The ideas in this booklet
build on those in Citizenship at key stage 3. Getting involved: extending
opportunities for pupil participation, which was published as part of the
key stage 3 scheme of work.
During key stage 4, pupils
should have opportunities to build on the skills of participation and responsible
action acquired at key stage 3, applying them in school and the wider community.
The school can ensure progression by enabling pupils to take on more responsibility,
develop increasing independence and become less reliant on adult support.
Some pupils will do this
as they take responsibility within class or group activities and projects, acting
as members of a team or providing mentoring support for younger pupils. Others
might become involved in the running of mentoring schemes or develop the skills
to train others to become peer tutors or mentors. Some pupils will extend and
apply their skills by volunteering for additional responsibilities in school
or participating in community projects and after-school activities. Key stage
4 citizenship prepares pupils to make the most of the opportunities they will
have beyond the age of 16 to extend their citizenship knowledge, skills and
understanding and put these into practice through increased engagement and participation.
As in earlier key stages,
the National Healthy School Standard creates a context for this further development
of pupil participation. Schools can obtain support from their local Healthy
School Programme.
Where pupils need additional
individual support to become involved in community projects, there is scope
for Connexions personal advisers to support them in the development of skills
of participation and responsible action, and in addressing personal and social
issues that might be a deterrent to their participation.
1 Citizenship portfolio
Keeping a citizenship
portfolio will enable pupils to record their progress and achievements in citizenship.
At key stage 4, pupils take more responsibility for gathering and recording
evidence of their progress and achievement - from subject/course options, work
experience or activities outside the school curriculum, such as participation
in community projects and initiatives. This could follow the style of the portfolios
promoted through the use of progress file materials.
If a portfolio has been
used during key stages 3 and 4 to record progress and achievement in citizenship,
young people may continue to use it to support their development post-16, helping
them to develop links between citizenship, their career and lifelong learning.
2 Participating in the
school community
By key stage 4, pupils
should be used to taking part in the day-to-day organisation and running
of the school. The following questions may be used to assess the quality
of pupil involvement in school decision-making. They apply to the whole
school, but by key stage 4 pupils are likely to have experience of different
types of decision-making, and to be ready to take on more responsibility.
This may include supporting younger pupils in developing decision-making
skills, representing other pupils on groups and committees, and putting
forward their own and others' views in a variety of contexts.
- What recognised
mechanisms exist for enabling all pupils to contribute their views and ideas
to the overall life of the school? for example, circle time, student (class/year/school)
councils, student consultation committees, questionnaires, surveys of pupil
opinion.
- Are pupils ever
represented at governors' meetings? Representation could include: regular
attendance by pupil representatives; opportunities for pupils to contribute
to specific agenda items; mechanisms for pupils to observe meetings; and the
establishment of channels through which pupils could receive minutes about
issues that concern them.
- How do pupils contribute
to curriculum planning? for example, pupils acting as researchers, conducting
surveys of pupil needs; pupils evaluating existing provision; pupils providing
feedback on resources and learning activities; the discussion of curriculum
issues in class/year/school councils; pupil representation on curriculum committees;
pupils contributing to staff conferences or whole-school planning.
- How do pupils contribute
to policy review and development? for example, through clear, defined
mechanisms for pupil involvement in review procedures and working parties,
ensuring that governors include pupil perspectives in annual reviews of policies
such as sex education, discipline, admissions.
- Are pupils' views
included in responses to local authority or national consultation documents,
as well as school ones? Do pupils ever contact their local councillor,
MP or MEP about relevant issues, and are they involved in local authority
issues, strategic partnerships or initiatives?
- Do pupils contribute
to the school development plan (SDP)/school management plan (SMP) by, for
example, contributing ideas and identifying needs? Is increasing pupil
participation featured in the SDP/SMP?
- Do pupils produce,
or contribute to, school publications? for example, the school brochure/prospectus,
the school/community newspaper, the student handbook, the parents' booklet.
Do pupils produce newsletters and write in the local press about critical
issues? Do they contribute as reporters to the schools' column(s) in the local
newspaper?
- What structures
exist for pupils to suggest ways in which they could contribute to the decision-making
and organisation of the school? for example, through suggestion boxes
placed at strategic points around the school and an annual review of pupils'
suggestions and ideas; through pupil reviews and evaluations of such mechanisms.
Schools developing effective
citizenship should consider the following:
- Is the student council
democratically elected, inclusive, representative of the school community
and supported by class and year councils, so that every pupil can contribute?
- Are there systems
of recognition, developed in consultation with pupils, to give public
recognition (via assemblies, etc and displays of achievement) and reward
for pupils' achievements both within and outside the school?
- Are there opportunities
for adult and pupil members of the school community to work together on staff/pupil
forums and in citizenship activities, such as a focus day/week or a day/week
dedicated to voluntary activity?
- Are there opportunities
to develop schemes involving volunteers from the wider community, who support
classroom activity, one-to-one mentoring, etc and who are used appropriately
to support citizenship?
- Are there opportunities
for reciprocal volunteering, in which those who have benefited from the voluntary
actions of others pass on their learning and experiences to their peers or
the community?
- Are there targeted opportunities
for vulnerable pupils to participate, including those at risk of exclusion?
- Do all pupils know
what opportunities exist for volunteering? For example, volunteering could
take place:
- prior to the school
day, eg supporting a breakfast club;
- during tutor time,
eg giving reading help;
- at break times,
eg running a school snack shop;
- at lunchtimes and
after school, eg running clubs and leading sports activities; and
- in the evenings
and at weekends, eg working for a community organisation.
3 Working with peers
Pupils work with their
peers, pupils from other schools and members of the wider community on activities
that offer support, mutual learning and joint working, such as tutoring, mentoring
and peer assessment. Activities at key stage 4 could include:
- providing ICT support
for groups of primary school pupils, helping them to create a website including
music, photos and video clips;
- working with pupils
from primary schools to create dramatic performances related to the key stage
2 curriculum, for example issues relating to sustainability of rainforests,
or topics such as smoking and road safety;
- working with external
organisations to establish peer support projects in school;
- supporting play development
in young pupils, as play leaders at a local primary school;
- developing skills of
participation and responsible action through outdoor and adventurous activities
involving pupils with a variety of needs from different schools;
- teaching a modern foreign
language to year 6 pupils, which also contributes to raising awareness of
Europe and provides opportunities for pupils to use ICT for the planning and
production of teaching materials and for display work. This activity could
combine vocational and work-related learning;
- working with pupils
from a primary school to produce a music compilation disc. They compose, perform
and record the music, design the packaging and take responsibility for marketing
the product to raise funds for a local charity. This activity also contributes
to enterprise education;
- working in groups with
occupational therapists and child development centres to design and produce
toys for pupils with special needs; and
- running after-school
subject clubs for younger pupils, for example a language club for pupils who
speak English as an additional language in which both English and the other
language/s are promoted. After-school clubs could involve pupils working in
partnership with adults from the school or wider community, and may be supported
through learning support initiatives.
4 School or group events
Activities at key stage
4 could include:
- organising a
'mini-Olympics' or 'mini-Commonwealth Games' with pupils from primary
or special schools, or planning a community sports event to encourage
members of the wider community to use the school facilities. This activity
could contribute to Sports Leaders Awards;
- planning, organising
and leading intergenerational projects, extending skills obtained through
their participation in such projects at key stage 3. Pupils could work with
older people to identify areas of mutual interest in, for example, art, music
and ICT;
- undertaking skills
coaching in team sports, supported by local sports clubs, the business community,
voluntary agencies and the Education Business Links Organisation. Student
coaches receive training in team skills and coaching. The project could include
events such as a dance festival, a soccer competition league and inter-school
sports events; and
- organising awareness-raising
activities, campaigns or events in the school or community to coincide with
specific annual events, such as Human Rights Day, Holocaust Memorial Day,
Europe Day.
5 Environmental projects
Pupils could participate
in a range of projects which contribute to the development or improvement of
the environment of the school or wider community. Unit 6 'Business and enterprise'
uses town centre development as a focus for exploring issues and challenges
facing local businesses and how pupils could be involved in finding solutions.
Unit 12 'Global issues, local action' helps pupils explore issues of sustainable
development through plans for Local Agenda 21.
Other activities could
include:
- undertaking a community
challenge to improve the environment around the school site, for example creating
a raised flowerbed or a children's garden, ensuring that the project meets
the identified needs of local residents and links with local authority priorities.
See also unit 18 'Developing your school grounds' in the key stage 3 citizenship
scheme of work; and
- environmental regeneration
in the school and its neighbourhood. Where appropriate, pupils could work
towards the Land Studies Certificate of Achievement, building walls with bricks
they have made themselves, producing concrete garden products, and creating
a mini-garden with a water feature. Roles and responsibilities are negotiated
and activities are carried out with the help of community contacts, including
for example, a construction company and the manager of a parade of shops.
6 Wider community activities
Many activities involve
pupils in their communities at a local and wider level. For example:
- leading the development
of a Youth Action Group or Primary Action Group to identify issues,
develop solutions and take action on matters that concern them. For
example, supporting younger pupils in developing initiatives that contribute
to community safety; or campaigning for additional community facilities.
(Information about youth action groups may be obtained from the Youth
Action Plus service at Crime Concern - see the list
of organisations);
- planning the structure
and layout of a brochure and website as a prospectus for a number of the local
charities; researching the needs in the community to which charities respond
and identifying the various voluntary agencies. This activity also contributes
to enterprise education;
- writing for a community
newspaper or radio station. Pupils apply the skills of investigative journalism
to explore a local issue. Pupil journalists attend meetings of a community
group such as a residents' association to debate and report on issues of local
interest. They develop other links with the media to support a 'Youth Speaks'
project. Similar activities are explored in unit 8 'Producing the news' in
the key stage 4 citizenship scheme of work;
- volunteering activities
outside school time that contribute to wider community projects and initiatives.
These may be developed by the local authority, community groups, charities,
etc. Where pupils volunteer within the wider community, the school should
provide opportunities for this to be recognised as part of the pupils' citizenship
achievements (both visibly through celebrating achievement and through progress
file records);
- producing a website
for members of the local community, such as a local society for people with
a visual impairment, identifying users' needs and planning the best way to
provide training sessions in website maintenance. Pupils could go on to teach
their target group how to use the internet, for example teaching people with
a visual impairment how to surf the net and shop electronically using a talking
internet service. This activity also contributes to enterprise education;
- creating a community
facility, in partnership with qualified adults, to support an initiative to
benefit members of the wider community, linking this with curriculum work
and developing vocational skills. For example, renovating computers for a
community centre or helping to construct a children's play area. The project
could expand to involve several schools, firms and voluntary agencies;
- researching community
needs, customs and requirements, and designing and establishing a 'healthy
eating' café that allows community members from different cultures
to mix socially. Pupils ensure that written materials are suitable for all
members of the target group. Links could be made with the support services
involved in promoting the literacy skills of bilingual learners. This activity
also contributes to enterprise education; and
- taking part in a Community
Partners Action Week, in which pupils, local businesses, the Learning and
Skills Council and the Education Business Links Organisation and careers guidance
partners work together. Through class/year/school councils, pupils work in
groups with these partnership organisations to plan the activities for the
week, which may include workshops, work simulations, role-plays and site visits.
Pupils either go on a full-week work placement or take part in the planned
programme of community activities, which may include: workshops with staff
from a bank on how individuals, community organisations and small businesses
use financial services; visiting a local radio station and contributing to
a community programme; working with leisure services providers to plan and
organise a community exercise/sports event designed to improve the health
of the wider community.
When involving pupils in
activities in the wider community, or when members of the wider community are
involved in school-based activities, it is important to ensure that health and
safety and child protection procedures are followed. All participants should
be aware of these procedures. The exact nature of local guidance may vary, but
all schools should ensure that they have clear procedures for:
- supervising pupils
out of school;
- involving visitors/volunteers
from the wider community; and
- health and safety for
work experience or workplace visits.
7 Contributing to local
and national government priorities
There are many opportunities
for pupils to contribute to the achievement of local targets as part of national
government priorities, for example through Health or Education Action Zones,
Best Value, crime and disorder strategies, health improvement programmes or
drug prevention priorities. In the context of Local Agenda 21, pupils contribute
to work on local plans for improving sustainable development; unit 12 'Global
issues, local action' illustrates some of the activities in which pupils could
be involved.
Local Strategic Partnerships
and Community Strategies
There is a statutory requirement
for local authorities in England and Wales to prepare community strategies
to improve the economic, social and environmental well-being of each area
and its inhabitants, and to contribute to the achievement of sustainable
development in the UK (Local Government Act 2000). This is to be achieved
through the establishment of Local Strategic Partnerships, which will
involve local people, including young people, in the decision-making about
local needs and priorities, and in any resulting activities and initiatives.
(Contact your local authority for details.)
This in turn provides a
useful context for schools to engage pupils in real local decision-making.
All pupils could participate by discussing relevant local issues in small
groups, which feed back their thoughts and ideas to the whole class; class
decisions could then be used to form a whole-school response to the issues.
The Community Strategy itself may provide further opportunities for project
work through which pupils can have an impact on the future of their area.
8 International activities
Pupils could organise and
participate in activities such as model United Nations meetings, model Commonwealth
Heads of Government meetings, or debates or focus days on European issues. These
activities could be organised on a school, local, regional or national basis.
School-linking projects
in modern foreign language studies could involve pupils in videoconferencing,
organising visits to or from other countries, and planning programmes of activities
for visitors from other countries. Unit 17 of the key stage 3 scheme of work,
'School linking', could be extended to support the development of learning activities
that address aspects of the key stage 4 citizenship programme of study.
Organisations and individuals
supporting citizenship in schools
There are many different
organisations and individuals who can work in partnership with schools to support
citizenship. Schools may be able to use existing community partnerships, or
form new ones. It should be remembered that developing such partnerships takes
time. Community partners will need to be supported in taking on what may be
new roles in helping to facilitate active citizenship.
Such partners, both new
and old, could include: members of the local business community; representatives
from community and voluntary organisations and groups; members of the local
or national media; members of the emergency services; representatives from the
local council or public bodies; volunteers and parents; learning mentors and
peer mentors (including HE and FE students).
The use of visitors should
be in accordance with the school's own agreed policy and procedures. Page
42 of the key stage 3 Teacher's guide includes guidance on the
use of visitors. For guidelines on health and safety of pupils on education
visits, see the Department
for Education and Skills website.
Useful contacts for
information or support in developing pupil participation
Further lists of useful
organisations are included on pages 49 and 50 of the key stage 3 Teacher's
guide (this also has an extensive list of useful contacts on pages 52-54),
and on pages 36-37 of the key stage 4 Teacher's guide.
Active Community Unit
Home Office
Horseferry House
Dean Ryle Street
London SW1P 2AW
Tel: 020 7217 8400
www.homeoffice.gov.uk/acu
Commonwealth Heads of
Government Meeting
Commonwealth Institute
Kensington High Street
London W8 6NQ
Tel: 020 7603 4535
www.commonwealth.org.uk and www.commonwealth.net
Community Service Volunteers
(CSV) Education for Citizenship
237 Pentonville Road
London N1 9NJ
Tel: 020 7278 6601
www.csv.org.uk
Connexions Service National
Unit
Room W4b
Moorfoot
Sheffield S1 4PQ
www.dfes.gov.uk/connexions
(or contact your local Connexions partnership)
Department of the Environment,
Transport and the Regions
Eland House
Bressendon Place
London SW1E 5DU
Tel: 020 7944 3000
www.detr.gov.uk (includes information
about the development of Local Strategic Partnerships)
Local Government Association
Local Government House
Smith Square
London SW1P 3HZ
Tel: 020 7664 3000
www.lga.gov.uk
Millennium Volunteers
MV Unit
Department for Education and Skills
Room E4b
Moorfoot
Sheffield S1 4PQ
www.millenniumvolunteers.gov.uk
Model United Nations
www.una-uk.org
National Centre for Volunteering
Regents Wharf
8 All Saints Street
London N1 9RL
Tel: 020 7520 8900
www.volunteering.org.uk
National Healthy School
Standard
Health Education Authority
Trevelyan House
30 Great Peter Street
London SW1P 2HW
Tel: 020 7413 1929
www.wiredforhealth.gov.uk
National Youth Agency
17-23 Albion Street
Leicester LE1 6GD
Tel: 0116 285 3700
www.nya.org.uk
School Councils UK
57 Etchingham Park Road
Finchley
London N3 2EB
Tel: 020 8349 2459
www.schoolcouncils.org
Youth Action Plus
Crime Concern
Beaver House
147-150 Victoria Road
Swindon
Wiltshire SN1 3UY
Tel: 01793 863500
www.crimeconcern.org.uk
| About
this publication |
| Who's
it for? |
|
Teachers
of citizenship at key stage 4, heads of departments, curriculum managers,
ITT departments. |
| What's
it about? |
|
This
booklet offers ideas for citizenship activities to promote pupil participation.
It forms part of the citizenship scheme of work at key stage 4. |
| Related
material |
|
The
National Curriculum for England. |
| What's
it for? |
|
To
show how citizenship may be taught to key stage 4 pupils. |
For more information,
contact:
Customer Services, QCA, 83 Piccadilly, London W1J 8QA (tel: 020 7509 5556)
www.qca.org.uk
For more copies, contact:
QCA Publications, PO Box 99, Sudbury, Suffolk CO10 2SN (tel: 01787 884444; fax:
01787 312950)
Price and order ref:
£25 QCA/02/853
ISBN 1 85838 492 3
This booklet is also available at www.standards.dfes.gov.uk/schemes |
