MYPs meet the minister
Two Warwickshire Members of Youth Parliament (MYP) met Diana Johnson MP, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Schools, and the government minister responsible for the national curriculum.
North Leamington School sixth former Ben Wesson, Deputy Member of Youth Parliament who represents Warwick District and Nuneaton-based MYP Victoria Fowler met the minister to discuss their national campaign dubbed Value the Vote.
Value the Vote, a campaign initiated in Warwickshire, aims to make politics a way of life for teenagers nationwide through the introduction of a compulsory entity of the national curriculum. The duo have been supported in their campaign work by Warwickshire County Council’s Youth and Community service.
Victoria said: “Education is about preparing young people for adulthood and ensuring they have the best possible chances in life. By raising the importance and presence of political education in schools and colleges, increasing participation and emphasising the role of school councils we can teach young people the basics of politics to ensure they have the know-how, opportunity and confidence to participate.”
Ben said: “What we need to do is strip politics to the bare bones; show young people how important it is through highlighting how it affects their day-to-day lives, and ensure they understand how they can get involved.”
Article 12 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child states that “children have the right to say what they think should happen, when adults are making decisions that affect them, and to have their opinions taken into account.”
Ben added: “A key response to Article 12 would be to ensure that young people have a strong understanding of political education from age 11.”
He believes that this in turn would “equip young people to be able to make decisions in future around many significant areas, including local government issues as well as helping young people take on better leadership skills and being stronger owners of their own destiny.”
Diana Johnson told the Warwickshire MYPs that she would look into the specific elements of politics that already feature in the national curriculum, as it stands today.
Meanwhile, Leamington MP James Plaskitt has backed the MYPs’ cause by tabling an Early Day Motion this week. In it he asks the House to recognise the importance of civic education and calls on the Government to introduce more lessons on the subject.