ABSTRACT
I need to emphasise that I do not mean that Charles Namafe and Julian Agyeman have been good citizens in what might be labelled as a traditional meaning. Meryl Welsh points out, in her 1978 study ‘The contribution of geography to citizenship education’, that for more than half of the twentieth century the prevailing concept of a good citizen was held to be one motivated by ‘humility, service, restraint, and respect’. This traditional view of citizenship required obedience to rules and respect for authority which encouraged the socialisation of pupils into a passive political role, limiting political activity mainly to voting at elections. Such a consensus view of citizenship, as she pointed out, actually ignores the controversial nature of politics.
