We support schools to run Digital Surgeries, connecting students and politicians using online platforms, such as Skype,
“Before all of us never really thought that our questions would have been answered or our opinions would have been heard’” Digital Surgeries is an innovation from The Politics Project that aims to transform the way that young people and politicians interact. Our approach is simple – we want every young person during their time at school to have a meaningful, informed interaction with their local, regional or national representatives. We support schools to run Digital Surgeries, connecting students and politicians using online platforms, such as Skype, YouTube or Facebook Live. This gives students a rare chance to engage with their elected representatives, building understanding and relationships on both sides. Digital Surgeries are helping politicians to represent students more effectively, fostering a generation of young people who are confident, politically literate and proactive in engaging with the democratic process.
Benefits An interactive approach to Ofsted Schools now have to teach students about democracy and public institutions as part of SMSC, British Values and Prevent. Digital Surgeries provide an interactive and engaging way to meet these requirements with support around measuring and demonstrating impact.
Valuing students’ voices Through Digital Surgeries politicians demonstrate to young people that their voices matter. This gives students the confidence to speak up and engage in other activities like school council.
Building relationships Digital Surgeries are helping schools to build strong relationships with local politicians, local councils and other local schools. This provides new opportunities for teachers and students to have a say.
Hassle free Digital Surgeries is designed to fit around your school’s teaching schedule. Surgeries can take place in the class room and don’t cause the upheaval of school trips. We provide all the resources, tools and support to let teachers focus on teaching.
Skills and Employability Digital Surgeries build soft skills crucial to employability such as oracy and critical thinking. Much of the preparation before a surgery, such as research and preparing answers to personal questions, is the same process that a student goes through before a job interview. The surgery then provides a real interaction to test and develop those communication skills.
The Programme: The Training Teachers attend our one-day training programme and gain the skills and knowledge to deliver the Digital Surgeries programme. We offer two places per school, and provide guidance on: teaching political structures and levels of government; facilitating conversations between students and politicians; delivering a digital surgery.
Workshops and resources Teachers deliver three hours of political education workshops. These can be delivered to suit your school: consecutively in a half-day or in three hour-long lessons. The core resources for these workshops will help students to think about what they want to ask their politician. Following the workshops students will also understand basic political structures and the role of the politician they’ll be speaking to. In addition to these core resources, we also have a range of tailored resources that have been designed to support subjects such as Citizenship GCSE and Government & Politics A Level. This allows Digital Surgeries to integrate into the curriculum and aid the delivery of academic courses. We update all our resources regularly to make sure they are up to date in this fast-paced political climate.
Digital Surgeries Teachers deliver a digital surgery, connecting students with a local, regional or national politicians via Skype, Facebook Live or a similar platform. We will provide inperson support for each school’s first digital surgery and will help to capture the interactions through photos and videos.
FAQs: Q: Do you have to be a Citizenship or Politics teacher to take part? A: No. We work with teachers with a range of academic backgrounds and provide support and top-up toolkits for those a little foggy on the mechanics of political systems. If you are a Citizenship or Politics teacher then we have a range of resources that help to deliver Digital Surgeries as part of the curriculum.
Q: Can the programme be delivered as a drop-down day? A: Yes. You can run the workshops in the morning and then arrange your digital surgery for later in the day. We can even come in and support you!
Q: Do you tailor the experience to different politicians? A: Sometimes. We tailor all the interactions to the level of government that a politician comes from. So for example if you are going to be speaking with a councillor we make sure your students understand local government. Politicians sometimes ask us if a digital surgery can be on a particular topic, such as education. We will always check requests like this with the school to ensure that both sides are happy.
Q: How many students are in the average surgery? A: Most surgeries take place with a class of between 10-25 students. We limit the numbers to make sure that politicians have a real opportunity to have a conversation with each student.
Costs New schools: Digital Surgeries Training - £600 One-day teacher training for two members of staff. A promotion pack including a template press release and photos and videos of your digital surgeries. A personalised impact report. Two digital surgeries. An in-school visit to support your first digital surgery. One-year Digital Surgeries Membership, including 2 additional surgeries and access to our platform of teaching resources. A Digital Surgeries Qualification.
Membership Membership pricing per school: 1-3 surgeries per year - £200 4-6 surgeries per year - £350 7-10 surgeries per year - £500 Membership also includes: Access to our platform of teaching resources Access to a series of exclusive interactions with politicians including Facebook Live chats and events. Some local authorities offer to part fund a school’s membership or training. Get in touch and we can let you know if you are able to receive a discount.
