A rchive Date
[ 27-06-2000 ]
Category
[ International Relations ]
sub-Categoy
[ Canada ]
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[My daughter, the politician
By CONNIE WOODCOCK
Toronto Sun
May 29, 1999
How many times in the last four years have you said to yourself: "Things would be different if I ran the government"?
A group of Ontario high school students got the chance to be the government for three days this week - to sit in the premier's chair in the Legislature, to set policy, pass legislation and argue principles during debate.
It's called the Ontario Model Parliament and I wouldn't know anything about it were it not for Daughter No. 2, the younger half of the Terrible Brat Sisters, who shows a disturbingly strong interest in politics.
She's the one who became a Tiny Tory at the age of 15 and carries her membership card in her wallet.
She's the one who insisted on voting both times in the PC leadership race last fall, necessitating two 50-km round trips to the polling station.
She's the one who, early in the provincial election campaign, wanted to put a PC sign on our front lawn - an act in Port Hope that would be tantamount to inviting a shower of rotten eggs. (The Harris government allowed our local hospital to be closed and is, therefore, something less than popular around here.)
She's also the one who is sorry she's not old enough to vote yet and who was inquiring, just the other day, about how old you have to be to run as an independent candidate.
Still, I was surprised when my Grade 10 student came home from school one day last fall full of plans to participate in the Model Parliament which she'd just learned about from other students who had participated last year.
The Ontario Model Parliament is a scarily realistic simulation of the provincial legislative process. Students are assigned to one of the three major parties. They hold elections, form a government and opposition parties, make policy and hold caucus meetings.
This year's one-day opening session at Upper Canada College in Toronto - during which party leaders were chosen - was addressed by former Ontario premier Bob Rae.
It's topped off with a full-scale, two-day sitting in the Legislature where all the usual rules of parliamentary procedure apply and where the government the students elect must defend itself in debate. Hansard forms the written record, just like the real thing.
Daughter No. 2 jumped right in and found herself on the New Democratic Party benches where she felt uncomfortable - at first - and began to make plans to cross the floor.
"What will they do to me if they find out I'm really a Conservative?" she wondered.
But then she found out that many of the other participants, who had been to Model Parliament before, had also jumped from party to party. And when the NDP formed the government and she found herself minister of transportation, she decided she could live with it.
It's amazing what a little political power will do to firmly held convictions, even in the very young.
And that too is an awful lot like real life.
There are a number of things that impress me about Ontario Model Parliament. Entirely organized by high school students, it requires an enormous amount of enthusiasm from the kids who do the planning. They even build a web site which keeps everyone up to date on meetings and other plans.
It also demands real commitment from the teachers involved. Two teachers at Daughter No. 2's school not only get the ball rolling, they attend the session too and this year devoted a Saturday to taking eight or nine students to the opening session as well.
I was also impressed by the cost which, including accommodation for two nights at the University of Toronto's Victoria College, was about $135. As school trips go, this was one of the less expensive ones available this year and it certainly seemed to give good value for the money.
Daughter No. 2 will likely go back next year. There's always the chance she'll get to be premier. That would look nice on a resume, wouldn't it?
Letters to the editor should be sent to editor@sunpub.com
 World Fact Book (CIA)]]
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