There is not a better time for Middle School and High School students to learn about democracy. During this crucial time of their development before entering adulthood, young people begin to make their own decisions, experience bureaucracy and the laws, and most importantly try to have their voices heard in various ways.
Here’s three reasons why young people need to be involved in the democratic process:
First of all, it is important that young people learn how to make their own decisions and good ones. Voting is just one act to continuously practice decision making.
Second, learning about democracy gives young people an exposure to government and policy, two things that impact the daily lives of everyone living within this country.
Third, it’s important to empower young people, they provide fresh opinions to remind more seasoned people that sometimes the present needs to be addressed versus just the future.
Young people under the age of 18 can get involved by:
- Volunteering for campaigns to turn out other voters
- Working at a polling location on election day
- (Pre-)registering other people to vote
And when the time comes: registering to vote, doing research and then voting every time there’s an election!