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This Month's Theme

Justice, Rights & Diversity

What do your pupils know about Stephen Lawrence?

Stephen Lawrence was 18 years old when he was killed because of his skin colour. It took over 18 years for his racist murderers to be sentenced.

How can you teach under-18s about justice and the legal system in this climate?

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Today is Holocaust Memorial Day

27 January 2012

The theme for 2012 asks us all to Speak Up, Speak Out to create a safer, better future.

The theme asks us to think about the rights, responsibility and duty we all have to speak up when we see or hear something which we believe to be wrong. It challenges us to learn about what happens when we don’t speak out and what can happen when we do use our voice.

HMD 2012 looks at how we make a choice when to speak up and considers the dangers in both choosing to speak out and not speaking up and asks us all to speak up against injustice and hatred today.

Shape the future of education

26 January 2012

At a time of change in education, your voice is critical to shape how schools can support students to engage with and meet the challenges of the 21st century world. Click here to have your say in the Oxfam Schools Engagement research project.

Compete for the Chance to be Chancellor

26 January 2012

Citizenship Foundation’s Chance to be Chancellor competition gives 14-18 year olds a chance to create and defend their own budget for the nation!

Young people take the challenge of stepping into the shoes of the Chancellor by making decisions on spending and taxation. Their decisions will form the Youth Budget 2012.

For a chance to win, entrants must make a case for their decisions. They could win an iPad, visit the Treasury and make the news!

The deadline for entries to the competition is 20th February 2012

> read through MORE NEWS ITEMS

01 Dec 11 - 31 Dec 11

World Days in December

Useful for assemblies and class discussions

25 Jan 12

Booking school visit to Paliament

Houses of Parliament

27 Jan 12

Holocaust Memorial Day

Your School

08 Feb 12

Helping your pupils make sense of the world - teaching controversial and sensitive topics

Manchester

25 Feb 12

Expressing Citizenship

University of Leeds

> browse all FORTHCOMING EVENTS

Ask the Experts - Your Questions Answered

Featured Question :-

Question

How do I organise meaningful active Citizenship projects that involve a whole year of students?

Answer

It can be daunting organising active Citizenship projects with a whole year group but it can also be incredibly satisfying. The key to making this an entitlement for all students in a year group is to build these opportunities for action into schemes of work – if they are only run as after-school clubs you’ll never be able to involve everyone. Active citizenship should not be an add-on to Citizenship; it is the very essence of Citizenship!

There are lots of manageable actions students can do, here are some ideas:

Inviting decision makers from the local community into school to watch presentations by students

Making presentations to Senior Leaders or the School Council

Running campaigns in school (you can use a prominent notice board to publicise them)

Organising a Citizenship assembly (with relevant visitors) where all students are given the opportunity to give their opinion (make sure they are prepared)

Writing a letter/email to a local MP, company or organisation

Ideally, the schemes of work should have three components; students voice, students action and student reflection. The most compelling learning experiences in Citizenship:

- Give students a voice or choice in the learning process and/or content (but I wouldn’t recommend you leave it completely up to them!). For example, you might offer students three local issues to investigate, of which they must choose one.

- Give students the opportunity to DO something that aims to have an impact outside the classroom. Sticking up posters on the classroom wall will not help children feel politically powerful. You will only feel politically powerful by having a powerful experience of acting politically. That’s why the examples above are so important.

- this action builds the students’ sense of agency

- Give students the opportunity to reflect on how effective their action has been and why.

As with many things you’ve got 2 options; start with something that you are comfortable with, or jump in at the deep end and learn from your mistakes! Don’t forget that you can model your own learning to the students.

One project that I have found works well is ‘Your streets, Your say’ where students reflect on and find examples (taking photos) of things they like and don’t like about where they live. You could set this as homework over a holiday and get them to carry out a survey of family and friends who live in their area. If the students put this into a powerpoint presentation you could then either invite a local councillor in to watch the presentations or email/send their findings.

Give it a go and if you have any good ideas for manageable and meaningful active Citizenship projects don’t forget to post them on the ACT website.

Alice Carlisle, East Midlands RSA

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