‘Talking’ about Pedagogy: Classroom Discourse and Citizenship Education

Abstract

As outlined in the Introduction, this book seeks to find out what citizenship education looks like in classrooms across the Asia-Pacific region and how it is (or is not) facilitated by pedagogy. These case studies of citizenship education pedagogy in Asia-Pacific societies have the potential to contribute to an understanding of geographical and cultural variations in the preparation of future citizens at the classroom level. In this regard, following Osborne (1991, p.7), we propose the following:

• Schools propagate citizenship through what they teach (the curriculum), through how they teach (pedagogy), and through the interaction between the what and the how (often called the ‘hidden curriculum’ of rules, regulations, expectations, and so forth).

• Pedagogy, which is the way the subject matter is selected, organised, and presented to students, delivers powerful messages about the kind of citizenship that is valued inside and outside of the school.