ABSTRACT
Professor Ivor Crewe of Essex University worked with others to conduct a survey between similar communities in Britain and the United States (1996). The focus of the research was on attitudes towards politics and civic engagement. His study revealed that nearly 80 per cent of British pupils say that out of school they engage in very little discussion at all of public issues, including issues important in their own communities. Many reported strong social norms ‘never to talk about religion or politics’. Those who had such an opportunity at school, however, were shown to be more likely to talk at home or in the community. Crewe concluded that ‘talk’ or discourse is a precondition of active citizenship.
