- Ask pupils if they have voted for something (this could include voting in a debate or school elections). Discuss other occasions when people vote, eg survivor TV programmes, to accept members of a club, political office, shareholder meetings, talent competitions, TV debates, online opinion polls. Why do we vote? Ask pupils to consider why we vote. Are there alternatives for making decisions in the examples discussed? Consider the advantages and disadvantages of the different ways of making decisions. These could include direct democracy, representative democracy, dictatorship or oligarchy. Use school-based examples, eg uniform, homework timetables, to illustrate the various ways to reach decisions.
- Ask pupils to list the different ways in which people vote. This could include: telephone voting for radio, TV or newspaper polls, postal votes, polling stations and a secret ballot, a show of hands at a meeting and internet polls. What makes some methods more suitable for certain purposes? For example, would you use an expensive secret ballot with polling stations and an electoral roll to vote for a talent show winner? Or a telephone poll to elect an MP? Consider numbers involved, cost, speed, importance, accuracy, access, security, double counting and confidentiality.
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- know that voting is one of several ways in which decisions can be made
- understand that votes can be cast in different ways and that the chosen method can have an impact on the outcome
- appreciate the importance of fairness and accuracy
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