Education for Citizenship and the Teaching of Democracy in Schools*

Reproduction, storage, adaptation or translation, in any form or by any means, of this publication is prohibited without prior written permission of the publisher, unless within the terms of licences issued by the Copyright Licensing Agency. Excerpts may be reproduced for the purpose of research, private study, criticism or review, or by educational institutions solely for educational purposes, without permission, providing full acknowledgement is given. The Qualifications and Curriculum Authority is an exempt charity under Schedule 2 of the Charities Act 1993. The Young People's Parliament, Birmingham, (YPP) – Educating for Democracy – gives young people in Birmingham and the West Midlands a voice-whether on school, local quality of life or wider national issues; and on global concerns such as sustainable development and human rights. The initiative is a partnership between The University of the First Age, Birmingham City Council and the new centre for learning and leisure, Millennium Point. Already by using ICT, websites, video conferencing and e-mail, as well as use of the City's Council Chamber, the young people of Birmingham and beyond have been able to participate in two pilot projects. The General Election project in 1997 linked young people in the West Midlands directly with politicians and provided a lively and robust exchange of views. The first G8 Young People's Summit (YPS) was held in May 1998 to coincide with the G8 Summit meeting in Birmingham. Two youth delegates came from each of the G8 countries as well as the EU. A communiqué was drafted, mainly on the issues of third world debt relief, after a meeting with the Prime Minister. It made a powerful statement for the right of young people to be heard in international affairs. The Youth Parliament Competition is now in its eighth year, organised by the Citizenship Foundation and sponsored by Motorola. Each participating secondary school holds a mock parliamentary session of the pupils' own choosing. There are ministers and shadow ministers and a host of backbenchers on both sides. A twenty minute video of the debate is sent to regional judges and regional winners are then judged by a national panel. There is also a separate political writing competition. The national winners are invited to a presentation at the Houses of Parliament to receive their prizes and to meet senior politicians. The entry for this year's national winner (for the second time), St Michael's Roman Catholic School, Billingham, Cleveland, included …