Education for Citizenship

contents contents Preface

ii

Summary

1

Introduction

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Section 1

Section 2

Section 3

Section 4

What is ‘citizenship’ and why is ‘education for citizenship’ important?

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What should education for citizenship seek to achieve?

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Effective education for citizenship in practice

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Areas for development and exploration

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Annex A

32

Annex B

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Appendix

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Education for Citizenship in Scotland: A Paper for Discussion and Development

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preface preface Educating young people in ways that prepare them for living effectively and responsibly as members of local, national and global communities is vital to the well-being of humanity, now and in the future. I am, therefore, delighted to introduce this important paper from the Advisory Council of Learning and Teaching Scotland.

I welcome the broad view of education for citizenship expressed in the paper and I agree that the overall goal of education for citizenship in Scotland should be to develop children and young people’s capability for thoughtful and responsible participation in political, economic, social and cultural life.

I am pleased to endorse the content of the paper as the basis for a national framework for education for citizenship from 3 to 18, and to commend it for adoption and use in ways appropriate to local needs and circumstances. The perspectives and principles set out in this paper will, I believe, provide a framework for use by schools and early education establishments, local authorities, HMIE and others to evaluate the extent and quality of provision for education for citizenship. As such, it links closely with the implementation of the National Priorities as part of the School Improvement Framework and with other key national developments in education.

As well as providing a much needed framework to assist with ongoing developments in the short to medium term, Education for Citizenship in Scotland is being published at a time when it should be able to contribute significantly to the National Debate on the longer term future of school education.

This paper will of course be of relevance to education professionals, but I believe it contains important messages for a much wider audience. Education for Citizenship in Scotland will be of interest also to parents and carers; those working in a range of local and national government departments; the voluntary and charitable sector; in community and learning development and not least for young people themselves.

Cathy Jamieson Minister for Education and Young People

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Education for Citizenship in Scotland: A Paper for Discussion and Development

preface preface This paper sets out the position of the Advisory Council of Learning and Teaching Scotland on education for citizenship together with recommendations for actions that should be taken to ensure that important principles are turned into effective practice. On behalf of the Advisory Council I wish to record our thanks to Professor Pamela Munn and the members of the National Review Group established in October 1999 for undertaking this important work on this key, overarching purpose of education at all stages from the earliest years to 18+. We also wish to acknowledge with gratitude the valuable contributions made by many others during extensive discussions and consultations conducted as part of the review.

Much that happens in all educational settings promotes active and responsible citizenship.

However, this has not always been recognised and made explicit. Education for Citizenship in Scotland attempts to establish a clear framework that can be used by all those involved in young people’s education to assist with discussion, evaluation and further development of existing policies and practices. The framework is relevant to, and supportive of, implementation of all of the current National Priorities for education.

The central idea in the paper is that young people should be enabled to develop capability for thoughtful and responsible participation in political, economic, social and cultural life. This is defined in terms of four aspects – knowledge and understanding, skills and competence, values and dispositions and creativity and enterprise. The paper also describes the types of opportunities and conditions for learning that schools and early years centres, working with parents and their communities, need to provide to facilitate progressive development. As well as focusing on implications for learning and teaching and for curriculum design, the paper emphasises two related core themes that need to be considered by schools, early years centres and local authorities.

Firstly, young people learn most about citizenship by being active citizens. Schools, should model the kind of society in which active citizenship is encouraged by providing all young people with opportunities to take on responsibilities and exercise choice. This requires the development of an open, participatory ethos, and management and organisation that recognises the importance of involving young people and everyone else with a stake in the learning community in the key decisions that affect them.

Secondly, the development of capability for citizenship should be fostered in ways that motivate young people to be active and responsible members of their communities – local, national and global. Education for citizenship entails building bridges and developing interconnections between school or early years centre and community, to give young people opportunities to develop knowledge, understanding and care for the wider world.

All this is challenging and will not be overtaken immediately. Education for Citizenship in Scotland sets out an important agenda for development and provides a focus for further exploration and discussion. We look forward to playing our part in supporting these processes of discussion and development that are essential to the future quality of Scottish education.

Professor Tom Wilson Chairman Learning and Teaching Scotland Education for Citizenship in Scotland: A Paper for Discussion and Development

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Education for Citizenship in Scotland: A Paper for Discussion and Development

summary summary This paper for discussion and development explores and suggests answers to four main questions.

• • • •

What do we mean by ‘citizenship’?

Why is ‘education for citizenship’ important?

What should education for citizenship do for young people?

What does effective education for citizenship involve in practice – for the curriculum, for schools and early education centres and for communities?

The Introduction provides a brief overview of the current and changing context within which these questions are being considered.

Section 1 aims to answer the first two questions. It includes an outline of the essential characteristics of active and responsible citizenship and describes implications of this for schools and early education establishments.

The third question is addressed in Section 2. Education for citizenship is taken to be a key purpose of the curriculum. Its overall goal is summed up as development of capability for thoughtful and responsible participation in political, economic, social and cultural life. This capability for active citizenship is analysed in terms of four aspects, each associated with a set of learning outcomes: knowledge and understanding, skills and competences, values and dispositions, and creativity and enterprise.

Section 3 focuses on the fourth question. It describes the types of opportunities and conditions for learning to which all young people are entitled in order to develop, in a progressive manner, the capability for active and responsible citizenship proposed in Section 2. It also examines the contexts within which these opportunities and conditions can be provided to enable progressive development through early, primary and secondary stages of formal education.

Finally, Section 4 indicates proposals for immediate action, and considers a number of issues, related to the framework set out in the paper, which will require further exploration.

Annexes A and B provide more detailed descriptions of areas of knowledge and generic skills relevant to development of capability for citizenship.

Education for Citizenship in Scotland: A Paper for Discussion and Development

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introduction introduction Schools and other educational establishments have a central part to play in educating young people for life as active and responsible members of their communities. They share this role with families and others, and must work in partnership with them to provide young people with learning opportunities that contribute to their development as citizens.

The advent of the Scottish Parliament has encouraged a fresh focus on the importance of people living in Scotland being able to understand and participate in democratic processes. If greater national autonomy is to be matched by an enhanced sense of social and political responsibility in the population, young people need opportunities to develop the knowledge, skills and attitudes that will allow them to take that responsibility. This is recognised in the national priorities for education whose status is established in the Standards in Scotland’s Schools, etc. Act 2000. Schools are encouraged to ‘work with parents to teach pupils respect for self and one another and their interdependence with other members of their neighbourhood and society and to teach them the duties and responsibilities of citizenship in a democratic society’. In this sense education for citizenship should empower young people to participate thoughtfully and responsibly in community and civic life.

There is growing concern, throughout the UK, to work towards a more inclusive society where inequities are addressed effectively and cultural and community diversity is celebrated. Ways and means are being sought to tackle disaffection and disengagement from society and, more broadly, to address issues of social injustice and of personal identity. At the same time there is evidence of growing scepticism about traditional structures of representative democracy and the forms of political activity associated with them. By contrast, participation in singleissue pressure groups, and organisations concerned with, for example, consumer issues, human rights and sustainable development, has increased in recent years.

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Scotland and the rest of the UK exist in a rapidly changing wider world. A growing sense of the interconnectedness of peoples and places is affecting individuals and societies – economically, environmentally, culturally and politically. This process of ‘globalisation’ is being further promoted by the ongoing revolution in information and communications technology (ICT). Multinational corporations exert increasing influence over national economies and cultures through their investment decisions and their marketing of products and services. The European Union continues to evolve, and to influence our political, legal and economic institutions. At the same time, inequalities between the economically rich and poor seem to be increasing. International and global trends create social pressures as well as opening opportunities for individuals and society. They raise fresh issues about the distribution of power and the extent to which individuals, local communities, territorial states and business corporations have influence over a host of social, economic and environmental matters. The complexity of modern society and the magnitude of the changes taking place within it sometimes threaten to overwhelm individuals. People doubt their ability to influence events, Education for Citizenship in Scotland: A Paper for Discussion and Development

but remain troubled by the manifestations of social stress they experience or see reported in the media.

It is important to take due account of this changing context when considering afresh the purposes and goals of education – both formal and informal – in Scotland. The main contention of this paper is that young people’s education in school and early education settings has a key role to play in fostering a modern, democratic society, whose members have a clear sense of identity and belonging, feel empowered to participate effectively in their communities and recognise their roles and responsibilities as global citizens.

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section 1 What is ‘citizenship’

and why is ‘education for citizenship’ important?

1.1 Meanings of ‘citizenship’ The Advisory Council of Learning and Teaching Scotland subscribes to the view that everyone should be recognised as being a citizen, in a variety of senses, from birth. Young people should be regarded as citizens of today rather than citizens in waiting. Children are born with rights that are well described in the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. As young people grow into adulthood, new rights and responsibilities are acquired.

Everyone belongs to various types of community, both communities of place, from local to global, and communities of interest, rooted in a common concern or purpose. Citizenship involves enjoying rights and exercising responsibilities in these various types of community. This way of seeing citizenship encompasses the specific idea of political participation by members of a democratic state. It also includes the more general notion that citizenship embraces a range of participatory activities, not all overtly political, that affect the welfare of communities. Examples are, voluntary work, personal engagement in local concerns such as neighbourhood watch schemes or parent–teacher associations, or general engagement in civic society.

Citizenship is about making informed choices and decisions, and about taking action, individually and as part of collective processes. Being a citizen is, therefore, closely bound up with the multiple roles that individuals have in society – as producers or consumers of goods and services, as contributors to economic and cultural development – as well as with various facets of each individual’s personal, social and working life. For example, the opportunity to exercise personal choice as a consumer of particular products or services is an increasingly influential strand of citizenship in contemporary society.

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The rights and responsibilities of citizens are reciprocal in many respects. If we all have a right to be treated with respect, then it follows that we have a clear obligation to treat all others with respect. If we all have a right to a say on matters that affect our lives, then we have a responsibility to attend to the views of others on matters that also affect them. However, it is also clear that perceptions of rights and responsibilities by individuals in different social groups are sometimes in conflict. In contemporary society the perceived rights of rural dwellers and town dwellers, new and established members of the community, food producers and food consumers, convicted law-breakers and their victims are amongst those that Education for Citizenship in Scotland: A Paper for Discussion and Development

sometimes are in conflict. Education for citizenship must recognise the existence of such conflicts, and must help young people develop strategies for dealing effectively with controversy. These strategies include negotiation, compromise, awareness of the impact of conflict on the overall wellbeing of the community and the environment, and development of well-informed respect for differences between people. At the same time young people need to learn that although individuals should always be treated with respect, some of the views some people may hold, including those associated with racism and sectarianism, are a grave threat to the wellbeing of individuals and communities and must be opposed.

Active and responsible citizenship is not just about individuals having a sense of belonging to, and functioning in, communities. It is also an aspect of corporate or institutional life. Just as a key facet of each individual’s citizenship should be a caring and responsible use of material and financial resources, business organisations also have a responsibility, as ‘corporate citizens’, to achieve their economic goals in ways that are consistent with sustainable development and with the health and welfare of communities.

1.2 The value of ‘education for citizenship’ Education for citizenship is important because every society needs people to contribute effectively, in a variety of ways, to the future health and wellbeing of communities and the environment, locally, nationally and globally. Fostering active and responsible citizens contributes to the process of developing a healthy and vibrant culture of democratic participation. Moreover, as the Report of the Discipline Task Group, 2001, suggests, ‘people are more likely to understand the reasons for policies and procedures, and therefore genuinely subscribe to them, when they have been actively involved in determining them.’

Whilst all individuals share the rights and responsibilities of citizenship, regardless of status, knowledge or skill, it is clear that citizenship may be exercised with different degrees of effectiveness. A variety of personal and social circumstances can impede a person’s capacity for active citizenship. For example, homeless young people may not secure the right to vote simply because they have no address. More generally, many young people living in poverty and experiencing other forms of disadvantage feel alienated. They see little point in participating in a system that seems remote from their concerns. It is in the interest both of individuals and of society as a whole that the rights and responsibilities of citizenship are well understood, that young people develop the capability needed to function effectively as citizens in modern society, and that structures are provided to enable them to do so.

The opportunities for learning that are provided in schools and early education settings make important contributions to the process of educating for active and responsible citizenship. At the same time, the contributions of formal education need to be seen alongside, and in interaction with, other influences. These include the influence of parents, carers and the media and opportunities for Education for Citizenship in Scotland: A Paper for Discussion and Development

9

s community-based learning. Also, school and early education establishments need to take account of the diversity of the local communities in which young people live.

Broadly speaking, the citizenship that formal education should seek to promote and foster needs to be thoughtful and responsible – rooted in and expressive of, a respectful and caring disposition in relation to people, human society generally, the natural world and the environment. It should also be active, in the sense of people being able to act and participate in various communities, wherever it seems to them desirable or appropriate to do so.

There are important implications for schools and early education centres of this view of citizenship. Approaches to all aspects of education for citizenship in the classroom, or the wider life of the school or community should be informed by the awareness that citizenship is best learnt through experience and interaction with others. In short, learning about citizenship is best achieved by being an active citizen.

Another implication is that young people and their parents or carers should be routinely involved in school development planning and other areas of school decision making. Also, because citizenship is a lifelong process, young people’s learning experiences should encourage them to be disposed to be active and responsible citizens both now and later in their lives.

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Education for Citizenship in Scotland: A Paper for Discussion and Development

section 2 What should

education for citizenship seek to achieve?

2.1 Introduction Education for citizenship is a key purpose of the early years and school curriculum and of community education programmes. It is about the development of the whole person and is closely related to other key, overarching purposes of the curriculum such as education for personal growth and education for work. This section proposes an overall goal for education for citizenship and elaborates this into a framework of learning outcomes that offers a basis for reviewing and developing existing provision.

2.2 The overall goal Education for citizenship should aim to develop capability for thoughtful and responsible participation in political, economic, social and cultural life. This capability is rooted in knowledge and understanding, in a range of generic skills and competences, including ‘core skills’, and in a variety of personal qualities and dispositions. It finds expression through creative and enterprising approaches to issues and problems.

Being a capable citizen is not just about possessing knowledge and skills. It is about being able and willing to use knowledge and skills to make decisions and, where appropriate, take action. Nor is effective citizenship just about having the capacity and disposition to be active. It is about being able to take action and make things happen for ends – and by means – that are infused with respect and care for people and a sense of social and environmental responsibility. Equally, a reasoned decision by an individual not to take action is a legitimate personal choice.

Capability for citizenship encompasses social, economic and cultural ‘literacies’ coupled with the capacity for participation in all aspects of society – economic, social and cultural. Finally, and importantly, capability for citizenship, as envisaged here, also includes ideas about ‘political literacy’.

2.3 Outcomes Capability for citizenship can be analysed in terms of four related aspects, each of which relates to a set of broad categories of learning outcome. These aspects are: are ‘knowledge and understanding’; ‘skills and competences’; ‘values and dispositions’; and ‘creativity and enterprise’. Each of these types of outcome is

Education for Citizenship in Scotland: A Paper for Discussion and Development

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described and exemplified in the following paragraphs. Whilst many are distinctive to education for citizenship, some are also associated with other key purposes – ‘education for work’ and ‘education for personal growth’. By their very nature, core skills, for example, are important for personally rewarding living and productive employment as well as for effective citizenship. Outcomes related to each aspect of capability for citizenship are relevant to the whole process of lifelong learning. The school is responsible for providing contexts for learning appropriate to the maturity and prior experience of young people, and for ensuring progression through the various stages.

Knowledge and understanding ‘Knowledge and understanding’ means appreciating the need to base opinions, views and decisions on relevant knowledge and on a critical evaluation and balanced interpretation of evidence. A knowledgeable citizen is aware of the complexity of the economic, ethical and social issues and dilemmas that confront people. She or he also recognises that narrowly focused responses to an issue can often create or exacerbate other problems. Citizens need to have some knowledge of political, social, economic and cultural ideas and phenomena.1 They also need to know how to go about extending and deepening that knowledge. It is especially important that they should come to understand how everyday events have a connection with larger happenings in the community and society.

Examples of learning outcomes related to knowledge and understanding for citizenship As a result of their learning experiences, young people should become progressively more able to demonstrate understanding of: • contemporary local and global issues, paying regard to available evidence, and to a range of ideas and interpretations of their significance • the rights and responsibilities underpinning democratic and other societies • opportunities for individuals and voluntary groups to bring about social and environmental change, and the values on which such endeavours are based • people’s material and spiritual needs and wants and the implications of these for issues such as environmental sustainability and social justice • the working of the economy, including mechanisms for the creation and uses of wealth • the causes of conflict and possible approaches to resolving it, recognising that controversy is normal in society and sometimes has beneficial effects • the barriers to full opportunity to exercise citizenship arising from socioeconomic circumstances, prejudice and discrimination • decision making processes in society and the roles of the media and marketing in these processes • global interdependence, and the effects of globalisation on human societies.

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1 See Annex A, which lists a range of knowledge domains/areas of learning with which citizens should have some familiarity.

Education for Citizenship in Scotland: A Paper for Discussion and Development

Skills and competencies Education for citizenship involves developing a range of generic skills, including ‘core skills’ that are widely recognised as also being essential for personally rewarding living and for productive employment.2 ‘Competence’ is used here to denote a cluster of generic skills that need to be developed along with various personal qualities such as self-esteem, confidence, initiative, determination and emotional maturity in order to be responsible and effective participants in a community. Being skilled and competent as a citizen means feeling empowered, knowing and valuing one’s potential for positive action and being generally prepared to take a constructive and proactive approach to issues and problems.

Whilst the skills described here may be acquired across a wide range of curricular areas, it is necessary that some explicit links are made with the nature and purpose of education for citizenship.

Examples of learning outcomes related to skills and competencies for citizenship As a result of their learning experiences, young people should become progressively more able to: • work independently and in collaboration with others to complete tasks requiring individual or group effort as appropriate • locate, handle, use and communicate information and ideas, using ICT as appropriate • question and respond constructively to the ideas and actions of others in debate and/or in writing • contribute to discussions and debate in ways that are assertive and, at the same time, attentive to and respectful of others’ contributions • make informed decisions in relation to political, community and environmental issues • persevere, where appropriate, in the face of setbacks and practical difficulties • negotiate, compromise, or assist others to understand and respect difference, when conflict occurs, recognising the difference between consensus and compliance.

Values and dispositions A key part of education for citizenship is developing the ability to recognise and respond thoughtfully to values and value judgements that are part and parcel of political, economic, social and cultural life. At the same time, early education centres and schools can help to foster in young people a number of personal qualities and dispositions rooted in values of respect and care for self, for others and for the environment. They can also promote a sense of social responsibility.

Being fair-minded in making decisions and being inclined to exercise responsibility are essential qualities of a responsible citizen.

Education for Citizenship in Scotland: A Paper for Discussion and Development

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Examples of learning outcomes related to values and dispositions for citizenship As a result of their learning experiences, young people should become progressively more disposed to: • develop informed and reasoned opinions about political, economic, social and environmental issues • express, explain and critically evaluate views that are not their own • demonstrate a sense of responsibility for the welfare of their communities • understand and value cultural and community diversity and be respectful of other people • understand how ethics and values influence people’s decisions and actions • understand and value social justice, recognising that what counts as social justice is itself contentious • confront views and actions that are harmful to the wellbeing of individuals and communities.

Creativity and enterprise Being an effective citizen means being able to demonstrate the capacity for thinking and acting creatively in political, economic, social and cultural life.

Creative and enterprising citizenship involves making thoughtful and imaginative decisions and being enterprising in one’s approach to participation in society.

Examples of learning outcomes related to creativity and enterprise for citizenship As a result of their learning experiences, young people should become progressively more able to: • identify and frame their own questions and problems and suggest possible solutions • respond in imaginative ways to social, moral and political dilemmas and challenges • apply knowledge and skills gained in one context to another in order to take advantage of an opportunity, solve a problem or resolve an issue • imagine alternatives to current ways of doing things • manage change, dealing with risk and uncertainty in an enterprising manner • explore and reach an understanding of their own creative abilities and how to make best use of these.

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All four of these categories of learning outcome are key parts of the development of capability for citizenship. Having said that, it is essential that the four aspects are fostered in ways that ensure development of the integrative ability that is at the heart of effective and purposeful citizenship. For example, young people need to see, and learn to make use of connections between: • knowledge and skills associated with different areas of study

Education for Citizenship in Scotland: A Paper for Discussion and Development

• •

what they learn in formal settings and their experiences in the wider world acting locally and thinking globally.

Therefore, although many, if not all, of the above learning outcomes can be located within existing subjects and programmes of study, there is a continuing challenge for schools to create learning opportunities that make these connections in memorable and enjoyable ways.

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section 3 Effective education for citizenship in practice 3.1

An entitlement for all

All young people should have opportunities to develop and deploy their capability for active and responsible citizenship in ways appropriate to their needs and maturity. This entitlement is established as one of the national priorities for education. This section examines ways in which the entitlement to education for citizenship can be realised effectively in schools and early education settings. The approach proposed does not involve the creation of a new subject labelled ‘citizenship education’ – or the adaptation of any single existing area of the curriculum for this purpose. Instead, Council takes the view that each young person’s entitlement to education for citizenship can be secured through combinations of learning experiences set in the daily life of the school, discrete areas of the curriculum, cross-curricular experiences and activities involving links with the local community. To be fully effective, these learning experiences need to be located in communities where all recognise that they have something to learn, and that they have an entitlement to have their opinions heard.

3.2

An active participatory ethos

Education for citizenship is a key part of the responsibility of every teacher and early education practitioner. It is part and parcel of every area of study and of all teaching and learning.

It is essential to effective education for citizenship that learning experiences provide opportunities for active engagement and that they are perceived by young people as purposeful and personally relevant. The ethos and climate for learning in classrooms and beyond should be: • positive and challenging, reflecting and encouraging high expectations on the part of both pupils and teachers • characterised by respect and care for individuals and their communities • stimulating and motivating, promoting thoughtful interaction and critical debate • conducive to enterprising, constructive thinking.

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The realisation of the goals of education for citizenship, as with other key purposes of the curriculum, is profoundly affected by the ethos of educational establishments. Schools and early education settings need to function as active learning communities in which participation by all members is encouraged and where there are effective links and partnerships with the wider communities in which they are located. Such learning communities can model, in very powerful

Education for Citizenship in Scotland: A Paper for Discussion and Development

ways, the qualities and dispositions associated with education for citizenship.

Young people should see that all people in the school are treated with respect and their views sought and taken account of on relevant matters. The way an establishment is organised and managed, the manner, attitudes and quality of the relationships evident among its members, and the ways in which it interacts with pupils, parents and the wider community can all provide important, tangible indications of what inclusive, participative communities are like in practice. By helping young people to have some first-hand experience of what being an active and responsible member of a community means, early education settings and schools can make important contributions to the development of capability for citizenship in the world outside school.

3.3

The professional contribution of teachers and early education practitioners

All teachers and early education practitioners have a role to play in education for citizenship. They may do this through: • the content of their teaching, and most significantly, the way in which it is taught • the connections they are able to make between apparently disparate areas of study and young people’s social and community experience • their relationships with young people and readiness to listen to and take account of young people’s views.

Their skills and attitudes and the range of learning experiences they are able to create for young people are crucial to the establishment of an open, participatory ethos. In general terms the characteristics required are: • the ability to help young people to understand the connections between academic work, their social experiences and events in the world outside school • respect for young people’s ideas and views about their learning, and their experiences within and outwith the school, and an ability to build on these in their own teaching • willingness and ability to create learning experiences that extend young people’s social experience, and to help them reflect on their learning • tolerance of disagreement and the expression of minority views, and the ability to help young people understand and resolve conflict • skill in sharing responsibility and decision making with young people, and helping them to understand the constraints within which decisions are made • readiness to work in collaboration and partnership with colleagues within the school community and beyond.

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These skills and attitudes will manifest themselves in a rich range of learning experiences for young people. Specific, key learning experiences that contribute to education for citizenship are: • exploration of social and moral issues and dilemmas through discussions and case studies that require use of evidence and the construction of defensible arguments • engagement with a variety of social, political, economic and environmental problems and issues in order to develop enterprising and feasible solutions or effective responses • negotiating, helping to organise and taking part in activities such as projects to improve the school environment, consultation exercises and the development of effective pupil councils • negotiating, helping to organise and taking part in community-based activities, including voluntary work in the local community • participation meaningfully in decision making about rules, rewards and sanctions • contributing actively to the development and operation of policies regarding issues such as bullying or racism • reflecting and being consulted with real purpose on their experience of formal education and of participation in the school, or early education, community • using ICT to question and consult with other people and groups, locally, nationally and internationally, about contemporary issues and seek different kinds of evidence to inform their views about these issues.

Together these key learning experiences provide an essential part of a framework for mapping and auditing provision for education for citizenship. Every young person should normally have opportunities for developing capability for citizenship through these kinds of experiences. Ensuring such entitlement may be challenging to various features of the life and experience of an educational establishment – not least the extent to which the establishment is itself a democratic and participatory community.

3.4

Contexts for learning and development

To achieve these ends consideration should be given to developments in four areas of school life.

•

• •

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•

Participation by young people in the decisions and activities that are part of the culture and everyday life of the school community or early education centre.

Studies within specific curricular areas or subjects throughout the stages from early education to post-16.

Cross-curricular experiences, such as enterprise activities, international awareness activities or drama productions.

Involvement in link activities with the wider community, including environmental projects and community service.

Education for Citizenship in Scotland: A Paper for Discussion and Development

Participation by young people in decision making The right of young people to participate in decision making on matters affecting their daily lives is stated in the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. One of the guiding principles of the Children (Scotland) Act 1995, is that ‘each child who can form his or her views on matters affecting her or him has the right to express those views if he or she so wishes’. The Standards in Scotland’s Schools, etc. Act 2000, requires that each school’s development plan shall include an account of the ways and extent to which the headteacher of the school will consult with pupils and involve them in decision making, when decisions are made concerning the everyday running of the school. Pupil participation lies at the heart of learning ‘citizenship through experience’, and has been developed enthusiastically by many local authorities and individual schools in Scotland.

Pupil participation should be developed within a framework that: • recognises the value of the views of all members of the school community, including the adults who work in the school, and in relevant circumstances those who live around it • extends beyond broad areas of school policy to the content and teaching of lessons, using processes such as profiling, Personal Learning Plans, and other procedures devised for school and departmental self-evaluation • actively seeks and takes account of the views of all pupils • devolves the process of decision making on the responsible uses of resources, for example those that have been allocated to pupil councils • allows for feedback and extended discussion when pupils’ views conflict with those of the people responsible for the management of the school.

Studies within specific curricular areas or subjects Much of young people’s education for citizenship can take place through learning and teaching within specific curricular areas or subjects throughout the stages from early education to post-16. An overall challenge for curriculum designers and planners is to ensure that each young person’s entitlement to education for citizenship through ‘mainstream’ learning and teaching is provided by means of a varied, carefully planned and progressive programme of learning experiences.

This includes planning for transitions between early education, primary and secondary education.

A Curriculum Framework for Children 3 to 5 recommends practitioners to consider: • the extent to which contexts for learning link with children’s experiences at home and in the community • the range of opportunities provided to develop social awareness and willingness to cooperate • the extent to which children feel included in activities and experiences • whether children are helped to be aware of differences and value them.

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Throughout the 5–14 stages of schooling, young people’s studies of all the curricular areas that are part of their entitlement provide opportunities for developing and applying knowledge, skills and dispositions that underpin active and responsible citizenship. For example: •

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

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In the social subjects components of environmental studies, there are opportunities to develop important elements of social, political and economic understanding and to foster other aspects of capability for citizenship. The attainment outcome ‘people in society’ in particular directly addresses many of the knowledge and understanding learning outcomes. Along with its most closely related secondary subject, modern studies, it also provides opportunities to develop many of the skills and values associated with education for citizenship in relevant contexts In the context of environmental studies, pupils can consider the effects of scientific developments and technological activity on people’s lives and the environment, as recommended in the Scottish Executive’s Science Strategy for Scotland In the RME guidelines the attainment outcomes ‘other world religions’ and ‘personal search’ encourage multicultural awareness and discussion of relationships and moral values Personal and Social Development and Health Education guidelines encourage awareness in relevant areas, including personal and community safety, environmental effects on health, personal relationships and conflict resolution Expressive arts encourages young people to express feelings, ideas, thoughts and solutions, and in some contexts to negotiate as a member of a group and to communicate appropriately with different audiences In mathematics, problem solving and information handling activities can relate to real life issues, for example where to place a crossing outside a school, or what kinds of litter are left at different points in the school In languages, all four outcomes of listening, talking, reading and writing can be exercised in contexts that are highly relevant to education for citizenship, with effects that are likely to enhance the effectiveness of each young person’s individual contribution, for example, learning to take part in discussion of a school issue By using ICT, young people can communicate and collaborate with pupils in other schools, both locally and internationally.

Post-14 students exercise choices with respect to particular areas or modes of learning. During the 14–16 years choice in the optional areas of the curriculum is usually structured around a number of key curricular areas. For instance, nearly all pupils study a social subject and a science, and there are usually also elements of creative and aesthetic subjects and technological subjects in each pupil’s curriculum. Social subjects courses – in particular, courses in modern studies – make major contributions to the development of knowledge and skills related to citizenship. However, modern studies is not studied by all young people

Education for Citizenship in Scotland: A Paper for Discussion and Development

and other social subjects, whilst making significant contributions to education for citizenship, may do so less directly. Moreover, other optional subjects such as art and design, home economics, science or social and vocational skills, also provide ‘vehicles’ for development of understanding of areas of knowledge relevant to citizenship (see Annex A).

The subjects typically taken by all students, at least until the end of S4 – mathematics, language and communication, personal and social education and religious and moral education – provide opportunities for continued learning related to citizenship. As with the early stages, these opportunities are partly related to the conceptual and factual content covered and partly to the approaches to learning and teaching. In particular, PSE, RME and language studies, including, in the case of English and communication courses, some aspects of media studies, offer considerable scope for provision of key learning experiences, such as those noted in paragraph 3.3. Moreover, even where a topic being studied may have no obvious relevance to education for citizenship, opportunities can be taken to contextualise the learning in ways that help to foster some aspects of capability for citizenship.

Cross-curricular experiences Whilst much can be achieved through traditional subjects, there are important features of education for citizenship that can only be achieved through crosscurricular approaches. Particular challenges include: • provision of whole school learning experiences that publicly affirm the school’s commitment to the values of education for citizenship, for example, assemblies, community forums, equal opportunities events • provision of learning experiences that enable young people to perceive, forge and make use of the many connections across areas of study, through issuefocused studies or interdepartmental approaches in areas such as European studies, anti-racist education and global/development education.

This points to the need, particularly at secondary level, for schools to review and possibly extend their range of cross-curricular contexts for learning. Such crosscurricular experiences complement subject-specific studies and provide essential additional opportunities for young people to engage with issues in increasingly mature and reflective ways.

Working with the wider community In Scottish schools there are substantial traditions of enabling young people to become directly involved in community projects to explore and investigate social and environmental issues. Such approaches are especially important for the development of active and responsible citizens.

Local communities are an important resource for learning in schools and offer contexts within which authentic environmental and social issues can be explored.

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However, the community is not only a resource for study. Schools and early education centres are themselves valuable resources for the whole community, in which there is legitimate interest in decision-making about the school’s development.

There is also scope, particularly in the later stages of schooling, for collaboration between schools and community education agencies. Together with teachers, community educators from both the local government and the voluntary sectors can bring much by way of expertise and experience to the design and management of opportunities for young people to tackle real-life issues in their communities. The development of New Community Schools is giving fresh impetus to collaboration between teachers and other professionals, including social workers and health professionals, in order to provide the best possible opportunities for all young people to maximise their achievements.

3.5

Progression in education for citizenship

A key challenge for practitioners is to interpret the learning outcomes for education for citizenship in terms appropriate to the experience and maturity of learners. Whilst there is no intention of specifying rigid age- and stage-related outcomes for education for citizenship here, some helpful guidelines for progression in relevant areas already exist in 5–14 and other subject documentation. The examples of school practice that follow are intended to show successful approaches at different stages of education. The schools and centres featured are at different stages of development in their work, but all have begun to translate some of the ideas associated with education for citizenship in ways appropriate to their learners and communities.3 Opportunities in the 3–5 curriculum Early education makes a vital contribution to developing and broadening the range of children’s learning experiences beyond those highly influential experiences of learning in the home and community. Children are helped to develop confidence, self-esteem and social, intellectual and creative abilities. They grow in their awareness of, and respect for, the environment and differences between people. ‘Scottish curriculum guidelines for children aged 3–5 are based on four guiding principles: that the curriculum should be in the best interests of children, that it should recognise the central importance of relationships, that all children need to be included, and that account should be taken of understandings of the way children learn’ (A Curriculum Framework for Children 3–5, Scottish CCC, 1999). These principles have given rise to practice that is compatible with the

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3 More detailed accounts of these and other case studies can be found on the Learning and Teaching Scotland website www.LTScotland.com/citizenship

Education for Citizenship in Scotland: A Paper for Discussion and Development

goals of education for citizenship. For example: • • •

children are encouraged to discuss and voice their opinion about a range of issues, such as the nursery environment and rules of behaviour a variety of expressive arts is used to encourage children to express their feelings, ideas and theories about the world around them work that actively involves parents in disadvantaged communities in the education of their children.

Children’s views Stirling Council’s policy commitment to listening to and valuing young people’s views is reflected at all stages of learning, including early education. For instance, at Park Drive Nursery 3–5-year-olds are encouraged to identify areas of the nursery that they like and dislike, and also areas where they would like to have adult support.

At Croftamie Nursery, small children are involved in planning and recalling their nursery day, and in evaluating and changing their nursery environment and outdoor area. In the words of the Head: The benefits have been many. In particular, it has given us a sense of belonging within the community, and a greater understanding of each other, children, parents, staff and community.

Learning to express yourself Six Falkirk Council day nurseries are linked in a project that aims to encourage children’s development by involving them in expressive arts activities. The project has yielded evidence of very young children’s ability to communicate effectively using expressive arts, with particular benefits noticeable amongst some children with special needs.

Involving Parents Greengables Nursery School and Family Centre in the Craigmillar area of Edinburgh provides a stimulating, supportive learning environment for children and families. As children take part in activities designed to develop confidence, self esteem and respect for others, adults are offered a programme of recreational and vocational education, as well as access to a wide range of advice and information on family-related subjects. Activities, such as Cooking for Tots, Babies Play and modules in subjects like child development and classroom assistant training, dovetail with nursery activities and offer parents rich opportunities to learn more about how children learn and to become actively involved in the education of their children.

These learning experiences underpin children’s sense of belonging, and lay a firm foundation for their growing understanding of rights and responsibilities and their ability to participate effectively in society.

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Opportunities from 5 to 14 Schools build upon and extend children’s early education experiences in primary schools and the early years of secondary schooling as young people follow programmes of study based on 5–14 guidelines. As we have seen these offer many opportunities for developing the learning outcomes associated with education for citizenship. Primary schools have also made considerable progress in providing opportunities for young people to take part in decision making both at classroom and at whole school level. Examples include: • imaginative developments in the teaching of ‘people in society’ and other 5– 14 outcomes related to education for citizenship • activities that help pupils to understand and take some responsibility for their relations with the wider community • projects encouraging environmental responsibility • creating opportunities for the responsible exercise of personal choice • activities that encourage children to offer feedback on approaches to learning and teaching.

Studies within specific curricular areas At Kingswells Primary School in Aberdeen, a strong citizenship thread runs through both environmental studies and personal and social education programmes of study from P1 to P7. The programmes draw on a wide range of published, school and community-based resources to give children a very rich introduction to contemporary issues and their own rights and responsibilities as citizens. Resources which have proved particularly valuable, and have been integrated within the school’s approach to education for citizenship include TAG Theatre Company’s Sense of Community project and Police Box, a resource for primary PSE developed by Grampian Police Community Development Department.

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Making small but real differences Pupils at Ferguslie Primary School in Renfrewshire can point to some small but real improvements in school as a result of their work on the Pupil Council. Colour co-ordinated homework baskets and jotters (to avoid problems when jotters go in the wrong basket), newly re-painted blackboards (to avoid sqeaks), and a school shop now being set up and managed by pupils in association with a local bank (in response to pupils’ concerns about missing pencils and other essential materials), are all the result of helpful recommendations channelled through the Pupil Council. The Council is organised conventionally with two elected representatives per class, but great care has been taken to protect Pupil Council time (weekly during the school day), to consult widely with all pupils, and to allow for report back and discussion time in classes and at monthly assemblies.

Education for Citizenship in Scotland: A Paper for Discussion and Development

Children’s views on teaching and learning Personal Learning Plans were identified as a key priority when Thornliebank Primary School in East Renfrewshire became a new community school. Amongst other objectives these encourage pupils to evaluate the curriculum and community learning opportunities, and to set personal targets for attainment, attendance and timekeeping. After a short pilot programme and one full year of operation there is evidence of increased pupil motivation, of teachers feeling they know their pupils better, and of parents more able to support their children.

National support for education for citizenship The Scottish Parliament’s Young People’s Health Congress involved S2 representatives of approximately 40 schools from all parts of Scotland. Pupils were invited to Parliament, and acted as MSPs for a day, debating a range of health-related resolutions in the parliamentary chamber and in committee.

Other pupils acted as school journalists and sat in the press gallery. Pupils were well-supported by parliamentary officials and expert witnesses, but the high quality of debate was particular testament to the preparatory work undertaken as part of the project in schools. The event was organised by the Scottish Parliament Education Service, with support from MSPs, officials, youth workers and teachers from Modern Studies, English and other departments.

Opportunities post-14 Education for citizenship assumes a new significance post-14 when young people face many of the issues associated with independent living in increasingly practical forms. Many of the issues they face in respect of further study, finding a job, leaving home, managing their money, understanding the law and relating to people in authority demand wider knowledge and understanding of contemporary issues and decision-making processes. Young adults need to be able to combine that knowledge and understanding with a wide range of skills, competences and values in order to be able to negotiate the barriers to satisfying and responsible participation in social, economic and cultural life.

Subject choice presents secondary schools with a number of challenges in respect of education for citizenship. First, the diversity of individual timetables, whilst suited to the different aspirations that young people have on leaving school, makes it difficult to account for development of the full range of learning outcomes associated with education for citizenship. Second, there is the specific question of how to provide for continued acquisition of the broad range of political, economic, social and cultural knowledge and understanding that is essential to progressive development of capability for citizenship. Third, the

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importance to young people of subject qualifications for entry to higher or further education or the labour market tends to leave relatively little time for school activities whose outcomes are not formally assessed.

The response to this situation is not to stipulate any single course of study of ‘citizenship education’ as part of each student’s core programme. Such an approach has a number of drawbacks. In practical terms, it would have the effect of restricting the scope for student choice and flexibility of provision and could also create practical difficulties for curriculum planning in the post-14 stages.

Most importantly, to appear to locate ‘citizenship education’ in one particular post-14 course of study would be inconsistent with the broad view of education for citizenship being advanced in this paper. Some schools have developed specific courses in ‘citizenship’. Where courses in what schools wish to call ‘citizenship’ can be satisfactorily resourced, they may make a useful contribution to a school’s overall approach to education for citizenship. If adopted, however, they must take their place alongside other opportunities for development of capability for citizenship, including strategies for student participation in decisionmaking, studies in other curricular areas, cross-curricular learning experiences and link activities with the wider community.

A range of strategies could be considered to ensure full entitlement to education for citizenship post-14. Schools may find one or more of the following useful in providing a focus for their own development.

•

•

•

•

•

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Examination, through curriculum audit, of how far various combinations of core’ and optional subjects can provide an adequate basis for developing knowledge and understanding related to citizenship. This approach might indicate a need for curriculum inserts in order to enrich subjects where such opportunities are perceived, or for the school to undertake cross-curricular activities outwith the subject curriculum.

Using the expertise of staff in areas such as modern studies, science, technology or ICT, and where possible expertise outwith the school, to contribute to parts of courses typically taken by all students, for example a PSE course or dedicated core skills units.

Encouraging take-up of appropriate units and courses in the National Qualifications framework as part of students’ individual learning programmes; this might include units that emphasise links between core skills and citizenship issues.

Examining how far the themes and issues associated with education for citizenship can be addressed through more appropriate and extensive contextualisation of common areas of study such as mathematics and language and communication.

Closer examination of the way in which community involvement activities and local investigations can enhance not only young people’s skills and develop their values and creativity, but also reinforce and develop their knowledge and understanding of social and political processes.

Education for Citizenship in Scotland: A Paper for Discussion and Development

It is expected that the strategies adopted will vary from school to school, depending, for example, on local circumstances, the preferences of students and the particular resources of expertise that staff can offer. In the longer term, curriculum audits and other approaches may well lead to questions about the content and focus of post-14 courses generally, in the light of the overarching imperatives of education for citizenship.

Curricular issues of continuity and progression are but one part of a secondary school’s approach to education for citizenship. Participation in decision making, cross-curricular activities and working with the local and wider community have continuing importance. Some imaginative approaches to education for citizenship in secondary schools include: • • • • • •

•

Northfield Academy’s Community Forum, and its use of the Higher Still PSE framework St Ninian’s High School’ s cross-curricular approach to PSE and pupil consultation Alva Academy’s work on global citizenship Drummond Community High School’s work in anti-racist education Merkland’s School’s work to include young people with special educational needs in the life of the local community Our Lady’s High School, Motherwell and the Scottish Catholic International Aid Fund (SCIAF)’s multi-disciplinary approach to a development education topic Woodfarm High School’s work with Save the Children in Scotland to develop its pupil council.

Relating curriculum and community Northfield Academy in Aberdeen has an extensive ‘citizenship’ programme for young people in S5. This includes an annual community forum, when all S5 pupils meet to discuss issues in their local community, and feed back requests and recommendations to local politicians, including the Lord Provost, the local MSP and councillor and representatives of Grampian Police. Practical outcomes include setting up of a youth café, student involvement in police training, and correspondence links with young people in the city’s twin oil capitals. The Youth Forum is complemented now by a number of courses based on the Higher Still framework for PSE, which allows a smaller number of pupils to study community issues in greater depth.

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Using subject expertise to develop PSE St Ninian’s High School in East Renfrewshire has a PSE programme that is audited annually and is delivered through subject departments. As part of this approach the school encourages citizenship contributions from individual subjects, either through their mainstream syllabus or through ‘inserts’. This approach is complemented by thrice yearly seminars for every year group, when every pupil is encouraged to express his/her views on a range of school issues identified by either staff or pupils. Issues have included what makes a good teacher, or a good class. Gender differences and anti-bullying have also been discussed, and pupils have evaluated school programmes of work related to study skills and drugs education.

Global citizenship Alva Academy in Clackmannanshire made the decision some two years ago to explore what citizenship meant to young people in the UK, Europe and beyond. In September 2000 an international conference was held in the school involving staff and students from sixteen European countries and South Africa, with the theme of ‘Global Citizenship in 2000 and beyond’. This conference involved presentations and workshops on a range of topics from the responsibility and influence of the media to student representation and decision making. Other issues such as justice, peace and equal opportunities were also explored, paying particular heed to practices and stages of development in different countries and cultures.

This event was seen as only a launching point for such debate and a network of contacts has been established as a platform for young people to develop their thinking and ideas: a follow-up is being planned for Finland in November 2002.

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Education for Citizenship in Scotland: A Paper for Discussion and Development

Improving participation in decision making Woodfarm High School in East Renfrewshire has worked with Save the Children in Scotland to strengthen its approach to consultation with young people. Its pupil councils are now open to all interested pupils, with around 120 pupils attending. Questionnaires and focus groups are used to extend consultation even further, and the Council has successfully argued for a number of whole school activities, including a series of seminars involving all S2 pupils in a consultation on bullying. The school’s approach includes strategies to involve teachers more closely in decision making, a need identified through Save the Children’s staff evaluation of the pupil councils.

Citizenship in a school for pupils with special educational needs Merkland School works to promote inclusion by providing opportunities for meaningful pupil participation in the wider community. As well as taking part in a thriving Enterprise programme and a wide range of sporting and cultural activities, young people at Merkland run a weekly coffee shop for members of the community, and both visit and host local groups, such as playgroups and pensioners’ groups. In the words of the headteacher: … very often pupils in special schools are on the receiving end of kindness and hospitality … it is extremely beneficial for them to have the opportunity to return hospitality and do something actively for the community … This promotes feelings of mutuality and of being ‘the same as everyone else’.

By the same token members of the community become aware that young people with special educational needs also have competencies and potential.

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A whole school approach to anti-racist education Drummond Community High School in Edinburgh has a long record of work in equal opportunities and anti-racist education.

Staff at the school have developed the Drummond Equality Game, a popular board game, played and discussed with all S1 pupils with senior pupil support, that helps young people understand how the dice are loaded against certain sections of the community. Multicultural support groups are held for ethnic minority pupils in S1 to have some time together each week with a guidance teacher and youth worker to explain and discuss any problems arising in their new school. Senior pupils have been involved in writing pupil versions of the school’s equal opportunities policy, and equality issues figure strongly in staff development and in school self-evaluation.

A cross-curricular approach to development education Our Lady’s High School, Motherwell, North Lanarkshire, have worked with SCIAF and the Kamwokya community in Uganda to heighten awareness of development issues in Africa. A coordinated cross-curricular approach has so far involved work in RE, Geography, Modern Studies, Art, Music, PE, Home Economics, English, Maths, Biology, and Chemistry departments, with others hoping to join in the future. Departmental work has been reinforced by a well prepared and successful whole school focus activity, a performance by pupils of African music, dance, storytelling, cooking and development education simulations, together with displays of departmental work, called Out of Africa. The event was organised by the school with support from the parent–teacher association and the school board for parents and others in the community.

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Education for Citizenship in Scotland: A Paper for Discussion and Development

A noteworthy feature of these examples is the way in which a number of contexts are addressed in the same activity, for example: community involvement and participation in decision making at Northfield Academy; knowledge and understanding of contemporary issues and pupil consultation at St Ninian’s High School. At Drummond Community High School, work in equal opportunities links not only contexts but also pupils of all ages, with senior pupils contributing both to development of the knowledge and understanding of S1 pupils, as well as to school decision-making in the broadest sense.

Development and management of courses and activities like these is a demanding professional activity. It is likely that, particularly in secondary schools, there will be a need to define specific roles with regard to education for citizenship within the senior management team, and for a coordinating member of staff or department to be designated.

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section Areas for 4 development and exploration 4.1

Areas for Development

Education for citizenship is a national priority, many features of which are underpinned by legislation such as the Human Rights Act 1998 and the Standards in Scotland’s Schools, etc. Act, 2000. The Advisory Council expects that this will be reflected in local authorities’ improvement plans and in school development plans and recommends that use be made of the framework provided by this paper in the review and development of these plans.

Specifically, it is recommended that the following areas for development be given priority. Development should focus on: Schools and early education centres • Reviewing existing provision and practice in terms of the framework developed in this paper, including provision of opportunities for young people to: – participate in decision making – participate actively in relevant learning experiences across the curriculum – learn to make connections between different areas of study through crosscurricular experiences relevant to education for citizenship – understand and participate in the life of the communities to which they belong.

• Promoting education for citizenship within the development planning process.

• Ensuring opportunities for meaningful and responsible involvement in decision-making by young people and adults associated with the establishment.

• Designating a member of staff to co-ordinate provision for development of capability for citizenship.

Local authorities • • • • •

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Providing support for schools and early education centres in the review of existing provision and practice in education for citizenship.

Providing for review and development of provision for education for citizenship within the authority’s development planning process.

Monitoring and evaluating education for citizenship.

Reviewing opportunities for young people and others to take part in local authority decision making.

Reviewing current resources and promoting the development of relevant new resources.

Education for Citizenship in Scotland: A Paper for Discussion and Development

•

Identifying, and making provision for responding to, professional development needs in relation to education for citizenship.

Promoting education for citizenship in improvement plans.

•

National developments In order to ensure the successful implementation of the framework set out in this paper, it is important that actions are taken nationally to create a supportive context for ongoing discussion and development. These will include • a development programme to provide guidance and support on such matters as teaching and learning, assessment and approaches to evaluation of provision of education for citizenship from 3 to 18, not least to ensure that entitlement to education for citizenship is met post-14.

• strategies for identification of needs for pre-service education and continuing professional development related to development of capability for citizenship • support for networking and information exchange, locally, nationally and internationally, and for the promotion of partnership across sectors • systematic national monitoring, evaluation and reporting on progress

4.2

Areas for Exploration

The Advisory Council recognises that the process of reviewing education for citizenship has raised questions for which there are as yet no definitive answers.

For example, seeing the development of capability for citizenship as a key purpose of education has implications for the content and the organisation of the curriculum and for the ways in which learning related to citizenship is recognised and accredited.

Further research and discussion are especially necessary and desirable in relation to such issues, all of which connect to established national priorities for education. The following paragraphs indicate some starting points for discussion.

Education for citizenship and improving attainment and achievement There are good reasons to expect that effective education for citizenship will contribute to improved attainment and achievement by, for instance, increasing the individual’s confidence and self-esteem, helping young people make connections between knowledge and skills gained in different contexts, and extending their vision and motivation. However, the link between developing capability for citizenship and attainment is not a mechanistic one, and there can be no guarantee of immediate measurable improvements in attainment. This means that developments in education for citizenship may be seen as a risky distraction. Schools are publicly accountable for their pupils’ performance in examinations, not for the other less easily assessable aspects of their work. It would be regrettable if this were to inhibit imaginative developments in education for citizenship.

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There will be, over time, a need to explore and shed light on the relationship between developing capability for citizenship and attainment. The relationship between the range of information published about young people’s achievements in schools, and the impact this has on public and professional perceptions of educational priorities also requires further examination. Meantime, it should be clear that education for citizenship, as described here, will do much to promote achievement across a wider spectrum than that which is the focus of most measures of attainment.

Attitudinal change associated with developing capability for citizenship, for example, in relation to political or voluntary activity, is among the other key areas that will require further exploration.

Assessing development of capability for citizenship It would not be appropriate or practicable to formally assess the quality of a young person’s citizenship. Having said that, it will be important to give further careful and more detailed consideration to ways in which young people’s learning related to education for citizenship, as described in this paper, can be assessed and accredited. This will include a critical examination of aspects of current practice in assessment for summative purposes.

Assessing elements of the learning outcomes separately might have the unintended effect of creating a disjointed and instrumental approach to education for citizenship. Nonetheless, young people are entitled to recognition of their learning, and of their contribution to the life of the school and the community.

Moreover, many of the learning outcomes listed in Section 2 are already assessed in other contexts. It will be important that learning and development in relation to these learning outcomes are seen as contributing to each learner’s development of capability for citizenship.

Developments such as Personal Learning Plans and the Progress File could be adapted to include recognition of aspects of education for citizenship or to highlight a citizenship dimension in accreditation already achieved.

Education for citizenship and inclusion

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Some young people feel themselves to be excluded from aspects of school and community life through their social, material or physical circumstances. These young people may not find it easy to take part in the school’s provision for development of capability for citizenship. Sometimes they may not react positively to efforts to include them. It is the school’s responsibility to develop strategies to ensure that all young people benefit from their entitlement to education for citizenship. Whilst much existing work in equal opportunities, anti-racist education, special educational needs and inclusive education in general is relevant to and supportive of education for citizenship, there is considerable need for further development.

Education for Citizenship in Scotland: A Paper for Discussion and Development

Staff development Involvement in education for citizenship has implications both for the professional knowledge of teachers and early years practitioners and for their teaching skills.

Even though it is not envisaged that approaches to education for citizenship should be strongly focused on areas of knowledge, teachers are likely to feel more confident with a basic knowledge and understanding of such areas as rights and responsibilities, decision-making processes, the role of the media in contemporary society, environmental issues and financial education.

Furthermore, opportunities for initial and in-service education are likely to be of value, for example, on matters such as: – how to involve young people in decision making – supporting young people undertaking community placements – developing international links – dealing with controversial issues in the classroom Perhaps most important of all, if interdisciplinary work across school and community sectors is to become meaningful, then teachers, early years practitioners and other professionals need to be able to participate in joint staff development in order to understand better the complementarity of each other’s professional skills.

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annex annex AA Citizens in today’s world seem to require factual and conceptual knowledge from a wide range of domains in order to come to thoughtful, informed decisions about important matters for their lives now and in the future. Ideas and phenomena associated with areas of learning and development as varied as expressive arts, geography, history, mathematics, the media, philosophy, politics, natural and social sciences, religion and technology are all parts of the broad base of political, social and cultural understanding that is relevant to living thoughtfully as an active, informed citizen.

Within this range of domains, there are some areas of knowledge and understanding that are especially relevant to the development and expression of ability to be active and responsible citizens. Informed citizens require knowledge and understanding of: • themselves, human cultures and societies and the natural and made worlds in which they live • the complex interdependencies between the various types of system – physical, biological, and societal – that make up the world • the political, legal, administrative and cultural structures and processes of democratic societies, locally, nationally and internationally • the legal and human rights and responsibilities of citizens, individually and collectively, in a democratic society • barriers to full opportunity to exercise citizenship arising from socio-economic circumstances, prejudice and discrimination • economic and financial aspects of individual and societal needs and wants and how these relate to issues of environmental sustainability, cultural development and social equity • the changing nature of the world of business, of working life and economic activity • the potential of developments in science and/or technology to change the physical, social and cultural environment, for good or ill • the role of the arts in individual and community life, for example in developing community cohesion and in providing vehicles for expressing political critique • the role of the media and marketing processes in shaping public opinion and influencing individual and collective decision making • the nature of change and continuity and the effects individuals or groups of individuals, including voluntary groups, can have on the evolution of societies • how Scottish society has evolved in the wider British, European and global context • the diversity of identities – religious, ethnic, cultural, regional, national – within Scotland, across the UK and worldwide, and the need for mutual respect, tolerance and understanding • the sources of disagreement and conflict between individuals and communities and the ways in which people can set about resolving such conflicts.

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Education for Citizenship in Scotland: A Paper for Discussion and Development

This list implies that young people need to have opportunities for learning across a broad range of subjects and curricular areas. A key challenge for curriculum design and planning is how to select factual and conceptual content, and to choose contexts for learning, that will help to provide an appropriate and valuable foundation for developing capability for citizenship. At the same time the outcomes of these selections and choices need to provide a basis for young people’s education for personal growth and for productive and enterprising working lives.

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annex annex BB Being an effective citizen means being able to use and develop in a variety of contexts: • core skills: – communication skills (listening, speaking, reading, writing; visual and non-verbal), for example being able to research, discuss and share information about social, political and community issues; being able to contribute to debates and discussions in ways that are both assertive and respectful of others’ contributions – the ability to work confidently with numerical information, for example being able to examine statistics regarding various social and economic issues and to consider ways in which they are used and abused – ICT skills, for example using ICT to analyse situations, events and issues, to communicate effectively, to find and handle information, and to make contact with people and organisations across the world, and developing critical use of the internet – the ability to work well with others, for example by participating willingly, confidently and constructively in team efforts – problem-solving skills, including the ability to identify and frame one’s own questions and problems rather than depending on others to define them, for example identifying and describing a practical community problem •

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other generic skills: – the capacity to work autonomously in pursuit of one’s own needs and purposes and those of communities, for example in defending and promoting the rights and welfare of others as well as exercising one’s own rights – decision-making skills, for example making thoughtful and informed decisions in the course of being involved in political and community issues – creative skills (related to problem-solving and other core skills) including: – the ability to respond in imaginative ways to social, moral and political situations and challenges, for example developing a personal response to a topical moral issue, or making a decision in response to a local political development – the ability to apply knowledge and skills gained in one context to another, in order to take advantage of an opportunity, solve a problem or resolve an issue – the developing capacity to imagine alternative realities and futures that could benefit society and the environment – the ability to consider and empathise with the experience and perspective of others.

Combined with relevant factual and conceptual knowledge and with positive dispositions and personal qualities, these generic skills provide the basis for active citizenship that is also imbued with a sense of social and environmental responsibility.

Education for Citizenship in Scotland: A Paper for Discussion and Development

appendix appendix Membership of the Review Group 1999–2001 Pamela Munn (Chair) Professor of Curriculum Research, University of Edinburgh Shameem Ali

Acting Depute Headteacher, East Calder Primary School, West Lothian

Rowena Arshad

Director, Centre for Education for Racial Equality in Scotland

Terry Ashton

Adviser (Guidance and Careers), Aberdeen City Council

Keir Bloomer

Chief Executive, Clackmannanshire Council

Alan Fraser

Rector, Arbroath High School, Angus

Lynn Hendry

Chief Executive, Young Enterprise Scotland

Stuart Lowson

Depute Headteacher, Arkleston Primary School, Renfrewshire

Henry Maitles

Senior Lecturer/Head of Modern Studies, University of Strathclyde

Andrea MacBeath

Teacher, Richmond Park School, Glasgow

Lachie MacCallum

HM Inspector of Education, Scottish Executive

Charlie McConnell

Chief Executive, Community Learning Scotland

Bart McGettrick

formerly Dean of Education, University of Glasgow

Mary McLaughlin

Headteacher, Notre Dame High School, Glasgow

Hilary Neilson

Coordinator, International Development Education Association of Scotland

Mike Sawyer

Director of Social Work, Fife Council

Claire Stevens

Director, Community Service Volunteers, Scotland

Pat Wharton

Early Childhood Curriculum Officer, Stirling Council

Learning and Teaching Scotland Officers Mike Baughan

Chief Executive

Colin McAndrew

Principal Curriculum Officer

Margaret McGhie

Principal Curriculum Officer

Denis Stewart

Assistant Chief Executive

Christine Twine

Development Officer

Rosemary Arnott

Secretary to the Review Group

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