Students at Banded Peak School in Bragg Creek got a taste of the democratic process when candidates from the three ridings in the area participated in a mini forum at the school on April 29.
Teacher Scott Bailey said students in the school’s Grade 5/6 classes have been studying government and the forum was a good way for them, and the rest of the students, to speak to some actual candidates in the Alberta election.
Three candidates spoke to an assembly of all the students from Grade 1 through 8, during which they outlined their reasons for running for office.
In attendance were Corel Bliss Taylor, the Green Party candidate for Chestermere–Rocky View, Cam Westhead, NDP Candidate for Banff-Cochrane and the incumbent, PC candidate for Banff-Cochrane Ron Casey.
After their short presentations, the candidates headed outside to look at poster displays the Grade 6 students had created, each covering a different political party, candidate, leader or issue. Students from the school’s other grades were also invited to check out the posters.
“They had their choice of their topic, but the goal was to make sure they were informing our Grade 3/4 and 7/8 students,” Bailey said. “
Teacher Carla Murray said she was very proud of the students, one of whom had done so much work on her poster that Murray was “moved to tears.”
The candidates stopped to talk to many of the students about their posters, including Westhead who stopped to chat with Liam Furlong, 12, a student in Grade 6. Furlong said he had watched the leadership debate held on April 22 and told Westhead he was impressed with NDP leader Rachel Notley.
The students held their own election on May 4, during which they were able to vote for the candidate they felt would best represent their concerns.
“The Student Vote Program, organized by CIVIX, allows students in their schools to vote in parallel elections,” Bailey said. “They’ll get a ballot with (the names of) the candidates. We went one step further and split it into the three ridings where they live so they’ll be going through an authentic voting experience.”
The Grade 6 students manned the polling stations during the student election. The outcome of the student vote was not known at press time.
More information about CIVIX, a non-profit dedicated to turning youth into committed and active citizens, and the Student Vote Program can be found online at civix.ca
