Civilisational knowledge, interculturalism and citizenship education

Abstract

The contention of this article is that the biologically derived versions of the nation of ‘blood and soil’ only tell a narrow and singular version of the story of nation states. The substantive historical and contemporary realities necessitate the telling of much broader stories which are inclusive of good citizenship values derived from diverse sources in complex multicultural societies. The article raises issues of active citizens in cohesive democratic contexts where people continue to struggle against hierarchies, inequalities and disenfranchisement. It also raises the issues of divides amongst peoples along gender, faith, social class and racial divides which the dominant groups and political institutions have failed to tackle in practical terms from the local and national to the global levels.