Today, one of the most compelling issues facing students of environmental politics is global environmental governance’s democratic legitimacy. Critics of multilateral and transnational sustainable development negotiations and implementations perceive these as democratically deficient, due to non-state actors deciding over nation-state politics. Multilateralism is then seen as a governance structure which sacrifices state sovereignty, which is the pillar of modern democratic theory together with the concept of national demos. Yet, other theorists consider global environmental governance and multilateralism to foster democratization beyond the concept of the nation-state – something which by them is understood as necessary in a world with ever-increasing supranational environmental and developmental issues. Since 1992, the United Nations has implemented stakeholder models, meaning multi-stakeholder partnership and civil society involvement in sustainable development negotiations, as a way of raising democratic legitimacy and accountability. The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and its 17 Sustainable Development Goals is the culmination of these efforts and the globally guiding document on the subject. The Agenda is a result of the broadest deliberation strategy ever employed by the UN. Via typological content analysis and viewing the Agenda through our theoretical framework, we understand that the UN applying stakeholder models does not necessarily mean evoking stakeholder democracy. Furthermore, democracy is largely construed as a tool for sustainable development and less as an end per se, even if the two are sometimes communicated as equal objectives. All in all, whether one interprets sustainable development negotiations as democratically legitimate or deficient depends on one’s view of democracy beyond the nation- state, as either a possible and necessary notion or a directly undemocratic one. / Idag är global miljöstyrnings demokratiska legitimitet ett av de mest åtråvärda forskningsproblemen inom miljöpolitiska studier. Kritiker av multilaterala och transnationella förhandlingar rörande hållbar utveckling och implementering uppfattar dessa som demokratiskt bristfälliga, då icke-statliga aktörer bestämmer över nationalstaters politik. Multilateralism ses då som en styrelseskicksstruktur som offrar nationalstaters suveränitet, vilket tillsammans med konceptet nationellt demos är kärnan i modern demokratisk teori. Dock anser andra teoretiker att global miljöstyrning och multilateralism kan befrämja demokratisering bortom nationalstater - något som av dessa anses som nödvändigt i en värld med ständig ökning av överstatliga miljö- och utvecklingsproblem. Sedan 1992 har Förenta Nationerna verkställt intressentmodeller, alltså multi- intressentpartnerskap och civilsamhällsinvolvering i hållbar utvecklings-förhandlingar, som ett sätt att höja demokratisk legitimitet och ansvarsskyldighet. Agenda 2030 och dess 17 globala mål för hållbar utveckling är kulmineringen av dessa satsningar, och det globalt ledande dokumentet gällande ämnet. Agendan och dess grundarbete är resultatet av den till dagsdatum största och mest omfattande överläggningsstrategi som FN någonsin använt sig av. Via typologisk innehållsanalys, och granskning av Agendan genom vårt teoretiska ramverk, så tolkar vi att FN:s genomförande av intressentmodeller inte nödvändigtvis innebär en frammaning av ett uteslutande intressentdemokratiskt ideal. I tillägg så kommuniceras demokrati mestadels som ett verktyg för hållbar utveckling, även om dessa två koncept delvis beskrivs som likvärdi ga mål. Huruvida förhandlingar kring hållbar utveckling uppfattas som demokratiskt legitima eller bristfälliga beror på tolkarens syn på demokrati utanför nationalstaten, som antingen en möjlig och nödvändig uppfattning, eller som en direkt odemokratisk sådan.

Submitted by JOSIANE SANTOS DE OLIVEIRA (josianeso) on 2018-07-31T13:31:34Z No. of bitstreams: 1 Ricardo de Barros Falcão Ferraz_.pdf: 1768733 bytes, checksum: 0a86d258f17b689d6df79b3430459682 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2018-07-31T13:31:34Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Ricardo de Barros Falcão Ferraz_.pdf: 1768733 bytes, checksum: 0a86d258f17b689d6df79b3430459682 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2018-01-10 / Nenhuma / A presente tese tem por objetivo propor uma análise crítica em perspectiva fenomenológico-hermenêutica do potencial contributivo da Justiça Eleitoral ao desenvolvimento da democracia brasileira. Em questão se coloca o profundo vínculo dogmático do Direito Eleitoral aos contornos normativos conferidos ao sistema representativo. E, partindo da premissa de que os modelos democráticos historicamente experimentados encontram-se parcialmente superados, questiona-se o descompasso institucional diante do impacto transformador da cultura política desenvolvida por uma individualidade culturalmente em transformação. De um lado, lastreada na teoria funcionalista da cultura política, objetiva-se demonstrar a contribuição fenomênica do Direito Eleitoral no processo de formação da cultura; de outro, pela ótica da metodologia individualista, a contínua reconfiguração dos canais tradicionais de articulação e agregação deliberativa de interesses promovidos no âmbito da comunicação política. Como resultado dialógico, conforma-se a autodeterminação política, que é operacionalizada por meio dos princípios da liberdade plena e da autocontenção, características deliberativas individualistas destacadas na atual fase da democracia brasileira, principais estruturas informadoras de ressignificação cultural das funções e atribuições exercidas pelas instituições do Direito Eleitoral, dentre as quais eleva-se sobre as demais a Justiça Eleitoral. / The present thesis aims to propose a critical analysis in phenomenological-hermeneutic perspective of the potential contribution of the Electoral Justice to the development of Brazilian democracy. In question, the dogmatic deep link of the Electoral Law is placed to the normative contours conferred to the representative system. And, based on the premise that the historically experienced democratic models are partially overcome, we question the institutional mismatch with the transformative impact of the political culture developed by a culturally changing individuality. On the one hand, backed by the functionalist theory of political culture, it aims to demonstrate the phenomenal contribution of Electoral law in the process of culture formation; on the other, from the perspective of the individualist methodology, the continuous reconfiguration of the traditional channels of articulation and deliberative aggregation of interests promoted in the scope of political communication. As a dialogical result, political self-determination is experienced, operationalized through the principles of full freedom and self-restraint, individualist deliberative characteristics highlighted in the current phase of Brazilian democracy, as the main structures that inform the cultural re-signification of the functions and attributions exercised by the institutions of the Electoral Law, among which the Electoral Court rises above the others.

Rooted in philosophy of education, the overall purpose of this dissertation is to renegotiate the relationship between education, religion, and democracy by placing the religious subject at the centre of this renegotiation. While education is the main focus, the study draws its energy from the fact that tensions around religious beliefs and practices seem to touch upon the very heart of liberal democracy. The study reads the tensions religious pluralism seems to be causing in contemporary education through a post-structural approach to difference and subjectivity. The purpose is accomplished in three movements. The first aims to show why the renegotiation is needed by examining how the relationship between education, democracy, and religion is currently being addressed in cosmopolitan education and deliberative education. The second movement introduces a model of democracy, radical democracy, that sees the process of defining the subject as a political process. It is argued that this model offers possibilities for seeing religion and the religious subject as part of the struggle for democracy. The third movement aims to develop how the relationship between education, democracy, and religion might change if we bring them together in a conversation whose conditions are not ‘owned’ by any one of them. To create this conversation, Hannah Arendt, Jacques Derrida, Søren Kierkegaard, and Emmanuel Levinas are brought together around three themes – love, freedom, and dialogue – referred to as ‘windows.’ The windows offer three examples in which religious subjectivity is made manifest but they also create a shift in perspective that invites other ways of seeing the tensions between religion and democracy. The aim of the study is to discuss how education might change when religion and democracy become questions for it through the perspectives offered in the windows and what this implies for the particular religious subject.

In today’s school in Sweden the assignment of community encompasses mediated values and education of democracy as well of single subject matters. What does it mean then, that teachers have a certain kind of idea of democracy, and what implications may biology have for the assignment of community? In upper secondary school there are quite many courses in biology with a national curriculum, and findings show that students of teaching perceive or think of biology as helping to promote the dual-purpose of teaching. In this study, the author of the paper has interviewed four future teachers of upper secondary school with biology as one of their main subjects. The purpose has been to identify their perceptions of democracy as well as their conceptions of the relationship between biology and democracy in education. The result is that the interviewees perceive of democracy as consistent with representative, participative and deliberative concepts of democracy. They conceive of the relationship between biology and democracy in education as to a great extent consistent with the deliberative concept of democracy. The implications are that the idea of democracy becomes more radical and consistent with the deliberative concept of democracy when subject matters of biology are part of the education. In this manner, subject matters of biology are of educational importance for the teachers´ conceptions of democracy as well for the assignment of community. / Samhällsuppdraget i skolan innebär förmedlade värden och kunskaper om både demokrati och enskilda ämnesstoff. Vad innebär det då att lärare har en viss sorts demokratiuppfattning, och vad har biologiskt ämnesstoff för betydelse för samhällsuppdraget? Biologi i gymnasieskolan har relativt många kurser med nationell kursplan och rön visar att lärarstudenter uppfattar biologiskt ämnesstoff som didaktiskt främjande för att läraruppdragets dubbla syfte. I den här studien har uppsatsförfattaren intervjuat fyra blivande gymnasielärare med biologi som inriktning för att försöka identifiera deras uppfattningar om demokrati och relationen mellan biologiskt ämnesstoff och demokrati i undervisningens praktik. Resultatet visar att intervjupersonerna uppfattar demokrati i allmänhet som överensstämmande med både representativ, participativ och deliberativ demokrati, och relationen mellan biologiskt ämnesstoff och demokrati i undervisningens praktik som i hög grad överensstämmande med den deliberativa demokratiformen. Implikationerna av detta är att demokratiuppfattningen blir radikalare och alltmer lik en deliberativ demokratiform med biologiskt ämnesstoff i undervisningens praktik. Sålunda har biologiskt ämnesstoff en didaktisk betydelse för såväl lärares demokratiuppfattning som samhällsuppdrag.

<p>The nation state has over time become the natural locus for democracy and consequently also legitimate governance. Both concepts have been developed within the nation state and are therefore considered closely connected to it. Nation states are, however, not the only actor on the international arena anymore. The European integration is an example of a new actor, where nation states have started collaborating.</p><p>Similar to nation states, EU has decision-making authorities and must therefore attain legitimacy. The thesis questions how legitimacy can be treated within an entity such as the EU. Three different ways of attaining legitimacy are brought up. The first perceives EU as legitimate in its current design with an intergovernmental part and a regulatory part. The intergovernmental part is claimed to be legitimised through democracy from the member states, and the regulatory part is legitimised through non-majoritarian democracy. Non-majoritarian democracy implies decision-making by independent institutions, which relies on expertise and fairness. The second part emphasises the need to enhance democracy for the EU to become legitimate. The EU is considered too similar to a nation state to make do with lesser standards of legitimacy than a liberal democratic nation state. Deliberative democracy could bring legitimacy through creating a dimension where citizens become oriented towards what can be perceived or acknowledged as the “common good” through active participation in deliberative processes. Federalism is brought up as another alternative that would possibly permit for democracy to be practiced in the EU.</p><p>Legitimacy is claimed to be achieved through sustaining values such as mutual respect, reciprocity, compromise and toleration, values that are connected to a commitment to working for the “common good”. The purpose of this essay is to describe different aspects on the concept “legitimacy” in the EU context and to show how it is achieved and/or how it can possibly be achieved in a future union of nation states. The purpose is not to arrive at a solution, or even to construe a common ground, but to construe a limited insight on how “legitimacy” in the EU can be treated according to theorists/theories.</p> / <p>Nationalsstaten har kommit att bli den naturliga platsen för demokrati och legitimt styre. En trolig förklaring till detta är att båda koncepten har utvecklats inom nationsstaten och anses därför vara starkt sammankopplade med den. Nationalsstater är dock inte längre den enda aktören på den internationella arenan. Den Europeiska integrationen är ett exempel på en ny företeelse, ett forum/sammanhang där nationalsstater har börjat sammarbeta. Som med nationsstater har EU beslutsfattande befogenheter och måste därför uppnå legitimitet. </p><p>Uppsatsen ifrågasätter hur legitimitet kan behandlas inom en enhet såsom EU. Tre olika sätt att uppnå legitimitet tas upp. Det första uppfattar EU som legitimt i sitt nuvarande utförande med en mellanstatlig del och en reglerande. Den mellanstatliga delen skulle kunna legitimeras genom medlemsstaternas demokrati, och den reglerande delen legitimeras genom ”icke-majoritets demokrati”. ”Icke majoritets demokrati” innebär beslutsfattande av självständiga instutitioner, som förlitar sig på experter och rättvisa som värdegrund. Den andra delen framhåller behovet av att öka demokrati för att ska bli EU legitimt. Enligt detta synsätt är EU alltför likt en nationsstat för att klara sig med en lägre standard av legitimitet än en liberaldemokratisk nationsstat. Deliberativ demokrati skulle kunna bringa legitimitet genom att tillföra en dimension där medborgare, genom aktivt deltagain i deliberativa processer, blir orienterade mot lösningar som uppfattas och erkänns som ”allmänt goda”. Federalism tas upp som ytterligare ett alternativ. Legitimitet anses kunna uppnås genom upprätthållandet av värden såsom gemensam respekt, ömsesidighet, kompromisser and tålamod. Värden som är kopplade till åtagandet att sträva mot ”det allmäna goda”.</p><p>Syftet med den här uppsatsen är att beskriva olika aspekter av legitimitetsbegreppet i EU och att visa på hur legitimitet uppnås eller kan uppnås i en framtida union av nationalstater. Uppsatsen gör varken anspråk på att tillhandahålla klara lösningar eller ens att föreslå en gemensam bas av möjliga sådana, men att erbjuda läsaren en begränsad insikt i hur legitimitet behandlas utifrån några teoretiska perspektiv, och av några teoretiker.</p>

<p>In today’s school in Sweden the assignment of community encompasses mediated values and education of democracy as well of single subject matters. What does it mean then, that teachers have a certain kind of idea of democracy, and what implications may biology have for the assignment of community? In upper secondary school there are quite many courses in biology with a national curriculum, and findings show that students of teaching perceive or think of biology as helping to promote the dual-purpose of teaching. In this study, the author of the paper has interviewed four future teachers of upper secondary school with biology as one of their main subjects. The purpose has been to identify their perceptions of democracy as well as their conceptions of the relationship between biology and democracy in education. The result is that the interviewees perceive of democracy as consistent with representative, participative and deliberative concepts of democracy. They conceive of the relationship between biology and democracy in education as to a great extent consistent with the deliberative concept of democracy. The implications are that the idea of democracy becomes more radical and consistent with the deliberative concept of democracy when subject matters of biology are part of the education. In this manner, subject matters of biology are of educational importance for the teachers´ conceptions of democracy as well for the assignment of community.</p> / <p>Samhällsuppdraget i skolan innebär förmedlade värden och kunskaper om både demokrati och enskilda ämnesstoff. Vad innebär det då att lärare har en viss sorts demokratiuppfattning, och vad har biologiskt ämnesstoff för betydelse för samhällsuppdraget? Biologi i gymnasieskolan har relativt många kurser med nationell kursplan och rön visar att lärarstudenter uppfattar biologiskt ämnesstoff som didaktiskt främjande för att läraruppdragets dubbla syfte. I den här studien har uppsatsförfattaren intervjuat fyra blivande gymnasielärare med biologi som inriktning för att försöka identifiera deras uppfattningar om demokrati och relationen mellan biologiskt ämnesstoff och demokrati i undervisningens praktik. Resultatet visar att intervjupersonerna uppfattar demokrati i allmänhet som överensstämmande med både representativ, participativ och deliberativ demokrati, och relationen mellan biologiskt ämnesstoff och demokrati i undervisningens praktik som i hög grad överensstämmande med den deliberativa demokratiformen. Implikationerna av detta är att demokratiuppfattningen blir radikalare och alltmer lik en deliberativ demokratiform med biologiskt ämnesstoff i undervisningens praktik. Sålunda har biologiskt ämnesstoff en didaktisk betydelse för såväl lärares demokratiuppfattning som samhällsuppdrag.</p>

Disertacija siekiama įvertinti pasirinkto socialinio tinklo viešojo diskurso potencialą demokratinių procesų palaikymui. Tirtos viešosios klimato kaitos diskusijos (komentarai) socialiniame tinkle Facebook. Empiriniams duomenims surinkti ir apdoroti naudojamas Diskurso kokybės indeksas: įvertinta, kaip analizuojamų komentarų kokybė atitinka idealųjį habermasiškąjį diskurso kokybės supratimą. Analizuojant ir interpretuojant surinktus duomenis, įvertintos Web 2.0 komunikacijos charakteristikos (kaip galimybės ir kliūtys svarstomosios demokratijos procesams palaikyti); taip pat aptarti klimato kaitos moksliniai ir politiniai aspektai (aktualizuojant rizikos komunikacijos ir deliberatyviosios demokratijos teorines prieigas). Tyrimo rezultatai atskleidė, jog analizuotų viešų komentarų kokybė yra nepakankama, kad galėtų daryti konkrečią įtaką politinių sprendimų priėmimo procesuose. Pagrindinės to priežastys: a) auditorijų poliarizacija; b) nesutarimais grįsta politinė diskusija; c) nepakankamas dalyvių mokslinis ir politinis išprusimas; d) nerimtas dalyvių nusiteikimas. / The major purpose of this dissertation was to measure quality of preselected public discussions (in form of comments) generated on popular online social network Facebook. We used Discourse Quality Index as the main instrument to collect and analyze our empirical data. In particular, we measured how the quality of our discussions corresponded to the preconditions of Habermasian ideal discourse perception. In our analysis, we highlighted the role of Web 2.0 based online communications environments to support, promote or, possibly, neglect traditions and principles of deliberative democracy. Our results revealed that quality of the discussions we analyzed is not good enough; consequently, they cannot be considered by policymakers and have positive impact on decisions made. The main reasons of that are: a) audience polarization; b) dissensual political discourse; c) low participants’ scientific and political literacy; d) not serious or light role that participants undertake in the discourse.

The major purpose of this dissertation was to measure quality of preselected public discussions (in form of comments) generated on popular online social network Facebook. We used Discourse Quality Index as the main instrument to collect and analyze our empirical data. In particular, we measured how the quality of our discussions corresponded to the preconditions of Habermasian ideal discourse perception. In our analysis, we highlighted the role of Web 2.0 based online communications environments to support, promote or, possibly, neglect traditions and principles of deliberative democracy. Our results revealed that quality of the discussions we analyzed is not good enough; consequently, they cannot be considered by policymakers and have positive impact on decisions made. The main reasons of that are: a) audience polarization; b) dissensual political discourse; c) low participants’ scientific and political literacy; d) not serious or light role that participants undertake in the discourse. / Disertacija siekiama įvertinti pasirinkto socialinio tinklo viešojo diskurso potencialą demokratinių procesų palaikymui. Tirtos viešosios klimato kaitos diskusijos (komentarai) socialiniame tinkle Facebook. Empiriniams duomenims surinkti ir apdoroti naudojamas Diskurso kokybės indeksas: įvertinta, kaip analizuojamų komentarų kokybė atitinka idealųjį habermasiškąjį diskurso kokybės supratimą. Analizuojant ir interpretuojant surinktus duomenis, įvertintos Web 2.0 komunikacijos charakteristikos (kaip galimybės ir kliūtys svarstomosios demokratijos procesams palaikyti); taip pat aptarti klimato kaitos moksliniai ir politiniai aspektai (aktualizuojant rizikos komunikacijos ir deliberatyviosios demokratijos teorines prieigas). Tyrimo rezultatai atskleidė, jog analizuotų viešų komentarų kokybė yra nepakankama, kad galėtų daryti konkrečią įtaką politinių sprendimų priėmimo procesuose. Pagrindinės to priežastys: a) auditorijų poliarizacija; b) nesutarimais grįsta politinė diskusija; c) nepakankamas dalyvių mokslinis ir politinis išprusimas; d) nerimtas dalyvių nusiteikimas.

The South African education system has been undergoing a process of transformation and democratisation. An historical overview of democracy in the South Africa education system confirms that the system had developed to become a highly centralised and bureaucratic system during the twentieth century, but it was transformed in 1996 to afford a greater degree of parental participation through local school governing bodies. Democracy is founded on a belief in individual rights, equality, and self-government by the majority of the people. The moral authority of the majority is based on the notion that there is more enlightenment and wisdom between many than in a single man. However, the power of the majority is always limited by the prerequisite of the rule of law and the implicit requirements of legality and justice. This implies that bureaucratic or undemocratic exercise of power by the majority or any person, including the state, would be contrary to the requirements of legality and democracy. An overview of the theories of democracy explains the complexities of the different orientations and ideological approaches to democracy. Critiques of democracy have identified an elitist, inegalitarian, and antiparticipatory core in liberal democracy. The sensible approach to these weaknesses of liberal democracy is to integrate the best features of the various theories of democracy towards a workable solution to manage the systemic conflicts. This includes the formal application of checks and balances and the substantive adjustment of the executive, legislative and judicial practice to maintain a harmonious equilibrium between equality and liberty. The theory of deliberative democracy suggests an additional way to improve substantive democracy. There is an inextricable link between democracy, education and the law. The South African Constitution provides for representative (political) and participatory democracy, as well as for the enshrinement of fundamental rights such as the right to basic education. In addition, the education legislation and policies contain numerous provisions that prescribe and necessitate democratisation of the education system. However, the empirical results of the study show that a number of controversial bureaucratic practices and a tendency towards increased centralisation of the system, constrain democratic school governance. The most prominent undemocratic practices in the system inter alia include: the over-politicisation of schools by the dominant teachers’ union; the bureaucratic appointment of educators; the interference by teachers’ unions with the appointment of educators, the bureaucratic imposition of English medium language policies on Afrikaans schools; and • the ambivalent attitude towards inclusive education. An investigation into the knowledge levels of senior education administrators, school principals and school governing chairpersons, which participated in this study, revealed that their knowledge of participatory democracy and Education Law was superficial. This ignorance of these stakeholders in education compounds the problem of effectively administering, managing and governing schools in a democratic manner. Conclusions drawn from the evidence of this study suggests that certain of the encumbrances to democracy in schools and the system can be attributed to systemic weaknesses, as well as to misconceptions and the misapplication of democratic principles. Finally, the study proposes two models to improve democratic school governance. The first model suggests a theoretical framework for improving the power relations, knowledge, civic attitudes and democratic values. The final model, which is based on the first theoretical model, proposes that Area School Boards be statutorily established to govern defunctive schools and that deliberative forums should be established and implemented within the organisational hierarchy of the education system. / Thesis (Ph.D. (Education))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2009

The South African education system has been undergoing a process of transformation and democratisation. An historical overview of democracy in the South Africa education system confirms that the system had developed to become a highly centralised and bureaucratic system during the twentieth century, but it was transformed in 1996 to afford a greater degree of parental participation through local school governing bodies. Democracy is founded on a belief in individual rights, equality, and self-government by the majority of the people. The moral authority of the majority is based on the notion that there is more enlightenment and wisdom between many than in a single man. However, the power of the majority is always limited by the prerequisite of the rule of law and the implicit requirements of legality and justice. This implies that bureaucratic or undemocratic exercise of power by the majority or any person, including the state, would be contrary to the requirements of legality and democracy. An overview of the theories of democracy explains the complexities of the different orientations and ideological approaches to democracy. Critiques of democracy have identified an elitist, inegalitarian, and antiparticipatory core in liberal democracy. The sensible approach to these weaknesses of liberal democracy is to integrate the best features of the various theories of democracy towards a workable solution to manage the systemic conflicts. This includes the formal application of checks and balances and the substantive adjustment of the executive, legislative and judicial practice to maintain a harmonious equilibrium between equality and liberty. The theory of deliberative democracy suggests an additional way to improve substantive democracy. There is an inextricable link between democracy, education and the law. The South African Constitution provides for representative (political) and participatory democracy, as well as for the enshrinement of fundamental rights such as the right to basic education. In addition, the education legislation and policies contain numerous provisions that prescribe and necessitate democratisation of the education system. However, the empirical results of the study show that a number of controversial bureaucratic practices and a tendency towards increased centralisation of the system, constrain democratic school governance. The most prominent undemocratic practices in the system inter alia include: the over-politicisation of schools by the dominant teachers’ union; the bureaucratic appointment of educators; the interference by teachers’ unions with the appointment of educators, the bureaucratic imposition of English medium language policies on Afrikaans schools; and • the ambivalent attitude towards inclusive education. An investigation into the knowledge levels of senior education administrators, school principals and school governing chairpersons, which participated in this study, revealed that their knowledge of participatory democracy and Education Law was superficial. This ignorance of these stakeholders in education compounds the problem of effectively administering, managing and governing schools in a democratic manner. Conclusions drawn from the evidence of this study suggests that certain of the encumbrances to democracy in schools and the system can be attributed to systemic weaknesses, as well as to misconceptions and the misapplication of democratic principles. Finally, the study proposes two models to improve democratic school governance. The first model suggests a theoretical framework for improving the power relations, knowledge, civic attitudes and democratic values. The final model, which is based on the first theoretical model, proposes that Area School Boards be statutorily established to govern defunctive schools and that deliberative forums should be established and implemented within the organisational hierarchy of the education system. / Thesis (Ph.D. (Education))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2009