Politics and a Party!

23 November 2024Savannah J, Alexandra ‘25

In 2024, both locally and globally, politics and government institutions have become more prevalent and pressing than ever before. The Brentwood standard shapes students to become the future leaders of tomorrow and to have all the necessities like knowledge and the proper skill sets to tackle the current issues that face our world today.

AP Comparative Government and Politics was first introduced into the BC curriculum in 1987 and was brought into the Brentwood program to offer students a superior comprehension of politics. The course covers political structures, policies, and social and economic challenges and teaches them using a comparative approach of six countries: Iran, Russia, China, Nigeria, Mexico, and the United Kingdom. In class, we are currently comparing presidential vs parliamentary systems and understanding how and why governments practice them.

According to International IDEA there are 172 global elections occurring in 2024. Just a few of them are the BC general election that happened on October 19, the US presidential election on November 5, the Indian general election on April 19, and the United Kingdom election as well as a federal election in Canada before October 2025.

A year so important for political understanding has encouraged Brentwood students to be more educated and prepared. Ella W, Mackenzie ‘25 remarks, “AP Comp Gov has taught me how crucial it is to be properly educated on political matters and elections as we are all affected by the outcomes.” When covering the first unit, the class learned about how elections can be crucial for governments, whilst in other countries they can be unfair and corrupt, ultimately weakening the representational quality of election results

The class is taught by the wonderful Ms Sharon Hall. Ms Hall’s comprehensive understanding and passion for the course allow her students to feel the same respect for politics and how vital they really are. Ms Hall, emphasizing the pivotal importance of being thoroughly educated on current events, states that “Politics are the mould for modern society.” Cole K, Whittall ‘25 expresses, “When learning the democracy scores for all 6 countries and how they changed over time and why, it opened my eyes to how the world is changing and how we as a future generation must keep up.”

As school and the tripartite Brentwood program surge on, students are informed daily and surrounded by politics – even though most students are not at the age to vote yet! When looking for the deepest and most detailed understanding of politics and policy, AP Comparative Government and Politics stands out as a shining beacon of knowledge and the perfect course to take not only for a better understanding in general but also as a pathway for our future Brentonians to step into political roles and change our future for the better.

Savannah J, Alexandra ‘25

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