POLITICAL INVOLVEMENT

What Is Political Participation?

For many, one of the aspects of our culture that many
are most proud of is the extent to which they can take
part in the political system. Whether they are voting for
a new congressman, serving on a jury, or participating in
a public protest, they can be fairly certain that their
actions are going to have an influence on American
politics in some way. For them, this is important
because it is one of the ways in which citizens can
contribute to their communities and be active members
of society.
These civic activities are what are known as
political participation, and they are a critical part of
any democracy. As the name suggests, political
participation simply means that a person is
participating in the political process by making his
or her opinions and beliefs known. In the social
sciences, the term 'political participation' is often
used to describe an action taken by a citizen to
influence the outcome of a political issue.
Types of Political Participation

There are many different forms of political

participation, and whether you know it or not,
you've probably taken part in some of them at
different points in your life.
Some of the most common forms of political
participation are:
1.Voting: In a democracy, voting is the single most important form of political
participation that a person can take part in because it ensures that politicians are
elected by the people, rather than being assigned to their position of power by
someone else.
2.Protest: Whether or not it is a constitutional right, public protests are another
important form of political participation because you are making your opinions
known in a very obvious way, with the hope that your actions will influence or
initiate change in a particular area of politics.
3.Public consultations: Like voting, public consultations (which are more commonly
known as town hall meetings) offer ordinary citizens the chance to get together in a
group with a politician or elected official in order to make their opinions and feelings
known.
4.Jury duty: Although most people shudder at the thought of having to attend jury
duty, it is an important type of political participation because it ensures that people
who are charged with a crime are judged by people like them, rather than allowing
the outcome to depend entirely on a single person, such as a judge.
While these are some of the most common forms of political
participation, there are many others. These include:
•Signing a petition
•Writing a letter to a public official
•Blogging about a political issue
•Donating money to a cause
•Volunteering for a campaign
•Joining an activist or interest group
•Holding a public official position
•Occupying a building in an act of protest
•Committing a terrorist act
YOUTH EMPOWERMENT
Empowerment is the granting of power to
perform duties and create change. To empower
youth, therefore, means teaching them about
their capacity to control their lives and change
society -- to instill a sense of their value.
Empower your students through a variety of
classroom activities that will focus on these
subjects.
Youth empowerment is a process where
children and young people are encouraged to
take charge of their lives. They do this by
addressing their situation and then take action in
order to improve their access to resources and
transform their consciousness through their
beliefs, values, and attitudes.[1] Youth
empowerment aims to improve quality of life.
Self-Confidence Acrostic Narrative Students
exercise self-confidence by having them
create an acrostic narrative or poem using
their name. Have students write their names
vertically on the left side of a sheet of paper.
Then have them describe their positive traits
or abilities using each letter in their name.
I Can Be Whoever I Want to Be
This activity empowers students to take charge of
their lives and know that they can do anything they
put their minds to by looking at famous influential
figures as role models. For younger students, have a
discussion about the accomplishments of people
such as Albert Einstein, Amelia Earhart and Martin
Luther King Jr. and how they overcame adversity and
obstacles to accomplish amazing feats.
Making a Positive Difference

Young people can experience fulfilment if given the opportunity to

make an important impact on their community. For example,
conduct a food drive for a local food bank or plan a clean up day
on which students collect garbage in the schoolyard. Through
these activities, students will recognize the role they play in
changing things for the better and how even small gestures, such
as cleaning up the schoolyard, contribute to a greater good, such
as a positive community spirit.
All About Feelings
This activity helps students with self-discovery and understanding
their feelings. Write questions beginning with "How do you feel
when ..." on strips of paper and place them in a box. Examples of
questions you can write are "How do you feel when you win a
game?" or "How do you feel when someone is mean to you?" Have
each student pick a question and take turns answering. When it's
done as a group discussion, students can hear all the different
types of emotions people feel. Empower students by telling them
that as long as emotions are vented in a healthy matter, without
hurting themselves or others, they have the right to express them.