Teaching democracy by being democratic PDF
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TEACHING DEMOCRACY BY BEING DEMOCRATIC Theodore L. Becker, Richard A. Couto Greenwood PUBl~JSliIN Cf<O P TEACHING DEMOCRACY BY BEING DEMOCRATIC Praeger Series in Transformational Politics and Political Science The Politics of Transformation: Local Activism in the Peace and Environmental Movements Betty H. Zisk The Latino Family and the Politics of Transformation David T. Abalos Mediation, Citizen Empowerment, and Transformational Politics Edward W. Schwerin Strategies of Transformation Toward a Multicultural Society: Fulfilling the Story of Democracy David T. Abalos Beyond Confrontation: Transforming the New World Order Charles Hauss TEACHING DEMOCRACY BY BEING DEMOCRATIC Edited by Theodore L. Becker and Richard A. Couto Foreword by James MacGregor Burns Praeger Series in Transformational Politics and Political Science Theodore L. Becker, Series Adviser IPIAAIECGIER Westport, Connecticut London Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Teaching democracy by being democratic / edited by Theodore L. Becker and Richard A. Couto ; foreword by James MacGregor Burns. p. cm.-(Praeger series in transformational politics and political science, ISSN 1061-5261) Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 0-275-95552-4 (alk. paper). -ISBN 0-275-95553-2 (pbk.) 1. Democracy-Study and teaching-United States. 2. College student government-United States. 3. Student volunteers in social service-United States. 4. Community and college-United States. 5. Universities and colleges-United States-Public services. I. Becker, Theodore Lewis. II. Couto, Richard A. III. Series. JC423.T33 1996 321.8'071' 173-dc20 96-20930 British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data is available. Copyright © 1996 by Theodore L. Becker and Richard A. Couto All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be reproduced, by any process or technique, without the express written consent of the publisher. Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 96-20930 ISBN: 0-275-95552-4 0-275-95553-2 (pbk.) ISSN: 1061-5261 First published in 1996 Praeger Publishers, 88 Post Road West, Westport, CT 06881 An imprint of Greenwood Publishing Group, Inc. Printed in the United States of America @M The paper used in this book complies with the Permanent Paper Standard issued by the National Information Standards Organization (Z39.48-1984). 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Contents Foreword vii James MacGregor Burns Acknowledgments 1x Introduction 1 Theodore L. Becker and Richard A. Couto Part I: The Democratic Classroom 25 1. Students in Charge 27 William R. Caspary 2. Personal Empowerment 53 Louis Herman Part II: Beyond Classrooms and Internships 75 3. Service Learning: Integrating Community Issues and the Curriculum 79 Richard A. Couto 4. Applying Democratic Theory in Community Organizations 105 Richard Guarasci and Craig A. Rimmerman vi Contents Part III: Innovative Democratic Institutions within the University 121 5. The Community Mediation Service: A Model for Teaching Democracy and Conflict Resolution 123 Christa Daryl Slaton 6. Televote: Interactive, Participatory Polling 145 Theodore L. Becker Afterword 163 Theodore L. Becker and Richard A. Couto Bibliography 171 Index 177 About the Editors and Contributors 183 Foreword James MacGregor Burns Not long ago I had the kind of experience that Teaching Democracy by Being Democratic illuminates. Some colleagues and I, concerned about the non representation or underrepresentation of huge groups of Americans in Con gress, convened a gathering of grass-roots or "cobblestone" leaders of such groups. Women, African Americans, ex-offenders, "illegal" aliens, Native Americans, and others accepted our invitation. Absent were teen-age rep resentatives of the largest of nonrepresented groups in Congress-children. My colleagues and I were aware that our leadership in calling this gath ering gave us no commanding role in the discussion that followed. We had agreed that we would merely start the meeting off and let the invited par ticipants take over. Still, we felt we needed to state the assumptions that lay behind the gathering. But immediately some of those assumptions were challenged. Why did we take for granted that they wanted representation in an irremediably "elitist" government? Why representation in Congress, that hopelessly reactionary institution? Why try to begin a debate that would be inevitably muffied or distorted by the media? And where were the children? Most of all-and to our considerable surprise-the participants chal lenged our assumption that we had some right or duty to convene this meeting, because, inevitably, this assumption would color the nature of the discussion. Who were we to do this? In vain we contended that we were "only getting things started." A long discussion followed as the group shifted the subject to their assumptions. The outcome was best expressed by one of the African-American participants: "You called this meeting hop ing we would join you-we will go ahead and let you join us." viii Foreword This incident illustrated one of the most daunting problems in the study of leadership. That study has come a long way, of course, since the old-time emphasis on the "man-on-the-white-horse"-almost always a white man on that horse-approach to leadership. Now we think in more sophisticated psychological and political terms about the intricate symbiotic relationship between would-be leaders and their targets. Someone-the leader-must take some originating action to set in motion the leadership-followership interaction. But the originator does so-assuming a desire to attract a fol lower-by estimating the wants, needs, expectations, or political attitudes of the follower. In that interaction, who is really the leader and who is really the follower? All this also applies to the task of teaching democracy by being demo cratic, for the teacher-student relationship is at heart a leader-potential leader-relationship. Just as leaders ideally lead "followers" in such a way that the followers become the leaders' leaders, so teachers teach students in such a way that the learners become the teachers' teachers. To our infinite joy, we teachers have all seen this happen. I can think of many students whom I once mentored and who now mentor me. This volume, with its concern for community organization, students as collaborators, personal empowerment, the "community of need and re sponse," and democratic organization, was written with a knowing eye for modern leadership theory. But it also links this theory to practice. Teachers and other readers will learn much about tested techniques in teaching de mocracy by being democratic in the classroom. The authors do not senti mentalize or idealize-they are tough minded about what works and what fails to work. They are creative themselves in calling for imagination in the classroom, as in their concluding chapter on the Televote. Other approaches and techniques are detailed in this rich offering. They include structuring a democratic classroom; democratic practices that em power students; problem solving and community service that make the class room a laboratory for democracy; and university-based programs of democratic alternatives that serve the community. Still, in the end, we have the dilemma of the trigger or spark that sets off leading and responding, teaching and learning. Someone must get things started, whether in a classroom or in an election campaign. The authors have taken leadership in writing this volume-but in a way that will create legions of new teachers and leaders in the classroom. Acknowledgments We are indebted to several people who helped us in very specific ways to produce this book. Our contributors met deadlines and dealt with sugges tions for revisions generously. Arlene Belzer, our production editor, ferreted out our errors of omission and commission and clarified the expression of many ideas in the book. The University of Richmond Faculty Research Committee provided support for copying and mailing manuscripts. The Kel logg Leadership Studies Project provided Couto a rich context for thought and discussion. Charlotte Chandler and Judy Mable processed the manu script and found elusive files on errant diskettes when necessary. Ashley Broom and Anna Johnson helped in the last stage of manuscript preparation. They brought "fresh eyes" and meticulous detail to the task of proofread ing. In a general way, we are indebted to the thousands of students and dozens of colleagues who taught us by word and example. We dedicate this book to them. Inbetween these specific and general contributions are those of Dan Eades, our intrepid editor. His vision helped initiate the Praeger Series on Transformational Politics and Political Science. His commitment sustains it and made this book possible.
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