*clears throat nervously*
now is probably one of the only acceptable situations to use this emoticon (shudder..)- ://
awks.
sorry i haven't written for sooo long. I have been (attempting) to juggle choosing A levels- who would've thought that 4 subjects could be the source of so much stress? I've also been a little caught up with deciding whether I ought to be thinking about finishing Miss Nobody. And i have gone with no. not yet, at least. I think i can probably squeeze a little out of it yet... And, of course, i have been dabbling my toe in my other blog- written alongside the delightful Daisy Chamberlain (aka: fringed and fabulous)- which has been... liberating..... but a little distracting.... sowwwy....
SO with all that said and done it is time for the matter in hand: a blog post.
How do i write these again?
shit.
Today, what promised to be a somewhat dull and greige-tinged citizenship lesson (what fun), took a turn for the better- scratch that.. it took a U-turn for the better- when my deputy head decided that instead of watching us continue to scrawl out mindless, patronising drivel about what elements of politics we think affect us (the premise being that first we write down "GCSEs", "Tuition fees" and "Boris Bikes", get bored or stumped or stuck, think no more and then scribble out "idk" in pink highlighter and then we write an article next lesson on one of these things.) on a mind map with no passion, no enthusiasm, no interest and certainly no answers because, guess what, no one has asked the 15 year olds any questions... surprise surprise.... instead thought that he would actually engage us in debate. radical.
He got up an article on social mobility and asked us whether we really thought our government was representative of the diversity within our society, whether we thought we could ever really be part of it as state-educated women and why our parliament is so dominated by white, middle class, male etonians and oxford graduates. A few timid hands went up. He prized more out of us.
"What about the old boys system? do you think it's just who you know or is it who you are?"
He referenced Russel Brand's call for a revolution, for a rejection of party politics and for an abandonment of the vote. There were nods. More discussion. Ideas were moving round the room.
And it wasn't just interesting. It was exciting too. It was exciting to finally see someone recognise that a classroom full of teenagers doesn't have to be a classroom full of politically blank faces. Youth are not idea-less, they are without channels for those ideas. Citizenship classes are meant to inform and engage people in politics. I see them as a good thing. A really good thing. Dammit! An excellent thing. BUT- they could be better. Patronising young people and over-simplifying ideas so as to not seem to be generating revolution or controversy appear to be the main aims it is focussed on at the moment and I simply don't understand. Surely sparking revolution and controversy and questioning are good things? At least if young people are angry, if they are kicking against something, then at least they are thinking?
Maybe politics is being dumbed down for young people because it's easier that way. MPs don't have to shiver on the edge of their seats anxiously awaiting the sound of young fists at the door, young hands that will soon be gripping pens and ballot papers? Maybe it is the threat that an intelligent and informed youth pose to the establishment and to all those Eton old boys that is the cause of this sugar-coated syllabus? Well, if that is the case, as i suspect it might be, i am calling BULLSHIT.
It is in citizenship lessons that people should be beginning to form opinions, ideas and thoughts of their own on the wider issues that face our society outside of the four, poster-plastered walls of the classroom. It is in citizenship lessons that young people should be able to strive to get a new understanding of the whys and hows that make our country tick and how those could be uprooted, why they might be and what part they can play. It is in citizenship lessons that young people should be becoming citizens- citizens that make intelligent voting decisions and citizens that push their politicians to do something rather than just playing the blame game. For it is only when we have a generation of informed citizens that we can have a generation of informed politicians- politicians informed about life outside of Eton, Westminster, Harrow, Oxbridge and Daddy's dinner parties, politicians that, for once, might empathise with their constituents.
And all we need are a few more teachers with a few more opportunities to engage our young people. Social mobility? This is it. This is what it is made of. This is what our country requires.
