into broader governmental concerns about the dilution of a sense of patriotic Britishness and the need for what Michael Gove has described as a ' modern, inclusive patriotism '. To redress this situation, Demos propose that the history curriculum in England (but not the rest of the UK) provides greater emphasis on post-1945 national and local history. A sense of pride in their local communities would also be encouraged through intergenerational mixing between young and old. This would suggest Demos concur with the Coalition government's belief that history teaching in school has the somewhat mercurial potential to stimulate a positive sense of national identity. Such assumptions are not however evidentially founded; my research suggests that many young people enjoy studying history but that the correlation between levels of historical knowledge and national pride is questionable (apologies this is pay-walled). Many young people are suspicious of the motivations of government in appropriating history lessons as a vehicle to inculcate patriotic Britishness. It also overlooks pertinent questions about the teaching of patriotism in schools raised by Michael Hand at the Institute of Education. A recent survey conducted by Hand together with Yougov suggests that four-fifths of parents do not want their children taught a patriotic version of British history and instead seek a critical balance between positive and negative constructions of the national past. Hand argues that although teaching patriotism or love of a country may well have benefits, such as motivating citizens to become more engaged or active, this is outweighed