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| Article: Pursuing Democracy in Schools |
How often do we hear phrases like, "I am going to vote for so-and-so candidate because he/she belongs to my clan." Or "I favor him/her because he/she is my neighbor and it will look really bad if I am the only one in the neighborhood who doesn't." Whatever happened to voting for the best person?
Democracy, or the "rule of the people, for the people and by the people" is a process which begins at home and is somewhat inculcated by the educational system. Or at least, this is what the popular belief is. Democracy in schools is manifest in many practices seen as normal activities. To select the students for certain jobs, elections are held. I remember my secondary classes when we had elections on a class level to select the prefect, cupboard incharge, book incharge etc, the list went on. As we moved to the senior-most class, there came a time when my classmates stood for the school's Student Council elections. This election process and voting for the best candidate for the job were marked by a speech by our Principal, who always told us expressively, not to vote for someone simply because she was our classmate or friend. Ideally, this practice was supposed to make us better citizens in the future, and enable us to use our precious vote in a responsible way.
I said 'ideally' because in the wider society, I don't see people using their vote in a very responsible way. Does that mean that this democratic process needs to be fostered in a more effective way? Or is the process in the schools itself is flawed in a way that it generally finds expression in the society when our new generation comes out of the educational system? My personal opinion is that it is a mixture of both. Many a times I have heard about 'teacher's favorite' students being nominated to stand for the elections. Also, the general assumption of the student who's standing for a post that his/her friend, cousin, classmate etc. will vote for him/her irrespective of how able that student (or his/her opponent) really is.
So what do the teachers and students themselves feel about this? I approached a few students to ask their opinion on the topic. What do they feel about the democratic process in schools, and how much does peer pressure influence their vote?
According to Mariam, a student of BBA, "Elections of all kinds regarding student bodies should solely be on student-based opinions. After all, these student bodies have to work for the students only. From the schools from where I have studied, I can safely say, the nomination process for the elections was as partial as it could get! Where voting is concerned, peer influences are important because what other students may know something that I don't. But I usually go by what I think is correct."
Nida, another BBA student replied, "I don't agree that schools should facilitate this democratic process at all. The problem with students is that they don't always go for who is best for the job, but for who they consider a friend. In democracy, merit takes a back seat to popularity, and it would really be a shame if we started encouraging this in schools." She felt that the nomination process by teachers was pretty impartial. "If the process was completely unfair, the class would be in an uproar, and that would cause a myriad of problems for the teacher. Also, most teachers are looking for people who can do the job as fairly as possible. They really don't want to bungle up the job by choosing someone who's not suited for it."
Tooba, a BA (Honors) student felt that, "Students for different posts should be elected rather than handpicked by the school administration as this will encourage a democratic environment in the institutes and the students are more likely to follow a prefect who is chosen by them. Selection or nomination of any candidate by a teacher on the basis of academic performance is fair enough but in many schools teachers tend to be partial towards certain students and use this power to nominate them. This not only violates the purpose of establishing democracy but also promotes student-student jealousies. Also, real democracy will only be established if an individual student uses his/her own opinion rather than merely reflecting those of his peers where voting is concerned. I, as a student myself have quite a few times voted against peer influences and I think we are at a stage in our educational life where we are as much capable of resisting peer pressure as of surrendering to it.
According to one teacher, "Teachers weigh students in terms of their curricular activities, though this is a well-known fact that some other qualities also contribute to making of a man, and nowadays pupils mostly excel in extracurricular activities. So the choice of students' representatives should be left to the students themselves. Students may not agree to their teachers' inclination every time. They should be given a choice to elect their own leader. But guidance of the teacher is a must. The teacher should explain to pupil as to what is leadership, what are its pros and cons, what are the responsibilities of a leader, what are the skills necessary for the leader, what people expect from him etc. I fully endorse the practice to help children promote the culture of contest, tolerance and sportsman spirit."
The general opinion definitely goes in favor of encouraging the kind of democratic process that goes on in schools. But peer pressure in voting and nomination of candidates by teachers are two issues which definitely merit a greater attention in the whole process. After all, it is the entire democratic process in schools, which if improved, can lead to a more responsible attitude towards the use of one's vote in the political system.
Hafsa Ahsan
ha@spider.tm
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