CIVIX coordinated nearly 170 visits between Members of Parliament and Canadian students during the 2016-2017 school year as part of the Rep Day program!

Rep Day is a civic education initiative that connects students at the elementary and secondary levels with their local MP for a dialogue on government, the electoral process and issues that affect them. The program aims to help students develop a better understanding and sense of trust in the people and institutions within our democracy.

Between September 2016 and June 2017, 167 visits were organized with 94 MPs across all ten provinces and one territory. Together, participating MPs engaged with more than 8,000 students.

Since the conception of the Rep Day program in 2012, more than 500 visits have been coordinated across Canada, and more than half of all MPs have participated. In 2016 alone, 284 visits were coordinated in every province and territory and engaged more than 13,000 students.

MP Harold Albrecht, St. Dominic Savio Catholic School

The feedback from teachers and MPs was extremely positive:

“Wow, what an awesome morning! MP Tracey Ramsey was fantastic with the students. She was a true professional. We all really enjoy her visit” (Mr. R. Milks, Anderdon Public School)

“The visit with MP Eglinski was wonderful! My students were very grateful for the opportunity to meet with him and ask questions about his role and experience. Thank you for all the work you did to pass the information along and make sure everything worked out. I really appreciate this! Thanks again! All the best!” (Ms. A. Maduik, St. Anthony School, Alberta)

“We enjoy these classroom visits and are always amazed at the engagement level and thoughtful questions from our young citizens. We look forward to visit again next school year.” (Mr. K. Kolanko, MP Rodger Cuzner)

MP Gagan Sikand, Our Lady of Good Voyage Catholic School

Interested schools for the 2017-2018 school year are invited to contact CIVIX to take part and receive free curriculum resources to help guide the visit.

CIVIX is coordinating visits between Members of Parliament and Canadian students as part of the Rep Day program!

Rep Day is a civic education initiative that connects students at the elementary and secondary levels with their local MP for a dialogue on government, the electoral process and issues that affect them. The program aims to help students develop a better understanding and sense of trust in the people and institutions within our democracy.

Since the 2017 program was launched in January, more than 70 visits have been organized and 40 of them have already taken place. Over 50 MPs from across nine provinces and one territory are participating this winter and spring and together are engaging with more than 1,000 students.

Since the creation of the Rep Day program in 2012, close to 500 visits have been coordinated across Canada, and more than half of all MPs have participated. In 2016 alone, 284 visits were coordinated in every province and territory and engaged 13,000 students.

The feedback from teachers and MPs has been extremely positive:

“The MP was impressed with the variety of questions and issues raised by the children and as always enjoyed engaging with them. We look forward to continue working with CIVIX to serve our communities.” (Ms. Hilla Master, Constituency Manager for Mr. Arnold Chan, MP for Scarborough-Agincourt)

“The visit with MP Eglinski was wonderful! My students were very grateful for the opportunity to meet with him and ask questions about his role and experience. Thank you for all the work you did to pass the information along and make sure everything worked out. I really appreciate this! Thanks again! All the best!” (Ms. Andrea Maduik, St. Anthony School, Alberta)

The Rep Day program will run through the remainder of the school year with visits coinciding with Parliamentary break weeks. The remaining weeks are from April 17^th to 21^st, April 24^th to 28^th and May 23^rd to 26^th.

Interested schools are invited to contact CIVIX to take part and receive free curriculum resources to help guide the visit.

CIVIX is coordinating visits between Members of Parliament and high school classes as part of the 2016 Rep Day program!

Rep Day is a civic education initiative that connects students with their local MP for a dialogue on government, the electoral process and issues that interest them. The program aims to help students develop a better understanding and sense of trust in the people and institutions within our democracy.

So far, 150 Rep Days have been scheduled with over 115 Members of Parliament, representing 12 provinces and territories and all five political parties represented in Parliament.

This year’s Rep Day program follows the 2015 federal Student Vote program, where 922,000 students cast ballots from 6,662 schools representing all 338 ridings (complete results are available here). Many Student Vote schools are participating in Rep Day, giving students an opportunity to interact directly with their recently-elected federal representative.

During the last school year, CIVIX coordinated 81 Rep Day visits with 71 Members of Parliament and in 2013-2014, CIVIX coordinated 85 Rep Day visits with 66 Members of Parliament. Over the past two years, more than a third of parliamentarians have participated in the program and feedback from both MPs and schools has been extremely positive.

Just wanted to let you know that Mr. Viersen’s visit was an overwhelming success, and students are still discussing a number of issues he addressed. He was professional and approachable at the same time, not an easy feat to pull off. Students identified with his youthfulness, while respecting his responses regardless of their own personal opinions.

They were left with considerable food for thought, and points of view they had never considered. Rep Day is a wonderful idea and I hope it continues.

– E.W. Pratt Senior High (High Prairie, AB)

The Rep Day program will run through the remainder of this school year with visits coinciding with Parliamentary break weeks. The remaining weeks are from April 25^th to 29^th and May 24^th to 27^th. The program will also be available throughout the 2016-2017 school year.

Interested schools are invited to contact CIVIX to take part and receive free curriculum resources to help guide the visit.

CIVIX is delivering Rep Day with support from the Government of Canada.

Le programme de la Journée du représentant 2014-2015 commence aujourd’hui et se déroule dans le cadre de la Semaine canadienne de la démocratie.

CIVIX, qui coordonne les Journées du représentant avec des députés et des écoles secondaires, lance son programme aujourd’hui avec la visite du député de Selkirk-Interlake, James Bezan, à l’école Warren Collegiate de Warren, au Manitoba. Des rencontres sont également prévues au cours de la prochaine semaine avec les députés Ralph Goodale, Ray Boughen, Geoff Regan, Leon Benoit et Nycole Turmel.

La Journée du représentant est un programme d’éducation civique qui permet d’établir un lien entre les écoles et les représentants élus dans le but d’engager un dialogue sur le gouvernement, le processus électoral et les enjeux qui intéressent les jeunes. Le programme a pour objectif d’aider les élèves à mieux comprendre le rôle actif que jouent ces personnes et les institutions qu’elles représentent dans notre démocratie, et de favoriser un sentiment de confiance à leur égard.

CIVIX assure la prestation du programme de la Journée du représentant avec le soutien d’Élections Canada et est fière de lancer l’édition 2014-2015 de son programme pendant la Semaine canadienne de la démocratie.

La Semaine canadienne de la démocratie a pour objectif de susciter l’intérêt des Canadiens pour des activités qui célèbrent nos valeurs et nos traditions démocratiques dans les collectivités de partout au pays. La quatrième édition de la Semaine canadienne de la démocratie se tiendra du 15 au 21 septembre et invite tous les Canadiens, et particulièrement les jeunes, à se renseigner sur l’importance de la démocratie et du vote, et à participer davantage au processus démocratique.

Lors de la dernière année scolaire, CIVIX a orchestré 85 visites dans le cadre de la Journée du représentant avec 66 députés représentant huit provinces et quatre partis politiques. Les commentaires des participants étaient élogieux et CIVIX prévoit étendre la portée de son programme pour l’année en cours.

« Il s’agit d’une occasion unique pour les jeunes de rencontrer leur représentant dans le contexte plus intime d’une salle de classe. Cet échange permet de donner un “visage humain” à la politique. Il se révèle d’une efficacité redoutable pour éveiller leur curiosité, bien plus qu’un manuel scolaire ou un reportage dans les médias. Enfin, nous souhaitons que cette activité fasse de nos jeunes de futurs citoyens plus engagés et d’ardents défenseurs de la démocratie », explique Diane Ballantyne, enseignante à l’école secondaire du district Centre Wellington à Fergus, en Ontario.

Le programme de la Journée du représentant 2014-2015 se déroulera tout au long de l’année scolaire et les visites auront lieu pendant les pauses parlementaires. Les écoles intéressées sont invitées à communiquer avec CIVIX pour s’inscrire au programme et recevoir les ressources pédagogiques gratuites qui les aideront à préparer la visite d’un député.

Notre carte interactive permet de localiser toutes les écoles qui ont participé au programme l’an dernier. Vous trouverez des photographies des visites de l’an dernier sur notre page Facebook.

CIVIX is coordinating Rep Day visits between Members of Parliament and high school classes, and the 2014-15 program began during Canada’s Democracy Week.

Rep Day is a civic education initiative that connects schools with their local MP for a dialogue on government, the electoral process, and issues that interest them. The program aims to help students develop a better understanding and sense of trust in the people and institutions within our democracy.

CIVIX is delivering Rep Day with support from Elections Canada.

Canada’s Democracy Week aims to connect Canadians with activities that celebrate our democratic values and traditions in communities across the country. The fourth annual Canada’s Democracy Week ran from September 15-21 and will encourage Canadians, particularly young Canadians, to learn more about the importance of democracy and voting and to become more involved in the democratic process.

During the last school year, CIVIX coordinated 85 Rep Day visits with 66 Members of Parliament representing eight provinces and four political parties. The feedback from MPs and schools has been extremely positive and CIVIX hopes to expand its reach this year.

 “I think it is a very valuable opportunity for young people to meet their representative in a small classroom setting. It puts a ‘real face’ on politics. It engages them in a way that a textbook or news clip cannot. And, ultimately, hopefully, it will encourage them to be more engaged citizens in their democracy in the future,” says Diane Ballantyne, a teacher at Centre Wellington District High School in Fergus, Ontario.

The 2014-15 Rep Day program will run throughout the school year with visits coinciding with Parliamentary break weeks. Interested schools are invited to contact CIVIX to take part and receive free curriculum resources to help guide the visit.

Want to see Rep Day in action? Watch a clip of Niagara West-Glanbrook MP Dean Allison’s Rep Day visit to Blessed Trinity Catholic Secondary School:

You can view all participating schools from last year on our interactive map. Photos from last year’s Rep Day visits can also be found on our Facebook page.

Rep Day is a civic education initiative that connects Members of Parliament with high school students for a dialogue on current political issues. Here’s an update on the more than 80 Rep Day visits we’ve coordinated so far.

Through online resources, classroom discussion and interaction with their MP, students are increasing their knowledge of the federal government and are encouraged to discuss future issues facing Canada with family, friends and government officials. Rep Day aims to break down the stereotypes that young people have of politicians and the political process, and develop a better understanding of and a sense of trust in the people and institutions within our democracy.

In total, 65 MPs will have or are scheduled to take part in 85 Rep Day visits in their electoral districts. The Conservatives, NDP, Liberals and Green Party are all represented, and visits are taking place in eight provinces. Visits began during Canada’s Democracy Week in mid-September and continue throughout the fall. You can view a list of all participating schools on our interactive map.

Feedback from teachers has been extremely positive:

“I think it is a very valuable opportunity for young people to meet their representative in a small classroom setting. It puts a “real face” on politics. It engages them in a way that a textbook or news clip cannot. And, ultimately, hopefully, it will encourage them to be more engaged citizens in their democracy in the future.”
-Diane, Ontario high school teacher

“The visit helped make parliamentary democracy real for my students.  It also helped them understand that regardless of political stripe, we can learn objectively about the system and interact respectfully with people who serve within this system.”
-Celia, British Columbia high school teacher

Participating Members of Parliament have also shared their positive experiences through social media:

Pleased to participate in Rep Day with students of Ecole Secondaire Sainte Marie in Temiskaming Shores – What an enjoyable experience !

— Jay Aspin MP (@JayAspin) October 19, 2013

@CIVIX_Canada it was great to be at Bloor CI for Rep Day. Students had loads of excellent questions. Very exciting!! #demcda

— Andrew Cash (@Cash4TO) September 23, 2013

Keen and bright, lots of questions from #CawthraParkSS students this morning #Civix pic.twitter.com/eEf4s0Pmrz

— Stella Ambler (@StellaAmblerMP) October 3, 2013

Past Student Vote Team Leaders were invited to register for Rep Day. The program began as a pilot project last year in the provinces of Alberta and Saskatchewan.

Thanks again to all the MPs, their staff and the teachers, schools and students from across Canada who have participated in Rep Day so far!

Interested in taking part in Rep Day? Let us know!

Watch a clip of Niagara West—Glanbrook MP Dean Allison’s Rep Day visit to Blessed Trinity Catholic Secondary School: