Inherent in the concept of compulsory voting is an informed understanding of the democratic process, which civic education provides (鈥淚nquiry urges new school subject鈥, July 4). Voting is a sovereign right 鈥 the only way we can influence the type of society we want: our society. It is how we communicate our ideas on a good society. The course should include the Australian legal and constitutional system as well as the Democracy Index, which supports the democratic and legal framework. Understanding civics engenders love and respect for a system, a desire to protect and take it seriously and to recognise and reject disinformation and demand truth of politicians and in political advertising. Academically, civics education is a very practical example of analytical and critical thinking, a great skill for every student, and helps to avert becoming a flawed democracy like the United States. That country lacks the democratic institutions a civics education here would continue to uphold. Anne Eagar, Epping
Educating our young adults in civics and parliamentary procedure is critical to ensure democracy continues to succeed. But educating our young in the actualities of representation in politics (no matter their sex), including backstabbing, power grabbing, lobbying, manipulation and self-interest, is something they should discover first themselves. Janice Creenaune, Austinmer
Back in 1837, when the British passed the Electoral Reform Bill allowing a handful of men from the lower classes the vote, the call went out, 鈥淲e must educate our masters鈥, and certainly this widening of the vote did great things for the education system. Since then, in the western world, education has become mandatory for all children, but so far this education explosion has had only mixed results electorally, as the 1933 German election ended democracy in that advanced nation for a decade. In Russia and Turkey, democracies have morphed into dictatorships, while in the US Trump won in a virtual landslide. Against this backdrop, it is great to see that our humble state parliament is considering making civics compulsory, especially for years 11 and 12. For democracy to work well, voters must understand that the right to vote implies an equal duty to cast an informed vote. Plaudits to the government for leading the way. Andrew Caro, Greenwich
When many Australian high school students fail a basic civics test on how our democracy works, it鈥檚 good news that the NSW and federal governments are pushing for mandatory civics classes. The deluge of misinformation on the internet now is a new barrier for kids to understand how the world works and guard against those who would sell them lies. We see the outcome of that with the rise of Trumpism, the election of a convicted felon as president of the US. It鈥檚 not easy. The lie peddlers get smarter. RMIT Information Integrity Hub recently reported that Moscow now has a 鈥渇act checker鈥, which is really a cover for pushing Russian propaganda. But it is really the more subtle misinformation rife on social media that the likes of Trump can use, and that democracies scramble to combat. Civics classes are a good start. But only a start. Gary Barnes, Mosman
From cradle to grave
Making a profit fails people at their most vulnerable, first as kids via childcare centres and again with our elderly as we have become aware at aged care centres (鈥淩elentless profit push fails our kids鈥, July 4). Both these types of profit-driven institutions have been allowed to flourish and expand to the detriment of our young and old, with little scrutiny. Con Vaitsas, Ashbury