How do schools educate students to be active citizens:? A Case Study of Citizenship education in Canada

Abstract

Although educating active citizen who participate in civic and political life is a fundamental goal of education, in general, and of citizenship education, in particular, there are very few empirical studies that inform us how the school educates for this purpose. This study, conducted in three Civics classrooms in Ontario, Canada, investigates how teachers prepare their students for active citizenship. Drawing on citizenship theories and an examination of citizenship pedagogy through observations of class instruction and interviews with teachers and students, the results of the study reveal that teachers’ understandings of what constitutes active citizenship greatly influence how they educate for active citizenship. I detail three distinct understandings of active citizenship that are advanced through class instruction: the duty-based, the make-a-difference and the politically-oriented active citizenship. The article discusses important implications that these differing understandings and pedagogical approaches have as they delineate different expectations and paths for youth citizenship participation in public life.