How would you design a democratic system from scratch? Poole MP Robert Syms encourages A-level students in Poole to take part in the Political Studies Association’s Student Short Video Competition.
The Political Studies Association (PSA) exists to develop and promote the study of politics. As part of their programme of activities to engage young people in the study of politics, the Association runs an annual short film competition open to students who will be studying during the academic year 2015-16.
This year’s competition asks students to explore the question: "Designing for Democracy - what would you propose?” Groups of A-level students are invited to submit short videos on this subject, outlining what they would suggest if they could design a democratic system from scratch.
Shortlisted groups will be invited to The Speaker’s House in the Palace of Westminster to discuss the ideas raised in their video with a panel of politicians, journalists and academics.
The winners of the Student Short Video Competition will receive their award at the PSA Annual Awards Ceremony in Westminster. Broadcast on BBC Parliament, this year’s ceremony takes place on 1st December in London and accommodation is provided for the winning group and their teacher in a central London hotel. On top of this, the winning students will each be invited to spend a week volunteering with and shadowing the YouGov political team during their school holidays.
Poole MP Robert Syms says: “Encouraging young people to become more engaged in politics is really important. I’d encourage all local A-level students to take part in this competition and submit their ideas and videos. Good luck to all Poole students taking part.”
PSA CEO Helena Djurkovic said: “The Short Video Competition is a great chance for students to explore contemporary political issues in a creative way and to learn or enhance new skills, such as video production and interview style. This year’s theme on democracy we feel is very apt given the current debates around representation, voting reform and disengagement amongst young people with traditional Westminster politics.”
If you could design a democratic system from scratch, what would you propose?
The PSA invites teams of students to submit a video of no more than 4 minutes that explores the question.
The aim of the competition is to get students exploring the advantages and disadvantages of different types of democratic systems and create their own proposal.
Full competition details for 2015 and how to enter are published on the PSA website.