UNE > News and Events > Browse by article > Teaching civic pride in classrooms

Next Booting up for charity August 16, 2004  

Previous Italian honours, festival to celebrate UNE Languages August 11, 2004 

Teaching civic pride in classrooms

August 13, 2004

Bringing an awareness of parliament and government to schoolchildren is just one of the aims of a series of workshops to be conducted at the University of New England next week.
A delegation of specialists from the Parliamentary Education Office (PEO) is scheduled to visit local schools and teach a range of topics on civic responsibilities to pupils, teachers and undergraduate teachers alike.
“The workshops will focus on practical ways to teach government, expose teachers to new resources in this area and outline ways country schools can access services the PEO has to offer,” said Ms Kim Porter, a lecturer in UNE’s School of Education.

Ms Porter helped organise the visit with PEO specialists Helen Paterson and Ann Nelson.
About 150 undergraduates studying to become teachers are expected to take part in the workshops, which will be held on Tuesday and Wednesday, August 17 and 18.
In these workshops, Ms Paterson and Ms Nelson will show potential teachers new ways of teaching parliament and government in the classroom.
They will introduce a practical kit for schoolchildren and organise parliamentary role-playing activities, as well as a series of debates.
On Tuesday (August 17) the PEO specialists will also visit Rocky River Public School to talk with schoolchildren about civic duty and governance.
They will also conduct workshops for teachers there as well as for other schools in the education cluster.
Said Ms Porter: “The aim is to work with schoolchildren who are unlikely to visit Canberra to experience the PEO program.”
For more information phone Lydia Roberts on 6773 2779 or
Kim Porter on 6773 2573.

Posted by Lydia Roberts at August 13, 2004 12:00 PM