Wednesday, November 25, 2009
Citizenship education eight years on.
New research published this month reviews the ways schools in England have introduced and developed citizenship education in their curriculum.
Citizenship education became a statutory part of the secondary national curriculum in England in 2001. The Citizenship Education Longitudinal Study (CELS) commissioned by the DCSF has been following the experiences of 12 case-study schools since then, as well as conducting surveys of schools leaders, teachers and students each year. The nine year research project, conducted by NFER, published its most recent findings this month in the report, Embedding Citizenship Education in Secondary Schools in England.
The report summarises the findings of the latest extensive survey of students from years 8, 10 and 12 and teachers and leaders in 317 schools and colleges in England conducted in July 2008.
The research concludes that the understanding of and the value placed upon citizenship education is progressing in schools with a widespread reporting of the positive impact schools feel citizenship education is having on students. "It is perceived to be having a positive impact on students’ confidence, tolerance and respect; while other benefits include better behaviour and attitudes, a greater awareness of current affairs and engagement with local issues. "
Whilst citizenship education had widespread status as a valuable part of the curriculum the report highlights differences in how it is implemented. It was most successful were schools were teaching it as a discrete part of the timetable with dedicated time and whilst this was the most common approach there were still schools were it was not given this profile. The survey revealed that students in those schools where citizenship was not taught explicitly were much less likely to value citizenship or take up opportunities to participate.
The majority of teachers surveyed felt that "active " teaching and learning methods were most appropriate to citizenship education and students reported that they were more likely to experience these methods in citizenship education than other parts of the curriculum. However, the research also revealed that this practice was not consistent.
"teaching is still predominantly delivered through less active teaching and learning methods. The use of active methods varies considerably within and between schools."
The lack of staff training is highlighted with survey data suggesting 50% of those teaching Citizenship education had not had any training in the subject, eight years after it was made statutory.
The report found policy and practice in other areas of school life changed in schools where citizenship education had been introduced with a high profile. There was an increase in the value placed on the views and voices of learners by teachers which very often also led to changes in the way decisions were being made in schools.
"School staff are more positive about the level of democracy in their school and the extent to which students have a voice; students as a whole are moderately positive about the classroom climate, with post-16 students most confident about having a voice in the classroom."
Whilst the report concludes that the notion of citizenship education has to a large extent been successfully embedded in English secondary schools as a valuable part of the curriculum there are inconsistencies in how well it is implemented and delivered.
CELS Director David Kerr said: “It has taken time but there are clear signs in this report that Citizenship has become accepted in schools, particularly for its forward looking contribution in engaging young people with current issues and preparing them for life in modern society.”
The final report of the CELS research project will be published in 2010.
The CELS website.