Workshop: Teaching Democracy: Political Extremism, Global Lessons for Local Educators, Canberra, Australia

Teaching Democracy: Political Extremism, Global Lessons for Local Educators

March 19-20, 2012
Sir Roland Wilson Building
Australian National University
Canberra

The workshop will explore the ideas of political action, radicalism, extremism, terrorism and revolution in the context of current geo-political global situations. Drawing from a variety of disciplines, this workshop will include presentations which will explain the political situations around the world, and the way in which these reverberate in Australia. This workshop will further interrogate the concepts of democracy and multiculturalism and ask whether societies such as ours, with its commitment to both, can avoid the development of destructive political action.
The two day workshop will include discussion by the participants to develop strategies for engaging young people in positive political engagement in the classroom and in the community.
Workshop themes:

• Political extremism around the world
• The Arab spring
• The London riots
• The European right
• Young people and political engagement
• Political engagement in a Democracy
• Multiculturalism
• Indigenous political engagement in Australia