Over the past two weeks, some of our Year 9 Social Studies classes have had the opportunity to learn all about the New Zealand Government and voting system from Generation Vote.

Generation Vote is an endorsed programme created by the Otago University Student Association and run by student representatives. The program has been created to help young people understand the world of politics, looking at the role of government both central and local, how policies are made and passed, and how politics affects their daily lives.

As part of the teaching and learning the students formed their own political party. They imitated writing policies and looked at the implications and the difficulties of writing a policy fit for purpose. The culmination of the six lessons is a leaders debate and vote, where students use ballot sheets and vote for their preferred party and preferred leader.

A big thank-you to Ms Speight for organising the Generation Vote visit.

The classes had a great time learning about New Zealand’s political system and enjoyed the activities and debates. Well done to the students for coming up with some very interesting and suitable policies. Thanks also to the Otago University students who gave up their time to help teach our Year 9 students.