Power to the people
Mr Burns and his A-level Politics’ students consider the outcome of the 2024 US election
The new A-level Politics' students have been keenly following the recent American election. They’ve been fascinated by the politics, the campaign and the issues at stake. They have examined the electoral college system, the views and policies of the two candidates - Donald Trump and Kamala Harris - and the elections for both the House of Representatives and the Senate. Prior to the election, the whole class predicted the outcome of the electoral college. The best student was Dannio Cao, who predicted a Trump win and came closest to his electoral college score of 312. The worst student, apparently, was Mr Burns! He predicted Harris would win all seven swing states and get 325 electoral college votes.
The students have divided into four groups, each one presenting to one of the school’s colleges. The aim is to explain to younger year groups how the American political system works, what happened in the election, how Trump won and why it’s important to them and their future.
‘Each group has taken a slightly different approach to how they present this information,’ says Mr Burns. ’It’s been fantastic watching the Year 12 students stand up in front of the rest of the school.’
The A-level students clearly felt it was a significant opportunity…
‘Telling the younger students about how the US election works is important,’ says Asher Siddiqui. ‘It ensures that when they hear about it on the news, or see it on social media, they’re not in a bubble but actually understand what is going on. The results of the US election will affect UK attitudes and policies, so students should have an understanding of it. ‘
Rida Ikram adds: ‘Telling the younger generation about elections helps them understand their power to shape the future and make a difference.’
These beliefs have clearly been fostered by Mr Burns: ‘It’s vital that students engage with what is happening in America. Politics affects everyone and I wanted the Year 12 students to explain to the younger students how it works and why it’s so important. We aim to get the students curious so they do their own research and thinking, deciding what they think about the election of Donald Trump. For better or worse, it will have a big impact on the next few years and, in the case of climate change, possibly the rest of the century.’