ERIC Number: EJ1139572
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2017
Pages: 23
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1476-7724
EISSN: N/A
Constructing Citizenship in Post-Conflict Contexts: The Cases of Liberia and Rwanda
Russell, Susan Garnett; Quaynor, Laura
Globalisation, Societies and Education, v15 n2 p248-270 2017
In post-conflict and fragile contexts, one central aim of education is to prepare citizens to rebuild society and manage conflict. In this paper, we discuss the ways that citizenship education, students' civic attitudes, and student civic practices vary across two post-conflict contexts in Africa: Liberia and Rwanda. First, we consider the historical and current complexities of citizenship education in these countries drawing on a post-colonial framework and Osler and Starkey's three dimensions of citizenship. Next, we discuss survey and interview data from secondary students based on separate multi-level case studies in the respective countries. We note differences and similarities in student conceptions of good citizenship, civic identity, classroom climate, and civic engagement across the two countries, as well as variation by school type and gender. Some notable findings included less active conceptions of citizenship and openness to discussing controversial issues in Rwanda than in Liberia, and less participation in out of school activities among young women than young men. These and other results highlight differing contextual values of development, security, freedom of speech, and civic action and the overall importance of citizenship education in a post-conflict context.
Descriptors: Citizenship Education, Conflict, Foreign Countries, Student Attitudes, Case Studies, Self Concept, Controversial Issues (Course Content), Student Participation, School Activities, Secondary School Students, Freedom of Speech, Citizen Participation, Classroom Environment, Student Surveys, Statistical Analysis, Gender Differences, Voting, Institutional Characteristics
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Secondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: National Science Foundation (NSF)
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Liberia; Rwanda
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A