Democracy in Today’s World

Students begin by learning what political rights and civil liberties are. Then they define additional terms that elaborate on those rights. Next, they investigate a specific democratic country to see how it rates in terms of political rights and civil liberties. Finally, they develop a list of questions they might ask to find out more about how well a democracy is functioning.

This learning experience is designed for device-enabled classrooms. The teacher guides the lesson, and students use embedded resources, social media skills, and critical thinking skills to actively participate. To get access to a free version of the complete lesson, sign up for an exploros account.

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Overview

In this experience, students begin by learning what political rights and civil liberties are. Then they define additional terms that elaborate on those rights. Next, they investigate a specific democratic country to see how it rates in terms of political rights and civil liberties. Finally, they develop a list of questions they might ask to find out more about how well a democracy is functioning.

This experience is best paired with the experience Democracy and Its Influence: Origins, which gives students the historical background and key features of democracy.

Students will work together in small groups in scenes 2 and 3. Note that there is no quiz at the end of this experience.

Objectives:

Describe the political rights and civil liberties in an ideal democracy
Evaluate the state of democracy in various contemporary societies

Democracy means “rule by the people,” but it’s not quite as simple as that. Who has political power? How do people take part in making decisions? And how can a democracy protect people’s rights while allowing them to participate in government? In this experience, you will explore political rights and civil liberties that are important to a well-functioning democracy.

Objectives:

Describe the political rights and civil liberties in an ideal democracy
Evaluate the state of democracy in various contemporary societies

There are numerous countries in the world besides the United States that are democracies. What makes a country democratic?

Discuss student responses. Remind students that a democracy is a government that is “ruled by the people.” It has limited government that prevents any individual or party from having total control.

If students need to review what a democracy is, refer them to the experience Democracy and Its Influence: Origins.

Divide students into their small groups for the next two scenes. When everyone is ready to continue, unlock the next scene.