Teaching Citizenship journal / Issue 36 / Summer 2013

Journal of the Association for Citizenship Teachingwww.teachingcitizenship.org.uk

Issue No 36Summer 2013

TEACHING

WORLD WAR I100 YEARS ONHow should we teach about the centenary?

Images from the film Hard To Become Who You Are – see page 21

Commemorating the Centenary of World War I06 Editorial – World War I: One hundred years on Gavin Baldwin and Lee Jerome introduce the theme 08 The glimpse of memory The nature of commemoration and links between History and Citizenship by Gavin Baldwin10 ‘Not another effing cemetery’ Claire Douglas on the work of the CWGC 14 Teaching remembrance as a local study A series of lessons making connections by Alasdair Smith 17 Decoupling memorial and militarism The history of the white poppy from the PPU18 Remembrance education for the centenary Paula Kitching reflects on her experience 21 The war that never ended A World War I film project by Wim Kratsborn

Lesson Plans22 Teaching about health and the NHS An introductory piece in which Lee Jerome reflects on this topic23 Health, wealth and lifestyle choices James Nicholson et al provoke discussion on public spending with data visualisations relating to health

Features & Research28 ACT Citizenship Quality Standard Alun Davies issues a challenge to schools30 Positive, but not complacent! An update on the revised curriculum by Liz Moorse32 Strengthening democracy and human rights Zafer Çelik, David Kerr and Emir Adzovic share an account of the Democratic Citizenship and Human Rights Education Project in Turkey

Reviews & Regulars37 Primary Citizenship: Teaching Through Text Three new book reviews by Denise Howe38 ACTually... planning is an art Lee Jerome considers how to make sense of the new draft curriculum

Design & Production Editor : Lionel Openshaw | Telephone +44 (0)7985 979 390 [email protected] | Web www.openshaw.uk.net | Cover photo : Theresa Foerster

Published by the Association for Citizenship Teaching, 63 Gee Street, London ec1v 3rs Email [email protected] | Telephone +44 (0)20 7253 0051

www.teachingcitizenship.org.uk / Summer 2013 / Issue 36 / Teaching Citizenship / 3

Contents

© 2013 Association for Citizenship Teaching (ACT)ISSN 1474-9335No part of this publication may be reproduced, copied

or transmitted in any form or by any means without the permission of the publisher. Teaching Citizenship is the official journal of ACT.

The views expressed in signed articles do not necessarily represent those of ACT, and we cannot accept responsibility for any products

or services advertised within the journal. Printed and distributed by Premier Print Group: www.premier printgroup.com.

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Editorial notesWhilst there is good news in this edition about the guaranteed place of Citizenship in the new curriculum, act and Democratic Life are still working to make sure the programme of study is as good as we can get it (for example by boosting up the active citizenship). Now we want the journal to play a part in shaping the real debate about what we are going to do with the curriculum, so please let us know if you have an ‘opinion piece’ to share with act members.

Whatever the curriculum says, we have to remember that it is only the starting point for what we teach, it is up to us collectively in the citizenship education community to continue to develop the best citizenship learning we can. Besides our theme of the commemoration of the centenary of the First World War, in this edition we also feature a report from colleagues working in act North East on a project to support high quality Citizenship in schools. This is proving to be a successful model for providing challenge and support to one another in a collegial way and we are hopeful that in the next year act will be able to roll out the programme to make it available to more members.

In this issue you will also find details of the forthcoming conference, which will be held at ulu on 9 July, and which is broadly aiming to reflect on the lessons we have learned from the first ten years of Citizenship and identify principles for the future. We look forward to seeing you there.

Lee Jerome & Gavin Baldwin, Teaching Citizenship Editors Email [email protected]

of support for all those engaged in the delivery of citizenship. Firstly, to provide help, advice and support for teachers of Citizenship making comments on the draft Programme of Study (pos) as part of the national consultation (the consultation closed on 16 April 2013).

Secondly, to provide support via two regional curriculum events. Council feels that the academic year 2013-14 will be a turbulent one as schools pilot new materials and schemes of work whilst also using the existing curriculum. During this time the final pos will also come to schools and teachers will need sup-port in deciding how best to imple-ment the pos to enable students to benefit the most. Therefore the two curriculum events will be held dur-ing the next academic year.

Thirdly, to provide subject spe-cific support during the year 2014-15 as the new pos is implemented. This support may be especially important where new elements have been in-troduced, for example those relating to personal finance. act Council will consult with members on the sup-port needed and will be commission-ing specific articles in future editions of the journal.

act’s National Citizenship Education Conference will be held at ulu on 9 July, where we aim to provide the latest information and cpd. We will be bringing together some of the best experts, educators and profession-als from across the country to host workshops, seminars and talks and we’re delighted that David Blunkett mp has agreed to speak. The former Secretary of State for Education was responsible for introducing Citizenship as a National Curriculum foundation subject.

Citizenship remains a statutory subject: now let’s make it even better!

We were delighted to see a renewed commitment to the subject of Citizenship by the dfe when the draft national curriculum was announced in February. Citizenship will remain a statutory subject at Key Stages 3 and 4, with a significantly condensed programme of study which includes new components such as personal financial education. Schools can now develop their plans with confidence, looking at how to further improve their Citizenship programmes and the quality of teaching to ensure that all pupils benefit from the very best Citizenship education

act Council and staff are com-mitted to working with and offering guidance to the dfe to provide the best possible Citizenship Programme of Study for schools and their stu-dents; one that enables young people to become knowledgeable, skilled, active and participative citizens.

The new Programme of Study is just the starting point for teach-ers – the baseline from which they can take their ideas into the class-room; create exciting and engaging schemes of work and shape their lessons with learners.

The Council met in early Spring and agreed a three stage strategy

Liz Moorse, Senior Manager at act and governing partner at Democratic Life says, “David remains hugely passionate about our subject and has been instrumental in support-ing the Democratic Life campaign, helping us meet with Michael Gove, and Michael Wilshaw, asking the right questions in parliament at the right moment, and talking about Citizenship in speeches to Head teachers and others. All contributed to turning things around and secur-ing our National Curriculum posi-tion”. You can book your place at: actconference2013.eventbrite.co.uk.

Financial education to be included in citizenship curriculumCampaigners for compulsory financial education in schools are celebrating after the Department for Education announced that financial education will be included in both Maths and Citizenship for the first time from September 2014. The move comes after a two-year cam-paign by the All Party Parliamentary Group on Financial Education for Young People, national charity pfeg (Personal Finance Education Group) and Martin Lewis of MoneySavingExpert.com.

The new draft National Curriculum for England includes both ‘financial mathematics’ in sec-ondary Mathematics and the more subjective, decision-making side of financial education in Citizenship education at Key Stage 3 and 4. Tracey Bleakley, pfeg chief execu-tive, said: “This is a huge victory for the campaign for financial education in schools. We are looking forward

Events & News Compiled by Sheila Clark on behalf of ACT Council. Share info and news about forthcoming events – email: [email protected].

4 / Teaching Citizenship / Issue 36 / Summer 2013 / www.teachingcitizenship.org.uk

RelaunchingCitizenship

to working with citizenship teach-ers to maximise the benefit that the new curriculum will bring to their pupils. With twelve year’s experience of supporting teachers across the country, we are on hand to offer free advice, support and financial educa-tion resources to help teachers in the transition to the new curriculum”.

In pfeg’s response to dfe’s draft new curriculum, the charity will be making the case for the inclusion of the relationship between personal and public finance, which it be-lieves is a key area that every young person should understand. For more information on pfeg and financial education visit www.pfeg.org.

My Money Week 3-9 June 2013This annual national activity week for primary and secondary schools provides a fantastic opportunity for young people to gain the skills, knowledge and confidence in money matters to thrive in our society.

Free resources are available at the website and you can pre-order your Primary and Secondary Activity Packs now. See www.pfeg.org/resources/my-money-week.

WWI CentenaryBetween 2013 to 2019, as part of the Centenary Education Programme, £5.3 million will be spent to com-memorate the 100th anniversary of World War I and give thousands of schoolchildren the opportunity to visit the Great War battlefields. Secondary school in England will have the chance to go on a tour of the great battlefields – such as the Somme, Verdun and Fromelles – and take part in remembrance cer-emonies on the western front. This project will allow pupils to learn at

first-hand about the sacrifices made by the troops and the personal sto-ries of those involved in the war ef-fort. For more about the Programme see: www.1914.org/centenary.

Caught in the Crossfire

This exhibition explores how artists grapple with both the brutality of war and the desire for peace. It con-tinues until 7 July at The Herbert Art Gallery and Museum, Coventry,

Visitors “travel through divided lands, debate the role of protest art, explore the aesthetics of violence and machinery of war, and reflect upon the aftermath of war where hope emerges and lives are rebuilt”. A section of the exhibition focuses on the work of Kennard Phillips made in response to the invasion and occupation of Iraq. This is highly recommended by Balbir Sohal, a member of act Council. For more see www.theherbert.org.

New initiatives from SCUKSchool Councils United Kingdom (scuk) is supporting and work-ing with some great organisations and initiatives in 2013. Sally Page, Director at scuk says, “Citizenship is a far reaching subject and we can help to promote this through our work with teachers, offering support

and training to help students obtain wide reaching information and sup-port which in turn, helps them grow into well-informed world citizens”.

This year, scuk are working with the British Council to promote their Connecting Classrooms project and the International School Award (which is free of charge and open to all schools). In addition they have been invited to support the ‘My Education’ campaign being run by Pearson and Teach First.

If you would like to receive their e-newsletters and stay up to date with their work and projects, please email: [email protected], telephone 0845 456 9428 – or contact them at their new address: 5 The Quadrangle Centre, The Drift, Nacton Road, Ipswich ip3 9qr.

Diary dates17-21 June, World Refugee Week

6 July, Educating the Nation(s): The Politics of History, Education, and Identity in the uk – Politics Association Conference, University of Huddersfield

9 July, act National Conference

15 September, United Nations International Day of Democracy

21 September, Peace One Day – Who Will You Make Peace With?http://peaceoneday.org

Sheila is a professional trainer, regional subject advisor, ACT Council Member, partner in an educational consultancy business and is involved in the teaching of Citizenship and PSHE at The King Edward VI School, Morpeth, Northumberland.



Editors Gavin Baldwin and Lee Jerome introduce the first of a pair of issues that explore the implications for Citizenship education of the twin concepts of war and peace.

ur current edition is dedicated to the cen-tenary commemora-tion of the outbreak of the First World War due to take place in 2014. Whilst the centenary is still over a year away, we feel it is important to start the discus-sions about what

will happen now because if departments (most obviously History and Citizenship) are go-ing to collaborate, then this will take time to plan. We also want to draw attention to it now because the next time pop-pies go on sale in November, this will be an opportunity to look forward to the centenary commemoration and start discussions with pupils about what this means, and what the school should do.

In his opening essay Gavin Baldwin argues that personal and family ‘memories’ of the First World War, so powerful for the formation and exploration of identities, are fading fast, soon to be buried in the archive. He urges us to capture what we can while we

can and use it to enrich our understandings of ourselves and others. In her article on the work of the Commonwealth War Grave Commission Claire Douglas discusses the complexity of battlefield remembrance, a theme picked up by Paula Kitching in her article on the Citizenship considerations that schools and large organizations will have to take into account when organising commemorations.

Sandwiched between these two articles is an account of a curriculum project by Alasdair Smith where he discusses a series of lessons through which he has taught remembrance. He starts by looking at the history of the First World War and its memorials and then encourages students to think through a range of Citizenship questions to consider ways in which they would like it to be remembered.

There follows a personal account of a film project relating to the experiences of young people today and those of young soldiers in the first World War by Wim Kratsborn.

The Citizenship themes running through most of these contributions relate the role of memory to the construction of identity. In different ways each author relates the past to the present through the act of remembrance and several focus on the nature of that act. We do not just

stand in silence and bring the war to our minds; an act of remembrance is associated with feeling something that has some relationship to who we are and how we see ourselves in relation to others. This is subtle stuff, and does not always lend itself to the development of concise leveled learning objectives, but it is an area worth exploring because it connects to some deep Citizenship issues about identity and community. Participating in collective and individual acts of remembrance also requires people to make choices – simply to follow what others are doing to fit into mass public events, or to think about personal actions that one can undertake. In this sense remembrance can also link to active citizenship, through focusing on identifying appropriate personal actions that have a public dimension. This is illustrated by Alasdair Smith’s consideration of the twin traditions of red and white poppies, which helps to sharpen pupils’ understanding of the politics of remembrance.

We hope that by publishing these articles in good time we will be able to help teachers prepare their students to develop a deep and critical understanding of this catastrophic event and its commemoration with its attendant ideas and values. ▪

World War I: One hundred years on

Editorial

Remembrance can also link to active citizenship, through focusing on identifying appropriate personal actions that have a public dimension

Pull quote pull quote pull quote pull quote pull quote pull quote pull quote pull quote pull quote

In Flanders FieldsJohn McCrae, May 1915

In Flanders fields the poppies blowBetween the crosses, row on row,That mark our place; and in the skyThe larks, still bravely singing, flyScarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days agoWe lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,Loved and were loved, and now we lieIn Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:To you from failing hands we throwThe torch; be yours to hold it high.If ye break faith with us who dieWe shall not sleep, though poppies growIn Flanders fields.


The glimpse of memoryRemembering the First World War

In this article Gavin Baldwin, co-editor of Teaching Citizenship, shares some initial thoughts on the nature of commemoration and the links to be drawn between History and Citizenship. He makes the case for an intergenerational project, helping students to really engage with the experiential connection between memory and identity.

n 16th August 1916 my great uncle, William Baldwin was killed in Flanders aged 23. He served as a private with the 16th Battalion Australian Infantry having emi-grated to Australia in 1912 with his brother Amos. He had worked for the Western Australian Railways and enlisted in Kalgoorlie. I know of this because my father, now in his 80s, told me. My nephew now 17 knows because we have told

him. The memory is fragile, fading, and with each generation that passes will become more and more obscure.

Our historical environment, however, surrounds us with many reminders of those who died in the Great War. Countless war memorials list the names of individuals who sacrificed their lives. In less transient communities some of these names will be familiar; the ancestors of those still living in the community today. On the war memo-rial in Eastbourne town hall two of William’s brothers are commemorated. Thomas aged 31 who died at home on 17th July 1916 and Edwin, aged 21 who had been employed as a painter and died of wounds at home on 3rd November 1916. Both served in the 12th Battalion Royal Sussex Regiment and both are buried in the same grave.

Some years ago I went looking for

William in Serre Road Cemetery No 2. It was a grey, blustery day and I couldn’t find his grave. Behind the small bronze door in the memorial arch I found the index of graves and located him, described as the son of David and Emily Baldwin of Rodmill Lime Works, Eastbourne, Sussex. This startled me. My great grandparents had lived where my great aunt still lived. I found the grave and the flood of emotion that overwhelmed me took me totally by surprise. I had never met my great uncle but I mourned his death.

These powerful, personal links to such a cataclysmic event are precious; they strike to the core of our identity but as time moves on inevitably they diminish in their immediacy. Only too quickly what can be a moving, in-timate experience becomes fossilised in the archives; another source based exercise that gains its significance historically rather then personally. If we act now we may be able to extend this emotional hotline to the past and thus maintain the power of the direct link for identity exploration for at least another generation. Fallible as memory may be, a tissue of fragmentary impressions, it is this element of identity exploration that is buried once the archive takes over.

It is the understanding of the complexity of identity formation and exploration that is the distinctive Citizenship contribution to this aspect of the commemoration of the Great War. Such glimpsed memories speak to us of who we are; of our common heritage and community; our personal, national and global identities. They raise questions about warfare and its role in national and inter-national politics and economics; of class, gender and ethnicity and our rights and responsibilities. “What are we fighting for?”

It strikes me that as Citizenship teachers, in collaboration with History teachers, we should take advantage of the forthcoming centenary year to help young people catch

Commemorating the Centenary of World War I

It is the understanding

of the complexity of identity

formation and exploration that is the distinctive Citizenship

contribution to this aspect of the commem-oration of the

Great War

a glimpse of these memories before they are gone. We are in an ideal situation to set up inter-generational community projects where our students collect second, third or fourth hand accounts of the First World War in order to capture a personal link to the con-flict. Many of us work in diverse communi-ties where, with luck, we may be able to trace the global dimension of the war. To explore this diversity it is also important to remem-ber the experiences of those left behind; of women and children, some of whom may still be with us.

We will need to discuss with our stu-dents the questions they will need to ask and the sensitivity with which to do so. They will need to be able to distinguish memories of the First World War from those of the Second, which may still be vivid in those who were children only 70 odd years ago. We are looking for the stories told by those war children’s parents and grandparents. Can we also gather photos and other memorabilia to make these stories more concrete?

Having collected these memories how can we develop and preserve them? In the first instance the memories will need contex-tualising within an historical examination of the war. The military records of those who fell can be examined on the Commonwealth War Graves Commission website. The experiences of others also need exploring to deepen the understanding of the impact of the war. What was it like for those who survived, often with horrendous physical and psychological injury? What was the social and political impact on a generation of women who had been encouraged into work then sent home so that returning men could have jobs in economically difficult times?

If our students have collected their mate-rial using video or sound recording these can be developed into short films. Written mate-rial can be displayed with relevant images and communicated back to the school com-munity and its constituent families online and in printed publications.

But why is this a Citizenship project? If the students’ learning remains focused on the past its Citizenship potential will be weakened. Essentially capturing personal and family memory is an exploration of identity; it speaks to us of who we are today.

We have a responsibility to keep that link with the past open precisely because it can explain so much. The project is about diversity: about the personal and political heritage of empire explored through a global conflict and its impact on this country, its neighbours, and the com-munities that live here. It is also intergenerational: an opportunity to encourage the older and the younger to talk together to explore something that is meaningful to both parties. As such it is about community cohesion.

In exploring issues about warfare and its impact on individuals such a project raises questions about the use of war, the arms trade and those campaigning groups who are opposed (cnd and Campaign against the Arms Trade for ex-ample). It opens up discussions about international conflict, terrorism, institutions of media-tion and the economy of violence. It may also allow us to consider local conflicts and community tensions and their possible resolution.

Whatever the edu-cational value of such a project there is an urgency in capturing these fading memories, to catch a fragile per-sonal glimpse of one of the 20th century’s most catastrophic events. ▪

Gavin Baldwin is Programme Leader for the PGCE Citizenship at Middlesex University and co-editor of Teaching Citizenship.

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‘Not another effing cemetery’

Claire Douglas shares some thoughts about the work of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission and how they might be able to support schools in planning for the centenary commemoration.

he tour bus pulled in at the cemetery gate and another group of dishev-elled teenagers clambered off. Their glazed expressions betrayed their long day of overdosing on Portland stone. “Not another effing cemetery,” one muttered as they reluctantly trooped towards another corner of a foreign field that is forever England.Chris Page, Western Front Association Bulletin (No 79), October 2007

This extract reflects the concerning, yet not entirely incomprehensible, attitude often associated with students on battlefield and cemetery tours.

The Commonwealth War Graves Commission (cwgc) is at the centre of the uk government’s plans to mark the cente-nary of the First World War. The government intends that the centenary will have an enduring educational legacy, which will al-low student ambassadors and a teacher from each state maintained school in England to visit the battlefields and research individuals local to their school, who fought in the war.

It is vital that the cwgc works to ensure these visits do not leave students with a case of cemetery blindness, but rather open their eyes to the human cost of the two world wars.

In perpetuityThe cwgc is responsible for the commemo-ration of almost 1,700,000 members of the Commonwealth forces who gave their lives in the two world wars. The graves and

memorials of these men and women, who came from all parts of the Commonwealth and who were of many faiths and of none, are found around the globe in 153 countries, at 23,000 locations.

It is the responsibility of the cwgc to maintain these graves and memorials in perpetuity and to keep records of the dead. Nowhere in our Royal Charter, upon which we were founded in 1917, does it mention education. It does however say ‘in perpetuity’

– and the need to educate is one way in which we choose to interpret that.

An open doorThe good news is that, when it comes to edu-cation, we are pushing at an open door. In a recent survey conducted by the Commission, when asked, “how important is it to remem-ber the Centenary of the First World War?” the response indicated that there is clearly a huge appetite for information – amongst both a cwgc engaged audience and a nation-ally representative example.

Other elements of the survey indicated a significant demand for information sur-rounding the Commonwealth aspects of the engagement. Noticeably, however, the survey highlighted the fact that people’s confidence and knowledge surrounding all aspects of the First World War diminishes the younger they are.

Questions like “why did the war start?”, “when did the war start?” and “why did it last for so long?” all tended to draw blanks among a younger audience. The Commonwealth War Graves Commission has no magic answer when it comes to teaching these aspects of the First World War. Indeed, the Commission even poses a few challenges of its own. The tranquillity and beauty of our cemeteries and memorials can sometimes mask the harsh reality they represent – and that is something we need to overcome.


It is vital that the CWGC works to ensure these visits do not leave students with a case of cemetery blindness, but rather open their eyes to the human cost of the two world wars


Our biggest resourceDespite this, our cemeteries and memorials undoubtedly remain our greatest education-al resource – conveying both the scale of loss and the personal nature of the sacrifice.

Our visitor numbers are growing year on year. Personal pilgrimage is no longer the single biggest factor in deciding to visit, with research and educational trips steadily increasing in popularity.The issue remains however that organisa-tions and schools tend to put on the same tour each year, making numerous return trips to the same key locations.

One such case in point is the ever-popular Essex Farm Cemetery. Essex Farm is one of our most visited cemeteries on the Western Front, so much so, that we have been forced to lay Astroturf on the pathway to the grave of one 15 year-old casualty as the grass was no longer able to withstand the constant footfall.

It’s a nice problem to have but it also makes an interesting point. The very last thing we want to do is deter school parties from our cemeteries. The cemeteries were always intended to be visited. That’s why we built them; that’s why we maintain them. But it is important for us that we raise aware-ness of the huge number of cemeteries and memorials under our care – and encourage visits to some of the lesser known sites.

Respect!Actively encouraging schools and institu-tions to take large numbers of young people to our cemeteries and memorials also raises the issue of behaviour. We don’t want young-er visitors to feel that they must wander around in silence with their heads bowed. But at the same time, we’d like to reassure the people who are sufficiently upset to raise the issue with us, that we are doing all that we can to make sure that their time in quiet reflection will not be unduly disturbed by the behaviour of others. Part of that task is to make sure their expectations of behav-iour are not unrealistic, and the other part is to enlist the support of teachers and party leaders in establishing reasonable codes of conduct amongst students.

The cwgc’s online resource, ‘Respect!’, is designed to do just this. The site, aimed at teachers, offers practical suggestions for classroom activities and tried and tested contributions from teachers with experience of battlefield tours. The site also functions as a platform for debate, highlighting some thought-provoking articles on behaviour and conduct and what this means for the future of our cemeteries.

InterpretationIt is our task not just to encourage young people to visit our sites and treat them

Claire Douglas works for the Commonwealth War Graves Commission. She develops publications and resources in their Communications Department and is part of their 1914 – 18 Project Team.

Our cemeteries and memorials

undoubtedly remain our

greatest educational resource –

conveying both the scale of loss and the

personal nature of the sacrifice

Pictured below: Brookwood Military Cemetery Open Day 2012

Commemorating the Centenary of World War I‘Not another effing cemetery’ / Claire Douglas


with respect but also to offer some form of interpretation when they are there.

The cwgc has begun work on a large-scale interpretative programme, with visitor infor-mation panels being erected at over 500 of our First World War cemeteries and memori-als. Each panel will provide an explanation of why the cemetery or memorial is placed in its particular location and details of the surrounding historical context.

The Human StoryEach panel also carries a qr code which, when scanned with a smartphone, provides further information, including the personal stories of some of the casualties buried or commemorated at the location.

When considering the application of new technology to our sites, we also need to consider the more likely possibility that the first way students will come into con-tact with our organisation is not through our cemeteries and memorials, but rather through our website. Our online casualty da-tabase list the names and place of commem-oration of the 1.7 million men and women of the Commonwealth forces who died during the two world wars. It also records details of the 67,000 Commonwealth civilians who died as a ‘result of enemy action’ in the Second World War. The records can be searched by surname, date, war, rank, regi-ment, awards or any combination of those criteria, creating the opportunity of putting a face to the name on the stone.

Online classroom resourcesBut our website is much more than a da-tabase. It also hosts a wide range of both

classroom and web-based resources. The most accessible starting point for teachers is most likely to be our ‘Remember Me’ website. This site is a cross-curricular resource for upper primary and secondary schools. It reflects our commitment to inspiring and involving young people and recognises the social and cultural relevance of commemo-ration in promoting informed and respon-sible citizenship for the future.

The cross-curricular relevance of world war teaching has been a key focus in the development of our resources. Our ‘Poets of the Great War’ book contains extracts of poetry from soldiers who were killed in the First World War – well-known and not so well-known – along with a short description of their military service and where they are commemorated by the cwgc, proving the perfect taster for more detailed study across the curriculum. Our resources also extend to encourage the incorporation of world war teaching and the concept of remembrance in extra-curricular activities and interests.

Football has a long history, and some of it is tied up with war. In 1914, when the First World War broke out, football was the most popular national sport, especially with young men just the right age to fight for their country. Entire football teams joined up to fight together, and some died together too. Many footballers also joined up in the Second World War, and many lost their lives. Our ‘Glory Days’ website features footballers such as David Beckham and Theo Walcott explore the sacrifices made by professional footballers throughout both world wars. (You can find all these resources and more via the main site at: www.cwgc.org.)

More than 160,000

servicemen and women from

Undivided India, who sacrificed

their lives in the First and the Second

World Wars, are commemorated

by the Commonwealth

War Graves Commission


Exploring the CommonwealthA significant proportion of our resources are dedicated to educating students on the Commonwealth aspects of the conflict. More than 160,000 servicemen and women from Undivided India, who sacrificed their lives in the First and the Second World Wars, are commemorated by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission. Our ‘Forever India’ resource, in the form of a website and dvd, allows young people to uncover the personal accounts of those who served and died – bringing this aspect of our shared history to life in a personal and refreshing way.

The cwgc also offers the award-winning educational resource ‘Let Us Die Like Brothers’. In February 1917, the 4,000-ton SS Mendi, carrying the last contingency of the South African Native Labour Corps, was cut in half as it was struck by the much larger SS Darro, an empty meat ship bound for Argentina. Within 20 minutes, the Mendi had sunk off the coast of the Isle of Wight. The disaster claimed 646 lives, most of whom were never found. But nine bodies washed up at Portsmouth and were buried in Milton Cemetery. The ‘Let us Die Like Brothers’, cd-rom is dedicated to exploring the SS Mendi disaster. With a total running time of 20 minutes it could be divided into sections viewed independently, making it ideal for either assembly or classroom use.

Home soilThe other side of that coin is looking at Britain’s place in the world. Not just why people are commemorated in each country, but equally, what were commonwealth ser-vice men and women doing coming to help

the Empire? We have 170, 000 war graves here in the uk – in 130,000 different burial grounds. Exploring those of all nationali-ties, commemorated here on our home soil is equally as fascinating and worthwhile as visiting those abroad.

As an extension to this we are also de-veloping our educational capabilities within our Head Office in Maidenhead. We have now established a dedicated educational team equipped to deliver tailored material, presentations and suggestions to interested parties and educational institutions. More than this, our office building itself has been developed so we can now receive visitors and school parties on our own premises. The idea is that, in the very near future, this can develop into the opportunity for hosting workshops for students and inset for staff.

Freedom in RemembranceThroughout everything, we must remember that our role as an organisation is simply to provide teachers and young people with the knowledge and information they need in order to form their own decisions. Remembrance as we know it today is a fairly modern concept. When it was founded, the Commission made some fairly ground breaking decisions about remembrance at the time. Key principles that we now take for granted, for example, if someone has no known grave they are commemorated on a memorial to the missing, were all established by the Commission. These may not be the ways in which students will choose to remember in the future, and that’s a perfectly valid discussion to have – but we must ensure they are equipped to have it. ▪

Remembrance as we know it today is a fairly modern concept ... These may not be the ways in which students will choose to remember in the future, and that’s a perfectly valid discussion to have

Pictured above left: Recently-installed visitor information panels at The Merchant Navy Memorial, Tower Hill.

Above: CWGC have developed a range of interpretation materials for young people visiting their sites.



Teaching remembrance as a local study

Whilst Counsell and Partington differ slightly in their emphases (see boxes below), it is clear that teaching about the First World War in the context of Remembrance draws on several assumptions about why this is of continuing cultural significance:

(1) The First World War is still significant simply because it is still remembered, what-ever the underlying reasons. Most pupils will be familiar with the two minute silence and tradition of wearing poppies. There are also significant cultural references to the war and the old terrace chant of ‘two world wars and one world cup’ somehow refuses to disap-pear completely from contemporary media

– receiving a recent airing in a South African telecommunications advert in 2010.

(2) It resonates across time – in many ways it is cited as the kind of war we never want to experience again. It serves as a benchmark against which conflicts can be judged. The sheer numbers of people killed and the essential meaninglessness of the war serve as chilling reminders about the dark side of human nature and politics.

(3) It is also still relevant in that many significant changes find their roots in the First World War and its aftermath. Martin Pugh’s (2009) social history of the era illus-trates how the period between the wars saw significant developments in the extension

What’s the point of this teaching project?To help a diverse class of teenagers in a London comprehensive to reflect on the importance of Poppy Day, and to think about the local impact of the First World War and in particular to think about the nature of ‘significance’ as a key historical concept. In doing so I wanted to help ensure the learning was relevant by (a) engaging with local arte-facts, (b) thinking about the agency of local citizens in commemoration and (c) helping the young people to make a decision of their own about whether and how they wanted to participate in commemoration activities. By connecting a proper historical understand-ing of the development of Poppy Day with a real decision to be made today, I was aiming to connect history and Citizenship education in meaningful ways.

PARTINGTON’s Five criteria for historical significance

..................................................................• Importance – to the people in the past • Profundity – how deeply people’s lives have been affected• Quantity – how many lives have been affected• Durability – for how long have people’s lives been affected• Relevance – in terms of the increased understanding of present life

COUNSELL’s Five criteria for historical significance

..................................................................• Remarkable – it was remarked upon by people at the time and/or since• Remembered – it was important at some stage in history within the collective memory of a group(s)• Resulted in change – it had future consequences• Resonant – analogies made with it; connection with experiences, beliefs, situations over time etc• Revealing – of some other aspect of the past

Most schools will teach something about remembrance linked to Poppy Day and there are many online resources to support History teachers. In this account of a sequence of lessons, Alasdair Smith talks to Lee Jerome about his experience of trying to make the Citizenship connections with a series of lessons rooted in History teaching.

By connecting a proper historical understanding of the development of Poppy Day with a real decision to be made today, I was aiming to connect history and Citizenship education in meaningful ways.

of the franchise, changes in employment, public housing, road building etc. This sets the scene for wider planning in terms of the focus for teaching the history of wwi. The first point is where I chose to focus for this particular sequence. It is the broad notion of cultural recall, and the acts of remembrance that provide the citizenship dimension.

Getting startedWe started by talking about the word ‘great’. What does it mean, when would you use it etc. This enabled us to think about all the connotations of the phrase ‘The Great War’ that appears on many of the memorials. I tried to hook the children into the lessons by using some images of the First World War, contrasting the scenes of the battle grounds and no-man’s land with modern views of the areas. We also listened to the Eric Bogle song, The Green Fields of France, with the


aim of connecting the big picture to the idea of an individual’s life and death. We talked about the importance of remember-ing the dead and what purpose this served. In terms of the history it is useful to explain that the Imperial War Graves Commission established cemeteries abroad, because it was impractical to repatriate all the bodies. Many grieving families in Britain wanted some way to mark the lives and deaths of their loved ones that was closer to home and so local communities started to organise war memorials themselves. The first of these started as early as 1916 after the Battle of the Somme. As Martin Pugh pointed out in his history of the period, these memorials were often so local that they effectively served as gravestones, and in one small London parish, Bethnal Green, there were eighteen shrines erected with 1,506 names. Having established that these memorials were often the result of local voluntary and collective action and the importance they had for the families of the deceased, our class then took a walk around the local area, examining memorials we all walk past every day – in the bank, outside the local hospital, and at the train station. As homework the children were asked to keep their eyes open over the next week and to collect examples of other memorials they could find in the area.

Investigating the memorialsOver the next few lessons we analysed the information available to us through the memorials. We looked at where the people had lived, checked the number of people with similar surnames to think about fam-ily connections and looked at information about regiments. By consulting additional information collated by local historians, we were also able to analyse information about the dead, their age, professions, how and where they died etc. We worked with the Imperial War Museum to do this research and students planned presentations on individuals they had ‘adopted’ from our local area. Some boroughs seem to be better than others about providing information about the names on the memorials, for example: http://lewishamwarmemorials.wikidot .com/names:blackheath-congregational-church-war-memorial-names.

The debate about poppies is still contentious and a quick internet search indicates the issue stirs up strong emotions.

Alasdair Smith is a teacher of History at a North London Secondary School. He has taught History in schools for nineteen years and worked in universities developing teacher education programmes. Email [email protected].

Citizenship questions

(1) Why are there red and white poppies?

• This links to critical thinking and enquiry by considering different perspectives on an issue.• It also links to broader notions of democracy in that understanding these two perspectives might involve students in thinking about the circumstances in which a democratic government could justifiably enter a war or armed conflict, the conditions which would have to apply before conscription could be justified, and the appropriate response to individuals who cannot participate because of their conscientious objection.

(2) Should we wear a white or red poppy?

• This links to democracy and understanding by considering the nature of one’s actions in public life. To wear a poppy is both an individual act and also an act which will be perceived by others in different ways. The debate about poppies is still contentious and a quick internet search indicates the issue stirs up strong emotions.• It also links to advocacy and representation by requiring students to justify their decision.


the red poppy can be used as a nationalistic symbol, rather than a symbol for the human

emotions of grief,

remembrance and hope for peace

Commemorating the Centenary of World War ITeaching remembrance as a local study / Alasdair Smith

But there are some useful starting points wherever you are teaching:

www.forces-war-records.co.ukwww.ukniwm.org.ukwww.warmemorialsonline.org.uk.

Thinking about Poppy Day and RemembranceGeorge V instigated the first anniversary of Armistice Day in 1919 with a two minute silence. Although that was intended as a one-off, the public support for an act of remembrance led to it becoming an annual event and the unveiling of the Cenotaph in Whitehall the following year provided the focal point for the ceremony. This was another example of the government re-sponding to the demands of the public. In 1921 the British Legion started selling pop-pies to show respect for the dead and collect money to help the living. However, there was also a movement, including many veterans, which was concerned that the formal acts of remembrance seemed to adopt a nationalis-tic and militaristic tone and so the Women’s Cooperative Guild started producing white poppies in 1933 to remind the people and the government of the propaganda claim that this would be ‘the war to end war’. This was supported the following year by the Peace Pledge Union, which continues to produce white poppies today (www.ppu.org.uk). The PPU also produce resources for classroom use to help explore the development of pop-pies and remembrance.

An individual decision …Our sequence of lessons ended with a dis-cussion about whether people felt a white or red poppy were most appropriate, and indeed whether students felt they should wear a poppy at all. We considered some of the arguments in the press about this debate (an internet search turns up many accessible

articles) and discussed the reasons adopted in the debate. In particular the ‘attack’ on the poppy by some activists and the ‘defence’ of the poppy by the bnp provides a contempo-rary parallel with the historical argument for adopting the white poppy – that the red poppy can be used as a nationalistic symbol, rather than a symbol for the human emo-tions of grief, remembrance and hope for peace. I encouraged everyone in the class to think about the following questions:1. What is the purpose of remembrance? Why did it start in 1919 and what purpose does it serve now? This links to the historical idea of significance.2. Do you feel that you should participate in an act of remembrance? This continues with the theme of significance but also becomes more personal, relating to one’s own public actions.3. If you do feel you should participate, do you feel a poppy is an appropriate way to do this? Again this links to historical understanding and requires a contemporary rationale.4. If you feel a poppy is appropriate, would you rather wear a red or white one? As with question 3, this links to historical understanding and requires an answer which acknowledges the ongoing contemporary debate. ▪

ReferencesCounsell, C. (2004), ‘Looking through a Josephine-Butler-shaped window: focussing pupils’ thinking on historical significance’, Teaching History, Issue 114, pp. 30-36

Partington, G. (1980) The idea of an historical education, Slough: nfer

Pugh, M. (2009) We Danced All Night: A Social History of Britain Between the Wars, London: Vintage


The idea of separating the red poppy and Armistice Day (renamed Remembrance Day after World War 2) from their military culture dates back to 1926. A member of the No More War Movement suggested that the British Legion should be asked to imprint ‘No More War’ in the centre of the red poppies instead of ‘Haig Fund’ and failing this pacifists should make their own flowers.

The details of any discussion with the British Legion are unknown but as the centre of the red poppy displayed the ‘Haig Fund’ imprint until 1994 it was clearly not success-ful. A few years later the idea was again discussed by the Cooperative Women’s Guild, who declared that ‘civilised nations should never again resort to the terrible and ineffectual method of war for the settlement of international disputes’

By 1933 they were searching for a symbol which could be worn by guildswomen who wanted to show publicly that they were against war and for nonviolence. Someone came up with the idea of a white poppy. Workers from the Cooperative Wholesale Society began making the poppies almost at once. Money from selling them, after the production costs had been paid for, was sent to help war-resisters and conscientious

to live in peace / When shall we ever learn? The silent walk became an annual event, and the revived sale of white poppies grew.

ControversyThe white poppy was and is a symbol of grief for all people of all nation-alities, armed forces and civilians alike, who are victims of war. It has not always been understood. Some people wearing a white poppy have been accused of disrespect to the war dead; they have been shouted at and abused. Some people have been sacked from their jobs for wearing white poppies, and white poppy wreaths have been removed from war memorials and trampled on.

Whilst many schools make white poppies available to their pupils and see their use as an educational exercise some schools are resistant to what they call propaganda. Some schools that decided to have white poppies available have withdrawn them after a protest, usually by no more than one or two parents, but accompanied by ‘shock horror’ headlines in the local paper. ▪

Edited from the website of the Peace Pledge Union ( www.ppu.org.uk ).

objectors in Europe. The white poppy was not intended as an insult to those who died in the First World War – a war in which many of the white poppy supporters lost hus-bands, brothers, sons and lovers

– but a challenge to the continuing drive to war.

The wearing of a white poppy on Armistice Day became a focus for the peace movement, and the Peace Pledge Union took it up in 1936 as ‘a definite pledge to peace that war must not happen again’. In 1938 ‘Alternative Remembrance’ events began: a pacifist religious service was held in London’s Regent’s Park, followed by a march to Westminster and the laying of a wreath of white poppies at the Cenotaph. 85,000 white poppies, by then an acknowl-edged symbol of peace, were sold that year. Many people wore them alone, others wore a red one as well.

On the afternoon of Remembrance Sunday in 1980, a silent procession walked from Trafalgar Square to the Cenotaph and laid a wreath of white poppies. This was the inscription on the wreath:For all those who have died or are dying in wars / For all those who have died or are dying as resources to feed or house them have gone to war preparations / For all those who will die until we learn

Decoupling memorial and militarismThe history of the white poppy


Remembrance education for the centenary

Paula Kitching reflects on her experience as a Battlefield Guide and History educator to propose a planning framework for teachers. She suggests a number of important questions, which open up the idea of remembrance for discussion and exploration, and in doing so, she points the way to some fruitful Citizenship and History learning experiences.

s the centenary of the First World War approaches many organisations from museums, local authorities, heritage bodies and ngos are finalising their plans. In the process, they are confronting significant questions such as what kind of an event is it? What is being marked for the centenary? Who should be involved? What could be achieved by centenary events and programmes? And what exactly are we remembering?

Traditionally we commemorate the end of something – the end of the Second World War,

the end of the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade etc, it is not usual for the beginning of something or the entirety of something to be marked. And yet that is exactly what is being planned for the centenary of the First World War. Further is it battles we should be recalling or people, military or civilian? Is it the end of a world order we are lamenting or the creation of a new Europe with fewer monarchies and greater self determination?

The First World War changed the face of Europe, it changed attitudes, social systems, landscapes, national identities, concepts of citizenship and had profound impacts on the lives of a whole generation. Its repercussions can still be felt today: its battles were monstrous and yet they set a blueprint for how future wars would be planned, executed and perceived; on the other hand the impact on technology was positive and progressive and not always related to killing.

In thinking about how the centenary will be marked we need to think about the different perceptions of different groups. For some families who were affected by the loss or serious injury of family members, the centenary might trigger personal reflection and the

desire to extend their knowledge about family members. But, alongside this personal experience there will also be a public dimension to the centenary. Many museums will focus on re-presenting and reinterpreting existing displays or creating new ones. Whilst major institutions like the Imperial War Museum are currently working on new exhibitions to mark the event, some small local organisations may be researching their social history of the First World War for the first time. Many of the families of those who died or who were injured will also want public commemoration events, in part to provide some form of acknowledgement of their family’s sacrifice. In this public dimension schools and young people will have an opportunity to engage with events and to reflect on why a war a hundred years ago receives so much attention today.

As Smith’s article in this edition demonstrates, the poppy has come to take a significant symbolic position in our tradition of remembrance. As The Royal British Legion’s website reminds us:

“The poppy is an instantly recognisable symbol of respect for those who’ve made the ultimate sacrifice in conflicts past and present. As the nation’s custodian of Remembrance, the Legion is committed to helping everyone understand the importance of Remembrance, so those sacrifices are never forgotten” (www.britishlegion.org.uk/remembrance).

Many schools have collection boxes and trays of poppies, and many children willingly make a donation to wear their poppy. When they do this next November this is the first opportunity to encourage pupils to think about the forthcoming centenary and to reflect again on the significance of that poppy, what it means for them and what it means for others who see them wearing it. In more practical terms it is also worth thinking about what happens to the money collected from the sale of poppies and thus about the on-going needs of members of the armed forces, veterans and their families today.

Whilst all of this is self-evidently important in its own right, there are also some very specific citizenship education learning objectives associated with this.



2. Contemporary connections• What has this got to do with us? One of the most important questions revolves around the need to establish a solid and convincing link between the History and the Citizenship dimen-sions. It should be planned explicitly and not simply assumed that the connection is evident. In order to establish clear links we recommend you address some or all of the learning objec-tives listed above, and ensure these themes are the same ones included in the History teaching. • What is remembrance? This is clearly a crucial link and one worth taking the time to explore. The Royal British Legion produces education packs every year which are designed to help tackle exactly this question, as does the Peace Pledge Union. As the latter organisation’s website notes, in one sense Remembrance Day gets harder every year, as evidence mounts that rather than denouncing war governments seem to have committed to fight wars more ‘efficiently’. On this point children will have a variety of ethical responses and the Citizenship dimension should provide space for them to explore these.

3. Action• What action should schools facilitate for all students? As already noted many pupils already exercise their right to participate by making a donation for their poppy. Perhaps the Citizenship dimension could be enhanced here by ensuring there is time for pupils to reflect on their motivations for this, articulate their reasons and discuss the impact of their decision.• What action might be available to others? Others may wish to participate in the public centenary events we noted earlier. Joining local organisations and remembrance events are the most obvious actions. Others might include running events in school or the local community themselves, contributing to local education and awareness raising projects, or undertaking ad-ditional fund-raising activities.• What is the point of action? Whilst part of the point of active citizenship is always to contribute to change or to improve conditions for people, we must also remember that the prime educational purpose is to help pupils learn about citizenship. Therefore all activities – from the decision about whether to wear a poppy and what colour to wear, to running a school-based event – should be accompanied by a carefully con-structed framework to help children reflect on their actions and identify what they have learned.

Remembrance on the battlefield and at commemoration sites Learning about the reality of the horrors of war was exactly what the founders of Remembrance wanted. It was not to be about glory but to remember all those who suffered. That is one of the clear lessons of any battlefield visit. Visiting a cemetery or a memorial to

Paula Kitching is a freelance historian working in education and heritage. She specialises in war and genocide and is a Battlefield Guide and trainer. She has worked with the Royal British Legion, the Historical Association, the Royal Air Force Benevolent Fund and the London Jewish Cultural Centre. Email [email protected].

Citizenship learning objectivesThrough engaging in remembrance activities and investigating who is involved, pupils should learn about:• The work of charities and voluntary organisations, such as the Royal British Legion.• The role that conflict and the armed forces have had on the way different people perceive British identity.• The diversity of the armed forces and how this has reflected Britain’s links with the wider world over time through the em-pire, commonwealth and immigration.• Rights and responsibilities, for example through considering the rights of the injured and of bereaved families, and who has an obligation to fulfil those rights.

Whilst the centenary will rightly have a historical focus, the idea of remembrance connects the events of a hun-dred years ago with the contemporary experiences of those who have been affected by conflict. Making these connections will be greatly facilitated through collabora-tion between History and Citizenship teachers in schools and this term seems the likeliest opportunity to review teaching plans to start such a collaboration. In particular we would suggest planning on three levels:

Planning remembrance projects in school1. Historical dimension• How will the History department adjust its teaching of the First World War to recognise that this is the centenary? It is likely that the department has an established scheme of work and it is worth looking at this afresh and thinking about whether it focuses on the themes that you will want to focus on in the centenary year. Is it time to look at the more global aspects of the conflict rather than just the Western Front?• What questions are children likely to have now? This is an opportunity to speak to children who have already studied WWI. What do they remember from their studies? Do they have any additional unanswered questions? Are there any lingering misconceptions? There’s also an opportunity to consult with children ahead of teaching to find out what questions they have.• What media coverage could be used as learning resources? This may be difficult to work out so far in advance, but it will be worth scouring relevant listings and websites to keep an eye on documentaries and other programmes that will be available. As details become available Teaching Citizenship will also publish significant dates in its news pages.• What new learning material will be produced by organisations in the field and what will local museums be planning? Whilst many organisations are still finalising their plans, local muse-ums will be able to share their plans at this stage, and other material will be published through the year.

Commemorating the Centenary of World War IRemembrance education for the centenary / Paula Kitching


the missing on the Western Front is a clear reminder to the consequences of war and has a far greater im-

pact than considering facts and figures from a book.Several organisations offer tours to battlefields and

cemeteries (look at the Schools Travel Forum: www.schooltravelforum.com for those approved for school tours). People who study military history in any serious way, especially those who visit the battlefields regularly and lead tours, are not romantic about war. In particular those who are either ex-service themselves of those who have worked with ex-service personnel really know the implications that conflict can bring and they can offer an invaluable combination of presenting facts in con-text, illustrating events with intense personal stories and drawing out the issues for pupils to consider on a battlefield or next to a memorial.

In my personal experience as a guide and educator the simple experience of seeing cemeteries, real names, ages and location of origin of the fallen has an impact – for young people with little real comprehension of war or death the impact can be huge and surprising. On one trip I led to Ypres, Belgium with Poppy Travel a British Muslim teenager from London was shocked to see a Muslim name next to that of a Hindu name on the Menin Gate. The realisation that they had fought and died together as British troops changed his attitude from “what has this got to do with me” to “how can I find out more – can we say a Muslim prayer at the cemetery?” - This resonates with an earlier article ‘We Also Served’ (Teaching Citizenship, Issue 32), where pupils investi-gated the role of British Muslim soldiers in World War 2. Whilst the idea of teaching about the diversity of the British Forces has been discussed among History teach-ers for years, it seems there are still misconceptions to tackle among many young people, or simply that the reality of it is lost until you see it.

To help make the personal connection, during visits to a memorial or cemetery pupils can be asked to select

a name to take away, someone for whom they can take responsibility for remembering. When young people know the names of men, women or children whose lives are changed or ended by conflict the two minute silence takes on a new meaning. It is about someone real, not simply an absence of noise.

ConclusionObserving and marking Remembrance Day is not an obligation on any school. It is not required by law or as a part of the National Curriculum. However, knowing about how Remembrance came about, who was involved and what it means today is a powerful form of learning and can support citizenship in school.

Respecting Remembrance does not mean support-ing war. It is an opportunity to recognise that those men and women who have served the uk and those that will continue to do so are doing a job that many of us would not want.

The people who initiated the annual act of remem-brance wanted their generation to be the last to make the terrible sacrifice that wars demand. They were not the last, but they did provide us with a way to ensure that the sacrifice would not be forgotten and that each genera-tion would be able to draw lessons from Remembrance and use that time to reflect on how they as citizens can act in the future. Whilst we remember the men and women on the memorials, children should also under-stand that new names are still being carved on memo-rials every year, and can be seen at the Royal British Legion site of the National Memorial Arboretum in Staffordshire. By planning carefully how to combine the history and citizenship perspectives, schools can help pupils think about these significant events and locate themselves in the national commemoration. ▪

Names on the Menin Gate, Ypres – which made a British Muslim teenager think twice (photo: Jack Regan)


Dr Wim Kratsborn is based in The Netherlands and Director of the ‘European Multiple Choice Identity Project’ To-Gather ; and the film Hard To Become Who You Are. Email [email protected].

It’s the end of the world

as we know it and

I feel fineREM

No one is gonna take me

aliveMuse

‘‘

‘‘’’

’’

The war that never endedA film about WWI and the youth of today

A personal account of a film project relating to the experiences of young people today and those of young soldiers in the First World War by Wim Kratsborn.

he current economic crisis is also a cultural and a social crisis. Maybe this crisis is needed to solve problems, to reset industrialised society. Then the crisis is a catharsis to reshuffle and purify reality and to make a better future possible. Globalisation, exploitation, migration, integration, human rights, nationalism and new technology are hot issues. The

same issues or controversies were present during World War One.

World War One and the youth of todayDuring World War One almost ten million young soldiers died. It’s a past that’s no history. Nowadays many young people are unemployed and/or without good prospects for the future. Are they sacrificed on the free market? As indignados they are demonstrating in the public squares in Europe. In the Arab world 250 million young Arabs are waiting for a good future.

For the youth of today it’s a memory of ‘their’ war as a global and timeless disaster. Young people need this memory to be-come good citizens. It may also help young people to reflect on present wars in Syria and Afghanistan and to preflect on future dangers (Iran).

The film Hard To Become Who You Are – ‘a movie that matters’Since 2011 we have been making this film about the development of one’s own identity. How can young people in Europe and

the Arab world become good citizens? In September 2014 we will show the whole film, but before that the scene ‘World War One’ is available (email to the address above). Five young people travel by train and want to visit the Memorial Museum but they get involved in the Battle of Passchendale 1917. They have to survive by starting to fight, phone, hide, help, care or act. The trailer is at: http://youtu.be/qCbY00k4Fkg.

Sources of inspirationFilm is one of the best ways to learn about the self, the other and the world, resulting in an intense, interactive and long-lasting imprint in the mind. This film is ‘a work of passion’, based on emotional knowledge, and experiences, after educating youngsters for 41 years and cooperating with their teachers in Europe and the Arab world. Secondly, I was inspired by Mind, Brain and Education by Mary Helen Immordino and the interplay between the body and the mind, emotion and knowledge: ‘Feel and then learn’. It’s about empathy for others, the reviving of forgotten feelings and past experiences and self-awareness of what’s good or bad: an active and participating citizen. Thirdly, music makes sense by creating an atmosphere and deep knowledge – for example, the song Thunder Without Frequencies in the scene ‘World War One’ and the song Youth of Today (http://youtu.be/eiND5eHC970).

‘The multiple choice identity’ Young people are different, not least reflecting place, age and identity. In essence the film is about making the right choices, creating an ‘own identity’ and being a good citizen. The film is situated in the past, played in the present and focussed on the future. ‘The youth of today needs the youth of the past to survive in the future’. ▪

See page 2 (inside front cover) for images from Kratsborn’s film Hard To Become Who You Are


Concepts Processes Possible enquiry questions

Democracy and justice

Critical thinking and enquiry

What do the main political parties believe should be done with the NHS and why?

Advocacy and representation

Do you think it’s fair that people using private health care get care quicker?

Taking informed and responsible action

What are the local health needs in your area and how can you campaign to meet them?

Rights and responsibilities


Does the ‘right to life’ mean the NHS must pay for all pos-sible treatments? Who decides where to draw the line?


Should everyone have a right to free health care, even if their condition follows from their own actions?


Are there any current NHS edu-cation campaigns (eg. healthy eating, exercise) that you could promote in your school?

Identities and diversity: living together in the UK


Who dies young and who lives longer in the UK?


Should parents be able to reject medical treatment for their children because of their religious beliefs?


How can your school help local community organizations who provide health and social care?

Teaching about health and the NHS

In the following article (facing page) James Nicholson and his colleagues share some resources designed to help young people explore the complex issues relating to health and suggest some ways to use this in the citi-zenship classroom. In this introductory piece Lee Jerome reflects on possible ways to approach this topic.

One of the most interesting aspects of using a topic like health in citizenship is that it enables teachers to move explicitly between pshe and Citizenship. It makes sense to start with a pshe framework to consider some of the personal effects of lifestyle choices and some of the reasons for making (or avoiding) difficult decisions. Moving on to a citizenship focus helps students think about broader issues of public policy, rights and respon-sibilities and of course to think about the role of the nhs, as the country’s best known example of public provision. Nicholson suggests some of these issues but perhaps it is this broader division of topics between subjects that needs to be considered first. In relation to his example of alcohol consumption, a possible division might look like this:

Of course the range of issues related to citizenship topics is much wider than this, although the case of alcohol consumption does provide a useful entry point to some big citizenship issues around the role of government, personal responsibility etc. In thinking about possible approaches to this broader area I tried out an activity we often give our pgce students – to take a concept and a process and think about what kind of citizenship en-quiry would follow if you linked them up with your topic area. The following table captures some of these ideas.

Whilst some of these might be easier to envisage in the classroom than others, it does illustrate that health is a potentially useful case study, both to make the most of a joint pshe-citizenship approach, but also as a way into some very serious citizenship learning. ▪

Lesson Plan

PSHE issues Citizenship issues

• What is a safe limit? • Why do people drink alcohol? And why do some people drink so heavily?• Why do people lie about their alcohol consumption?• What effect does excessive alcohol consumption have on your health?• What pressure is there on people to drink?

• What trends are there in alcohol consumption in the UK over time, and what does this mean for the NHS?• Who drinks the most and what effect does this have on life expectancy?• Should governments regulate alcohol consumption more eg. through tighter opening times, minimum pricing?• Do people always have a right to free treatment, regard-less of how much they drink?• How much money does the government raise from the taxation of alcohol?• What is the link between the vested interests of those who produce and sell alcohol and the funding of political parties?

Lee Jerome is Lecturer in Education at Queen’s University Belfast, Editor of Teaching Citizenship and former Chair of ACT Council.


Issue 34 of Teaching Citizenship (Autumn 2012) carried an article ‘The summer riots 2011: Lessons to be learnt’ which was a feature on using current and authentic statistics as a focus for discussions around accounts of the riots from different political perspectives. (That article can be downloaded from http://www.dur.ac.uk/smart.centre/nuffield/public_disorder

– or in its journal format from http://issuu.com/openshaw/docs/actjournal34). It also explains how to use the data visualisations presented in this follow-up article, in which James Nicholson and his colleagues provide a focus on visualisations of several data sets relating to health. We hope it will be accessible even to readers who have not seen the previous article.

these specific areas because their behaviour has been a direct cause of their ill-health?

How can these debates be provoked? We provide authentic evidence to support arguments to be constructed by pupils on health-related themes: there are five distinct resources, on adult and young people’s general health and another two on adult and young people’s use of alcohol and one with data about mental health for adults. All of these resources can be downloaded from www.dur.ac.uk/smart.centre/nuffield/health.

Our adult general health re-source has data about blood pres-sure, obesity, smoking, alcohol and participating in exercise activity, for males and females of different age groups, mostly for 2003 and 2010. Figure 1 (page 24, overleaf) shows a screenshot of the (self-reported) alcohol consumption levels of 16 – 24 males and females in 2003, with males drinking more than females, even after allowing for different defi-nitions of light, moderate and heavy drinking for males and females to reflect different physiologies. The panel beside the data explains the definitions used. Moving the slider pointers at the bottom allow you to see similar data stories for other age groups and for different years. In 2010, 16 – 24 year old men and women both reported drinking less alcohol than their counterparts in the same age groups in 2003. Moving the ‘consumption’, ‘sex’, ‘age’ and ‘year’ labels (just drag and drop) allows you to display other comparisons directly.

itizenship is to be retained in the new National Curriculum as a statutory subject but with a significantly condensed programme of study. The role and nature of democracy is still central to citizenship education, and pupils should learn about the need to balance competing and conflict-

ing demands, and understand that in a democracy not everyone gets what they want.

The uk health budget for 2012 – 13 is £108.9 billion with the nhs providing free (at the point of use) care for the 63.2 million people resident in the uk. That is an aver-age expenditure of over £1,700 per person annually by the government. A person’s health is one of the major factors in determining their quality of life, but health is a difficult con-cept to define or measure as it has many facets. Determining priorities for spending on health in a democ-racy where advances in technology and medicine are constantly creating possibilities of significant improve-ments in health is an extremely sensitive issue.

Some aspects of health expendi-ture raise questions of personal re-sponsibility. The country spends very large sums of money treating the direct effects of smoking and alcohol consumption, and treating obesity. Should more be spent on education, and other preventative measures, to try to reduce the long-term expendi-ture on treatment? Should individu-als be made to pay for treatment in

Health, wealth and lifestyle choicesProvoking discussion on public spending

James Nicholson was a mathematics teacher for many years; Professor Jim Ridgway has a background in cognitive psychology and Sean McCusker works on the technical aspects of visualisations. They are based at the SMART Centre, Durham University. Email comments, or feedback on using the materials, to: [email protected].


Lesson PlanHealth, wealth and lifestyle choices / James Nicholson et al

Figure 1: adult health resource showing data on alcohol consumption.

Figure 2: adult alcohol resource showing the types alcohol drunk.


The adult alcohol resource offers more detailed data on how often, how much, and what type of alcohol people were drinking in 2010. Figure 2 (bottom left) shows the different consumption patterns of various types of alcohol by 16 – 24 year old males and females, with females typically drinking more wine, alco-pops and spirits and less beer than males. Questions as to whether the total alcohol intake or the type of alcohol consumed has a greater long term effect on a person’s health are likely to surface in discussion of rich resources like this.

Figures 3a and 3b (page 26, over-leaf) give some insight into why com-binations of data are needed to get a fuller picture of what is happening. Figure 3a shows that the proportion of young people who self-report drinking in the week before the survey increases steadily as they get older, with slightly more girls drink-ing than boys at ages 14 – 15, which is a change over the last ten years. You might expect to see an increase in the proportion drinking, and also in the amount they drink, as the age increases, but figure 3b shows the average consumption for those who drank in the previous week was very similar for 11 – 13, 14 and 15 year olds, which might surprise a lot of people.

There is evidence to suggest that traditional education on alcohol use and abuse seems to have little effect on the behaviour of young people. Young people using these data resources have commented that they did not feel ‘preached at’ in the way that they normally feel when any subject like alcohol, smoking, sex or

drugs is tackled in school. Whether discovering the stories in the data for themselves will have any more effect on behaviour is not clear, but even if it does not, the educational value of active engagement with authentic data is strong. The richness of the re-sources means that there is scope for young people to work in groups to in-vestigate different aspects of health, and then report their findings to the rest of the class, developing impor-tant life skills in communication and in constructing arguments based on evidence.

There is also a resource show-ing data relating to general and mental health status and charac-teristics such as whether people live in deprived areas, their income level, and religion which are bro-ken down for men and women in each case. The 12-item General Health Questionnaire (GHQ12) is a widely used and validated measure of psychosocial health, in which a score of 4 or more indicates prob-able psychological disturbance or mental ill health. Figure 4 (page 27, overleaf) shows the proportions of males in the five quintiles of income distribution, with scores of 0, 1 – 3 and 4 or more on the GHQ12. There are more than twice as many in the lowest income quintile with a score of 4 or more than there are in the highest income quintile. The data for females shows a similar story. If ill-health and mental health are associated with low incomes, should money be taken from the health bud-get and spent on social benefits?

Social sciences generally, includ-ing citizenship education, routinely

deal with contexts in which the population being considered is not homogenous. Often any data presented in an argument is in an aggregated form, hiding the differ-ing characteristics of subgroups – whether the important differences relate to ethnicity, age, region, sex, social and economic status or some other categorisation. The typi-cal graphs used to describe single characteristics or even a compara-tive chart showing a pair (say sex and age) of characteristics do little to communicate effectively the complexity of the relationships. The mental model of superimposing the patterns in a number of single char-acteristic displays will almost always look quite different to the true data story. Students, even at a young age, do seem to be able to understand the stories in the data when they are able to engage with the data via an inter-face which allows them to manipu-late the display and explore different combinations of variables.

With large data sets, statisti-cal tests would not be appropriate anyway and students at this level do not have the statistical background to work with formal multivariate techniques. Our classroom experi-ence in trialling these resources is that students do not feel that they are ‘doing maths or statistics’ because they do no calculations, and spend no time in drawing their own graphs – although they spend a lot of time constructing their own graphs by manipulating the variable places and values. However, they are ‘doing statistics’ in the sense that they are interpreting information


Figure 3a: youth alcohol resource showing how many young people are drinking

Figure 3b: youth alcohol resource showing how much young people drink

Lesson PlanHealth, wealth and lifestyle choices / James Nicholson et al


Figure 4: general and psychosocial health resource showing the association of income level with mental health status

presented graphically. Perversely, the complexity of the information they look at in these interfaces seems to make students much more ready to engage in meaningful discussions about the data than when they are faced with much simpler, but less relevant data in mathematics lessons.

AcknowledgementThis research was funded by the Nuffield Foundation Grant edu/33713, Reasoning from Evidence, which developed data visualisation tools to support the teaching of Sociology in courses for 16 – 18 year olds, but the tools have much wider application across many subjects and wider age ranges. Specifically, the visualisations will often be relevant to citizenship, and because of the ease of use of the interfaces, they will often be relevant for use with all secondary

age pupils. Free teaching materials can be viewed at www.dur.ac.uk/smart.centre using the links on the left to freeware and to Nuffield.

The views expressed here are entirely those of the authors, who are based at the Smart Centre in Durham University. If you have any comments about the article or can provide feedback to us about using the materials with classes, please email James Nicholson at [email protected]. ▪

The Smart Centre have just started a project producing visualisations on the 2011 uk census data – focusing on the implications of demographic changes in ethnicity; religion; and health problems associated with an ageing population. See smart.census.org.uk for visualisations as they become available.


Alun Davies and the ACT North East Committee report on an innovative project they have been developing with schools in their region and beyond. The Citizenship Quality Standard recognises schools who are continuing to make progress in Citizenship education. We hope the successful pilot will enable ACT to secure funding to help make the project more broadly available to Citizenship and PSHE teachers around the country.

CT wants schools and teachers to achieve the highest possible standards in citizenship teaching. To this end we have developed a Quality Standard that schools can achieve across an academic year. Schools have to show compli-ance with the application procedure and meet the standards required. It is

concerned with the provision of citizenship in three contexts:1. the quality of the teaching of the subject in the classroom, 2. the quality of Citizenship within the wider aspects of the schools and 3. the impact that Citizenship has on school students becoming active young citizens in their community.

The Quality Standard is a struc-tured way to enable the role of the subject to be more widely recognised and helps teachers focus on how they can continue to develop and improve

the quality of the subject experience for pupils and the school in which they teach.

The act Citizenship Quality Standard was initially designed by teachers and other Citizenship education professionals in the North East Region of England. It was pi-loted in 2011 -2012 within the North East in Gateshead, Sunderland, Northumberland, Durham and North Tyneside. Interest has also been expressed by teachers in Shropshire, Coventry, Plymouth and Essex. The second phase of the pilot is currently underway and will be completed during the summer term 2013. The pilot has included 18 schools in 2011-12 and 30 schools in 2012-13. Most schools are currently from the pri-mary sector but the Quality Standard applies to all phases of schooling.

The Quality Standard is made up of two parts

Part A – SchoolSchools who register their inter-est are set the task of carrying out a School Self Evaluation for Citizenship Education using a Self Evaluation Tool. This document al-lows Head Teachers and Citizenship subject teachers to identify where they believe their schools are in terms of practice. The matrix pro-vides the opportunity to focus on six key areas: 1. Leadership 2. Resources and their Management 3. Teaching and Learning 4. Staff Development 5. Monitoring and Evaluation

6. Parental and Community Involvement.

Each of these areas has quality criteria describing achievement at four levels: Focusing, Developing, Established and Advanced Practice. By thinking clearly about strengths and weaknesses, schools can identify areas for development and create an action plan to move Citizenship forward. The Self Evaluation Tool is available online through act’s website.

Part B – Active citizensYoung people will carry out a project or campaign to bring about change in their school, local, regional, na-tional or international community. This campaign must be initiated, planned, carried out and evaluated by young people themselves.

In the pilots the schools have been supported through this process by a member of act North East, or a teacher who has already achieved the Quality Standard. The process has thus provided support and advice as well as an assessment and external validation.

Benefits of participating in the Standard

Pupils:• will become more confident• are more likely to achieve• will gain wider access to a range of support services – local, national and international – such as Childline, Fair Trade and Save the Children.• become more aware of and knowl-edgeable about Citizenship.

Feature

ACT Citizenship Quality StandardA challenge to schools


Schools will:• be prepared for subject assessment• be provided with evidence for Inspection in Citizenship and smsc • improve their performance• develop whole school initiatives• develop stronger partnership with support services and external agencies• acquire more opportunities to posi-tively promote the school both lo-cally, nationally and internationally.

Communities will:• benefit from closer ties and greater understanding and collaboration between schools and other agencies.• provide opportunities for young people to have a voice, a chance to influence and contribute to what goes on in schools within the Citizenship agenda.• encourage the interest and con-tribution of young people in being good citizens

Evidence from the Pilot Schools Schools in the pilot phase have en-gaged in a wide range of campaigns including:• Schools sharing a Community Cohesion Project with exchange vis-its to their respective schools.• Celebrating Diversity• Human Rights• Children’s Rights• Charity Fundraising• Respect for Animals• Enterprise – Business Week• Fair Trade • Olympic Values – linked with the 2012 London Olympics, providing inspiration and a range of activities eg. dance, music, art and pe.

A number of schools involved in the pilot have made the following statements:• “Citizenship is at the core of what we do in school.”• “We give children the skills to make their own decisions, and be responsible for themselves and their Community.”• “We encourage children to respect each other and themselves.”• “Our strong Community Links,

local, national and international, teach our children to value our world and those who share it.”• “Underpinning the development of ‘good Citizenship’ is the commit-ment and dedication of staff who create opportunities and model good practice.”• “It is important that children are taught to respect themselves and each other. They need this quality not only in school but later in life.”• “It is vitally important that we equip our children with the skills and values needed to take their place in society. Citizenship embedded within the wider curriculum gives us the vehicle needed to do just that.”• “Through Citizenship we learn about the world around us, in exciting ways.”• “We want pupils to take their place as responsible and valued members of society.”• “It’s making a massive difference to one or two pupils in our school who are overcoming their own major issues by taking a lead role in implementing strategies that will raise the quality of our good citizenship ethos.”

The Citizenship Quality Standard sets out to raise standards of Citizenship in schools throughout the country. It is becoming a recog-nised tool that allows schools and teachers to celebrate the raising of standards in Citizenship achieve-ment and the impact that has on pupil participation as active citizens in their local community. As such it supports the ambition for young people to become active and

responsible citizens. It clearly dem-onstrates how a school is meeting this requirement and is a public statement that the school can share with parents and wider community members. The Quality Standard is an ambitious and unique project for act. There is no other such recogni-tion for schools and teachers nation-ally in respect of Citizenship educa-tion. The evidence from the pilots to date shows that schools, head teachers, governors’ and communi-ties value the award. As the subject association for Citizenship, act is well placed to be able to help teach-ers recognise best practice and take steps to improve standards.

act is ambitious to invest further in the Quality Standard in response to demand and interest, to further develop it, to carry out a detailed evaluation of the pilot to date and plan for a national roll out after 2014. Is your school up to the challenge? ▪

Alun Davies is a retired Gateshead Local Authority Adviser / Inspector; ACT Council member and North East Local Volunteer. For more details on the Quality Standard email: [email protected]

Pictured above: Presentation of ACT Citizenship Quality Standard certificates at schools in Gateshead, Northumberland and Sunderland, 2011-2012.


Citizenship is to remain in the National Curriculum and cross-party political support for the subject is intact. But, will the revised curriculum improve the status and quality of provision in schools, and set appropriate standards for the subject? Liz Moorse provides an update on progress to date and outlines some of the issues still being worked on.

y the time you read this, the dfe consultation will be over and Ministers and officials will be working to finalise the revised National Curriculum for secondary schools. It was a relief for us all to hear Michael Gove confirm that citizenship is to remain in the statutory National Curriculum. On 7 February 2013 in a response to a question in parliament from David Blunkett,

he said, “I can absolutely and with pleasure confirm that citizenship will remain a programme of study at key stages 3 and 4. I look forward to working with him to ensure that this valuable subject is even better taught in more of our schools.”

A successful campaign led by Democratic LifeSo, following three years of campaigning by Democratic Life – a voluntary coalition of 800 individuals and 40 organisations including act – we can be sure this government is retaining citizenship as a National Curriculum subject.

Democratic Life was the inspiration of Tony Breslin and Molly Kearney, formerly of the Citizenship Foundation. The Citizenship Foundation continues to be a leading part-ner alongside act, Amnesty International

uk, the Hansard Society and Involver. The campaign aim was to influence those mak-ing decisions about the future National Curriculum by highlighting the unique role of citizenship and restoring the cross-party political support that existed when the sub-ject was first introduced. The call to action was simple: “We believe citizenship educa-tion is essential for preparing young people for our shared democratic life. We call on all politicians to support citizenship so that it stays in the curriculum and schools continue to improve their teaching of it.” (from www.democraticlife.org.uk).

Democratic Life was officially launched in parliament at the start of 2011, with the support of the Cooperative, and quickly grew and attracted media attention. During parliamentary debates leading politicians including David Blunkett, Lord Andrew Philips and Lord Philip Norton, spoke out for citizenship and in support of Democratic Life’s work. David Blunkett was also instru-mental in helping Democratic Life meet with both Michael Gove and the hmci Michael Wilshaw to discuss the future of citizenship and seek their support in strengthening the subject.

The campaign has been a success in meeting its key objectives. But Democratic Life supporters are clear, there is more to do to ensure the citizenship curriculum is the best it can be and to improve the status and quality of provision in more schools.

Revised Citizenship programmes of studyThe draft National Curriculum for citizenship published by the dfe for consultation between February and April, needed improvement. Not least to address the absence of citizenship skills. During the consultation, Democratic Life called for five key improvements to the draft programmes of study:

Feature

Positive, but not complacent!Campaign for better citizenship goes on

I can absolutely and with pleasure

confirm that citizenship will remain

a programme of study at key stages three and

four.Michael Gove mp7 February 2013

‘‘

’’


• Include a clear requirement to teach about human rights• Clarify active citizenship is not just volunteering but involves pupils taking part in genuine social and democratic action in their schools and communities• Enhance the new requirement for financial education to include economic understanding and public finance• Ensure key stage 3 is not solely focused on the uk but includes the European, international and global dimensions of the subject• Improve the subject aims and show appropriate progression between key stages 3 and 4, especially in key aspects such as the law.

We hope to see these changes reflected in the final programmes of study when they are published later in the summer.

Unpopular level descriptions go, but what will replace them?Government has decided to get rid of level descriptions. The intention it seems, is to use the programmes of study to both describe the content that must be addressed in teaching, and to set out expectations for pupils. The programme of study will need to include citizenship skills and understanding as well as knowledge, in order to achieve this. It remains unclear whether there will be further guidance from dfe on standards to help ensure consistency in teacher assessment when judging pupil performance, or whether this might become the remit of subject associations.

GCSE Citizenship StudiesThe dfe has also consulted on new accountability measures for school league tables. If accepted and the list of approved qualifications remains unchanged, then gcse Citizenship Studies will continue to count towards school performance in league tables. It is not yet clear whether there will be revisions to all gcses or just those listed as Ebacc subjects.

Primary citizenshipDemocratic Life has repeatedly called for stronger primary citizenship education and asked Mr Gove to update the primary

citizenship curriculum. The current non-statutory curriculum framework at key stages 1 and 2 is now more than ten years old. It bears little relation to the proposed secondary curriculum and this will cause confusion particularly if pupil progress is to be measured between key stages and across phases of education.

Initial Teacher EducationThe government also needs to demonstrate its commitment to high quality citizenship by strengthening the teacher training available for the subject. The quality of citizenship teachers is key to improving standards in the subject. To date, citizenship remains the only subject without bursary funding and is under-represented in all types of training compared with other National Curriculum subjects.

What happens nextThe dfe timetable tells us that the revised National Curriculum will be published in September 2013, for first teaching in schools from September 2014. The role of citizenship teachers will be key to ensure the transition to the new curriculum and its associated assessment requirements, is a smooth one. Teachers will need time and space to review the new curriculum and adjust their schemes of work to ensure they are in line with the new programmes of study.

In February, act council first began to discuss how the association would respond to the revised curriculum to support mem-bers. act is developing a package of support and guidance for teachers and schools in the form of online materials and events. More information will be available soon through the act website and e-communications.

Tell us what you needIf you have questions about the revised National Curriculum or would like to tell us what kind of support you think should be available to you from act, then please email: [email protected]. ▪

Liz Moorse is Chair of Democratic Life and Senior Manager of ACT. She formerly worked on the introduction of Citizenship with Professor, Sir Bernard Crick and was a Senior Adviser at QCA/QCDA from 1999-2010.

The campaign has been a success in meeting its key objectives, but there is more to do to ensure the citizenship curriculum is the best it can be and to improve the status and quality of provision in more schools


Zafer Çelik, David Kerr and Emir Adzovic share an account of the Democratic Citizenship and Human Rights Education Project in Turkey, run jointly by the EU and the Council of Europe. Their description of the programme demonstrates the com-plexity of planning for citizenship educa-tion and the importance of strengthening relationships between Turkey and the EU.

nsuring sustainable growth and a strong economy while maintain-ing the health of democracy is one of the greatest challenges facing our societies in the 21st century. It is no surprise that education is seen as key to winning this challenge. Citizens are not borne participative. Rather they need be taught knowledge about democ-racy and be given opportunities to put that knowledge into practice.

They need to both learn and live democracy, starting in school as part of a lifelong learning process.

This notion fits with the on-going shift in the dominant education paradigm from a largely teacher-centred approach to one that is more learner-centred, as well as a change in the balance between knowledge on one hand and values and skills on the other. This transformation is taking place across the globe in education. It helps to explain why amidst the global conflicts and current economic crises many countries are working hard to strengthen their education for demo-cratic citizenship and human rights in order to foster stronger, equitable, more cohesive and participative societies.

This article sets out the context for and then explains the progress and future plans of a major new initiative in this area

in Turkey – the Democratic Citizenship and Human Rights Education Project (dchre) run jointly by the European Union (eu) and the Council of Europe (coe). The project is the largest current such initiative in Europe. It is of interest beyond Turkey because it builds on experiences and learning from initiatives in other countries, including the introduction of statutory Citizenship into schools in England in 2002. It seeks to add to that learning by making the developments in Turkey available to those in other countries. It builds on and extends accumulated knowl-edge and expertise in Europe.

ContextThe Republic of Turkey has a long and rich history. It was founded as a Republic in 1923 and is a unitary, constitutional state gov-erned by a parliamentary representative democracy, with a President, parliament and Prime Minister. Its location at the crossroads between Europe and Asia has made it a country of great strategic importance across the ages. It borders eight countries from Bulgaria in the North West to Iraq in the South East and has a total surface area of 814,578 km2.

Turkey is a secular state with no of-ficial state religion, though the majority of the population (99%) are Muslims. It has a rich and diverse culture, blending Turkic, Anatolian, Ottoman and Western cultures and traditions. According to the results of the last population census (2011), the coun-try has a population of around 75 million, three-quarters of whom live in towns and cit-ies, and almost one third of whom are below the age of 14.

Education was designed to be com-pulsory and free from age 6 to 14 with 15 to 18 years olds having to complete a fur-ther 4 years to progress to higher educa-tion. Current reforms extend mandatory

Feature / International

Strengthening democracy and human rights A major initiative rises in Turkey

amidst the global conflicts and current economic crises many countries are working hard to strengthen their education for democratic citizenship and human rights


schooling to 12 years and include a change to what is commonly referred to as the 4+4+4 system, which divides that time into four years of primary school, four years of lower secondary school and four years of upper secondary school. There is also an expecta-tion that 3-4 year olds will begin to attend kindergarten. The new system also allows for more democratic choices since it brings in a variety of elective courses up to eight hours in a week in lower secondary education. This allows students and parents to select among many different courses taking into consider-ation the different talents and interests of students.

BackgroundThe United Nations General Assembly pro-claimed the years 1995-2004 as the Decade for Human Rights Education, with a view to paving the way for a universal culture of human rights, by promoting, training in, and informing on human rights. Turkey has been a part of these developments since mid-1990s and in 1997 the ‘Turkish National Committee on the Decade for Human Rights Education’ was established with the task of implementing and monitoring the work carried out under the programme as well as furthering human rights education based on international standards.

A Protocol concerning the teaching of human rights in schools was signed by the Prime Minister in May 1995. This led to the introduction in 1998-9 of a ‘Civics and Human Rights Education Course’ for 12-14 year olds, as well as an elective course named ‘Democracy and Human Rights’ in the curriculum of secondary education. In 2005 these courses were abolished and the competencies were integrated across five major courses (Turkish, Social Sciences, Science and Technology, Life Sciences and Mathematics).

Recent DevelopmentsIn 2009 the Ministry of National Education, Board of Education designed a new elec-tive curriculum course entitled ‘Citizenship and Democracy Education’ at 8th grade (for 14 year olds), developed course books, and trained teachers. The new curriculum course was piloted in 2010-11 and was taught nationwide as a compulsory course in 2011-12. The aim of the new course is to enable students to develop awareness, sensitivity, attitudes and behaviours in line with the protection and application of human rights in daily life as well as to introduce some basic concepts related to citizenship, de-mocracy and human rights. The curriculum incorporates four themes:(1) Every human is valuable(2) Democracy culture(3) Rights and Freedoms(4) Our Duties and Responsibilities 85% of the teaching staff received in-service training as part of the curriculum reform process, which positively impacted on the receptiveness of teachers towards edc/hre. Additionally, 240 teachers were trained as trainers of edc/hre. The need remained, however, to build on these efforts to identify the most effective in-service training model and to expand the outreach of the in-service training to more teachers, which is a crucial component of the dchre Project.

The Democratic Citizenship and Human Rights Education ProjectThe dchre Project builds on the recent cur-riculum reform and is set to run for three years from 2011 to 2014. It is largely funded by the European Union as part of a Pre-Accession Assistance programme with the Council of Europe funding 5% of the Project. The overall aim of the Project is to increase the institutional capacity of the Ministry of National Education (mone) on edc/

Zafer Çelik is Head of Education Systems and Policies at the Turkish Ministry of National Education; Prof. Dr David Kerr is part of the Citizenship Foundation, UK; and Emir Adzovic is Team Leader of the Democratic Citizenship and Human Rights Education Project in Turkey at the Council of Europe.

The curriculum incorporates four themes: 1. Every human is valuable; 2. Democracy culture; 3. Rights and Freedoms; 4. Our Duties and Responsibilities

Feature / InternationalStrengthening democracy and human rights / Zafer Çelik et al


Education for democratic citizenship and human rights plays a crucial role in providing learners with the knowledge, understanding, skills and attitudes that will help them play an effective part in their communities

main engine of the project in accomplish-ing the activities and outcomes. A busy first year has centred around four main activities. Each of these will now be considered in turn:

1. Providing technical expertise and building the capacity of the six Working Groups to meet their objectives through a range of training and study visits to other European countries to find out about edc/hre policies and practices.The dchre Project has provided consider-able technical support to the Working by utilising the expertise and guidance of a number of national and international experts through a number of training and support activities. This expertise ranged from content-related specific experience of edc/hre to professional support in pr and promotional activities critical in disseminat-ing project results. Working group members were offered the opportunity to participate in study visits to three different European countries, Switzerland, the United Kingdom (England) and Sweden to observe imple-mentation of edc/hre through policies and practices. To ensure access to European and international resources on edc/hre, more than 8000 pages of key resource documents have been translated into Turkish and made available for working group members.

Evaluations of these capacity building activities, particularly the impact of the study visits show the benefits gained by working group members in giving them a much wider and more comprehensive perspective of edc/hre to bring to bear on developments in Turkey. The first study visit was to Zurich, Switzerland in February 2012 and was organised for the members of the Capacity Building and Material Development Working Groups. The visit was hosted the International Projects in Education Centre. The focus was on best practices in teacher training programmes in the field of edc/hre and the group also observed the process of developing educational and awareness-raising materials.

The second study visit to London was organised to meet the specific needs of the Curriculum Development and Curriculum Review Working Groups. The study visit was hosted, in February 2012, by the Citizenship

hre. It has six key outcomes to ensure that this aim is met.

1. Developing and revising regulations on edc/hre2. Reviewing and revising curricula3. Revising the course on edc/hre in sec-ondary school (for students age 15-16)4. Producing educational materials to pro-mote edc/hre5. Increasing the capacity of the Ministry of National Education personnel and the awareness of pre-school, primary school and secondary school communities (such as teachers, pupils, students, non-teaching staff, parents and community leaders) in relation to edc/hre6. Fostering a democratic school culture from pre-school to the end of secondary.

The dchre Project aims at furthering the values of democracy and human rights in Turkish society by strengthening edc/hre in the formal education system. Education for democratic citizenship and human rights plays a crucial role in providing learners with the knowledge, understanding, skills and attitudes that will help them play an effective part in their communities (local, national, European and international). It empowers citizens to be fully aware of their rights and responsibilities, to participate in the society in which they live and to take action to defend and promote human rights, democracy and rule of law.

Activities and ProgressSince its inception in June 2011 the proj-ect has successfully positioned itself as a valuable partner in the education system in Turkey. The Board of Education of the Ministry of National Education is the main beneficiary and takes full ownership of the project by allocating its 42 staff members to work for the project outcomes. The Council of Europe team in Ankara works directly with the Board of Education to provide technical support, and the Board staff put all their effort into delivering the content and the main outcomes of the project under the guidance of national and international experts. Six working groups, each linked one of the project outcomes, consist of Board of Education members of staff and teachers from Turkey. As such, they constitute the


A redesigned course

curriculum on Democratic Citizenship and Human Rights Education for

secondary education and a draft Democratic

School Culture framework have been

written

Foundation. The main purpose was to acquire a better understanding of different perspectives including political and practical implementations in curriculum develop-ment and the ongoing review process in the field of citizenship education. The visit included information on the context of citizenship in the uk and details of various projects and specific programmes to sup-port teachers and schools, presented by the Citizenship Foundation and the Association for Citizenship Teaching (act). The delega-tion also visited the Parliamentary Education Service at Westminster and had the oppor-tunity to observe Primary and Secondary citizenship and human rights education closely in three schools in and around the London area.

The delegation also visited the Department for Education and heard about their engagement in Europe and the current developments in the Curriculum Review. The Curriculum Development Working Group and Curriculum Review Working Group also participated in a session in the Institute of Education where they discussed the importance of teacher training, particu-larly in dealing with controversial issues in the classroom.

The third visit was to Stockholm, Sweden, in April 2012 and was undertaken by the members of the Democratic School Culture Working Group, senior officials of the Board of Education, and one representa-tive from each of the other wgs. The existing democratic environment in Swedish schools was the main reason for involving people from different working groups as well as senior officials. Participants had the oppor-tunity to closely observe the school environ-ments and practices in different schools located in various areas around Stockholm.

2. Developing materials and training in preparation for a pilot from September 2012 in schools in 10 Turkish provinces.A re-designed draft elective course cur-riculum on dchre for secondary education (students age 15 to 16) and a draft Democratic School Culture framework have been writ-ten that build on the experience from these three study visits, the information and input gained through the review of national and

international resources and training sessions with national and international experts. An accompanying handbook and training materials to support teachers, school lead-ers and students have also been produced in preparation for their pilot implementa-tion in schools in 20 Turkish provinces from September 2012. We are pleased to report that following successful workshops to share these materials with relevant stakeholders these resources were officially approved by the Board of Education in July 2012 for use in the pilot.

3. Building awareness about the Project and increasing its profile within TurkeyConsiderable work has been undertaken to raise awareness about and build support for the project among key stakeholders in politi-cal and civil society, from teachers, students and school leaders to parents, non-govern-mental organisations, provincial education directors and those who work in the Board and Ministry. Such support is vital not only during the project but also after its comple-tion to ensure that its outcomes become accepted and embedded across the Turkish education system and in Turkish society, spreading out from those involved in the pilot phase and in on-going training.

A number of high profile actions have taken place to build such awareness and support. They include a Launch Conference for the Project in April 2012 where the Education Minister for Turkey, Ömer Dinçer, officially launched the project in front of an invited audience of 200 key stakeholders and national media. He spoke of the Project as ‘an important step toward strengthen-ing human rights, democracy and equal opportunity for men and women’. The Launch Conference was followed in June 2012 by workshops for stakeholders, held in Kizilcahamam, to discuss the draft materi-als for pilot phase. The Board of Education officials and the Council of Europe team also undertook a visit to some of the schools to be involved in the pilot in the province of Konya. Further awareness-raising is being achieved through the use of ict and social media. The Project has an interactive web-site with up-to-date details about latest developments supported by Twitter and


FeatureStrengthening democracy and human rights / Zafer Çelik et al

be to ensure the success of the pilot phase. Starting from the last week of August, ac-tion will resume with information meetings and initial trainings for teachers and school leaders held in pilot provinces across Turkey to facilitate pilot implementation of the elec-tive edc/hre course for secondary educa-tion and the Democratic School Culture Framework both in primary and in second-ary schools. These meetings and initial train-ing activities are of vital importance for the project as they will be the key to introducing the curriculum and the democratic school culture concept in pilot schools and prepare pilot school teachers, and school principals for implementation.

The Ministry’s recent decision to teach the compulsory edc/hre course in the 4th grade in primary schools also has a major impact on the Project. The current Curriculum Development Working Group has been asked to start revising the compul-sory edc/hre curriculum to meet the needs of those at the age of 9-10. Accordingly, all educational materials will also be revised, which gives the project a new dimension.

There will also be a considerable focus on ensuring rigorous monitoring and evalu-ation of the pilot phase so that we know what works best and how materials and training can be further improved, ready for national roll out across all schools and provinces.

While we are fortunate to be involved in implementing the biggest investment in Europe in the field of edc/hre, with the chance to have a major impact in and beyond Turkey, at the same time, we are also acutely aware of the huge responsibility this places on us to ensure that the Project succeeds. We are aware that the eyes of other European countries are upon us and that if we are successful, many of those countries will be following our example. Turkey may well have to prepare itself for study visits from other parts of Europe and the world, thereby helping to give back and add to what it has benefited from learning from those in other countries, including the United Kingdom.

For further information see our website: http://www.edchreturkey-eu.coe.int/News_EN.asp ; our Facebook profile: http://www.facebook.com/#!/groups/dchreankara ; and we tweet from: twitter.com/dchreproject. ▪

We are aware that the eyes of other European countries are upon us and that if we are

successful, many of those countries will be following our example

Facebook feeds. It also has monthly bul-letins and an annual report on project

developments to key stakeholders.The dchre Project also supports the

edc/hre Grant Scheme which is imple-mented by the Ministry in parallel to ensure the sustainability of Project results. For this purpose, a successful information tour was carried out in the pilot provinces around the country in July 2012. The High level of participation in the information meetings showed that civil society is also willing to take action and strengthen and multiply the impact of the Project in the regions.

4. Raising the profile of the Project in and beyond EuropeGiven its size and scale (it is the largest funded project in this area currently in Europe) the Project is important not only for the future of edc/hre in Turkey but also for on-going developments in this area in Europe and beyond. It provides a unique opportunity for the Council of Europe, in partnership with the eu, to share with Turkey the experience and expertise built up over the last 15 years of its flagship edc/hre. However, this is not a one-way process. While it has been helpful at the start of the Project to make use of the expertise built up across other European countries and institu-tions, in time, as the Project becomes embed-ded across the Turkish education system and society there will be a great opportunity for Turkey to share its experiences with those in other countries in and beyond Europe. In order for this to happen it is vital to build the profile of this Project beyond Turkey from the start. Conferences, the Project website, twitter and facebook feeds, monthly news-letters and annual report of activities are further important means of continuing to raise the Project’s profile, alongside articles such as this.

Future activitiesThe Project has a clear three year programme mapped out through to mid-2014 to ensure it delivers it aims and outcomes. A strong start has been made as we reach the end of the first year, but there is still a considerable way to go and many things still to be achieved. The main focus in the coming months will


Teaching Citizenship through Traditional TalesSue Ellis & Deirdre GroganPublished by Scholastic

If the World Were a VillageDavid J Smith & Shelagh ArmstrongPublished by A&C Black

The Adventures of a NoseVivianne Schwartz & Joel StewartPublished by Candlewick PressReviews by Denise Howe

Whilst the debate continues about the place of Citizenship in the Primary Curriculum, those of you who address it on a daily basis can have no doubt that is alive and well in every discussion and debate you have in your primary classroom about fairness and equality, rights and responsibilities, rules and regulations. Those of us who balk at the ‘tenuous links syndrome’ can rest assured that we can deal with Citizenship more than adequately with a resource many of us have in abundance – children’s literature.

It may help you to think of your cata-logue not in terms of literacy genres, but in terms of citizenship themes – such as global issues, fair trade, community and belonging, political issues, similarities and differences. None of the recommendations below will make an honest and worthwhile contribu-tion to Citizenship in the curriculum and life of the school unless they are a starting point or a springboard for action – even though they are obviously also a good read!

Teaching Citizenship through Traditional Tales is a good starting point, as many pupils will know the stories well. However this book is written in the form of letters – from Goldilocks’ Mum, Hansel and Gretel, The Ugly Sisters, Jack (of Beanstalk fame) and many more – each posing moral questions about the challenges they face in the stories, which will be echoed by your pupils’ chal-lenges in real life. Each letter is correctly laid out (good literacy models) and teaching notes are provided at the head of each page with prompt questions and points to think about and discuss. Children can then write a response based on their discussions and an-swers. The book allows children to: engage in honest debate about key citizenship con-cepts; explore the process of making moral decisions and judgements; consider the value, power and uses of money; and explore how different situations can be interpreted

and how their own views are informed by their experiences. The letter writing task fits neatly into a literacy session as well as pro-viding a starting point for circle work or a campaign from the school council.

If the World Were a Village visualises the global population as just 100 people living in one village – only nine of those speak English, 24 have televisions and 17 cannot read. Colourful illustrations on each page take us on a journey through the villagers’ lives – what they eat, their religions, how old they are, how many possessions they have etc. It’s a wonderful exercise in global citizenship, with the literacy genre of ‘lists’, of course!

My third recommendation is The Adventures of a Nose which deals with cel-ebrating uniqueness, yet fitting in. I always read this with no introduction at all, show-ing each gloriously illustrated page as I turn it. If your class is particularly observant (or you have lots of ‘visual’ learners) they will begin to realise what is on each page and what develops as the book comes to an end. I won’t spoil it by telling you – other than to say it is the best book I have ever found for dealing with ‘needing to belong’ and I tell my groups of teachers that children are all like noses – they need to stick out, but fit in!

As a last word, I came across Random House Books’ site which has a great pdf on books for pshe and Citizenship, with three pages of recommended books on ‘Preparing to Play an Active Role as Citizens’ — I commend them for that wording, as well as the excellent selection of useful and attractive literature. ▪

Reviews

Primary Citizenship: Teaching Through Text

Denise Howe is a member of the ACT Council and helps to coordinate the ACT North East network.

he current draft is so min-imal and in many ways so vague, that it requires considerable interpreta-tion and creativity in mak-ing it work. If it makes it into the final version for example, what will we do with the phrase ‘precious liberties’? We will have to interpret it – presumably back into the language of

rights – and then think about what to teach, how to teach it, the order in which to teach it and of course, the point of teaching it. There will be no officially sanctioned schemes of work to use as a starting point, such as those the qca used to produce, and so we will have to draw on our own skills as curriculum planners.

But, there is a problem – good me-dium term planning is difficult. This is always one of the most challenging skills we try to teach new teachers on our pgce course, and every year I am surprised by who does and who doesn’t get it. I am especially worried that despite our best ef-forts over the years, many people have learned to use the qca or other published schemes of work as their starting point, and therefore may lack the confidence to start with a fresh, blank sheet of paper and build a robust plan from scratch. In an attempt to spell out what processes are involved, my colleague, Marcus Bhargava, and I have devised the fol-lowing model to help those who may struggle to get a grip on the process of planning. We are in the process of writing a book to explain these stages, and to illustrate how experi-enced teachers plan, by using a range of case studies.

The five ‘A’s in a nutshellWe start with the need for teachers to articulate exactly what the scheme of work is for. What knowledge, conceptual understanding, skills and attitudes will be developed?

This requires teachers to have thought about the area deeply before deciding what to include and just as importantly what to exclude. The next stage is about getting this stuff into some sort of order. What is the best starting point? What are the staging posts along the way? What knowledge is needed in order to support higher levels of thinking? Aligning the content is all about assessing the ‘learning demands’ and getting a logical sequence established. Only then does it make sense to add in the activities that will support the learning. The fourth stage involves establishing a viable mechanism for collecting feedback on how well students are learning and this may involve back-tracking to activities to ensure they provide you with the evidence you will need. The final stage in the model reflects the fact that a first plan is only the starting point and the point of the assessment is to ensure you can col-lect enough information to change the scheme as you progress. The fifth stage therefore takes you right back to the beginning, and teachers have to be prepared to slow down the scheme to ensure troublesome earlier stages are learned, or speed it up if students are grasping the point quicker than predicted.

We are collecting examples of how experienced teachers undertake these tasks and how they approach their planning. If you would like to participate and share your successes, please contact us to arrange an interview by contacting Marcus at: [email protected]. ▪

planning is an art

ually ...


For some teachers, especially primary teachers of the ‘core’, the new draft curriculum may represent a straitjacket that will inhibit their creativity and professional judgement. For others, not least secondary Citizenship teachers, it may represent a significant liberation. Lee Jerome considers a project to capture the art of planning, which all teachers will need if they are to make sense of what looks set to be a rather muddled and messy curriculum.

The Association for Citizenship Teaching (ACT) is the professional membership association for primary and secondary school teachers involved in delivering Citizenship education.

Teaching Citizenship is our journal. It comes out once a term and is sent direct to all our members. It complements our online resources, our monthly e-newsletters and our face-to-face training or in-school CPD – all these are available to members.

ACT membership provides an outstanding opportunity for professional development, whether you’re new to Citizenship or an old hand. We are a teacher-led independent charity with members across the country, whose principal charitable objective is to further the aims of citizenship teaching and learning.

For teachers, ACT membership is only £35 for the whole year. If you’re not already a member then join now and get your own copy of this journal – together with all the other support we offer you for teaching citizenship.

To become a member of ACT see:www.teachingcitizenship.org.uk /signup

We provide CPD, teaching resources, policy updates, e-bulletins and more:

l Keep your professional knowledge up to date l Discounts on national and regional CPDl Get Teaching Citizenship delivered to your doorl Link-in to a wealth of experience and expertisel Access teaching resource recommendations onlinel Get specialist advice

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Reach an invaluable audience of teachers, educationalists, academics, policy-makers, campaigners, opinion-formers and others engaged in political and civic life. Teaching Citizenship has a readership of

over 5000 in staffrooms, workplaces, homes and libraries across the country – and around the world with our digital edition, available online at issuu.com. (20% discount for ACT members!) To place an advert, or to discuss tailored marketing solutions, contact: Lionel Openshaw, Design & Production Editor email: [email protected] or telephone: 07985 979 390.

Promote your resources, campaign or product in Teaching Citizenship

A day of CPD for Citizenship teachers and education professionals

Tuesday 9 July 20139.30 am – 4.00 pm

University of London UnionMalet Street, London WC1

To book your place, see: actconference2013.eventbrite.co.uk

The conference will celebrate the continued growth of Citizenship, help you prepare for the new curric-ulum and bring you up to speed on the latest changes to the subject.

Choose from a range of workshops and seminars that will equip you with fresh ideas and resources. These are tailored to the big themes and issues of the new curriculum. Displays of resources by leading publishers and NGOs will enable you to browse the best products that make Citizenship such a vibrant subject.

Keynote speaker: David Blunkett MP – political founder of Citizenship education and a key ally in maintaining the status of the Citizenship in the new curriculum.

National Citizenship Education Conference 2013

RelaunchingCitizenship

Documents

Teaching Citizenship journal / Issue 36 / Summer 2013