By:Sally Spenceley
busybeesclub@gmail.com
Corruption is rife in every country, Even Britain who has been regarded as one of the truest forms of democracy has had recent scandals of British politicians arrested for their dubious expenses. Egyptians have a draw towards the democracy of the west without taking into account that, what has been happening in Egypt, is also happening all over the world whatever we call it. The current school systems in Egypt do not encourage free thinking. As an example, the style of teaching is, more often than not, still an old fashioned lecture style of teaching where students accept the facts and do not have the opportunity to question or make their own opinions. To prepare them for a democratic and free society, children must leave school or college prepared to be able to make informed, reasoned decisions with mature political judgement. Egypt needs an education system that, as Thomas Jefferson said, “enables every man to judge for himself what will secure or endanger his freedom.” Without the ability to make such judgements, freedom to choose means nothing. So, History suddenly becomes more important when preparing children for ‘new Egypt’. They should learn about democracy’s short and troubled tenure in human history. They must comprehend its vulnerabilities. They must recognize and accept their responsibility for preserving and extending their political inheritance. Without knowledge of Egypt’s own struggle for civil rights, how much can students understand of democracy’s capacity to respond to problems and to reform? In ignorance of the Second World War and its aftermath, how much can they grasp of the cost and necessity of defending democracy in the world? Having never debated and discussed how the world came to be as it is, the democratic citizen will not know what is worth defending, what should be changed, and which imposed beliefs must be resisted. Here are some suggestions of subjects that should be covered and added to the Egyptian school curriculum as Civic Studies: History starting in the elementary years A full and honest teaching of the Egyptian story An unvarnished account of what life has been and is like in non-democratic societies The virtues essential to a healthy democracy Clubs and activities where democratic norms can be put into practice (student governments, mock elections, school newspapers) All of this should rest on a solid basis of factual knowledge, the central ideas, events, people, and
works that have shaped our world, without bias and opinion. It’s not only school’s responsibility…. The preparation of citizens for this new Egypt is a task too great for schools alone. There is a need for all the major institutions of society— families, mosques / churches, schools, universities, courts, government—to share responsibility for instilling democratic values in the nation’s citizens. As Lincoln said in 1838: “Let the reverence for the laws be breathed by every American mother to the lisping babe that prattles on her lap. Let it be taught in schools, in seminaries, and in colleges. Let it be written in primers, spelling books, and in Almanacs. Let it be preached from the pulpit, proclaimed in legislative halls, and enforced in courts of justice. And, in short, let it become the political religion of the nation.” Our children must learn, and we must teach them, the knowledge, values, and habits that will best protect and extend Egypt’s precious inheritance. With the right information, children can apply their knowledge, values, and experiences to the world they must create, confident that they will find their own best ways of doing so, on the basis of free,
uncoerced thought.
