ABSTRACT

The theme of citizenship has many different interpretations. The extent to which we can regard citizenship referring to a purely legal status, in the Roman tradition, is contested by the Aristotelian concept of citizenship which encompasses ideas of civic virtue and reasoned debate. This study aims to explore the development of the latter interpretation of citizenship in the context of undergraduate students in the UK higher education sector who are studying early childhood. The development of these concepts of citizenship for the students has been tracked through the evaluation and modification of a second-year teaching module which examines

This study explores the development of concepts of citizenship and participation in undergraduate early childhood studies students through the evaluation and modification of a module that examines young children’s rights in a global context. The chapter outlines how the teaching and learning strategies have sought to inform students’ sense of social responsibility and also how different pedagogical approaches have impacted on their learning about democratic concepts.