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Civics Unit 1 - Democratic Issues and Ideas
Unit One: Table of Contents
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The Magna Carta, signed by King John of England in 1215
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The United States Constitution, 1780
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A petition to the parliament of New Zealand which led to the New Zealand Elections Act, 1893
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Internet Assignment
This assignment requires internet access, and is designed to allow you the opportunity to research and summarize information about significant steps in the development of democracy.
Journal Response
Which of the steps to democracy that we have studied do you feel was the most important? In answering this question make sure you indicate when the step occurred, and which democratic principle is associated with that step, and how that has impacted on today's society. In order to justify your choice, you must compare its importance to that of at least two other steps.
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This exercise is designed to make you think about what it means for a country (like Canada) to be a 'democracy'. Is democracy merely voting or is there more to it than that? What other social, political and economic factors are necessary to make democracy work, and how are these related, if at all?
This crossword is based on terms and ideas we have discussed this far in the course. You will need to print the document in order to complete it.
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Rights and Responsibilities
This document will help you to gain an understanding of what rights Canadians have, and why those rights must be limited so as not to interfere with others' rights and freedoms.
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The Kirpan, pictured above, is an important article of the Sikh religion. It is also a knife that some claim could be used as a weapon, and therefore is dangerous. What is more important, being able to practice your religion or feeling safe? Is it a genuine article of faith? Is it genuinely dangerous? Who decides what the real risk is, and which right or freedom is more important?
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| This is a scenario that illustrates how various rights and freedoms can 'clash'.
Given the information you have received so far, who do you think is 'right' in Rajiv's story? What should the principal do?
This document gives an indication of what the current legal status of the kirpan issue is with respect to the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, and answers some of the questions posed above.
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Personal Freedom versus Collective Security
The events of September 11, 2001, made many people re-evaluate the extent to which they were willing to let the government and its agents curtail citizens' personal freedoms in order to protect society as a whole. How far should the police be able to go in the name of national security? At what point does the erosion of freedom become worse than the threat we are being protected from? These questions and this debate are not new, they were in the forefront of Canadian news in 1970, during the FLQ crisis. Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau knew where he stood on the importance of security compared with the concerns of "weak-kneed" "bleeding hearts" (click on the picture to hear), what do you think?
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Prime Minister Pierre Elliot Trudeau responds to reporter's questions 
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Watch entire interview - From CBC Television, October 13, 1970 
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Tanks Roam Quebec Streets - From CBC Television, October 17, 1970
October Crisis 20 Years Later - From CBC Television, October 17, 1990
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The Charter
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Queen Elizabeth signing the Constitution Act 1982, including the Charter of Rights and Freedoms
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A digital image of the actual Charter
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| The following document, contains the text of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
This document contains questions based on the first 15 sections of the Charter (up to "Equality Rights").
Bonus Question!!
Mr. Cappello calls section 33 of the Charter the 'Ya, but...' clause. Read section 33 and see if you can determine what it means.
Charter Challenge
The Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms guarantees the rights and freedoms set out in it "subject only to such reasonable limits prescribed by law as can be demonstrably justified in a free and democratic society." Great. But who decides what is reasonable or justified? How do they decide? What can you do if you feel your freedoms are 'unjustifiably' limited? Read on.
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Conflict Resolution
The first phase of this activity is designed to familiarize you with some of the basic strategies and skills that are employed in conflict resolution and to allow you an opportunity to practise these strategies and skills by participating in role-play situations. This activity will also introduce students to the ideas of mediation and arbitration and to the different ways in which disputes are often settled outside the traditional and formal structures of the judicial system. The second part requires that you employ many of the skills that have been introduced and used during earlier activities in this unit. You will be expected to write an argumentative paragraph in response to a case study that involves conflicting rights and responsibilities. In the role of an arbitrator, you will need to identify the issue, describe the competing rights and responsibilities, and provide arguments and evidence to support your proposed resolution.
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Civics Unit 1 - Democratic Issues and Ideas
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