Healthy Unhealthy If student clicks unhealthy, the following prompt should appear: One important characteristic of a healthy democracy is to have an active and engaged citizenry. Referendums allow citizens to have increased and sometimes more direct input into government decisions. 3. Citizens staging a peaceful protest outside of a government building are arrested. Healthy Unhealthy If student clicks healthy the following prompt should appear: Oppressive tactics such as arresting peaceful protestors are more characteristic of dictatorial states than healthy democracies. 4. All citizens have the right to vote in general elections provided they meet fair and reasonable criteria. Healthy Unhealthy If student clicks unhealthy the following prompt should appear: Any unreasonable restrictions on voting rights limit the number of voices being heard in a country's democratic process. For example, if only property owning males could vote, the elected government would not adequately reflect the needs and values of the countrys entire population. Labourers who dont own property, or women or other minorities would have no say in who governs. 5. An elected member of the government must vote on issues as instructed by his or her party, regardless of the opinions of his or her constituents. Healthy Unhealthy If student clicks healthy: Voters in a riding elect an individual to represent their interests in government. If the elected official is not allowed to do so and is forced to blindly follow the will of his or her party, this undermines the nature of representative democracy. However, this is a complicated matter since individuals elect representatives from parties whose members generally believe in the same political ideologies, and without cohesive political parties (called also party solidarity), very little decision making would get done in government. 5. An elected member of the government must vote on issues as instructed by his or her party, regardless of the opinions of his or her constituents. Healthy Unhealthy If student clicks unhealthy: A free and unbiased media are critical in any healthy democracy as it is the media that provides the information that informs the countrys citizens of political decisions. Moreover, another role of the media is to hold governments accountable by reporting on their decisions and policies. Finally, media is also capable of pressuring the government through public opinion polls, publishing editorials and letters to the editor.

7. Important and influential government positions are awarded to unelected people based on the wishes of the government leader. Healthy Unhealthy If student clicks healthy: Unelected individuals are not directly accountable to the voters and have not received a mandate to govern and make policy decisions. 8. 45% of voters cast their ballot for party A, while party B only received only 30% of the vote. Party B however wins the majority (more than 50%) of seats (or representatives) and forms a majority government. Healthy Unhealthy If student clicks healthy: Democracy is by its very nature government by the majority and if most voters cast their ballots for a given party, then that party should form the next government. However, in some democratic electoral systems the example in question 8 would in fact happen. This is because of the distribution of voters across the country and the boundaries of the electoral districts, or ridings. 9. A political party receives a large campaign contribution from an individual or organization. That party wins the election and passes a series of laws that benefit the contributor regardless of the opinions of citizens Healthy Unhealthy If student clicks healthy: Allowing large contributors to determine government policy undermines the election process as well as the whole concept of democracy. In a healthy democracy large sums of money should not buy influence. 10. By law, the government is required to have an election after a specific and reasonable time period. Healthy Unhealthy If student clicks unhealthy: Without frequent elections and the possibility of losing its mandate, a government can become complacent or corrupt. Regular elections hold governments more accountable for their actions. 11. The government is composed of Caucasian males only. Healthy Unhealthy If student clicks healthy: Democracy is government of the people, not government of some of the people. While these Caucasian males may have been elected by the people, in a healthy democracy the entire population (with diversity in sex, etc.) is reflected in the makeup of government officials. 12. The media only reports stories that have first been approved by a government agency. Healthy Unhealthy If student clicks healthy: Censorship prevents the media from openly reporting on the actions of governments or on the issues that may concern a countrys citizens. Without accurate and complete information, citizens are incapable of making informed political decisions which is essential in a democracy. 13. Unelected or appointed officials have the authority to change legislation passed by a freely elected government. Healthy Unhealthy If student clicks healthy: Many argue that any interference in the legislative process by unelected individuals undermines the powers of an elected government, thereby undermining the nations democratic process, even if these officials are selected by elected politicians. 14. Visible minorities, including women, are fairly represented in all branches of government Healthy Unhealthy If student clicks unhealthy: A healthy democracy should be representative of the population as a whole. This way, the government reflects the culture and values of all citizens.