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Program Launch: Deliberating in a Democracy in the Americas

U.S. classrooms will partner with classrooms in Colombia, Ecuador, Mexico, & Peru

Program Launch: Deliberating in a Democracy in the Americas

Jackie Johnson of the Center for Education in Law and Democracy leads a discussion with Wilder Calla and Alex Murazzo of Asociación Educritica about the upcoming international conferences for participating teachers to be held this summer in Mexico City and Lima.

Between 2004 and 2010, over 400 teachers engaged more than 20,000 high school students from the United States, Russia, and Central and Eastern Europe in authentic civic deliberations as part of the Deliberating in a Democracy program. 

This year, with funding from the U.S. Department of Education, Street Law, Inc., the Constitutional Rights Foundation, and the Constitutional Rights Foundation Chicago are offering this successful program to new sites in the United States, Mexico, and Latin America.  Deliberating in a Democracy in the Americas will partner U.S. classrooms with classrooms in Colombia, Ecuador, Mexico, and Peru to achieve the following goals:

  • improve student understanding of democratic principles and civic deliberation skills
  • increase the knowledge, ability, and dispositions of teachers and students to participate effectively in deliberations of controversial issues
  • provide students with a clear picture of what democracy in action looks like by emphasizing a direct person-to-person exchange of ideas and experiences

In February 2011, a kickoff planning meeting was held in Los Angeles where site directors planned program activities and discussed the topics of the new lesson plans and materials that will be developed during this phase of the program. 

Resources for teachers and students

All teachers (you don't have to be participating in Deliberating in a Democracy) can access numerous free resources on the Deliberating in a Democracy program website.  Lesson plans on democracy and controversial issues like hate speech, cyberbullying, gay marriage, and juvenile justice are available for download in multiple languages.

Twelve new lesson plans and supporting materials will be available on the website in fall 2011. 

Learn more

Deliberating in a Democracy

Topic: Civic & Law-Related Education

Topic: Democracy/Human Rights

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