Learning Power

    This post is a summary of the book with the title above published at http://www.campaign-for-learning.org.uk/cfl/assets/documents/Publications/LearningPower.pdf

             The author's objectives with this book are: 1) Raise standards and improve the quality of citizenship within communities, by educating and developing the capacity and skills of people in the community; 2) Advance non-partisan political education in relation to the rights, liberties and duties of all citizens. This discussion paper considers how learning can improve opportunities and life chances for all citizens, especially the poorest. A strategy for learning should set the vision, direction and resources for people to develop their talents and make the world a better place. To create "a more prosperous and fairer society" community learning can be more important for social inclusion. Vocational qualifications are not the main factor in differences in economic performance between countries. Management practices, investment, innovatin and other factors account for  60-80% of the productivity gap between countries. Economics Nobel Laureate Herbert Simon estimated that 90% of national income is due to social capital in the form of knowledge embedded in technology, organizational and governmental skills. As a democratic principle, every citizen should be entitled to learn political literacy to take part in politics, just as they are entitled to become literate. There is a strong case for treating campaigning politics as public benefit. Discontent is a driver of innovation, challenging people to deal with difficult issues. Enabling people to take an active part in governance would improve democratic decision-making at all levels, just as companies improve efficiency as a result of competition. Our national strategy for learning and skills should be central to our future as a nation. Its vision sets the direction and allocates resources for people to develop their talents. The economist Elhanan Helpman estimates that 60 - 80% of economic growth comes from innovation and new knowledge. Innovation includes new ways of organising work as well as new goods and services. In the book, "Ready or Not? Taking Innovation in the Public Sector Seriously", Geoff Mulgan and the Young Foundation make the case for better investment in social innovation to improve societies' ability to solve problems. Innovation to end social exclusion is potentially the most productive are for learning and skills. A London School of Economcs (L.S.E.) study estimates that youth exclusion, young people not in education, training or employment, costs billions a year. Tacking difficult social problems like these at source could cut the cost of remedial expenditure and release large resources for positive purposes. But this can not simply be done through top-down delivery by government. Social exclusion can not be addressed by government alone. Individuals and community, in addition to the private and third sector, all have a role to play. But most of all, people who are suffering social exclusion must want progress for themselves and those around them. The Leith Review and most strategies for social inclusion start from what people lack. They measure and define people in terms of deficits rather than strengths, perpetuating the sense of deprivation and dependence. Asset-based Community Development (ABCD) takes the opposite approach. It recognise that some communities face immense challenges, but start from people potential. Enterprise is the art of mobilising under-valued assets to create additional value. Social enterprise simply means using business methods to achieve social change. Poverty and social exclusion reflect critical needs that are not being met at present. This approach is about mobilising assets to meet these and other social needs. This approach could play a major role in transforming public services, devolving power and enabling services users to take responsibility. The principles for investing in social inclusion seem relatively simple: 1) Find people with commitment to make things happen. 2) Listen out for what motivates them and makes them comes alive. 3) Inspire them to develop their confidence, skills and knowledge. 4) Provide appropriate support. 5) Create opportunities for things to flourish. This kind of influence, this voice, is a critical asset for any community. It is the 'place shaping power' which ultimately decides, directly or indirectly, how land is used, what services provided, etc. The power and abilities to govern, regulate and allocate resources in an area are key assets that shape the opportunities open to individuals and communities. Political decisions can dramatically improve or damage a country or an area, They affect services, investment and many aspects of life beyond the control of people who live there. All change agents use and engage with power to bring about change, but the political nature of power is often neglected. This may be because power can be diffuse and obscured. Access to power is often treated as a private asset by leaders. Yet, the power to influence and make decisions is key to bring change. Power is like information or ideas, the more you share, the more it spreads. Learning about power is therefore critical for social inclusion. How much people can use their talents largerly depends on the opportunities open to them. This is part of the 'social capital' of personal relationships and networks which, according to Herbert Simon, make the largest contribution to national income. How a school, library, park, hospital or other services is run makes a big difference to people's opportunities. Property laws can stimulate or stifle enterprise. education establishments can encourage or inhibit learning. The way in which institutions are governed is perhaps the most powerful factor in fostering innovation. Families are our most influential place of learning and the basis for attainment throughout life. Social exclusion imposes a high cost on society. But poorest communities will always came last unless they too can influence the institutions which shape their lives. To achieve lasting change, poor people need to take part. Participation in policy-making through consultation, social enterprise and other forms of involvement can only go so far. People who want something different also have the option of organising to take power through elections themselves. Practical political education must be a central part of the national skills strategy if it is to equip people in poor communities to transform their lives. Citizens need to be able to increase the opportunities available to them. They need to learn how the system works, develop confidence and strengthen their collective voices. What is practical political education? Politics is the science of government. Politics in its broadest sense is how people govern their society and institutions. Practical political education means learning how to take part in politics to achieve objectives. This means learning: 1) What decision-making and wider political processes affect you, your interests and what you want to do. 2) How to influence and engage with these processes. 3) Appropriate skills to influence decision-making. 4) About the issues and policies relevant to your interest. Making democratic politics accessible and attractive matters. Wider participation leads to better decisions and greater ownership of the outcomes. If people feel excluded from decision-making they will seek other means of redress. Learning practical politics is at least as important for society as business studies is for the economy. Campaigning is fundamental to social progress. Without it, we would not have abolished slavery, child labour, etc. The vote, human rights, social security, public health, consumer protection and many other things we take for granted took huge political effort. Our system of government is based on democratic decision-making, yet there is very little education or training to help people learn how to take part. By contrast, every city has business support services. Election campaigns are a limited form of political education, and possibly the only time many people think about politics. Yet political issues affect everyone. Almost everyone wants things done that could be achieved through politics, if they knew how. There is little political education available to most people. The following list tries to summarise the overlapping range of provision, from the most general citizenship education to the most results-oriented campaign training: 1) Political studies, which is largely academic but no less important for practice. 2) Citizenship education in all secondary and primary schools, which at its best enables pupils to take part in decision-making at school or to campaign about things that concern them. 3) Education to promote engagement in the democratic process such as the Electoral Commission's Partnership. 4) Public consultation which are mainly learning by doing and often don't have an explicit political edducation. 5) Communnity development learning, mainly through experience and short courses. There is a tendency to downplay politics when discussing political education by using terms like citizenship, advocacy and public affairs. This is partly because of fears that it will be attacked as indocrination and partly because people are so turned off politics that they need to be pempted in other ways. Many leaders and public authorities are wary of letting people get too involved in politics. Yet politics is everywhere, in every group and every relationship between groups. Many citizens feel powerless, excluded or trapped in a cycle of disadvantage. All of society suffers as a result. Most individuals and communities have greater abilities and assets than they are able to use fully. Creating the right conditions for people to flourish requires both support and opportunity to develop individual capabilities and commitment. Political skills is require to create and use good governance. Politics is the way in which we as a society learn how to govern ourselves, how to respond to challenges and how to create the kind of world we want. What happens in politics has a profound impact on our everyday life. Education, training and support for practical politics are therefore essential for a national strategy aimed at promoting prosperity and fairness for all. Sharing power increases the amount of power in society. Enabling people to learn how to increase and use their power effectively will increase society's ability to tackle the vast range of issues confronting us in the twenty-first century.