Issue paper 4: What does citizenship stand for in Global Citizenship Education?

Although traditionally there has been a strong intertwining of citizenship with the national community, today this is no longer the only reference framework for citizenship education in schools. However, in a legal sense, citizenship often remains based on a national model.

What does this situation say about the meaning of citizenship in Global Citizenship Education? Is global citizenship not true citizenship, and is global citizenship education therefore a toothless tiger that gives young people false hope of playing an impactful role as global citizens? Or is global citizenship education actually a powerful political program for change towards a more just and sustainable world?

In this issue paper, we explore these questions and examine whether global citizenship can be reconciled with the classical, more national interpretations of citizenship and citizenship education.

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