Students in a third-year Political Science class at Dalhousie will get to make the most of this month鈥檚 federal election, operating the voting office on campus for an election experience that鈥檚 about as hands-on as it gets.
It鈥檚 an idea that started with the 2015 federal election, when Elections Canada launched a pilot project with on-campus voting offices that allowed students to easily register and vote by special ballot. Political Science Professor Louise Carbert was quick to see the opportunity for experiential learning in her class.
鈥淚t's a third-year class in Canadian politics, so they know quite a bit about Canadian politics, but this is an opportunity to learn the nuts and bolts of how elections actually work,鈥� says Dr. Carbert. 鈥淭he point of the exercise is to learn about elections administration and to see how the whole complicated, bureaucratic operation of Elections Canada in works in practice.鈥�
Putting theory into practicum
By working with Elections Canada, Dr. Carbert was able to develop a paid practicum that integrates into the course curriculum, with accompanying assignments and readings. Designed to provide insight into elections administration, the practicum includes an in-class orientation from Elections Canada and in-depth training before they take on their roles as poll clerks and registration officers at the campus voting office.
This year, is a full-fledged program with increased hours and days of operation so the students will have even more opportunity to participate.
How to vote on campus
The voting office at Dalhousie will be open for five consecutive days in Council Chambers on the second floor of the Student Union Building (SUB). Voters must bring .
- Saturday Oct. 5th: 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.
- Sunday Oct. 6th: 12 p.m. to 4 p.m.
- Monday Oct. 7th: 10 a.m. to 10:30 p.m.
- Tuesday Oct. 8th: 10 a.m. to 10:30 p.m.
- Wednesday Oct. 9th: 10 a.m. to 10:30 p.m.
While Dr. Carbert says this level of involvement in the administrative activities of an election provides the class with great learning and perspective, her students鈥� knowledge about Canadian politics is also helpful to the voters. 鈥淥ne thing that makes these students particularly suited to this work,鈥� she says, 鈥渋s that people will come in wanting to vote for Justin Trudeau, for example, and the students are able to explain how the Canadian electoral system works.鈥�
Voting by special ballot
Training for this work is in-depth because the Political Science students will be walking voters through the process of using the special ballot process. Instead of using a paper list of voters, registration officers will check ID and confirm information on a computer and then supply each voter with a blank ballot so they can write in the name of their preferred candidate (they can ask for a list of candidates in their riding).
鈥淭his is being operated on campus by students but it's not exclusive to students,鈥� notes Dr. Carbert. 鈥淚t's on campus to promote youth voter engagement but any Canadian can come and vote. That said, it's a write-in ballot: you have to be sure to spell everything correctly, so your ballot won't be spoiled.鈥�
A rewarding experience
Out of a class of about 30, only two students won鈥檛 be filling paid Elections Canada positions. The first, as an international student, is not eligible to work as a poll worker and will be accommodated with related activities. The second, has decided to continue working for a specific candidate and will use that experience for his report.
鈥淚t鈥檚 a requirement of the course that he do not just canvassing but also some elections administration,鈥� Dr. Carbert explains. 鈥淪o, he's going to be working at a polling station on October 21st in a capacity with the political party."
The election administration assignment is valued at 30 per cent of the students鈥� grades and it includes a fun, practical component. Once the practicum has concluded, Dr. Carbert wants all the students to summarize their experience as if they were writing for their resume or LinkedIn profile. She finds it鈥檚 a great way to get the students thinking about how this could benefit them in the future.
鈥淔or Political Science students to go out working in political-related jobs in the public sector, this is a really nice entry on their resum茅.鈥�