How do we prepare our children to live in a "democratic society"?

I think it was interesting that the group this week asked the question, what does democracy mean to us? Usually we sit in the class where the teacher rambles on about how lucky we are to be in a democratic nation and how we have all these freedoms and how everyone comes in America because it's so wonderful. But is it so wonderful? One of our duties/rights as a United States citizen is to vote. A right that many minority groups fought relentlously for, however do we actually take advantage of the so-called power our voices have? It's ironic to me since for the past few years I would get upset with my mom for not voting in county and smaller scale elections. I tell her how women fought so hard for this right and that it was disappointing to me that should wouldn't vote because she was tired, lazy or "too busy." However now being a student I find I have some of the same apathetic attitudes toward voting. Even though I fill out all the absentee ballot information I find I never seem to mail it on time. Although I kind of get angry with myself for this I know that I will definately make it a point to vote in the presidential election since I follow it more closely and have always wanted to vote. The way our democracy is set up many people feel that even if they do vote that their vote doesn't really make a difference. For instance, New York will always be a democratic state, therefore I'm sure many Republicans don't even bother and some Democrats feel that everyone else will vote so why should they? However that exact attitude could actually change the outcome, so in essense their voting or lack of voting does make a difference on a larger scale.

I think in regards to the question what can be done to encourage active democratic participation within schools that will motivate students to be more democratically active within the larger society that we need to stop "supporting theological truths or unquestioned truths so as to legitimate the institutional role schools play in a system of control and coercion" as is mentioned in the Chomsky article. The article brings up another crucial point that our society is not equal but we pretend it to be with things such as the pledge of allegiance. I believe we need to teach what democracy is, how it is applied and compare it to what America is. Instead of being afraid to question it should be encouraged, and we need to stop pretending we live in a Utopian society because we don't.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=qf0OqS6fDNo I thought this woman (who is a parent) had an interesting take how schools and how they are undemocratic by nature.