- Hey guys, in this video,
Tim is gonna be taking you through everything
that you need for your Edexcel GCSE Citizenship paper two.
If you wanna try more questions, if you wanna see
what sort of things the examiners are looking for
in an answer, then you can go over to the website,
try the course and get the work.
(upbeat music)
- [Tim] There are many opportunities for citizens
to participate in democracy, such as:
voting, elections, referendums,
membership of political parties,
joining interest groups, pressure groups and protest groups,
the use of social media and petitions
and the Magistracy and Civil Courts.
There are also barriers to the effective participation
of citizens in democracy, such as:
age, many things require you to be 18 or over,
time and money limitations,
being a member of a political party,
an interest group or pressure group
can require a subscription which may not be affordable,
and extensive time involvement, which may not be practical.
Apathy and indifference, not knowing or not caring
what is happening,
misinformation and fake or biased news.
Joining an interest group can have advantages
and disadvantages.
The advantages are that you can get involved
with a cause that you believe in,
you can meet like minded and sympathetic friends
who share your values,
and you can further a cause and help to do good
in your community.
The disadvantages are the Echo Chamber phenomenon,
where large amounts of people in a group who all agree
just reinforce each other's views
without ever challenging them.
You can open yourself up to online trolling and abuse,
and time and money commitments are required.
There are also advantages and disadvantages
to joining a political party.
The advantages are that there is potential progression,
or a career.
You can influence policy and individuals
and you can support a philosophy or individual
that you agree with.
The disadvantages are the cost, joining a political party
requires a donation or subscription.
The effort and time required, especially if you're
involved in campaigning,
and the potential alienation that you may feel
from friends or family.
Similarly, standing as a candidate for election
has advantages and disadvantages.
The advantages are the raised profile and status,
and the ability to influence the debate
and get your voice heard.
The disadvantages are the time, effort and money commitment
and the opening yourself up for abuse and ridicule.
Interest groups and pressure groups have several roles.
They campaign for or against a particular cause or policy.
They represent a specific group of people.
And they raise awareness of a problem or issue.
Examples include: Stonewall,
who campaigned for LGBTQ+ rights.
Extinction Rebellion, who campaign on behalf
of the environment and against climate change.
Leave.EU, who campaigned and continue to campaign
for Britain's exit from the European Union.
Fathers4Justice, who campaign for the rights
of estranged fathers.
Britain First, an English Nationalist association.
And Caged, who campaign
for the rights of retired greyhounds.
Trade unions also have several roles.
They represent employees in the workplace,
things like tribunals and formal meetings.
They campaign for Employee Rights within an industry.
They organize and vote on the appropriateness
of industrial action, such as strikes.
And they provide advice and guidance to their members,
examples include: Unison,
The PCS which is the union for the civil service,
The CWU, the communication workers union
and the National Union of Students.
Charities and volunteer groups also have several roles.
They take practical action to relieve a problem,
they provide care, people or services,
they run not-for-profit shops and cafes,
and they campaign and fundraise around a particular issue.
Examples include: The RSPCA, The RNLI,
Mind, a mental health charity,
Save the Children and Christian Aid.
And so, we can look at examples of how citizens
can work together to resolve particular issues.
Extinction Rebellion is an example of citizens
working together to raise awareness of an issue
through protest and civil disobedience.
The RSPCA is an example of citizens working together
to take practical action to identify, rescue
and re-home animals in distress or maltreatment.
The Royal British Legion is an example
of citizens working together to fundraise,
in this case for military veterans.
And Stonewall is an example of individuals working together
to campaign for the rights of a particular group.
The media can also be used to bring about change.
Through the use of social media, where you can use
campaigns, events and "memes"
to make a point or put forward an opinion.
Traditional radio or TV reaches a larger
and generally older audience.
Newspapers and magazines reach a wide and targeted audience.
And traditional press releases and events
can generate headlines and potentially controversy
which can influence the news agenda.
There are many ways in which citizens can become involved
in the legal system,
as a juror where they may decide on the innocence
or guilt of defendants.
As a witness where they may give evidence or testimony
in civil or criminal cases.
As a victim, where they can report crimes to the police
and give evidence.
As a magistrate, where they may decide on the guilt
in minor cases, or carry out routine legal processes
such as the awarding of bar licenses.
As a special constable where they assist the regular police
as back up where needed.
Or as a Police and Crime Commissioner,
as an elected party political member of the public
who, when elected, sets the priorities for local police.
During your study of GCSE Citizenship,
you will have looked at undertaking
a practical investigation.
And this is the process you should've followed.
Firstly, the forming of a reasonable question.
Secondly, the forming of a hypothesis
based on that question.
Thirdly, the planning of a method to carry out
your investigation.
Fourthly, the carrying out of research
on the question that you have formed.
Fifthly, analyzing the data and results you have collected.
And lastly, evaluating the research as a whole.
There are several types of source we encounter
when doing research.
Primary sources come direct from the source.
Secondary sources are written about a subject
or after events.
Textual sources are things like speeches,
articles and books.
Statistical sources are data and numbers.
Examples include the following:
a Primary Textual source might be a speech by a politician.
A Secondary Textual source might be articles
and books written after an election about that election.
Primary Statistical data would be direct from the source,
such as government census data.
Secondary Statistical would be analysis of opinion polls
in a newspaper.
So, what makes a source reliable?
Reliable sources should be free from bias.
They should use limited or no emotional or emotive language.
They should be factual and evidence based.
You should expect to see listed references and sources
for their information.
There should be clear authorship
and it should be clear where the funding has come from,
and they should not be publicly editable,
like Wikipedia for example.
Examples of sources are the following:
Wikipedia, which is an unreliable source
as it is publicly editable.
The BBC which is considered to be reliable,
as it has clear funding, no bias and is factual.
Census Data is also reliable as it is factual,
without bias, has clear sources and funding.
The Office for National Statistics is also reliable,
it's factual, it's not biased and it has clear sources
and funding.
Social media is an unreliable source,
authors and funding are unclear and it is publicly editable.
Tabloid newspapers are also unreliable,
they use emotive language and are biased.
So, what is the difference between a hypothesis
and a theory?
A hypothesis is an idea yet to be proven or disproven
by investigation or evidence.
A theory is an explanation supported by
the majority of evidence available.
When formulating a research question,
you should consider the following:
is it feasible?
Can it actually be answered?
Is it reasonable?
Is the research to do it actually possible?
Is it biased?
Is it an inherently biased question?
Is it new, or has this research been done many times before?
And is it relevant, is there a purpose to the research?
So, let's look at some good and bad research questions.
Good ones include the following:
"Did turnout generally increase or decrease
from 1970 to 2019?".
That's a very much feasible, reasonable research question.
Did Theresa May generally focus on Brexit
during her speeches made as Prime Minister?",
"Is there a link between weather conditions
and turnout during 20th Century general elections?",
"To what extent did John Major refer to crime
and punishment during speeches made as Prime Minister?".
Examples of bad research questions include the following:
"Did household income influence voting behavior
during elections in the 1920s?".
Data for that is all likely to be available.
"Did the anti-Semitism of Jeremy Corbyn
lose him the 2019 election?",
that's an inherently biased question.
And "How does Boris Johnson react to the use of
Italian slang during interviews?",
that's a question with questionable relevance.
When evaluating your research,
these are useful points to consider.
Did you prove or disprove your hypothesis?
Could your research be repeated?
Could your sample size be larger?
Were there problems with your process or method?
Could you draw conclusions from your research?
And what further research could be done
on the back of yours?
There are many different types of media in the UK.
Such as traditional television, things like the BBC, ITV,
and Channel 4.
There is also digital television such as Dave,
UKTV Gold and shopping channels.
Newspapers such as The Times, The Daily Mail
or The Independent.
Radio, such as BBC Radio, BBC Local Radio,
and commercial stations like Classic FM.
There is also social media such as Facebook,
Twitter or LinkedIn.
And lastly there are streaming services such as
Netflix or Britbox.
A Free Press is critical to the proper functioning
of democracy.
We can define a Free Press as media free of
political oversight and control,
and free to print what it likes
and freely criticize and parody the government.
The Free Press has several roles.
The press informs the general public of events.
They influence public opinion.
They provide a place for communication,
discussion of ideas and events.
And they hold those in power to account.
With the freedom of the press comes restrictions
and responsibilities such as
censorship, the press must not publish that
which may cause undue offense or distress.
Accuracy, the press has a responsibility
to publish material and stories which are accurate
and factual.
Privacy, the press must not unduly invade the privacy
of individuals without good cause.
Public interest, the press must only publish stories
which are of relevance or interest to the general public.
And national security, the press should not publish stories
under any circumstance which compromise the security
of the United Kingdom.
The press in the UK is regulated by IPSO,
The Independent Press Standards Organization.
A good case study for this is The News of the World (2011).
The press regulator holds the press and media to account,
ensuring that they meet standards of accuracy,
privacy, public interest, public decency,
and national security.
A court order preventing publication of an item or story
is known as an injunction.
Examples of censorship include
The Watershed, no expletives, nudity or graphic violence
on television before 9pm.
The "bleeping" of inappropriate language
during songs on radio stations,
and warnings before TV programs, giving notice of violence,
sex or expletives.
The UN, or United Nations, was set up after World War Two
to try and regulate the relations between nations.
The UK is a member of the United Nations Security Council
as one of the five permanent members.
The UK is also a member of other UN organizations,
such as the International Court of Justice
and UNESCO.
The UK makes a financial contribution to the UN
and also contributes troops and equipment
to peacekeeping missions.
NATO, or the North Atlantic Treaty Organization,
was set up in 1949 to defend against any action
from the USSR.
The UK forms part of a common defense,
actions taken against one member of NATO
contributes an attack on all members of NATO.
The UK contributes troops and equipment,
and also contributes both funding and leadership.
The WTO, or World Trade Organization, was set up in 1996
to regulate trade and economic activity between nations.
The UK contributes funding,
it helps to draw up an influence regulations,
it contributes personnel and resources,
and it negotiates and debates with other nations
about regulations and rules.
The EU, or European Union,
is an economic and political organization set up in 1958
to provide unified laws, currency and borders
throughout Europe.
Currently, there are 27 members of the European Union.
The UK contributes funding to the EU
and sends MEPs, or members of the European parliament,
to represent the UK within the European parliament.
The UK negotiates with the EU and European leaders
on treaties and formal documents.
The UK provides some staff to manage and run the EU.
The UK also receives grants, funding and subsidies
from the EU,
and helps to form EU rules and regulations.
In future years, this relationship is likely to change.
However, it is unlikely that this change will be examined
on current specifications.
There are several ways in which nation states
can help to resolve international disputes.
With military action there are often questions
of the legality of the action,
and whether it is morally right to intervene
in the affairs of another country.
There is the option of sanctions,
the stopping of trade with a country
or seizing the assets of a country.
There is the option of diplomatic pressure,
attempting to persuade through diplomatic means.
There is the provision of non military personnel,
such as providing advisers, Doctors or aid.
Case studies include Iraq in 2003,
The Falklands in 1982,
and Bosnia in 1992.
There are also ways in which
Non Governmental Organizations, or NGOs,
such as Oxfam, Christian Aid or Doctors Without Borders
can help to resolve disputes.
They can provide medical and humanitarian aid.
They raise funds and supplies,
and they raise awareness of an issue or problem.
Good case studies include Syria, 2011 onwards,
Rwanda in 1994
and Chad in 2006.
- Ouch!
This is why in some videos I have unexplained scratches.
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