Contemporary discussion of the "crisis in democracy" displays a tendency to see young people as the problem because they are "apolitical" "apathetic" and "disengaged" or point to deficiencies in institutions deemed responsible for civic education. This discussion normally comes as a prelude to calls for more…

In the last 20 years, there has been a growing preoccupation with fragile contexts. International development and diplomatic communities have focused on implementing Western-oriented education policies centered on democratisation efforts to transform fragile contexts. In order to understand what happens when education reform policies are enmeshed…

When citizens participate in policy production, the advantages go beyond policy outcomes--though the presumption is that participation leads to better public policy. Robust democracy characterized by agonistic exchanges among policy actors ought to encourage learning, dialogue, empow­erment, equity, and a shared spirit of inquiry. This article…

The emergence of the SuperPACs in American politics is a major issue in the current election. SuperPACs, and the media campaigns they fund, also present a major challenge for media and democratic education. This article explores the issues surrounding SuperPACs and the rise of media in elections and politics in general, and presents some starting…

Discusses Canadian national unity and the social studies curriculum. Suggests regarding Canada as a political whole composed of many cultures. A new K-12 social studies curriculum, which includes a comprehensive program in Canadian citizenship, is needed. The elementary, middle, and secondary students would study citizenship, Canadian political…

This paper identifies project-based curriculum elements to increase postsecondary students' sense of political efficacy and their political interest, knowledge, and participation. It evaluates factors correlated with low levels of voting and the implementation of registration activities as remedies; it then introduces curriculum elements based on…

This curriculum project provides insight into the transformation processes in which the nations of Hungary and Poland have been participating, from approximately 1979-2002. A major focus of the project is to organize a set of information that teachers and students can analyze and understand the Hungarian and Polish quality of life during the…

Liberal democracies depend on the knowledge, character, and imagination of their citizens. Three assumptions underlie this collection of essays on democracy and education: (1) democracy is morally superior to autocracy, whether religious or secular, utopian or mundane; (2) democracies are rare historically and inherently fragile; and (3) there can…

Educators from over 30 countries judged the suitability of incidents in moral education in the context of their native environment. Participants were 54 secondary school principals or teachers, most of whom were graduate students or married to graduate students at the University of California, Santa Barbara. They were given descriptions of 23…

Life is lived in an era characterised by complexity and instability. Pedagogical ideals or educational goals are usually determined based on the socio-political and cultural period in which people find themselves at a specific point in its history. Then, in what ways do people train their principals to be models of and act in line with those…