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Agenda 0945 Welcome Explaining the Rule of Law and Its Elements Using the Rule of Session 1: Law Pyramid

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Agenda 0945 Welcome Explaining the Rule of Law and Its Elements Using the Rule of Session 1: Law Pyramid 17/09/2017 WELCOME TO THE “RULE OF LAW EXPOSED” PROFESSIONAL LEARNING SEMINAR Agenda 0945 Welcome Explaining the rule of law and its elements using the rule of Session 1: law pyramid. 1015 Session 2: Explore contemporary examples, especially Racial Discrimination and Freedom of Speech. 1100 Session 3: Promoting student engagement in Years 7-10 RoLI resources and Q&A. 1125 Session 4: Teaching & Learning approaches to help understand rule of law in contexts suitable to students of both Civics & Citizenship and Politics & Law ATAR. 1145 Conclusion Q&A or WACE Student Revision Seminar for Politics & Law 1 17/09/2017 RULE OF LAW EXPOSED BY JACKIE CHARLES Please see the separate document which contains the presentation 2 17/09/2017 TEACHING & LEARNING STRATEGIES FOR CIVICS & CITIZENSHIP AS WELL AS POLITICS & LAW CIVICS & CITIZENSHIP CURRICULUM Year 7 Civics & Citizenship: the purpose and value of the Australian Constitution; the concept of the separation of powers between the legislature, executive and judiciary and how it seeks to prevent the excessive concentration of power; how Australia’s legal system aims to provide justice, including through the rule of law, presumption of innocence, burden of proof, right to a fair trial, and right to legal representation; Year 9 Civics & Citizenship: the key principles of Australia’s justice system, including equality before the law, independent judiciary, and right of appeal; Year 10 Civics & Citizenship: the role of the High Court, including interpreting the Constitution; the international agreements Australia has ratified and examples of how they shape government policies and laws (e.g. the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination); 3 17/09/2017 POLITICS AND LAW ATAR SYLLABUS PAL Unit 1: the principle of rule of law, separation of powers doctrine and judicial independence; operating principles of a liberal democracy; at least one contemporary issue (the last three years) involving the judicial process; PAL Unit 3: at least one contemporary issue (the last three years) relating to legal power; Any High Court case [because it is Year 12] in the last three years so students can show the power used by the court to make a decision – and the impact of that decision (linking back to key concepts/principles) PAL Unit 4: the practices of governance including the rule of law and human rights; the status of international covenants, protocols and treaties in protecting human rights in Australia; the ways in which Australia and one other country can both uphold and/or undermine democratic principles, with reference to the rule of law and judicial independence. HOW CAN YOU DIFFERENTIATE THE RULE OF LAW FOR YEAR LEVELS? 4 17/09/2017 RULE OF LAW Define it: Explain its elements/characteristics See it in the world: Elaborate and find examples and evidence to demonstrate the elements Find arguments and examples to challenge the upholding of rule of law or show threats to it (in Australia and one other country) Juxtapose: Compare it to ‘rule by law’ RULE OF LAW DEFINITION – YEAR 7-9 principle that all actions of everyone are subject, equally, to the law/s and that no one is above the law Especially that the: Law applies to all citizens, no matter who they are – or their position, power or status Laws should be enforceable and reflect values and attitudes of community Rule of law can be protected through separation of powers, judicial independence and the right to a fair trial/appeal Citizens should have equal rights to use the courts and be treated fairly in court 5 17/09/2017 RULE OF LAW – YEAR 10 principle that all actions of everyone, INCLUDING GOVERNMENT, are subject, equally, to the law/s and that no one is above the law Especially that the: Law applies to all citizens, no matter who they are – or their position, power or status Laws should be enforceable, reflect values and attitudes of community, CONSISTANT, FAIR HEARINGS, TRADITIONS AND CONVENTIONS *Use of international conventions/covenants/protocols and incorporation of United Nations governance/review Rule of law can be protected through separation of powers, judicial independence and the right to a fair trial/appeal Citizens should have equal rights to use the courts and be treated fairly in court RULE OF LAW DEFINITION – YEAR 11-12 Fundamental principle that all actions of individuals and governments are subject, equally, to the law/s and that no one is above the law (everyone is equal before the law) A number of characteristics/elements/features include: Law applies to all citizens, no matter position, power or status (Supremacy of law) Laws should be clear, understandable, able to be learnt, stable yet flexible, consistent, enforceable and reflect values and attitudes of community, in futuro not retrospective Effective methods of upholding the rule of law including separation of powers, judicial independence, discretion and impartiality, fair hearings, traditions and conventions to ensure legal decisions based on reasonable interpretation of laws Citizens are equal before the law and enjoy the same legal rights (equality of ‘access and equity’) 6 17/09/2017 INVESTIGATING THE RULE OF LAW: Examples include: Judge Marcus Einfeld, Senator Mary-Jo Fisher (Liberal), Paul Omedei MLA (Ex-Leader Liberal Party WA), Andrew Theophanous MHR (Labor), Terry Martin MLC (ALP Tasmania), Judge Roderick Howie (NSW Supreme Court), Hogan v Hinch 2011, Troy Buswell (Liberal Treasurer), Craig Thomson, Peter Slipper Communist Party Case; Wik Peoples and Native Title Amendment Act 1998; Plaintiff M70 Section 72; SA v Totani; Mandatory sentencing in WA; Magistrates Court Stirling Gardens = Habeas Corpus; judicial process in cases Dietrich; Robyn Bella Kina TEACHING AND LEARNING STRATEGIES SUGGESTIONS FROM THE RULE OF LAW INSTITUTE https://www.ruleoflaw.org.au/education/teaching-strategies/ 7 17/09/2017 PRINCIPLES & CONTEXT Use the rule of law pyramid to articulate a framework for teaching critical thinking by showing relationships between rule of law principles and context. Explain the meaning of rule of law principles, ask what happens if they are not present in a society. Use the pyramid as a flexible framework to give a visual structure to legal principles and concepts. Some students also benefit from a list, criteria or element based approach Set the legal context by explaining how and why (purpose) we have a given principle – this lays the foundation for telling stories and explaining black-letter law that is interesting and engaging. STORIES + SKILLS A good story always has a hook at the beginning, an interesting or challenging complication and a resolution. Pick an interesting and relevant case study that relates to multiple principles in the pyramid. Make a judgement-call based on your knowledge of the students about how best to describe and explain the black-letter law (legal processes and terminology). This could be as simple as providing a reference to a law, or a great quote from a case and telling students why it matters in terms of a principle from the pyramid. It could be as complex as asking students to read small excerpts of law and argue about what specific legal terminology could mean. Explicit teaching of research skills and legal terminology supports comprehension of legal texts: the golden rule is to chunk (scaffold) complex concepts into smaller units with reference to real people and examples. 8 17/09/2017 SYNTHESIS Synthesis is the act of using the resolution of the story, the principles in the pyramid and the context to leave students with a broader idea or problem to think about. The resolution of the story refers explicitly back to principles – does the story represent a positive, negative, or other kind of outcome for the principle in question? Make the resolution of the story problematic and present opposing perspectives Expect students to articulate their own view about a case study based on a synthesis of principle, context and law. Ideally this process will help students examine and interpret other case studies and legal issues. (apply their learning to future situations and applications) RESOURCES 9 17/09/2017 SCSA Word Format Key concepts and explanations Pg.105-106 Justice The concept of justice is about understanding the rule of law and its application; the idea of equality before the law, the importance of judicial independence and objectivity leading to the law being perceived as fair. An understanding of the concept of justice is developed in the following ways: the principles of ‘natural justice’ and how these are upheld or undermined with a focus on Australia and with a comparison made to other nations, including those in the Asian region the processes of the courts and the parliaments in Australia and the centrality of the rule of law the individual within the legal system. Scope and Sequence – Civics & Citizenship – Years 3-6 – pg.38-39 Years 7-10 – pg.46 HASS Glossary – pg.20 10 17/09/2017 RULE OF LAW INSTITUTE • There are many interactive elements to the Rule of Law Institute Website as well as video resources. • Suitable for students at various levels in secondary / senior school https://www.ruleoflaw.org.au/education/videos/ruleoflaw/ MAGNA CARTA LEGACY A thorough, yet engaging way to explore separation of powers, role of the judiciary in providing accountability of the parliament, freedoms of thought, association and political communication Suitable for Years 7+ http://www.magnacartalegacy.org/newspaper.html
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