Ben Kisby – författare

Votes at 16 weaves together arguments and evidence to present a compelling case in favour of lowering the voting age in Britain to 16.By setting out the key reasons why the voting age should be reduced for all elections, this book powerfully refutes the arguments advanced by opponents of reform to the electoral franchise. Situating votes at 16 in its historical context in Britain, it offers an overview of voting age reform over time and examines the rise of this issue over the last 20 years. It analyses evidence on the introduction of votes at 16 in six countries and argues that this demonstrates 16- and 17-year-olds possess the knowledge and skills to vote. The book also sets out how citizenship education can be enhanced to support the introduction of votes at 16.

Votes at 16 weaves together arguments and evidence to present a compelling case in favour of lowering the voting age in Britain to 16.By setting out the key reasons why the voting age should be reduced for all elections, this book powerfully refutes the arguments advanced by opponents of reform to the electoral franchise. Situating votes at 16 in its historical context in Britain, it offers an overview of voting age reform over time and examines the rise of this issue over the last 20 years. It analyses evidence on the introduction of votes at 16 in six countries and argues that this demonstrates 16- and 17-year-olds possess the knowledge and skills to vote. The book also sets out how citizenship education can be enhanced to support the introduction of votes at 16.

What is character education? Why has it risen up the political agenda in the UK in recent years? And what does it mean in pedagogical practice? This book addresses these questions, challenging the individualistic and moralistic ideas underlying the clamour amongst politicians, educators and authors to promote ‘grit’, ‘resilience’ and ‘character’ in schools. Closely examining a range of teaching resources, the book shows that the development of character is wrongly presented as the solution to a wide variety of social problems, with individual citizens expected to accommodate themselves to the realities of the contemporary economic context, rather than enhancing their capacities to engage in civic and political activities to bring about changes they wish to see. The book argues that there is a tried and tested alternative to character education, which is far more likely to strengthen British democracy, namely, citizenship education.