ACTU RESPONSE TO THE REPORT OF
THE CIVICS EXPERT GROUP
entitled
"WHEREAS THE PEOPLE: CIVICS
AND CITIZENSHIP EDUCATION"
D. NO. 95/014
MARCH 1995
ACTU RESPONSE: WHEREAS THE PEOPLE: CIVICS AND CITIZENSHIP EDUCATION
1.
Introduction
The ACTU welcomes the Report of the Civics Expert Group which was
established by the Federal Government in 1994 to report on "a
program of public education and information on the Australian
system of government, the Australian Constitution, Australian
citizenship and other civics issues".
The ACTU welcomes the attention given to this matter by the work
of the Committee. We support the recommendations which seek to
ensure greater priority is given to civics education in the formal
school sector and in the broader community. We support Federal
Government funding of positive proposals aimed at achieving a
community that is more informed on these issues.
In this Response to the Report, the ACTU will deal with:
(a) How the ACTU's specific proposals have been treated in the
Report. These are:
(i)
the need for a broad definition of civics,
(ii) inclusion of a notion of workplace civics;
(iii) the importance of recognising Australian identity and
culture and the role of the media;
(iv) the important role of the public education system in a
democracy;
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(v)
the importance of museums and cultural institutions;
and
(vi) the role of the public sector in underpinning our civic
life.
(b)
The
relationship
between
civics
education
and
the
republican debate.
(c)
The role of the formal school sector in a civics education
program.
(d) The process from here.
2.
Issues Raised In The ACTU's Original Submission
The ACTU made a submission to the Group on 9 September 1994, in
which it supported the development of a program of civics
education and said it should include:
"(i) information regarding workplace rights and the
democratic role of trade unions both in the
workplace and the wider Australian society;
(ii) issues relating to Australian identity and culture
and how that can best be maintained and
strengthened;
(iii) the important role of education itself in
determining a person's capacity to participate
actively in civic life;
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(iv) the importance of museums and other cultural
institutions as vehicles for promoting Australian
identity and culture;
(v)
the important role of the public sector in
underpinning our democratic institutions;
(vi) a commitment to a fair and equitable society with
high ethical standards in political, business and
community life."
[Page 5 of ACTU Submission]
The ACTU is concerned that none of these issues is adequately
addressed in the Report.
In respect to these matters the ACTU believes very strongly these are
issues that can and should be included in any civics education
program both in the formal school sector and in a broader
community campaign.
We do not believe they have been adequately incorporated into the
example of the draft syllabus contained in the Report (which we
understand is not exclusive or in any way meant as a model).
Accordingly, we reiterate those points which we believe strongly
should be part of any civics education program.
(i)
A Broad Definition of Civics
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The ACTU sought a broad view of civics and citizenship which
educates "people about democratic principles and political
empowerment". [Page 3 of ACTU Submission)
The ACTU believes that these issues are centrally linked to values
and attitudes and agrees with the Report's statement that "values
and attitudes are an inescapable element of civics education".
[Page 53 of Report]
It is an absence of attention to values that has made past civics
education so sterile and unrewarding for students, a point made
very cogently by the Report (Chapter 3.1).
The shared values set out on page 54 of the Report are accordingly
most important if any new program of civics education will avoid
a similar fate to those past programs.
Insofar as these shared values relate to:

democratic rights and participation in decision-making;

social justice rights including a commitment to redressing
disadvantage; and

ecological sustainability;
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ACTU RESPONSE: WHEREAS THE PEOPLE: CIVICS AND CITIZENSHIP EDUCATION
they overlap with the specific issues raised by the ACTU set out
above.
Any further development of a civics curriculum must deal
adequately and honestly with the different views that are held in
the community on these issues.
(ii) Workplace Civics
A
broad
definition
of
civics
necessarily
entails
the
interrelationship between economic, political and social life. In
any such discussion of economic relations, the role of trade unions
in representing working people in both the industrial and
political spheres is an important dimension.
The contribution that trade unions and working people have
made to the democratic fabric and to the quality of life, especially
but not solely working life, should be included in any notion of
civics.
This contribution was set out in the ACTU's original
submission. It includes achievement of the eight hour day, 38
hour week, annual leave entitlements, etc.
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Similarly the rights of working people must be included in any
consideration of rights in society.
This is recognised in
international conventions. These rights are also set out more fully
in the ACTU's original submission.
They include freedom of
association, the right to work, the right to a minimum income,
etc.
Of increasing importance in contemporary society these rights also
include a right of workers to participate in decisions about their
working life.
The breaking down of autocratic management
systems is a worldwide trend and reflects a desire for more
democratic workplaces. It also has direct economic benefits being
linked
to
higher
productivity
outcomes.
Thus
employee
participation at all levels of decision-making in the workplace is
assuming a high priority as Australian workplaces seek to achieve
"best practice" and become internationally competitive.
The ACTU reiterates that these issues should be encompassed in any
civics education program.
(iii) Australian Identity and Culture
As stated in the ACTU's original submission, civics education must
be about a particular society, in this instance Australia, which
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necessarily involves an examination of Australian identity and
culture. This also necessarily involves the media. The ACTU is
concerned that these issues have not been dealt with adequately
in the Report.
The important role of the media in our system of government must
be acknowledged. The way it operates, its influence in particular
debates and areas where media institutions have a self interest
need to be properly understood if our system of government is to be
understood.
The privileged position of media operators in terms of power and
influence and public expectations with respect to limits on that
power, ie. to be fair and accurate in reporting information and to
disseminate diverse views, should be addressed.
This public
responsibility could be drawn on in respect to media involvement
in the broader community civics education program.
With respect to the Report's suggestion of awards for journalists, the
ACTU and MEAA do not believe additional expenditure of
government funds is warranted. A cost effective and higher status
option would be to extend the Walkley Awards to cover this area.
The MEAA would be happy to consider such a proposal.
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The media's public responsibility obligations could also be drawn
on in terms of providing space and air time and media expertise,
including those of the advertising industry, to assist in any
community campaign around civics issues.
The ACTU and MEAA believe there is a role for improving
journalistic skills in providing contextual information regarding
government institutions and procedures, ie. the role of Senate
Committees when reporting on their activities. This may require
provision of resources to pursue the initial advocacy of such a
course.
There is a role for government in improving media coverage of
government institutions and business including through the
language of government, publications, Crown copyright issues, etc.
Some of these issues overlap with those being considered by the
bodies reviewing the federal Freedom of Information Act.
In addition to the role of the media, the role of cultural
institutions and workers in creating and preserving a cultural
environment which projects an Australian identity must be
encompassed in any civics education program.
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The importance of special protection of Australian content in what
is increasingly a globally competitive cultural environment
should therefore also be part of such a program. As should support
for as many cultural forums as possible.
Attached at Appendix A is a fuller submission on these matters
written by the MEAA.
(iv) Education
The ACTU welcomes the recognition in the Report of the key role to
be played by the formal education sector in civics education and
the
need
for
proper
resourcing,
including
professional
development, for this to be successful.
However, the ACTU believes the importance of a free, secular, public
education system to a democratic society should be emphasised in
a civics education program.
As stated in the ACTU's original submission, in the words of the
British Colombian teachers policy:
"Democracy is not a naturally occurring phenomenon.
It costs lives to attain, more lives to defend, and its
preservation requires an educated and vigilant
citizenry. Schools have a critical role to play in
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teaching students what democracy is, and how it came
about."
[Page 15 of ACTU Submission]
The importance accorded to education in Australia's Constitution
reinforces this view. The Australian Education Union's campaign
for a constitutional guarantee to all families of quality public
education for children and adults is one aspect of the current
constitutional debate and shows how the role of the public
education system in society can and should be incorporated into a
civics education program.
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(v)
Museums and Cultural Institutions
Civics education cannot be undertaken in a vacuum. It must
necessarily overlap with other areas such as history and the arts.
Whilst the scope of a civics education program must be clearly
focussed it should also incorporate recognition of the key role of
institutions such as museums in informing the community of the
history that underpins our national identity.
(vi) The Role of the Public Sector
The ACTU reiterates that any study of the construction of
Australian society would be deficient if it did not recognise the
role of public sector programs and agencies. The public sector has
been the main instrument of nation building in Australia. It has
been the main setter of our social patterning; the main source of
social and economic infrastructure as well as the source of those
elements in our society which give us most of our self esteem as a
nation, such as a "fair go".
The public sector binds our society together.
It compensates
drought stricken farmers, funds our scientific research, provides
the bulk of our health care and education, ensures policing of our
streets, establishes our judiciary, relates us to the outside world,
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promotes local cultural expression, projects our self image through
museums, galleries, film, encourages our sporting life, nurtures
private businesses, guards our boundaries and equalises wealth
between rich and poor.
This is all dependent on our willingness to pool our individual
wealth in a commonwealth via an efficient taxation system. The
national consensus that we do this is an important area for
reflection in any civics curriculum.
The very real impact of constitutional constraints on access and
equity in the delivery of services, ie. the method of payment of
doctors, and on the conduct of organisations in certain areas, ie.
unions serving logs of claims and creating industrial disputes,
should be analysed as part of a civics program. These examples
show the contemporary relevance of the Constitution on people's
day to day lives.
In dealing with the public sector the ACTU believes that any civics
education program must also deal with the roles of the different
levels of government.
Technological and demographic change have been vast since the
writing of the Constitution.
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Allied to these changes is the
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globalisation of most aspects of national life. The emergence of
new concerns such as for the environment is also relevant.
These developments have rendered the division of functions
between the tiers of government, as laid down in our Constitution,
of questionable relevance. Numerous examples of problems can be
cited, the confusion over the management of forest policy between
the tiers being but one example. A further major example is that
the budgets of the tiers of government often attempt contradictory
objectives, eg. simultaneously creating and shedding jobs.
An open ended discussion about the allocation of the functions of
government in pursuit of the most efficient and relevant delivery
of services should be included in a civics education program.
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3.
Relationship Between Civics Education And The
Republican Debate
In the current climate the ACTU believes that a civics program
must address the republican debate. This debate needs to be an
informed one.
From the unions' point of view it is one which
should incorporate the values and beliefs that most Australians
have about social rights, equity and fairness. Those who support
an Australian republic, including the ACTU and many unions,
argue that in a republican Constitution, the rights that many
take for granted should be positively enshrined so that they can be
enforced.
In the words of the AEU:
"It should be a just republic, not just a republic."
A charter of citizenship rights and social benchmarks is seen by
the ACTU and others as an essential framework for a just republic.
A discussion of these issues as part of a civics education program
would ensure the subject would be relevant and interesting. It
goes to the central issue raised at the outset of this Response of the
need to have robust and honest debate over current issues about
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which there are contested values. It does not entail advocacy for a
particular view.
To seriously suggest a civics education program without including
this issue makes a mockery of seeking to achieve contemporary
relevance for civics education.
4.
The Role of the Formal School Sector
The ACTU supports a high priority being accorded to civics
education and for this to be integrated into mainstream
education from the earliest years up to Level 10 as recommended
by the Report.
Whether this requires compulsion is a matter that needs to be
further considered. The ACTU sees no merit in forcing students to
participate in boring and ultimately unsatisfying civics courses.
On the other hand if the curriculum is exciting and relevant to
contemporary student concerns and given legitimacy in the
educational hierarchy the same outcome might be achieved.
The ACTU believes an open approach to how a revised program of
civics education could be delivered is essential, ie. it need not
necessarily be through a single common core curricula.
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The ACTU is mindful of the dangers of a "lowest common
denominator" approach to this issue and believes this must be
avoided at all costs.
The ACTU strongly supports the Report's recommendation for the
development of comprehensive curriculum support materials and
the provision of professional development for teachers in civics
education.
In delivering these recommendations the ACTU believes that it is
imperative that full participation by, and consultation with,
teachers and their representatives occur.
A charter of the rights and responsibilities of teachers should be
developed and agreed for the teaching of civics.
This charter
would recognise the professional responsibilities of teachers to
encourage students to develop their own views and capacities in
the context of reasoning and truth and at the same time recognise
that teachers have opinions and values which are a legitimate
part of discussion in the learning process. The aims of civics and
citizenship education should similarly be clearly elaborated in
such a charter, such as suggested to the Group in the terms of the
Queensland Teachers Union original submission.
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In this context the curriculum which is developed and the
professional development for teachers which is provided can be far
more than a rehearsal of constitutional and legal structures.
They can be preparation for lives in which the contest of values,
morals and ethics is a daily reality.
Teachers who are well-
prepared on this basis can make civics and citizenship education
a far more engaging reality than that experienced by many
students in the past.
5.
Future Progress
(i)
Formal Education Sector
The ACTU is concerned that the development of a civics program
for the formal school sector through the Curriculum Corporation
might result in a "lowest common denominator" result.
The ACTU will be involved in this process through the education
unions.
The ACTU believes the Federal Government should play a leading
role in this forum extending the breadth of issues above narrow
"States rights" and party political agendas.
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The ACTU supports a continuing role for the Civics Expert Group in
overseeing this work.
(ii) Broader Community Campaign
The ACTU is concerned at the Report's recommendation that the
Constitutional Centenary Foundation be the organisation to
oversee the community citizenship education program.
To effectively perform this task this organisation would need to be
much more inclusive and open to a broader cross-section of the
community.
The ACTU strongly believes the Civics Expert Group should be
involved in overseeing the community education campaign.
The ACTU believes it can play a central role in informing trade
unions about civics and citizenship and is prepared to do so.
We
believe
this
could
be
effectively
undertaken
through
traditional trade union structures and publications.
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(iii) Proposal For A Forum
The ACTU supports the Report's recommendation that a Forum be
held of interested persons and organisations to discuss the Report
and responses to it.
We believe this would be a valuable mechanism to ensure the
debate is not narrowly focussed on the education industry and
would ensure broader community involvement in civics issues.
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