What it means
Example
🏛️ Phase 2 — Encounter 🎧 Audio / Visual ⏱ 5 minutes

Task 2 — What is Democracy and How Does it Work?

First contact with the core concept — through a narrated visual story, not a textbook definition. Explore democracy, rights, responsibilities and three levels of civic decision-making.

Animated slide content — 3 slides
Slide 1 of 3
demos = people
kratos = power
Parliament
🏛️
↑ you elect
↓ laws affect you
Slide 1 of 3
What is democracy?
Democracy is a system in which citizens make decisions collectively — directly, or by choosing representatives.

The word comes from the Greek demos (people) and kratos (power). In a democracy, power ultimately belongs to the citizens.

The arrows in the animation show the two-way relationship: you elect representatives, and the laws they make affect you. The loop never stops — because democracy never stops.
Rights
Duties
⚠️ When citizens stop participating, democracy weakens.
Vote
Speak freely
Fair process
Stay informed
Participate
Consider others
Slide 2 of 3
Rights and responsibilities
In a democracy, citizens have rights: to vote, to speak freely, to access information, to a fair process.

But rights come with responsibilities — to be informed, to consider others, to participate.

Watch the scale: when the responsibilities side is ignored, it tips. A democracy that citizens ignore slowly stops working.
🇪🇺 European Union
Trade, human rights, environment
🏛️ National Parliament
Laws, taxes, education system
🏙️ Local Council
Parks, youth centres, local roads
YOU
Slide 3 of 3
Three levels of civic decisions
Decisions are made at three levels: local (your town or city), national (your parliament), and — in Europe — EU level.

The green dots show your voice travelling upward. The "YOU" circle at the bottom represents you — the starting point of all civic action.

Understanding which level decides what is the first step to knowing where your voice can make a difference.
📌 Class Reflection Board
Posts appear live on the teacher's screen
Live
Share one idea from the slides that surprised you most — or that you want to remember. Max 100 characters.
0 / 100
✅ Posted to class board!
Student 1
Power comes from citizens — not the government
Student 2
Rights + responsibilities are a balance — both matter
Student 3
Local council decides about the youth centre — not parliament
Quick comprehension check — 2 questions
📋 Use what you just saw in the slides to answer: 2 quick questions — ungraded, instant feedback. Results go to your teacher to help shape the investigation phase.
Question 1 of 2 · Multiple choice Ungraded
What does civic engagement mean?
💡 Think about the first slide — what is democracy designed to involve citizens in?
A
Following politics on social media and staying informed
B
Obeying the laws of your country
C
Actively taking part in decisions that shape your community
D
Voting in elections when you turn 18
✅
Correct! Civic engagement means actively taking part in decisions that shape your community — not just following or obeying, but participating in the process. Democracy depends on it.
❌
Not quite. The correct answer is C: actively taking part in decisions that shape your community. Following news or obeying laws are helpful, but civic engagement means going further — participating, questioning, acting.
Question 2 of 2 · Multiple choice Ungraded
Which level of government decides about a local youth centre?
💡 Think about the third slide — three levels, and which level handles local community decisions.
A
The European Union
B
The national parliament
C
The local council
D
The country's president or prime minister
✅
Correct! Local decisions — like whether a youth centre stays open — are made by the local council. The EU handles Europe-wide issues; national parliament handles national law. Local is where your community decides for itself.
❌
Not quite. The correct answer is C: the local council. Decisions about community facilities like youth centres, parks or local roads are made at local level — not nationally or by the EU. This is important to remember when the Youth Centre dilemma comes up in Task 3!
2/2
Quick check complete
📋 Saved to teacher dashboard · Ungraded
← Task 1 Continue to Task 3 →

What happens in Task 2

Three animated slides, each with a distinct visual metaphor. Slide 1: a democracy loop showing five colour-coded citizen figures bobbing upward with animated "you elect" and "laws affect you" arrows cycling continuously. Slide 2: an animated balance scale that tilts every 4 seconds — when it tips too far, an orange warning card fades in. Slide 3: three level-cards animating in from bottom (EU → National → Local) with upward-flowing green dots and a pulsing "YOU" circle at the base. After Slide 3, the class reflection board unlocks. After posting, a 2-question formative quiz auto-triggers.

🔑 Tappable key terms

democracy — "A way of running a country where the people have the power — either by voting directly or by choosing leaders to decide for them."
rights — "Things you are legally entitled to have or do — protections that no one can take away from you."
responsibilities — "Things you are expected to do as a citizen — duties that come alongside your rights."
civic — "Anything that relates to your life as a member of a community or country — the shared rules, decisions and spaces that affect everyone."

📋 Quiz design notes

Both questions are ungraded with a minimum 3-second feedback display before Next activates. Q1 tests the definition of civic engagement — a key term that underpins the entire lesson. Q2 tests understanding of the three-level model — specifically that the Youth Centre dilemma (which drives the whole lesson) is a local council decision, not a national one. The results are saved to the teacher dashboard to identify persistent misconceptions before the Investigation phase.

♿ SEN Adaptations
  • Audio narration button on each slide (speaker icon, top right) reads full slide text with play/pause/replay
  • Tappable key terms include audio pronunciation — tap the speaker icon in the tooltip
  • Junior/senior content toggle: teacher sets in dashboard. Senior version adds EU institutional detail on Slide 3
  • Simplified content mode available — activated per student in teacher dashboard accessibility settings
  • Poll buttons use large text with colour-fill icons (WCAG AA standard)
  • Class board accepts voice-recorded sticky notes — microphone icon on input field
  • Quiz: text-to-speech reads question and all options aloud; 1.5× or 2× time per student via teacher dashboard
🖨️ No-Tech Format
  • Teacher presents 3 facts verbally with whiteboard sketch or printed diagram of the three-level model
  • Printed key terms card: democracy, rights, responsibilities, civic — each with a one-sentence definition
  • Class board: students write their sentence on a sticky note and post on the board or whiteboard
  • Quiz questions read aloud; students raise hands or write answers on paper
  • Teacher reads correct answers aloud after each question with a brief explanation
Phase 2 · Encounter · Civics
Task 2 — What is Democracy?
3Slides
2Questions
5mDuration
Progress0%
1
Explore all 3 slides
2
Post to class board
3
Complete 2-question quiz
Key terms — tap to explore
🏛️ democracy →
✅ rights →
⚖️ responsibilities →
🗳️ civic →
All Tasks — Lesson 3
1
Who Makes the Rules?
2
What is Democracy?
3
What Voice Counts?
4
The Argument Balance
5
Fact, Opinion or Propaganda?
6
Rights & Civic Power
7
What Would You Decide?
8
Personal Discovery
9
Build Your Civic Voice
10
What Would You Actually Do?