ABSTRACT
Given the possibilities afforded by developments in a wide range of new technology applications, in terms of accessing information, communicating with a wide range of other people and groups, discussing and debating issues with others and presenting information in a variety of forms, it would be surprising if ICT was not of interest to those involved in citizenship education. Given the ubiquity of ICT both inside schools and colleges and outside them, new technology has major implications for teachers of all subjects, but perhaps particularly for those involved with citizenship education, given the importance attached to issues such as information, media and democratic literacy, community cohesion and global citizenship. As Selwyn (2007: 11) points out, there is increasing acknowledgement of the extent to which new media are ‘substantively altering the ways in which individual citizens interact with the contemporary political, democratic and civic landscape’. Concern has also been expressed about ‘the digital divide’ – the fact that there are still some young people who do not have access to computers and the internet, and that they are therefore severely disadvantaged as citizens living in a digital society (see, for example, Warschauer, 2004). However, there are radically different views about the ways in which new
technology might contribute to citizenship education, and important misconceptions about the impact of ICT on teaching and learning. This chapter explores the implications of recent developments in ICT for citizenship education and considers how both teachers and students might explore the ways in which ICT can make a positive contribution to citizenship education. It also raises questions about what it means to be ‘a good citizen’ in relation to the use of new technology.
