Citizenship, Education and Postmodernity

This paper explores the significance for citizenship education of claims that Western society is undergoing a major cultural reorientation, known by its protagonists as postmodernism, which is said to have wide‐ranging implications for knowledge, morality, politics and individual identities. In particular, the posited changes raise doubts about the future of citizenship, and the discussion reviews two responses to these questions: Heater's optimistic proposal for a return to the classical ideal, and Wexler's pessimistic assessment of the prospects for citizenship in a society dominated by television and the consumption of images. A third perspective is suggested, based on the expansion of the idea of citizenship from civil, political and welfare entitlements to greater participation in the cultural and economic dimensions of everyday life. It is argued that such a concept can inform a comprehensive and coherent approach to citizenship, and a successful curriculum in citizenship education.