Year 9 - Citizenship
What are direct and representative democracies?
How is the UK governed?
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This pupil-friendly study guide includes a unit summary, clear notes, common mistakes, and quick questions with answers.
Unit Summary
Pupils explore the difference between local, regional and national governance and compare the political systems in the UK and US.
Lesson Summary
You will learn to explain what representative and direct democracies are and some of the key differences between them.
Key Notes
- Direct democracy is where citizens decide on policy directly, for example, through a referendum on each issue.
- Representative democracy is where citizens choose others to represent them to make important decisions on their behalf.
- Some countries may not be a full direct democracy but may use elements of this system, e.g., by holding referendums.
Vocabulary To Learn
- direct democracy: a type of democracy where the people decide on the policy directly, for example, through a vote or referendum on each issue
- referendum: a general vote by the electorate on a single political issue which has been referred to them for a direct decision; it is a form of direct democracy
- representative democracy: a type of democracy where citizens choose others to represent them in making important decisions on their behalf
Common Mistakes To Avoid
- Representative democracies take away the choices of citizens because the representatives make all the decisions on their behalf.
3 Quick Questions (With Answers)
1. Explain the lesson in two key points.
Direct democracy is where citizens decide on policy directly, for example, through a referendum on each issue. Representative democracy is where citizens choose others to represent them to make important decisions on their behalf.
2. What does this key word mean in this lesson? 'direct democracy'
a type of democracy where the people decide on the policy directly, for example, through a vote or referendum on each issue.
3. Correct this common mistake.
Mistake: Representative democracies take away the choices of citizens because the representatives make all the decisions on their behalf. Correction: In a representative democracy, citizens elect representatives to make decisions on their behalf, but they can also influence policies through voting in elections, contacting their representatives and sometimes even through referendums.
More Lessons In This Unit
- How does the UK political system compare to other systems? Study Guide
- How is the country run? Study Guide
- What are the differences between local, regional and national governance? Study Guide
- What are the differences between the UK and US political systems? Study Guide
- What does the Civil Service do? Study Guide
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