Edexcel GCSE Citizenship Studies (2016)
Here, you'll find everything you need to prepare for GCSE Citizenship Studies from 2016 (first assessment 2018), including our accredited Edexcel GCSE (9-1) Citizenship Studies specification and sample assessment materials.
Developing positive, proactive citizens
Students will have free choice of their citizenship activity so they can choose actions that they care about. Enquiry questions at the start of each theme engage students with what it means to be an active citizen and the role of citizenship in relation to current issues that impact on modern society.
Our qualification is organised around familiar key issues and debates with clear guidance as to what content needs to be covered. For continuity we have kept and built on existing content such as diversity, human rights, civil and criminal law, parliamentary democracy and actions citizens take to influence decisions locally, nationally and globally.
Our local to global approach enables students to build on their KS3 knowledge of core concepts and how citizenship impacts on their lives before they are introduced to the bigger picture.
Our assessments are designed to be accessible for all students, using clear language and an engaging source-based approach.
We host a number of online and local events to help you get ready to teach the new GCSE and we’ll provide free support materials to help you plan, deliver and assess the new course.
On this page
Further support
Specification
Guide
- Qualification type:
- General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE)
- Level:
- Level 1/2
- Accreditation status:
- Accredited
- Subject:
- Citizenship
- Specification codes:
- 1CS0
- Availability:
- UK and international
- First teaching:
- 2016
- First assessment:
- 2018
Specification
What's changing
These changes will apply to all awarding organisations’ specifications:
- The requirements for carrying out and assessing citizenship action have changed:
- Taking citizenship action will no longer be assessed by controlled assessment, but by an external assessment, weighted at 15% of the overall assessment (which is reduced from 60% controlled assessment).
- Students will be assessed on their own experience of taking citizenship action.
- There is an additional core content, with content areas defined for:
- Democracy and government
- Citizenship participation in democracy and society
- Rights, the law and the legal system in England and Wales
- The UK and its relations with the wider world.
- Citizenship skills, processes and methods are now explicitly expressed.
Our approach
We’re working with the teaching community, higher education and subject associations to design our new qualification for 2016. Our ambition is to develop a citizenship qualification that you will know and recognise, but updated in line with the subject content changes and in response to feedback.
Book your place on our free Getting Ready To Teach events!
Our free Getting Ready To Teach events will support you in delivering our new Edexcel GCSE (9-1) Citizenship Studies specification for first teaching from September 2016.
If you don’t have an Edexcel Online account, you can book by emailing us at trainingbookings@pearson.com.
Download the presentation
Didn't get to one of our launch events? View the presentation here.
Teaching support
We'll provide support for you to plan and deliver the new GCSE in Citizenship. Whatever guidance you're looking for, we're here to help.
- Our Getting Started guide will give you an overview of the new GCSE Citizenship qualification to help you get to grips with the changes to content and assessment and understand what these changes mean for you and your students.
- We'll give you an editable course planner and a scheme of work that you can adapt to suit your department.
- Our mapping documents highlight the key differences between your current GCSE Citizenship specification and our new specification.
See what training courses are available
Visit the citizenship teacher community
New subject content for GCSE Citizenship Studies from the Department for Education
Contact the Citizenship team
Stay informed
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