How does government work in a non-democratic nation?
Lesson details
Learning outcome
I can explain how governments work in non-democratic nations.
Key learning points
- Non-democratic nations limit citizen participation and centralise power with a single leader or ruling party.
- Non-democratic countries include China, North Korea, and Saudi Arabia.
Keywords
Government - the group of people with the authority to govern a country; in the UK, the Government is chosen and led by the Prime Minister (PM)
Authoritarian regime - a system of government where leaders have complete control and people are expected to obey without question, often limiting individual freedoms
Common misconception
Non-democratic governments are lawless.
Non-democratic governments still have laws and rules but the citizens might not get a say in what these are and they are decided by those in power.
Teacher tip
Governments change and evolve over time, so always check before delivering this lesson to find out if there have been any changes to the Governments when giving examples from specific countries.
Content guidance
Depiction or discussion of discriminatory behaviour
Depiction or discussion of sensitive content
Depiction or discussion of violence or suffering
Supervision
Adult supervision recommended
Licence
Lesson video
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Prior knowledge starter quiz
6 Questions
Q1.What is the Democracy Index used to measure?
Q2.In non-democratic regimes, political freedoms are often ...
Q3.Which aspect of a country's democracy does the Democracy Index measure under the category of 'functioning of government'?
Q4.In the Democracy Index, which of the following situations would most likely indicate a ‘flawed democracy’?
Q5.Match each country to its corresponding Democracy Index category.
authoritarian regime
hybrid regime
flawed democracy
Q6.How would you expect the Democracy Index to classify a country with a high level of political participation and a fair electoral process?
Assessment exit quiz
6 Questions
Q1.Match the country to its political system.
absolute monarchy
one-party state
authoritarian regime
dictatorship
Q2.Rank the order of categories in the Democracy Index, from the most democratic to least democratic.
Q3.Which of these features might not be seen in a non-democratic government?
Q4.Absolute monarchies are often , meaning that power is maintained within one family over time.
Q5.Why are one-party states undemocratic?
Q6.How might a non-democratic country maintain political control?
To help you plan your 11 citizenship lesson on: How does government work in a non-democratic nation?, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...
To help you plan your 11 citizenship lesson on: How does government work in a non-democratic nation?, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs.
The starter quiz will activate and check your pupils' prior knowledge, with versions available both with and without answers in PDF format.
We use learning cycles to break down learning into key concepts or ideas linked to the learning outcome. Each learning cycle features explanations with checks for understanding and practice tasks with feedback. All of this is found in our slide decks, ready for you to download and edit. The practice tasks are also available as printable worksheets and some lessons have additional materials with extra material you might need for teaching the lesson.
The assessment exit quiz will test your pupils' understanding of the key learning points.
Our video is a tool for planning, showing how other teachers might teach the lesson, offering helpful tips, modelled explanations and inspiration for your own delivery in the classroom. Plus, you can set it as homework or revision for pupils and keep their learning on track by sharing an online pupil version of this lesson.
Explore more key stage 4 citizenship lessons from the How do others govern? unit, dive into the full secondary citizenship curriculum, or learn more about lesson planning.