The Place of National Identity in the Aims of Education 1

Should the teaching of national identity have a place in the aims of education? Although national identity, nationalism and nationality have recently enjoyed renewed interest and sympathetic treatment, both in terms of their ethical and cultural significance (Miller 1993; Tamir 1993) and in relation to education (White 1996; Tamir 1992), I argue in this chapter against the promotion of national identity in schools. My central claim is that the teaching of national identity is likely to undermine the educational aims of autonomy and democratic citizenship.