Political awareness

Case study: Deeside College

Political Awareness

WBQ components

WEW
Element 1, Key issues 1 and 2
Element 2, Key issue 1
Element 3, Key issue 2

PSE
Element 3, Key issue 1
[Other PSE Elements and Key issues could be covered in the questions asked to the Assembly Members.]

Key Skills opportunities
Communication C2.1; C3.1
WO WO2.1, 2, 3; WO3.1, 2, 3
[Potential for ICT.]

Description of activities

A series of four sessions in which students researched the policies of the four main political parties in the National Assembly for Wales, formed four political groups to prepare for mock election hustings, and took part in a real 'Any Questions' event involving local AMs.

Preparation
Prior to the series of four sessions, students had produced questions to be forwarded to local AMs who had been invited into the college to appear in an 'Any Questions' event at the college.

Session 1
Students undertook activities that raised their awareness of the main political parties. They worked in groups, and each group researched a party and identified its manifesto. At the end of the session each group presented the manifesto of the party they had researched and a class vote took place.

Session 2
A workshop delivered by a Welsh Assembly Education Officer, which included a PowerPoint presentation on how the Assembly works, and voting behaviour. The students were divided into groups to create their own political parties and given prompt cards to help formulate ideas for a manifesto and a campaign message.

Session 3
Preparation for a hustings where each party would be given ten minutes to present their party's manifesto.

Session 4
This session was organised into two parts: firstly, the 'Any Questions' event where students asked questions of local AMs from the four main parties; secondly the AMs, staff and students formed a voting audience for the hustings. Each party used PowerPoint and other visual aids. Questions were taken from the floor and a ballot was taken at the end, with the 'returning officer' declaring the votes.

Practical points

Planning
Several weeks to organise the 'Any Questions' event; e-mail and phone call time, and a 45 minute planning meeting at college with the Assembly Officer, several weeks prior to session two.

Time-scale
4 weeks to deliver: sessions 1-3 were 1.5 hours; session 4 was 2 hours, separated by a 15 minute break when students and politicians mingled over coffee.

Resources

Welsh Assembly Education Officer
Political Parties: Welsh Conservatives, Welsh Labour, Welsh Liberal Democrats, Plaid Cymru