Democracies rely upon politically knowledgeable citizens for their legitimacy and to sustain themselves. In Australia, policy initiatives have addressed concerns about the low levels of political knowledge among young people. Yet research about how young Australians acquire political knowledge, beyond schools, is scarce. The present study…

Building active and informed citizens is a major part of civics and citizenship education in order to enhance and sustain democracies. Civic learning and civic action opportunities within school contexts are commonly claimed to promote an active and informed citizenry. In the present research, we examine the meaning of formal civics education and…

The global financial crisis has impacted upon the way of life of young Europeans with great severity. Across most European countries youth unemployment has remained stubbornly high for many years, compounding the effects of the crisis on the social and psychological well-being of young people. Given that crises are highly likely to occur in the…

Governments, international organizations and academics have, in recent decades, expressed a sense of crisis in the practice of democracy based largely upon increasing levels of disengagement by citizens from even the most basic elements of civic life. One response has been to devise civics and citizenship education curricula for schools with the…

Citizenship education in established democracies is challenged by declining youth participation in democracy. Youth disenchantment and disengagement in democracy is primarily evident in formal political behaviour, especially through voting, declining membership of political parties, assisting at elections, contacting politicians, and the like. If…

This position paper examines the changing focus of citizenship education in Australia over the past 40 years. Citizenship education has not achieved as high a profile in Australia as in the United States and this situation has become a growing concern for many educators and community leaders. An examination is made on how questioning traditional…

Discusses the historical context of civics and citizenship education in Australia. Addresses the report by the Civics Expert Group, the government's response to the report, and the Discovering Democracy program and policy. Characterizes civics and citizenship education in Australia and considers its future. (CMK)

Charts the rebirth of civics and citizenship education in Australia. Discusses the decline of interest in citizenship education during the 1960s and the educational and social influences leading to its renaissance. Examines the educational model proposed by the Civics Expert Group and extends this treatment to include more egalitarian concepts.…

Describes the recent revitalization of civics education in Australian schools. This approach incorporates traditional citizenship education into a new curriculum that addresses environmental and multicultural issues. Delineates the guidelines and goals of this new curriculum. (MJP)