Premier’s Spirit of Democracy Study Tour Award
The Premier's Spirit of Democracy (PSoD) Study Tour explores the origins of democracy, building a deeper understanding of the influence that democracy has on contemporary Victorian and Australian society. It is an annual competition open to students enrolled in Years 9, 10 and 11.

A number of Penola Students submitted an application at the end of 2021. They were required to respond to the following statement “Ancient democracy is often viewed as a system of government where the citizens of the city-state held the power. The ability to choose one's government and fully participate is essential to an inclusive and fair society”

It is with great pleasure to announce that Henry A (11K) has been awarded one of the positions on the tour. In his essay response, he argued that the flaw in democracy is that those who receive power, their interests do not always align with those of the people they are supposed to represent. In order to resolve some of these issues, Henry argues that “Political education, more diverse news, and a way for the news to explicitly fact check politicians are things that are necessary for society to become fair and inclusive to all and of all ideas. This begins in Parliaments, and extends to newspapers, school, households, and everyday conversation. Work must be done for improvement.”

Through the Humanities program at Penola, Henry has studied Civics and Citizenship, Civil Rights and the Law as well as Classical Studies (the study of Ancient Greece and Rome) which certainly assisted in his ability to respond to this statement.

Congratulations Henry and we wish you an informative and enjoyable 5 day study tour in Melbourne and Canberra over the school holidays.

Ms J Palma