The time frame of this article covers the Portuguese transition to democracy in the 1970s until the 1990s, when democratic institutions operated fully. The focus lies on the way in which changes in the conceptualization of nature and society and their mutual relationship were reflected in secondary education textbooks. We explore whether and how…

Purpose: Recent trends in Western civics education have attempted to secure democratic institutions from perceived threats. This paper investigates how political securitisation historically operated within civics textbooks in Australia and Aotearoa, New Zealand. It further evaluates how Maori, Aboriginal and other Indigenous peoples were variably…

Teaching material and textbooks undoubtedly operate politically and should be scrutinized concerning the knowledge that they construct and legitimize. But such scrutiny often involves new hegemonies and political complicities that also require further scrutiny. Following Ernesto Laclau and Chantal Mouffe's discourse analysis the present article…

Relying on a theoretical frame developed in reference to an interdisciplinary research field, this article provides a critical analysis of Turkey's citizenship education (CE) curriculum with a view to revealing discourses that inhibit the promotion of cosmopolitan values of human rights, democratic citizenship and diversity. The analysis…

Within the polarised political culture of the 1970s, in which political differences were emphasised instead of being played down, Dutch right-wing politicians frequently accused left-wing politicians and educators of indoctrination in educational settings. In this period of economic stagnation and an ongoing Cold War, peace education -- which was…

This article examines public education and the establishment of the nation-state in the first half of the nineteenth century in Switzerland. Textbooks, governmental decisions, and reports are analyzed in order to better understand how citizenship is depicted in school textbooks and whether (federal) political changes affected the image of the…

Cosmopolitanism and its application for education in western societies has been well examined. Yet cosmopolitanism in society and in education has not been systematically explored in many Asian societies. Facing a large number of people from diverse backgrounds, the society and its education system in Hong Kong are troubled by issues similar to…

This content analysis explored how Civics and Government textbooks and the Virginia Standards of Learning for Civics and Government courses reflect citizenship outcomes, specifically deconstructing the unique needs of marginalized students. The coding frame was constructed by using themes and categories from previous literature, specifically…

Ideological indoctrination is explicit and pervasive in China, with the school curriculum used to mould the spirit and character of adolescents, fulfilling ideological and political purposes. But the exact content varies over time. Comparing two versions of textbooks published in 1997 and 2005, this paper depicts the continuities and change in the…

During a time of post-war sensitivity to Canadian nationalism and patriotism, public feeling was aroused in 1920 New Brunswick regarding a world history textbook with a new chapter about the First World War. The American author made no reference to Canada's war efforts. The subsequent public discussion focused on issues of patriotism, citizenship,…

The purpose of this study is to examine Social Studies textbooks in terms of national and global citizenship. The research was carried out using qualitative research methodologies. Interpretive thematic analysis was used to examine the social studies textbooks from 4th grade through 8th grade. The analyses showed that the Social Studies textbooks…

A quantitative content analysis of three widely adopted high school civics textbooks revealed that concepts associated with traditional liberalism--citizens' rights and freedoms--far outnumber concepts associated with classical republicanism or communitarianism (e.g., civic virtue, the reciprocal relation between citizens' rights and their…

Recognizing the value of studying U.S. history and the contribution of the textbook to the curriculum, Gagnon examines five leading U.S. history textbooks with regard to two questions: (1) how helpful are these books for teaching democracy's ideas, practices, and adventures in the United States, and (2) what might they add to promote political…

Since the collapse of state socialism in East Germany in 1989, political discourse among citizens has changed dramatically. There is now talk of democracy, tolerance, the individual, and democratic socialism. This paper examines the impact of this new discourse upon citizenship education in what was formerly East Germany specifically focusing on…