In societies where authoritarian and populist perspectives are on the rise, a focus on the concept of democracy within education can provide a meaningful space to reflect critically on, and disrupt, the status quo. In post-dictatorship Portugal, democracy has become a central symbolic concept within education policy and, in particular, Early…

The liberal arts tradition is under attack in the United States, even as it is spreading around the globe. That tradition was formalized in Latin Antiquity, but the essential questions and rational methodology that underpin it date to Ancient Greek philosophy. At the core of the tradition is the range of modalities of rational thinking, the main…

Critics suggest that youth lack basic civic knowledge and are disengaging from civic action, particularly political action. The validity of these criticisms depends on how civic knowledge and civic engagement are defined. The results of four studies of civic education, conducted by the IEA over a period of almost 50 years, are examined in terms of…

Educating in a convulsed political context demands a detailed analysis of the new circumstances of our times, especially the current democracy crisis. According to the latest reports issued by international evaluation organisations, one of the greatest challenges for democratic citizenship is the emergence and rise of authoritarianism within the…

Universities play an indispensable role within modern democracies. But this role is often overlooked or too narrowly conceived, even by universities themselves. In "What Universities Owe Democracy," Ronald J. Daniels, the president of Johns Hopkins University, argues that--at a moment when liberal democracy is endangered and more…

Following legislation in 2010, all Swedish teachers, at all levels, had a double mission: to teach democracy as well the content of their subject. This mission was seen as troublesome by evaluating authorities, among others. In the latest state curriculum, rhetoric has re-emerged as a central element of Swedish mother-tongue high school education…

In this paper, Sarah Stitzlein considers the consequences of honesty on our democracy, especially for citizens' ability to engage in civic inquiry together as they face shared problems. Honesty is a key component of a well-functioning democracy; it develops trust and fosters the sorts of relationships among citizens that enable civic dialogue and…

This article presents a review of interdisciplinary scholarship on digital citizenship with 3 different approaches: unidimensional, multidimensional, and critical/radical approaches. By addressing the intersectionality as a critical framework and inquiry, this article advances the concept of digital citizenship effectively responding to the…

What does a learning center for civic education do in a museum environment? How and why can democracy be taught in a museum? The Museum Arbeitswelt in Steyr, Austria, offers with its "Politikwerkstatt" a learning environment for people of different age groups where they can learn, discuss, and talk about democracy. This article shows the…

This study investigates teachers' perceptions of school democracy within a low-stakes accountability context. While previous studies have focused on teachers' perceptions of school climate and citizenship norms, we know less about factors associated with their perceptions of democracy in their schools. Through a multiple regression analysis of…

Mission statements and public statements of values are widely recognized as important for educational improvement, even if often ignored. The mission statements and supporting documents of Utah's 41 school districts were analyzed to locate prominent themes and significant omissions. An unexpected and disturbing neglect of democratic citizenship…

Democracy is not only a system of government, but also an overarching way of living together. It is through the social structures we live in and the resulting social relations, behaviors, and norms emanating from those structures, that we learn how to live together, democratically or otherwise. Adult education can promote the learning of democracy…

This article presents a framework for ethics for radical and transformative education. Taking as a starting point ethical perspectives by which educators of adults are justified in imposing upon, coercing, and manipulating adult learners in the name of social justice, this article highlights the necessary connection between pedagogies and learning…

In 2018, the American Association of State Colleges and Universities' American Democracy Project (ADP) and Tufts University's Institute for Democracy & Higher Education (IDHE) formed a 3-year partnership to explore two approaches to studying institutional climates for political learning and participation in democracy. The goals were to repeat…

Politics and education have always been closely entwined, but recent interactions with colleagues in the author's field about the border crisis have convinced her that these individuals are either in complete accord with the idea of large numbers of immigrants crossing the U.S. border illegally or they are completely ignorant of the situation and…