Free course on the UK referendum on the EU

Join me in this free 4-week course.

Polls seem to indicate that voters in the UK referendum on whether to stay in the EU do not feel well-informed about the issues so this course is an attempt to remedy that. The course is free but there are a very limited number of places so it will be first come, first served. One of the main aims of the course will be to learn some tips and tricks for being able to discuss a political question in a non-confrontational way. So in each of the five weeks, you will have the option of carrying out a discussion task in your own physical environment with friends, families or colleagues.

By the way, the course is listed as a self-access do any time course, but I will be facilitating it for the four weeks starting May 16th.

Course outline

Over 4 weeks we will look at

• What are the issues?
• Transparency, accountability and democracy in the EU
• Trade
• People & immigration
• Wrap-up: Head or heart, where are you now?

We will be using dialogue techniques in the first week to find out what your concerns are regarding the EU  and exploring these in the context of three main areas over the following three weeks.

At the end of the course, you will create an EU quiz that shows what you know about the EU.

There will be a live session in each of the four weeks.

We will not be covering every last detail about the EU and in fact will only have time to cover the basics but you will have an opportunity to follow up on those areas you find most interesting by using the additional information sources provided as a starting point.

What do I offer?

The opportunity to find out more about the implications of the UK referendum on membership of the EU in a respectful and open community. For example, I have stated that I am in favour of the UK remaining in the EU but I am open to discussion.

Who should join me? 

• Those with a vote in the UK referendum
• Those without a vote in the UK referendum but who might be affected by the outcome eg British migrants elsewhere in the EU and EU migrants in the UK or those living in other EU countries.
• Anyone with an interest

Why me?

• I am British.
• I have a stake in the outcome but no vote.
• I wrote a factual textbook about the EU for vocational students in the UK 20 years ago. It’s interesting to catch up on what has happened since then.
• I moved to Denmark and had my two children there but my family remains British on the basis that we are part of a wider European communnity.

Why you should join me

This is an opportunity to discuss the issues in a safe, facilitated environment. We will use respectful dialogue techniques to make sure that all sides of the issues are heard.

I do not know all the answers but I hope that I can point you in the right direction to find the answers you need as we progress through the course.

Expect to use two to three hours a week on this course.

Study materials

I will be recommending freely available resources from both sides of the argument.

I refer to this website https://ystayuk.wordpress.com/ and we will also be using the pro-BREXIT book FLEXCIT which you can download for free here:

Result

The result of taking this course is that you will know more about the European Union and what might happen as a result of the UK vote on June 23rd. You will also have learned about some techniques for discussing political issues in a positive and respectful way.

This course does not prepare you for any test or exam.