Britain prides itself on being a democracy. Yet the national failure to provide young people with sufficient political literacy means ‘we are delegitimising our democratic process.’

Each year thousands of students leave education without a basic understanding of how the government works, an awareness of current affairs or the critical thinking skills to evaluate different perspectives.

If this goes on, we will have a generation of people who lack the tools to make informed and rational choices about the world around them and participate in their government.

Why is change needed now?

Despite the fact that citizenship was introduced to the national curriculum in 2002, a research report authored by Dr. James Weinberg  in 2020 found that only 29% of students ‘reported whole lessons dedicated to politics or citizenship education occurring once a week or more in their schools.’  

This is a failure at a national level. How is it that the Department for Education can recognise the importance of the arts in the school curriculum yet be blind to the merits of open dialogue, discussions about politics and current affairs, etc?

A report co-published in November 2021, by the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Political Literacy, the University of Sheffield, and Shout Out UK, discovered that, of 3,000 teachers working at more than 2,000 English secondaries, one-fifth were in schools that were teaching no political literacy material at all. 

The study also found that 60% of polled teachers felt responsible for developing young people’s political literacy, but 79% did not think their training or professional development had given them the skills to do so. 

‘Only 1% of teachers felt fully prepared’ to deliver a lesson on political literacy. It would be unacceptable for one fifth of secondary schools not to teach maths and English so why is this figure accepted for Political Literacy?

These statistics have a detrimental effect on electoral participation and the functioning of our democratic system.

 In the 2019 general election, “only 47% of 18- to 24-year‑olds turned out to vote.” Over half of our nation’s young people did not have a say in who is running the country and making decisions on their behalf. 

Democracy relies on the participation of the people. Elections only work when citizens feel like they can choose.

 In a climate where young people are not encouraged to be inquisitive and actively share their views on things that affect them, future decisions such as voting, and elections become foreign concepts to the young adults of today.

Widening disparities

There remain large disparities in the quality of political literacy offered to students in state-funded schools and those that are privately educated. 

Those in the independent sector are more likely to receive a comprehensive introduction to political literacy compared to those in non fee paying schools. 

This is unacceptable. Class or income should not determine the quality of a young person’s education. 

Each child has the right to participate in their government and should be equipped with the necessary tools to do so.

How can we change this?

Collaborative change is needed to reform the state of political education nationally. It is not a simple task that can be achieved by one body. Nor can it be enacted solely from the classroom. This process must be actively supported and encouraged by all parties.

The route to an informed electorate 

Findings from Dr. Weinberg’s report highlighted practical solutions to improve the standard of political literacy in schools:

• Provide every child with a minimum offer of curriculum-based citizenship and political education throughout the school.

• Policymakers should facilitate regular political contact between elected and unelected political actors and school students of all ages.

• School administrators should dedicate regular curriculum time to citizenship and political education across all age groups.

• Schools should encourage regular elections for their school council, organise educational trips to political institutions, and allow students to take part in decision-making about school life.

• The policy community should create resources for teachers or CPD (continuing professional development) packs that can be used within formal curriculum provisions.

• Hold governments to account by scrutinising existing education policies and proposing new policy ideas that can promote young people’s political attitudes.

A message for all

Don’t deprive the leaders of tomorrow the right to political literacy. If we carry on this way, the future of democracy is dire. 

Unengaged young people, low youth electoral participation, and disinformation in the media. 

That is what awaits our nation unless we act now.

Chante O’Shaughnessy, student at University of Southampton, doing work experience at Unlock Democracy.