Teachers 'discover democracy' in joint ANU-government course
	Political stance: Dr Rick Kuhn and Dr John Hart, of the Department of Political Science, under the statue of Sir Edmund Barton, Australia's first Prime Minister (1901­03), on King's Avenue, Barton.
By Shelly Simonds The ANU's Department of Political Science sponsored a professional development course on civics last week for 36 local teachers as part of the Government's Discovering Democracy program. Sessions included deliveries by 10 members of Political Science together with five experts from other parts of the ANU, the ACT Department of Education and Training and the Catholic Education Office. Dr Rick Kuhn, a senior lecturer in Political Science, organised the four-day program which focused on political institution and activity, and the intellectual tools necessary for a critical understanding of Australia's political system. In addition to Political Science, participants from other areas included Jack Barbalet of the Department of Sociology, who led a session on citizenship, and Rob Sparrow, a PhD student in Philosophy in the Research School of Social Sciences, who spoke on social justice and land rights as part of a panel discussion. The Discovering Democracy program was introduced in May last year by Education Minister Dr David Kemp in an effort to increase public awareness of the Australian government system. Most of the $17.5 million committed to the program is being used for the development of new teaching units for years 3 to 10 in primary and secondary schools. To prepare teachers for these units, $4.6 million is being devoted to professional development activities. The ANU received $18,000 to conduct a course in civics, democracy and politics. The course was a pilot for the rest of the project, which will continue over the next two years. Dr John Hart, head of Political Science, said that delivery of the course improved the ANU's links with the Canberra community and also brought needed funds into the Faculty of Arts. "It will forge close links between the ANU and ACT teachers. In this way the Department can contribute to the quality of school education in politics and learn valuable lessons for our own courses, especially for those in the first year of degree programs," he said. ANU Vice-Chancellor Prof Deane Terrell said the Faculty of Arts made an important contribution to the community through programs such as Discovering Democracy. However, he said, a higher level of government funding was needed to promote research and community partnerships in similar programs. "No Australian university is better placed than the ANU to understand and explain the intricacies of Australian government," he said. "Our unmatched expertise in the legal, social and political aspects of government has long been strongly linked with Commonwealth governments and policy making. The Australian National Internships Program and the Graduate Program in Public Policy are but two examples. "I very much welcome the fact that we now have the opportunity to assist primary and secondary school teachers in developing a greater awareness of government in their students." Professor Terrell said he looked forward to further government support for the ANU's involvement in similar programs.