Developing social and civic competence in secondary education through the implementation and evaluation of teaching units and educational environments

Concepcion Fuentes-Moreno,Marta Sabariego-Puig,Alba Ambros-Pallarés

doi:10.1057/s41599-020-0530-4

Concepcion Fuentes-Moreno, Marta Sabariego-Puig + Show 1 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1057/s41599-020-0530-4

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Abstract

Recent international research in social science teaching highlights difficulties adolescents face when constructing social and citizenship awareness, and their own identity. To shed more light on this process, the present study is framed in the context of social science classrooms, and more specifically around how social and civic competence is developed via particular teaching methodologies and specific learning environments in Spain. The focus is on the analysis of democratic citizenship, as it is commonly accepted in the theoretical and epistemological bases of social sciences that citizenship education is one of the aims of the educational system. The objective of this study is to evaluate the effects of implementing two teaching units on the development of social and civic competence among 110 students in five secondary and high schools in Catalonia. A qualitative observational method is used to identify, describe and analyze the implementation and effects of both teaching units on a hermeneutic-interpretative basis. An ethnographic perspective is used to obtain accounts of education professionals and students. In addition, 19 field notes are analyzed using QSRNVIVO 12 software on two dimensions: citizenship and classroom climate. There are two main findings: first, regarding the formative value of both sequences regarding democratic, active and critical citizenship; the second, regarding the importance of the classroom environment created for this purpose by designing ad hoc learning spaces using active methodologies to contribute to the development of active and responsible citizenship. The conclusions highlight two important issues. The subject of History in secondary education should be vindicated as a key instrument to build democratic awareness, based on the skills of active and critical citizenship. Furthermore, there is a relationship between the development of critical and active citizenship and the creation of learning environments that foster reflection, analysis, interpretation and dialog. The implications of this study pose an important challenge for the study of social sciences. Initial teacher training methodology and syllabi should be reviewed, the importance of the Humanities in our society should be defended, and classrooms and schools should be democratized to promote active participation in citizenship education.

Highlights

The relationship between Social Sciences teaching methodology and Citizenship Education has become much closer following growing interest from government institutions on the subject, given the new demands and challenges that must be faced in the training of future citizens.Given this concern, this article is structured around how the social and civic competence is dealt with in Social Sciences classrooms in secondary education, and how it is contextualized in particular teaching methodologies and specific learning environments
This article is structured around how the social and civic competence is dealt with in Social Sciences classrooms in secondary education, and how it is contextualized in particular teaching methodologies and specific learning environments
We present the results below, taking into account two basic dimensions of the analysis: a. the formative capacity of the teaching units for the development of critical citizenship and active citizenship in the classroom, together with evidence of this competence development in students; and b. the systematization of this information allows us to point out some of the most relevant characteristics of the learning environments (Duarte, 2003) created ad hoc in each context, including fragments extracted from the observations that exemplify the findings

Summary

Introduction

The relationship between Social Sciences teaching methodology and Citizenship Education has become much closer following growing interest from government institutions on the subject, given the new demands and challenges that must be faced in the training of future citizens. Given this concern, this article is structured around how the social and civic competence is dealt with in Social Sciences classrooms in secondary education, and how it is contextualized in particular teaching methodologies and specific learning environments. We set out the theoretical and epistemological bases of Social Sciences teaching methodology that frame research in the analysis of democratic citizenship: these are critical and active. López-Facal (2010) stated: “To train citizens in the broadest sense of the word—people who feel they are part of a world and society in which they can exercise their rights and have to assume their duties” (p. 5)

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