Overview

Democracy is neither inevitable nor guaranteed to last. To survive, democracy needs people adequately prepared to enact it. Such preparation for effective citizenship in a complex and plural world requires an adult civic education, one that goes beyond simple knowledge acquisition. It requires a transformative education to help learners become agents and co-shapers of their worlds. This book offers examples of the roles that civic education has played and can play in different communities. In this collection, scholars from around the world report and reflect on civic adult education, examining approaches, paradigms, and concepts that help us to act in culturally, ethnically, linguistically, and religiously diverse societies.

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9781611864601

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Reviews

"This timely, wide-ranging volume reminds us that democracy requires intentional, lifelong learning and practice. It will be a valuable scholarly resource for civic educators and researchers who seek to study, understand, and apply active forms of civic education to support and sustain democratic values and skills. The chapters cover a broad range of theory and applied examples from around the world regarding the why, what, and how of adult civic education."" - Jonathan R. Alger, president, James Madison University ""This important and timely book takes a comprehensive look at the purpose, role, and impact of civic engagement on the development, attainment, and retention of stable democracies. The variety of contributing authors in this text take incisive examinations of civic engagement in a variety of global contexts and deftly confront the ways in which an understanding of the political, social, and economic environs contribute to our ability to develop new paradigms for civic learning and democratic engagement. The text further elucidates the ways in which an educated citizenry is one of the biggest assets any evolved society can offer to the world in an effort to maintain peace, order, and stability. These various arguments and positions also make it clear to the reader that a postsecondary education is not a “nice-to-have,” but a “must-have” for nations seeking to constructively advance democratic ideals and promulgate a civil society through adult and traditional learners’ exposure to diverse people, cultures, languages, and ideals."" - Yolanda Watson Spiva, president, Complete College America, co-author of Daring to Educate: The Legacy of the Early Spelman College Presidents, and contributing author to Recognizing Promise: The Role of Community Colleges in a Post Pandemic World ""The book is an impressive testimony of the importance of democratic, civic adult education in times of increasing authoritarianism. The editors present a wide variety of theoretical and practical contributions that will inspire a broad readership of educators and educationalists all over the world."" - Danny Widemeersch, professor emeritus of social and cultural pedagogy at KU Leuven (Belgium)"

The book is an impressive testimony of the importance of democratic, civic adult education in times of increasing authoritarianism. The editors present a wide variety of theoretical and practical contributions that will inspire a broad readership of educators and educationalists all over the world. --Danny Widemeersch, professor emeritus of social and cultural pedagogy at KU Leuven (Belgium) This important and timely book takes a comprehensive look at the purpose, role, and impact of civic engagement on the development, attainment, and retention of stable democracies. The variety of contributing authors in this text take incisive examinations of civic engagement in a variety of global contexts and deftly confront the ways in which an understanding of the political, social, and economic environs contribute to our ability to develop new paradigms for civic learning and democratic engagement. The text further elucidates the ways in which an educated citizenry is one of the biggest assets any evolved society can offer to the world in an effort to maintain peace, order, and stability. These various arguments and positions also make it clear to the reader that a postsecondary education is not a nice-to-have, but a must-have for nations seeking to constructively advance democratic ideals and promulgate a civil society through adult and traditional learners' exposure to diverse people, cultures, languages, and ideals. --Yolanda Watson Spiva, president, Complete College America, co-author of Daring to Educate: The Legacy of the Early Spelman College Presidents, and contributing author to Recognizing Promise: The Role of Community Colleges in a Post Pandemic World This timely, wide-ranging volume reminds us that democracy requires intentional, lifelong learning and practice. It will be a valuable scholarly resource for civic educators and researchers who seek to study, understand, and apply active forms of civic education to support and sustain democratic values and skills. The chapters cover a broad range of theory and applied examples from around the world regarding the why, what, and how of adult civic education. --Jonathan R. Alger, president, James Madison University

Author Information

Tetyana Hoggan-Kloubert is lecturer in Adult Education at the University of Augsburg, Germany. Dr. Hoggan-Kloubert researches migration and civic education in Eastern Europe, Western Europe, and the United States. She has conducted research as a visiting researcher at various universities, including Harvard University, Tufts University, and Chernivtsi University. She is co-founder of the Civic Reconstruction Project and co-director of the Institute for Civic Studies and Learning for Democracy. Paul E. Mabrey III is the Communication Center coordinator in the Learning Centers and assistant professor in the School of Communication Studies at James Madison University. Dr. Mabrey has received a “Civvy” award honorable mention for American Civic Collaboration, secured 4-VA and Colonial Academic Alliance grant funding, and published scholarship on the use of debate for civic learning. Previously, he served as the assistant director of Debate at James Madison University and president of the Cross Examination Debate Association. Chad Hoggan is an associate professor of adult and lifelong education at North Carolina State University and has been co-editor of the Journal of Transformative Education since 2016. Previous books include Transformative Learning in Community Colleges, which won the 2020 Cyril Houle Award for Outstanding Literature in Adult Education. Dr. Hoggan is co-founder of the Civic Reconstruction Project and co-director of the Institute for Civic Studies and Learning for Democracy.

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