What is democracy?
Lesson details
Learning outcome
I can explain what a democracy is and describe the key features of a democracy.
Key learning points
- A democracy is a type of government where the citizens are involved in decision making
- Key features of a democracy include free and fair elections, multi party system and protection of human rights
- The are different categories of democracy around the world including: full democracy, flawed democracy and hybrid regime
Keywords
Democracy - a system of government in which citizens vote in regular, fair elections for representatives who then make laws and decisions on their behalf
Democracy index - an index measuring the quality of democracy across the world
Active citizenship - the process of learning how to take part in democracy and use Citizenship knowledge, skills and understanding to work together and try to make a positive difference in the world
Common misconception
Democracy works exactly the same way in every country.
Democracy takes different forms across the world, for example, direct, full, flawed democracies and hybrid regimes.
Teacher tip
It is important to remember that democracy looks different across different countries.
Licence
Lesson video
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Prior knowledge starter quiz
6 Questions
Q1.Why is fairness important in treating everyone equally?
Q2.Match the positions to their corresponding roles.
the leader of the Government
peers who scrutinise the bills approved by the house of commons
the head of the state
Q3.Which of the following are examples of human rights?
Q4.A general election is when the citizens of a country (the electorate) vote to elect new ...
Q5.Fill in the missing word. Rule of law means that is above the law.
Q6.Which of the following are examples of active citizenship?
Assessment exit quiz
4 Questions
Q1.Fill in the blank: Democracy is a system of in which citizens vote in regular, fair elections for representatives who then make laws and decisions on their behalf.
Q2.Democracy began in ...
Q3.Order the following from most to least democratic.
Q4.Match the key features of a democracy to their definition.
they are held regular, have a secret ballot and universal suffrage
the existence of more than one party to offer choice
offers freedom of speech, freedom of association and minority rights
allows citizens to have civic, electoral and political voice
means no one is above the law
power is divided to ensure scrutiny and accountability
To help you plan your 10 citizenship lesson on: What is democracy?, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...
To help you plan your 10 citizenship lesson on: What is democracy?, 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 What are the strengths and weaknesses of the UK democratic system? unit, dive into the full secondary citizenship curriculum, or learn more about lesson planning.