A Marble Ridge Colony School teacher has been accelerating student learning about Canada’s legislative system after spending a week on Parliament Hill and taking part in a program for teachers.
Sheena Letexier, who teaches kindergarten to Grade 8, is encouraging her students to become more invested in democratic practice, preparing them to think critically about governance, teaching them how Canada’s Parliament works and preparing them for civic responsibilities such as voting.
Letexier went to Ottawa last November to take part in the Teachers Institute on Canadian Parliamentary Democracy, a week-long professional development program for educators that focuses on democracy, governance and citizenship and provides them with opportunities to meet with politicians.
Letexier said teaching students about Canada’s political system is already part of the social studies curriculum at Marble Ridge, but she wants to enhance their knowledge of parliamentary procedures.
“While I was in Ottawa, they told us that Canadians aged 18-24 have the lowest voter turnout. That’s why we’re trying to get students under 18 interested in voting,” said Letexier. “That’s one of this program’s top goals for us as teachers: to have us engaging our students in authentic learning about the democratic system and providing them with opportunities to experience the voting process firsthand. Students should take an interest in Canada’s politics and have their voices heard through the democratic process.”
Letexier said she underwent a fairly rigorous application process to earn a spot in the program. About 85 teachers (including six from Manitoba) from across Canada, representing every province and territory, were able to take part in the program, which is funded for the most part through the [federal] Library of Parliament budget. The Lakeshore School Division picked up part of Letexier’s expense.
Letexier and her fellow teachers got to visit with House Speaker, Greg Fergus, and learn about his role, attend question period, visit with Senate Speaker, Raymonde Gagne, and ask her questions, meet with the chief electoral officer, attend Rideau Hall where Governor General Mary Simon addressed them and visit their respective MPs offices.
The event also included a visit with Justice Nicholas Kasirer at the Supreme Court of Canada, a meeting with various media representatives and a dinner with parliamentarians at which Letexier and her colleagues from Manitoba and Saskatchewan got to sit with MP James Bezan (Selkirk Interlake Eastman) and senator Pamela Wallin, who is from Saskatchewan.
“Every day was jam-packed,” said Letexier. “We were treated so well there. They opened all the doors for us.”
Armed with firsthand knowledge of Canada’s parliamentary system, along with online resources available to teachers on the Library of Parliament website, Letexier and a fellow Colony teacher had their students take part in the Bill on the Hill virtual activity, which teaches kids how bills become law and how the public can take part in voicing their opinions on a bill.
“We also did an exercise on parliamentary committees, where after a bill passes two readings it goes to a committee and the public has an opportunity to speak to it. We have a fake bill called the Vegetable Harmony Act, which says parents cannot feed their kids certain vegetables such as spinach, Brussel sprouts, turnips and cauliflower. The bill is written like a real bill, with English on one side and French on the other,” said Letexier.
“We did this simulation with our middle years and high school students this week. We decided who would be pro and who’d be con and who’d be an MP or a special interest group from the public. The students were getting excited about learning how to debate this bill. If the government made this bill a law, vegetable growers would lose a lot of money and it’d put people out of business. But one student said, ‘I don’t like those vegetables so I’m in favour of this law.’”
To further encourage her students’ interest in active citizenship, Letexier said she takes them through the election process when there are municipal, provincial and federal elections. Students investigate candidates and parties and take part in a mock vote.
She also invites local politicians to read to the students during February’s I Love to Read month. She’s had NDP and Conservative politicians take part. RM of Fisher reeve Shannon Pyziak was at Marble Ridge last week to read to the students.
“Reeve Pyziak brought in a book that the RM of Fisher created with excellent graphic designs. It’s all about our municipality, explaining what the RM does. The students prepared questions for her before she came and each student got to ask her different questions,” said Letexier.
As part of active citizenship, Letexier is also having students create Valentine’s cards that will be sent to Canadian veterans through the Valentines for Vets program.
“We want our students to know that doing things for others is very important, especially our veterans who’ve done so much for our freedom. It’s nice to talk about them on Remembrance Day but also remember them on Valentine’s Day,” she said. “Our Hutterite students are very thankful for that.”
For more information about Canada’s Library of Parliament resources for teachers, visit www.parl.gc.ca/education
