Citizenship
Curriculum intent
The Citizenship department believes that studying citizenship gives students the knowledge and skills to understand, challenge and engage with democratic society including politics, the media, civil society, the economy and the law.
We are committed to improving our students’ political literacy and understanding of the society in which they live. As firm believers that knowledge is power, the Citizenship department aims to equip its students with the necessary tools to reach their own opinions, analyse political debates, and contribute to their community.
Democracies need active, informed and responsible citizens - citizens who are willing and able to take responsibility for themselves and their communities and contribute to the political process. The citizenship curriculum is designed to help our students develop self-confidence and a sense of agency, and successfully deal with life changes and challenges such as bullying and discrimination.
Citizenship will also give students a voice: in the life of the Academy, their communities and society at large. It enables them to make a positive contribution by developing the knowledge and experience needed to claim their rights and understand their responsibilities. It prepares them for the challenges and opportunities of adult and working life.
For further details of the Citizenship curriculum please see the documents at the bottom of the page or contact Mrs. E. Hamlin.
Implementation
The sequencing of the Citizenship curriculum has been created to ensure there are frequent opportunities for students to retrieve and embed knowledge, as well as build upon their understanding of British society. It has been sequenced directly to ensure that opportunity for discussion is layered and political theories are met with a key stage who are rehearsed in how to facilitate effective discussion.
Students embark on a knowledge-rich curriculum built upon the key concepts of Citizenship. We are determined to build upon our students’ prior knowledge of British society and ensure that we address misconceptions by regularly checking for understanding and consolidating knowledge.
The Citizenship department is committed to delivering its curriculum centred on the Academy’s teaching and learning priorities in order to foster academic rigour among our young politicians. Underpinning our schemes of work lies the HABE Way Principles, including the use of The Big Question to captivate and inspire our students, encouragement of challenge through Thinking Hard strategies and by following the ‘I do, We do, You do’ model of instruction.
To cement their understanding of the importance of active citizenship, students engage in a wide range of subject-related practical activities including organising school-wide campaigns and elections, community-based Character Development Days, as well as attending a wide variety of trips utilising the plethora of significant political institutions on our doorstep. To supplement the vital skill of analysing contemporary political events, students are provided with comparative national and international case studies in order to grapple with citizenship in action.
Impact
Students will be able to analyse contemporary societal issues with confidence, observing the cultural nuances within society. Students will be able to formulate their own opinions about modern Britain rooted in a theoretical understanding of society, and able to communicate their views convincingly using specified criteria to support their judgement.
Lessons are inclusive of challenging articles to improve student literacy and are supported by the explicit teaching of subject-specific terminology in each lesson. To this end, students are able to develop delivery of their opinions through extensive opportunities for debates and extended writing in all Citizenship lessons. We actively ensure that students are well equipped to discuss important societal issues by regularly accessing reliable news sources and are able to determine ‘fake news’ that must be approached with caution, reflecting on the power and influence that the media can make, nourishing their media literacy.
