Chapter 8 - Citizenship Education
Introduction to Citizenship and Citizenship Education
Ancient and modern conceptions of citizenship encourage active participation at local, national, and international levels.
Within a constitutional democracy like South Africa, the term 'citizenship' reflects two distinct formulations:
Citizenship as a legal status (to be a citizen).
Citizenship as a practice (to act as a citizen).
Learning for democratic citizenship transcends 'localism' or a mere affinity to a nation state; it requires active community engagement.
Citizenship education is viewed both as a craft (it is 'caught' through experience and participation) and as a programme (it is 'taught' through formal curriculum).
Ideally, citizenship education should prepare learners to act at a local, national, and global scale, guided by cosmopolitan ideals.
Ancient and Modern Concepts of Citizenship
The concept of citizenship originated in the ancient Greek city-state of Athens.
Athenian democracy defined citizenship through three essential and complementary dimensions:
Status: The relationship of the individual to the state.
Feeling: A sense of belonging to a community of citizens.
Practice: Active participation in public affairs or the life of the community.
Pericles' Perspective on Athenian Democracy
Pericles, governor of Athens (450–429 BC), described the Athenian constitution as a democracy because power was in the hands of the whole people rather than a minority.
Key attributes of this democratic citizenship included:
Keeping to the law in public affairs out of deep respect.
Reciprocal linking of personal and public dimensions; individuals remain interested in state affairs even while occupied with private business.
The expectation that every man takes an interest in politics; those who do not are seen as having 'no business' in the city.
Pericles' affirmation suggests that active participation in democracy is inherently educational and that citizens possess 'human agency' (the capacity to think, act independently, and make choices).
Hierarchy of Athenian Citizenship
Despite its democratic ideals, Athenian citizenship was hierarchical and exclusive:
Citizens: Limited to free, adult Greek males over the age of thirty.
Non-citizens: Included women, children, slaves, and foreigners.
Institutional roles included:
The Assembly: A body of all male citizens older than eighteen that ruled on foreign policy, made laws, and tried political crimes.
The Council of Five Hundred: An administrative body that prepared the agenda for the assembly and oversaw daily business.
Law Courts: Bodies that prepared legislation for consideration by the assembly.
Modern Interpretations of Citizenship
T.H. Marshall (1950) categorized citizenship into three elements that were historically blended but became distinct in modern societies:
Civil Rights: Necessary for individual freedom, such as freedom of speech, property rights, and the right to a fair trial.
Political Rights: The right to participate in the exercise of political power as an elector or as a member of a body invested with political authority.
Social Rights: The right to a modicum of economic welfare and security, and the right to share in the social heritage and live the life of a civilized being according to the standards prevailing in society.
McLaughlin’s Continuum (1992):
Minimal Interpretation: Citizenship as 'thin,' private, and passive. Political involvement is limited primarily to voting for representatives.
Maximal Interpretation: Citizenship as 'thick,' public, and active. It emphasizes direct democracy, broad participation, and the degree of 'citizen power' that allows control over political issues.
Civic Agency (Boyte, 2008):
Defined as the navigational capacity to negotiate and transform a fluid and open world.
Dimensions: Promoting individual freedom (empowerment) and building social cohesion (collective action for the general good).
Contrast: Bottom-up development (people as agents) vs. top-down development (people as 'helped' or 'saved').
History of South African Citizenship (1910–1996)
Phase 1: Colonial Citizenship
Rooted in English law and the concept of 'allegiance.' Prior to 1910, residents were British subjects.
1910: Formation of the South African Union; residents were British subjects and Union nationals.
Natives Land Act (Act No. 26 of 1913): Set up reserves (homelands) for Black people, marking the start of disparate citizenship.
Natives Urban Areas Act (Act No. 20 of 1923): Separated native locations from towns, segregating Black and White people socially and administratively.
Union Nationality and Flags Act (Act No. 40 of 1927): Further defined the status of nationals within the Union.
Phase 2: Apartheid Citizenship
South African Citizenship Act (Act No. 44 of 1949): Created the status of 'South African citizen,' substituting it for Union nationality. It aimed to free the country from colonial confines but ushered in a 'common albeit unequal' society.
Population Registration Act (Act No. 30 of 1950): Classified the population into four race groups: Europeans (Whites), Coloureds, Indians, and Africans (Blacks).
Promotion of Bantu Self-Government Act (Act No. 45 of 1959): Established ten independent or autonomous Black states.
Four 'Independent' States (TBVC): Transkei, Bophuthatswana, Venda, and Ciskei.
Six 'Self-governing' States: Lebowa, QwaQwa, KwaZulu, Gazankulu, Kangwane, and Kwandebele.
Bantu Homelands Citizenship Act (Act No. 26 of 1970): Enforced the division of Africans along ethnic lines. Africans were considered citizens of their respective ethnic reserves/homelands and denied civic, political, or social rights in the 'White' Republic of South Africa.
Phase 3: Restorative Citizenship
The anti-apartheid struggle fostered maximalist democratic ideals, exemplified by the Freedom Charter (1955).
The Freedom Charter declared: 'South Africa belongs to all who live in it, black and white… only a democratic state, based on the will of the people, can secure to all their birthright.'
Restoration of South African Citizenship Act (Act No. 73 of 1986): Granted South African citizenship to certain citizens of the TBVC states effective January 1, 1994.
Restoration and Extension of South African Citizenship Act (Act No. 196 of 1993): A significant step toward common citizenship.
Interim Constitution (1993): Provided for a common South African citizenship where every citizen is entitled to all rights, privileges, benefits, duties, and responsibilities.
Phase 4: Common Citizenship
South African Citizenship Act (Act No. 88 of 1995): Formally repealed homeland citizenship laws and created a unified citizenship regime.
Constitution of the Republic of South Africa (Act No. 108 of 1996): Emphasized a single, non-racial, and democratic form of citizenship based on the norm of equality.
International Trends in Citizenship Education
The European Union and the United Kingdom
The movement for citizenship education in Europe intensified in the late 1990s:
1997: Council of Europe declared Education for Democratic Citizenship a main priority.
2005: Declared the European Year of Citizenship through Education.
Motivations include globalization, immigration, communication technology, and individualization, which challenge traditional value transfer.
United Kingdom (English National Curriculum):
Statutory (compulsory) subject since 1999 following the 1998 Crick Report.
'Soft' learning (curriculum-based) vs. 'Hard' learning (learning by doing/community involvement).
Three Strands of the Crick Report:
Social and Moral Responsibility: Learning self-confidence and responsible behavior toward authority and peers.
Community Involvement: Learning through service and involvement in community concerns.
Political Literacy: Gaining knowledge, skills, and values to be effective in public life.
Key Stages: Non-statutory guidelines for ages 5–11 (Stages 1 and 2); statutory responsibilities for ages 11–16 (Stages 3 and 4).
United States of America
No official national curriculum; education is autonomous across 50 states. Terms used include 'social studies' or 'civic education.'
Center for Civic Education (founded 1987) published 'CIVITAS: A Framework for Civic Education' (1991) and 'National Standards for Civics and Government' (1994).
Three Goals of CIVITAS:
Civic Virtue: Instilling habits and principles for responsible citizenship.
Civic Participation: Developing skills to monitor, formulate, and implement public policy and volunteer in communities.
Civic Knowledge and Intellectual Skills: Empowering citizens to influence public policy through knowledge.
Skill Categories:
Intellectual Skills: Identify, describe, explain, evaluate, and defend a position.
Participatory Skills: Influencing policy, building coalitions, negotiating, compromising, and managing conflict.
Citizenship Education in Post-Apartheid South Africa
Constitution (1996) defines a child as a person under 18; children are equally entitled to rights and subject to responsibilities.
Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement (CAPS, 2012): Aims to equip learners for meaningful participation as citizens of a free country.
Social Sciences (History/Geography): Supports democracy by explaining constitutional values, promoting human rights, and preparing for global responsibility.
Life Orientation: Teaches democracy and human rights to develop responsible citizens.
Manifesto on Values, Education and Democracy (2001): Outlines ten fundamental values and sixteen strategies (e.g., nurturing 'new patriotism' through symbols, anthems, and flags).
Bill of Responsibilities (2008): Developed by the National Religious Leaders’ Forum (NRLF) and the Department of Education.
Aims to nurture a culture of giving, care, and responsibility.
Connects rights (e.g., to education, property, citizenship) with specific duties (e.g., obeying laws, contributing to the country).
Future Directions and Theoretical Challenges
Competitive Elitism vs. Participatory Democracy
Joseph Schumpeter viewed democracy as a method where competing individuals/teams acquire power to decide, rather than an ideal of broad public participation.
This 'Competitive Elitism' is reflected in the Representative Councils of Learners (RCLs) established by the South African Schools Act (1996) for Grade 8 and higher.
RCLs are often seen as 'prestigious' and 'elite' bodies.
Critics argue the competitive race for leadership silences less assertive learners and undermines the participatory traditions of the anti-apartheid Student Representative Councils (SRCs).
Patriotism vs. Cosmopolitanism
Patriotism: Pride and identification with one's nation. Brighouse (2008) identifies four reasons for it: Obligation (compatriots first), Solidarity (sacrifice for just distribution), Citizenship (easier trait development), and Flourishing (sense of connection).
Cosmopolitanism: A philosophy developed during the Enlightenment (notably by Immanuel Kant) referring to the 'community of human beings.'
Focuses on moral and political ties that bind citizens to the whole world.
Based on 'demos' (people) rather than 'ethnos' (ethnic group/nation).
Encourages thinking globally and acting locally.
Characteristics of Cosmopolitan Citizenship Education:
Recognition of diversity and global awareness.
Commitment to human rights as a 'common standard of achievement for all members of the human family' (UN Declaration of Human Rights, 1948).
Enabling learners to connect their immediate contexts with the global context.
Tension in South African Policy: Current documents like the Bill of Responsibilities vacillate between national allegiance (patriotic) and universal humanity/democratic universalism (cosmopolitan).