Quebec teachers have until March 2 to register for the first edition of Student Budget Consultations, a civic education and financial literacy program launched by the charity CIVIX-Quebec.
This non-partisan program for high school and CEGEP students is offered free of charge to 50 schools across Quebec. Its aim is to share the opinions of 1,000 young people with political parties, the media and the general population in anticipation of the budget which will be made public at the end of March.
An experience to live in the classroom
The Student Budget Consultations allow young people to learn more about the revenues and expenditures of the Government of Quebec, to debate political and economic issues, to become familiar with different political perspectives in addition to sharing their opinions on the budget. to come up.
It is a four-step program that can be completed in two or three class periods:
- Budget bases
Following an introductory video by Paul Larocque of the TVA network, students watch a series of non-partisan animated videos that present the revenues and expenditures of the Government of Quebec. They thus explore key budgetary concepts such as surplus and deficit. - Experts' opinion
Students listen to experienced journalists such as Michel C. Auger (SRC), Alec Castonguay (L'Actualité) and Catherine Lévesque (Huffpost Québec) who explain what, according to them, should be in the 2018 budget. - Perspectives of the parties
Representatives of the Parti Québécois, the Coalition Avenir-Québec and Québec Solidaire present their party's budget ideas and priorities and their expectations for the Québec budget this year so that students can compare different perspectives. - Participation in the questionnaire
Students are invited to share their views on budget priorities by completing a questionnaire created by the designers of the Voting Compass. In the week preceding the budget, CIVIX-Québec will share the priorities of young Quebecers with the media and political parties in a final report.
Our program is available here and includes videos, resources and lesson plan, as well as the registration form.
Tools to properly support your students
In the first learning phase of the Budget Consultations program, teachers can draw on educational tools in order to deepen certain concepts and engage in discussion with the students. These lesson plans, slides and teaching sheets are designed to increase students' knowledge of the Quebec government and public finances, encourage political debate and dialogue, foster a sense of civic duty and develop critical thinking and decision-making skills.
Developing the Skills of Young Canadians
CIVIX is a registered, non-partisan, national charity whose vision is based on a strong and inclusive democracy where every young person is able to participate in its development. The organization provides experiential learning opportunities to help young Canadians practice their rights and responsibilities as citizens and connect with their democratic institutions.
To date, CIVIX has reached 5,000 students through four Federal Budget Consultations in 2013, 2014, 2015 and 2017. In addition, 1,300 Ontario students participated in the Provincial Budget Consultations in 2012.
So far, more than 7,500 students have participated in this first edition of the Budget Consultations for the Province of Quebec and teachers have until March 2 to involve their students.
You can register your school here.
You can read the results of previous editions of the Student Budget Consultations:
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