A short thread on young Australians, their engagement in democracy and the hypocritical comments from Alan Tudge regarding students in politics. This thread is not an attack of @RurbsOz's article as I believe it is informative and well written. #auspol https://www.theaustralian.com.au/nation/students-long-way-off-being-citizens/news-story/41eb48f59d98c76e668f61888bd7dd28

Naturally, I can't disagree with the results but I would point out a few things:
1) In my view the average adult doesn't know the basics of our democracy either. We know how to vote but many don't understand how the two chambers work, or what a double dissolution is.

2) I believe adults are more concerned with the impact of Government actions on their lives rather than the logistics of bill assent.
3) I believe students are the same. When it comes to politics they are more likely to care about climate change than how the Senate works.

Of course, the views I expressed above aren't an excuse for the decline in these standards. This thread isn't about that or how to fix it, this is about the hypocrisy from the Government on this matter, which I find incredibly frustrating. See below.

"We all have an interest in our kids learning about our democracy before they hit voting age" - Alan Tudge. Except, when they show that interest and directly engage in democracy via protest (climate strike), the Prime Minister tells them to stay in school!

and here it is, Morrison in Parliament telling kids to stay in school. "What we want is more learning in schools and less activism in schools" - Scott Morrison. Tudge's comments are hypocritical given the Government's reaction to the protests in 2019.

Perhaps I have misinterpreted Tudge's words. “We all have an interest in our kids learning about our democracy” - perhaps Tudge wants students to learn but not participate? Perhaps students pay less attention in civics as they know their views on the climate will be ignored?

It seems to me having read this article, that my view of students caring more about the policy and actions of Government, rather than the logistics and processes has merit given the rise in activism from young Australians.

If you're a student worried about climate change, where is your focus? Learning about the logistics of Government so when your 30 maybe you can run for office and do something about it? Or start protesting now as you've studied science and know how dangerous climate change is?

And despite the results of the testing, our students generally have a much stronger grasp of what's important in our society when compared to our elected representatives.

As above, young Australians are engaged on the issues, they want change, they want a brighter future. So, my only complaint with the article itself is that I disagree with the headline. Our students are more than ready to be citizens! They are already contributing to society!

Disagree. Maybe students are just sick of #MSM giving The Government a free pass on climate change and are getting their news elsewhere? If the next generation of voters are coming in Murdoch free, then I say bring it on! Lower the voting age to 16!

Young Australians are engaged and they understand the issues. Maybe, they don't understand the logistics of Government but neither do adults and neither do the politicians, that's why they have staffers. Thanks for reading. Enjoy your weekend. :) #auspol #climate