Well before the American Revolution and the signing of the Declaration of Independence, public deliberation was conducted through town meetings and helped set the course for American democracy (Mathews & McAfee, 1997). It has been the foundation of our democratic government. Through public deliberation, people chose their leaders, created their laws, collected their taxes, ran their schools, and cared for and protected each other.

Educational advocacy by parents and communities is part of this country's history. In the early 19th century, African-American parents established the Smith School in Boston when their children were excluded from the public education system. In this century, advocacy groups helped bring new levels of access and responsiveness to minority students through such landmark court cases as Brown v. Board of Education and Lau v. Nichols (Olsen, et al., 1994).

Communities that use public deliberation work together on problems they feel "require more action by more citizens" (Mathews & McAfee, 1997, p. 7). The current state of public schools is an example of a community concern that many believe fits this description (Boyte, Marshall, Skelton, & Soler, 1997; Coombs & Wycoff, 1994; Mathews, 1996; Tyack, 1997; Wadsworth, 1997; Wagner, 1997; and Wolk, 1996).

A participant in a focus group on public schools voiced this common concern:

I see an awful lot of kids graduating from high school, putting in applications at my place of work, and they can't even fill out the forms. But they've graduated. It's very disturbing. (Wadsworth, 1997, p. 44)

Such educational issues and other community concerns are being addressed through public deliberation.

When people who take part in public deliberation are asked why they participate, their responses range from personal growth to a desire to change the political system. Some say it helps them learn to become better listeners and practice problem solving. Others say it helps them understand complex issues and different points of view. Still others say they want to find a better way to govern and connect with officeholders and community leaders. But a common thread for all is wanting to improve their communities and their lives (Mathews & McAfee, 1997).

Deliberation is people talking and learning together. "The more we get together and talk, the more we discover that we have a shared future and a shared destiny" (Mathews & McAfee, 1997, p. 6). One significant result of repeated deliberation is that it gives people the confidence to make changes in their communities.

The following are general characteristics of public deliberation:

• Participants learn to understand issues and build knowledge by talking and listening to varied points of view and by reviewing selected information and materials.
• Participants acknowledge that each person brings expertise to the group and has a contribution to make.
• Participants make a commitment to create new knowledge and to use this knowledge to affect policy and to make changes in their communities.
• Participants find a way to reconnect to democratic principles and governance.