Citizenship

Peer-led learning

An image of a group of pupils leaning on railings

These materials were developed as part of an innovative project which took place in a number of schools in Glasgow between 2004 and 2007. The work was initially piloted by Eastbank Academy and Lourdes Secondary in partnership with Save the Children and Youth Scotland.

Drawing on their unique experiences growing up in today’s society, the process presented here enables young people to investigate issues of interest or concern to them. This framework supports young people to take ownership of their learning, facilitating them to choose, plan, do, review and assess their own project.

Combining their lived experience with other inputs throughout the project gives young people the opportunity and time to reflect on potentially ‘tough’ areas of their lives and come to different and new ways of understanding them. Examples of previous projects illustrate the diversity of interests and also the adaptability of the process to any setting within or outwith school, and these include: alcohol, vandalism, gang violence, knife crime, refugees and asylum seekers, sectarianism, elections, school development planning and school leaders.

The process can be used in any curricular or non-curricular area of school activity and from around P4 upwards. It can be particularly useful for schools looking to:

  • build the capacity of young people to take responsibility for their own learning
  • work with disengaged or self-conscious children and young people with generally low levels of interest or esteem
  • unite disparate but compulsory elements of young people’s formal and informal education, to help take forward curricular goals effectively whilst building a stronger community service ethic.