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Program background
At the heart of Our Strategy for Public Education is the commitment to ensuring our future generations are empowered to be active, informed and compassionate citizens.
Our world is rapidly changing, and the future we’re educating our children and young people for will be different from today. In times of uncertainty and rapid shifts in how we access and consume information, it’s never been more important for students to engage in critical thinking; to assess their sources, stop and think about their choices, their views and the influences around them.
Safeguarding democracy is the Government of South Australia’s reforms to support and strengthen democracy in South Australia.
Launched in 2025, Safeguarding democracy is being rolled out over 3 years, and with $18.4 million to be invested in civics and citizenship education.
By engaging in the concepts of democracy, including through civics and citizenship education, we're strengthening students’ ability to engage with issues that matter to them and the world they live in, to understand how decisions affecting them get made, and how they might influence these decisions.
About Safeguarding Democracy
Safeguarding Democracy is the government’s reform initiative aimed at boosting the civics and citizenship education of young people in South Australia.
The nation-leading initiative is designed to provide a great focus on the education of young people about the important role civics and citizenship play in our society, and seeks to empowers young people to be active, informed, and compassionate citizens who contribute to their communities and uphold democratic values.
Safeguarding Democracy will strengthen civics and citizenship education by focusing on 3 reform streams:
- Immersing students
- Learning reform, and
- Teacher specialisation.
