ERIC Number: EJ1274111
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2020
Pages: 11
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1085-3545
EISSN: N/A
Available Date: N/A
The Morning Meeting: Fostering a Participatory Democracy Begins with Youth in Public Education
Tilhou, Rebecca C.
Democracy & Education, v28 n2 Article 5 2020
There is a faltering sense of democracy in America's current political climate due to polarized opinions about leadership's decisions and antagonistic political parties. John Dewey (1916) proposed that education is the place to foster democracy, as schools can provide a platform to actively engage students in authentic democratic experiences that will empower them to act democratically beyond the walls of the school. The democratic schools that emerged during the Free School Movement of the 1960s and 1970s embody Dewey's philosophy, specifically with the shared governance occurring in their School Meetings. Unfortunately, American public education's present preoccupation with standardization, proficiency scores, and accountability in the name of equality creates an authoritative, top-down approach to teaching and learning that is far removed from the lived experience of democracy. Nevertheless, democratic schools' practices can offer insight for a space emerging in American public schools--the Morning Meeting. This paper proposes that the Morning Meeting is a 21st-century space with great potential to become a platform in public education that fosters participatory, empowered democratic citizens by allowing youth to experience decision making, agency, activism, and the equality that citizens must continually challenge American government to uphold.
Descriptors: Public Education, Democracy, Citizen Participation, Political Attitudes, Decision Making, Conflict, Teaching Methods, Educational Philosophy, Free Schools, Governance, Administrative Organization, Educational Practices, Meetings, Participative Decision Making, Activism, Personal Autonomy, Accountability, Presidents, Educational Legislation, Federal Legislation, Elementary Secondary Education
Lewis & Clark Graduate School of Education and Counseling. 0615 SW Palatine Hill Road MSC 93, Portland, OR 97219. Tel: 503-768-6054; Fax: 503-768-6053; e-mail: journal@lclark.edu; Web site: http://democracyeducationjournal.org/home
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Evaluative
Education Level: Elementary Secondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: New York (New York); New York (Albany); Massachusetts
Identifiers - Laws, Policies, & Programs: No Child Left Behind Act 2001
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Author Affiliations: N/A