The authors evaluate the actual contribution to classroom practice of recent research in citizenship education conducted by two major international organizations: the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA) and the National Foundation for Educational Research (NFER). The paper adopts Egan's (2002) critical framework that contends much of the current research in education simply establishes empirical connections between ordinary language concepts that are already conceptually linked. Consistent with Egan's critique, the authors' analysis reveals a recurring pattern of analytic connections between the concept of democratic citizenship and the subsequent recommendations for practice offered in both of these reports.