What Is Democracy?
Democracy (from Greek demos, meaning people and kratos, power or rule) is any system of government in which the sovereign people control the country’s political decisions. There are many different forms of democracy. Some are direct, allowing citizens to directly deliberate and decide legislation; others are indirect, letting citizens choose governing officials who govern on their behalf. All forms of democracy, however, share certain common features: citizenship, consent of the governed, equal protection under law, freedom of speech and religion, freedom of assembly, association and personal property, voting rights, a commitment to fundamental principles of justice, and an obligation to serve the community.
Using the classroom backgrounder as a guide, post five pictures (Appendix A) depicting various aspects of democracy around the room. These may include: (1) Representative democracy, in which decision-making is based on a proportional representation of citizens in a legislative body; (2) The separation of powers between the parliament, government and judiciary, ensuring that no one branch has undue influence over another; (3) Participatory democracy, in which citizens can voice their opinions through elections, referendums or other democratic processes; (4) A healthy democracy, in which society requires compromise and respect for the diverse viewpoints of its members; and (5) An ideal democracy, in which all citizens are treated with equality and dignity, free will and equal opportunities for progress and prosperity.
Then, work in small groups to read and discuss the Frayer Model of Democracy. Ask each group to write their understanding of democracy on a sheet of paper and to add their ideas to the class definition. After each group has written their thoughts, discuss as a whole class.
A central debate in democracy research is the extent to which economic elements should be included in measures of democracy. The authors of the Global State of Democracy Indices argue that economic indicators can be included without jeopardizing the integrity of the measure, but they recommend avoiding excessively general questions such as “How important is democracy to you?” (Heyne 2018)
The authors of the Global State of Democracy Indices also believe that it is necessary to use multiple datasets in order to avoid the biases associated with single-indicator measurements. This is a key principle in the design of the GSoDI, which uses 12 high-quality sources to produce 116 individual indicators. This allows for a more nuanced analysis of democracy, recognizing that no perfect type of democracy exists.
Democracy (from Greek demos, meaning people and kratos, power or rule) is any system of government in which the sovereign people control the country’s political decisions. There are many different forms of democracy. Some are direct, allowing citizens to directly deliberate and decide legislation; others are indirect, letting citizens choose governing officials who govern on their behalf. All forms of democracy, however, share certain common features: citizenship, consent of the governed, equal protection under law, freedom of speech and religion, freedom of assembly, association and personal property, voting rights, a commitment to fundamental principles of justice, and an obligation to serve the community. Using the classroom backgrounder as a guide, post five pictures (Appendix A) depicting various aspects of democracy around the room. These may include: (1) Representative democracy, in which decision-making is based on a proportional representation of citizens in a legislative body; (2) The separation of powers between the parliament, government and judiciary, ensuring that no one branch has undue influence over another; (3) Participatory democracy, in which citizens can voice their opinions through elections, referendums or other democratic processes; (4) A healthy democracy, in which society requires compromise and respect for the diverse viewpoints of its members; and (5) An ideal democracy, in which all citizens are treated with equality and dignity, free will and equal opportunities for progress and prosperity. Then, work in small groups to read and discuss the Frayer Model of Democracy. Ask each group to write their understanding of democracy on a sheet of paper and to add their ideas to the class definition. After each group has written their thoughts, discuss as a whole class. A central debate in democracy research is the extent to which economic elements should be included in measures of democracy. The authors of the Global State of Democracy Indices argue that economic indicators can be included without jeopardizing the integrity of the measure, but they recommend avoiding excessively general questions such as “How important is democracy to you?” (Heyne 2018) The authors of the Global State of Democracy Indices also believe that it is necessary to use multiple datasets in order to avoid the biases associated with single-indicator measurements. This is a key principle in the design of the GSoDI, which uses 12 high-quality sources to produce 116 individual indicators. This allows for a more nuanced analysis of democracy, recognizing that no perfect type of democracy exists.