What Do Students have to Say about Citizenship? An Analysis of the Concept of Citizenship among Secondary Education Students

Abstract

Because of the recent resurgence of interest in citizenship education caused by events of September 11^th’ and the war with Iraq, the authors conducted a study to determine the perceptions of eight and eleventh grade students regarding citizenship. We wanted to find out what students believed are the attributes of a good citizen. What activities do students currently participate in that relate to being good citizens? Finally, what civic activities do students see themselves performing ten years later in life? The results indicated that students did not respond to the political side of citizenship. Rather, their view of citizenship was grounded in community service and the social side of the concept. For students, voting and political office is the world of the future and they are really not focusing on these activities. Thus, we suggest that the concept of citizenship is age appropriate.

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