‘‘Politics is ethics done in public’: Exploring Linkages and Disjunctions between Citizenship Education and Character Education in England

Purpose: This article explores linkages and disjunctions between citizenship education and character education in England. Approach: The article undertakes a theoretical discussion of what both forms of education are and involve, and a historical overview of their development over the past twenty y...

Full description

Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Ben Kisby
Format: Article
Language:deu
Published: Bielefeld University 2017-09-01
Series:Journal of Social Science Education
Online Access:http://www.jsse.org/index.php/jsse/article/view/835
_version_ 1811281097840918528
author Ben Kisby
author_facet Ben Kisby
author_sort Ben Kisby
collection DOAJ
description Purpose: This article explores linkages and disjunctions between citizenship education and character education in England. Approach: The article undertakes a theoretical discussion of what both forms of education are and involve, and a historical overview of their development over the past twenty years, utilising a wide range of primary and secondary sources. Findings: Citizenship education programmes tend to place much greater emphasis than character education on the development of the necessary knowledge and skills that enable participation in political and democratic activities. The focus of character education is on personal ethics rather than public ethics, and the particular understanding of character education advanced by British politicians has been narrow and instrumental, linking the development of character with individual ‘success’, especially in the jobs market. Research implications: Comparative research is now needed to examine the strengths and weaknesses of these two forms of education as they are delivered in other countries, and to explore the similarities and differences between the experiences of different countries. Practical implications: Policy-makers concerned to ensure that young people have the knowledge, skills, values and attitudes they need to engage in civic and political activity should focus on programmes of citizenship education rather than character education.
first_indexed 2024-04-13T01:27:20Z
format Article
id doaj.art-344453e5ce3a42da962a77adb101291c
institution Directory Open Access Journal
issn 1618-5293
language deu
last_indexed 2024-04-13T01:27:20Z
publishDate 2017-09-01
publisher Bielefeld University
record_format Article
series Journal of Social Science Education
spelling doaj.art-344453e5ce3a42da962a77adb101291c2022-12-22T03:08:36ZdeuBielefeld UniversityJournal of Social Science Education1618-52932017-09-0116310.4119/jsse-835‘‘Politics is ethics done in public’: Exploring Linkages and Disjunctions between Citizenship Education and Character Education in EnglandBen KisbyPurpose: This article explores linkages and disjunctions between citizenship education and character education in England. Approach: The article undertakes a theoretical discussion of what both forms of education are and involve, and a historical overview of their development over the past twenty years, utilising a wide range of primary and secondary sources. Findings: Citizenship education programmes tend to place much greater emphasis than character education on the development of the necessary knowledge and skills that enable participation in political and democratic activities. The focus of character education is on personal ethics rather than public ethics, and the particular understanding of character education advanced by British politicians has been narrow and instrumental, linking the development of character with individual ‘success’, especially in the jobs market. Research implications: Comparative research is now needed to examine the strengths and weaknesses of these two forms of education as they are delivered in other countries, and to explore the similarities and differences between the experiences of different countries. Practical implications: Policy-makers concerned to ensure that young people have the knowledge, skills, values and attitudes they need to engage in civic and political activity should focus on programmes of citizenship education rather than character education.http://www.jsse.org/index.php/jsse/article/view/835
spellingShingle Ben Kisby
‘‘Politics is ethics done in public’: Exploring Linkages and Disjunctions between Citizenship Education and Character Education in England
Journal of Social Science Education
title ‘‘Politics is ethics done in public’: Exploring Linkages and Disjunctions between Citizenship Education and Character Education in England
title_full ‘‘Politics is ethics done in public’: Exploring Linkages and Disjunctions between Citizenship Education and Character Education in England
title_fullStr ‘‘Politics is ethics done in public’: Exploring Linkages and Disjunctions between Citizenship Education and Character Education in England
title_full_unstemmed ‘‘Politics is ethics done in public’: Exploring Linkages and Disjunctions between Citizenship Education and Character Education in England
title_short ‘‘Politics is ethics done in public’: Exploring Linkages and Disjunctions between Citizenship Education and Character Education in England
title_sort politics is ethics done in public exploring linkages and disjunctions between citizenship education and character education in england
url http://www.jsse.org/index.php/jsse/article/view/835
work_keys_str_mv AT benkisby politicsisethicsdoneinpublicexploringlinkagesanddisjunctionsbetweencitizenshipeducationandcharactereducationinengland