Service and citizenship

• Further resources

Overview

• Education is a distinct and separate part of society, playing a preparatory 'service' role to civil society and the workplace
• Education's role is to train individuals to work as effective collaborators and participants in diverse economic and social settings and to teach citizenship
• Specialised knowledge and understanding is developed in industry and other settings outside the formal education sector
• Assessment is summative, and focused on developing accounts of individual contributions to group activities, and providing indications of potential individual performance

In this scenario...

Education is seen as primarily the responsibility of the state and the individual, with the state seen as responsible for 'shaping citizens' able to take on appropriate roles and perform appropriate behaviours in the diverse communities and settings outside formal education.

The state provision of formal education is clearly separated from the rest of society and is seen as fundamentally preparatory for the real world. It focuses on teaching 'civic participation' and on developing specific skills and competencies for the workforce and community. Civic participation is taught by discussion of the roles and responsibilities of individuals in wider society and there is an emphasis on the value of thinking and acting communally.

In preparing individuals for participation in future collaborative communities, the teaching workforce focuses specifically upon a standardised competency based approach, developing problem solving, collaboration and thinking skills. There is limited attempt to provide more than an introduction to the 'basics' of different subject domains, as knowledge is seen as collaboratively produced and rapidly changing in the 'real world' outside schools.

The formal assessment system focuses increasingly on assessing individual learners' capacities to perform in collective and group settings, and to predict individuals' capacity to take on different types of roles in these settings. Citizenship understanding is assessed through individualised assessment of individuals' knowledge of state and civic structures.

See what technology, identity, curriculum and motivation look like in this scenario

This scenario is based on the same world as Scenario 5: Integrated experience and shares its underpinning values. See www.beyondcurrenthorizons.org.uk for a description of their common world.