Learning for Cosmopolitan Citizenship: Theoretical debates and young people's experiences

TLDR

Citizenship is contested, making citizenship education a focal point of debate and controversy. The article examines the shortcomings of national citizenship education and the deficit framing of young people, and proposes extending Held’s cosmopolitan democracy model to create an education for cosmopolitan citizenship. The authors analyze how citizenship education operates across local to global scales, conduct field research with multicultural youth in Leicester to assess community understanding and civic engagement, and identify learning sites in homes and communities. They find that a cosmopolitan citizenship perspective is essential for preparing youth to coexist in diverse, interdependent societies, concluding that such education must address peace, human rights, democracy, and development to empower action at all levels.

Abstract

Since citizenship is a contested concept, education for citizenship is also a site of debate and controversy. This article explores the limitations of education for national citizenship, and reflects on the deficit models of young people which are often presented in justifying citizenship education. Extending political theorist David Held's model of cosmopolitan democracy, the authors propose the term education for cosmopolitan citizenship. They explore the features of education for citizenship in the context of globalisation, noting that citizenship education addresses local, national, regional and global issues. Such a perspective is critical in preparing young people to live together in increasingly diverse local communities and an interdependent world. The authors report on research carried out with young people living in multicultural communities in Leicester, UK, to explore understandings of community and levels of civic engagement. They explore the multiple identities and loyalties of these young people and identify sites of learning for citizenship in homes and communities. Drawing on these findings, the article concludes that a re-conceptualised education for cosmopolitan citizenship needs to address peace, human rights, democracy and development, equipping young people to make a difference at all levels, from the local to the global.