Citizenship Education works! Confirmed by 12 year research study
In parliament on Tuesday (17 March), ACT President the Rt Hon David Blunkett MP led an gathering to share the latest findings from a 12 year research study into the impact of Citizenship Education.
The Citizenship Education Longitudinal Study (CELS) project began when David Blunkett was Secretary of State for Education and was intended to measure and evaluate the impact of the area of study of citizenship that he introduced into the National Curriculum in 2002. Citizenship remains a statutory National Curriculum and GCSE subject in secondary schools today.
The latest research findings draw on the initial cohort of younger people who experienced citizenship education in secondary schools in 2003. The young individuals are now aged 22-23 years old and have been interviewed on six occasions between 2003 and 2014. The findings demonstrate:
Citizenship Education boosts political engagement and younger people who have experienced good citizenship education in and beyond school have more positive attitudes towards voting and other political activities
Voting remains the most frequently reported political activity with 50% of young adults surveyed saying they’re ‘highly probable’ to vote in May and a additional 25% saying they are ‘fairly likely’ to do so
Younger people get more interested in politics and voting as they progress through teenage years to adulthood especially between the ages of 16 and 20 highlighting the need to strengthen post 16 citizenship education.
A panel of experts covering Dr Avril Keating of the Llakes Research Centre, David Kerr former Research Director of the CELS project at the NFER and Associate Director of Citizenship Foundation, Mike Sani from Bite the Ballot and Professor Andy Green, Direct of the Llakes Research Centre joined David Blunkett for a lively debate about the findings in a packed room at parliament.
The gathering was organised by the Citizenship Foundation. A research briefing and powerpoint presentation are available on the LLakes Research Centre website and offer more details about the findings. For further guidance, see the relevant UK information.
This article is cross-posted from the Association for Citizenship Teaching.
