Week 7:There are three possible types of citizens that our education system generally produces. Those are referred to as personally responsible citizens, as well the participatory citizen and the justice-oriented citizen. Responsible citizens show respect for those within their community. They can be accountable for their actions and the repercussion of their accounts. They work to improve their environment and lock to resolve conflict peacefully. A participatory citizen works with an organization to be a contributing member in their community, working to benefit society as a whole. They generally have an understanding of how the social or political parts of the community work. The justice-orientated citizen speaks out against injustices in their community. They learn how to work the political, social and economic class systems. They are problem solvers and critical thinkers.

After reflecting on my education process, I can identify many types of citizens in my social circle. For the most part, all of them were personally responsible citizens; they generally cared for those around them, respecting people’s property and helping out when others called upon them. The students that stand out the most in my memory are the SCC. They were the student council that represented the student body within the school, organizing social events. These were the groups that put on the dances, organized the barbeques, brought the school community together. They organized the food drives and bottle drives to help out. When they asked for help, most people come to their aid. Of course, there were the justice-orientated citizens within the school, but back then, they were more the snitches; they were very rule and procedure orientated.

I believe the curriculum is possible to produce more than three types of citizens because the curriculum may neglect some of the students it is meant to teach, leaving those students to feel lost and disassociated. As a future teacher, I needed to guide my students to be good citizens, creating a nurturing, respectful environment where they feel respected and valued.

Works Cited

Joel Westheimer : What Kind of Citizen? – YouTube

WhatKindOfCitizenAERJ.pdf (democraticdialogue.com)

OHASSTA Talks – Citizenship Education – Mike Cappello | OHAASTA Talks (spreaker.com)