As all eyes are on the Olympics and debate continues about what Danny Boyle’s opening ceremony states about who we are and what we value – its a great time to talk about Citizenship Education.
At Parliamentary Year Book, alongside keeping one eye on our athletes, we continue work on our goal of building greater support for the continuation of National Curriculum Citizenship Education in England. Last week, in the latest of a series of sessions with the DFE, we discussed the future of primary Citizenship education. Since 2001 Citizenship has been a non-statutory subject within the primary curriculum being element of a joint national framework alongside PSHE education.
Yet Citizenship and PSHE are not the same.
PSHE education focuses on children’s personal and social development, to ensure they live healthy and safe lives, make positive choices and decisions about their learning and lives, and manage their finances effectively.
Citizenship focuses on children’s social development and appreciation of society and the wider world, assisting them to see themselves as members of society; developing their understanding of democracy, diversity, social justice, fairness, rights and responsibilities; and learning to contribute positively to their communities and to democratic and public life.
This curriculum review offers an excellent chance to clarify the status of Citizenship and its unique contribution to the primary curriculum. There is strong support for statutory primary Citizenship. In the DFE Call of Evidence on the curriculum review, more than 80% of respondents to queries about key stage 2 and almost 60% at key stage 1, stated Citizenship should be made statutory. A evident national statement on primary Citizenship would additionally assist those schools who have been unclear about the subject strengthen their curriculum and teaching.
What next
The session with the DFE did not reveal their intentions for primary Citizenship yet did allow for a full and frank debate of the significance of the subject for younger children. Citizenship matters now more than ever and the new curriculum needs to outlined evident national expectations for what learners should know, appreciate and be able to do in the subject. A new curriculum should allow for the distinct approaches in which primary schools organise their curriculum yet must additionally lay strong foundations for citizenship learning and progression to the subject in secondary education.
Following the publication of our Curriculum Thinking paper, Parliamentary Year Book continues to work on proposals for a new primary and secondary curriculum for Citizenship with a view to sharing these with the DFE.
We hope the constructive dialogue will continue and that when the government finally announces its proposals for a new National Curriculum it will be positive for Citizenship. For further guidance, see the relevant UK information.
