What is citizenship?
A dictionary definition of the word citizenship refers to legal membership of a country or community that is achieved when formal criteria such as residence or place of birth has been met. Within the UK and the wider world however, the meaning of the word citizenship is now accepted to have both a broader definition and further implications than that.
An active citizen is today described as someone who has roles and responsibilities within the community and one who is concerned with and actively involved in public life. An active citizen has a sense of "belonging" because he or she is effectively engaged with the community through involvement in political and social activities and membership of community groups and organisations.
Scroll down for a definition of "participation" and explanation on how participation links with citizenship.
What is participation?
Participation can be described simply as the act of taking part or sharing in something. Someone who is involved in a decision or activity is in some way participating in that decision or activity. In the context of children’s participation, the word is often linked to children having the opportunity to freely express their views on decisions affecting them.
There are countless examples of children’s opinions being ignored for the mistaken reason that children are not thought to have valid opinions because of their age. The UN Convention on the Rights of a Child states that all children should be able to express their opinion and that it is the responsibility of the adult to give the child freedom to expess their views and also to give due weight to that opinion according to the age and maturity of the child. The whole ethos of Children’s Participation is to move from an exclusionary approach to one of inclusion.
Participation can exist as both a formal and informal process. If children fill in a questionnaire in school to determine which extra-curricular activities are offered, they are taking part in a formal and structured participation process. Children, equally, may comment to staff at school that they would like a particular activity after school, having not been prompted by anyone else to give an opinion. This would be an example of informal and unstructured participation. Under the terms of the UN Convention, people (i.e. parents, teachers, playworkers etc.) who are responsible for children should ensure that the views of the child are considered when decisions are made that affect them.
How does participation link with citizenship?
Participation is a core attribute of active citizenship. An active citizen within their own community is someone who actively participates in their community. When children are able to participate in decisions that affect them, they are nurturing the skills and inclination to develop into active citizens.
Citizenship is also linked to participation within the political arena in that active citizens work to achieve change within their community through democratic processes. Although young people cannot vote until they are 18, they can be encouraged to make positive contributions to their communities and understand that through participation and citizenship, they can achieve change.
