Experiential learning for civic education: Student participation and voice

Abstract

When experiential learning emphasizes student participation and voice, experiential learning can be an effective form of political socialization to facilitate learning processes by enhancing knowledge construction and developing civic competency. Employing qualitative research, this study examined how meaningful and significant experiential learning could not only allow students to co-construct the meaning of citizenship but also contribute to civic development and further participation. The results revealed that teachers stressed civic engagement as an important attitude of ‘good citizens’ which could have affected how they viewed and organized learning activities (such as experiential learning) for their students. Experiential learning that provided space for student participation and voice helped nurture students to become ‘good citizens’ and contributed to students’ further civic engagement despite many challenges. The findings of this study suggest that governments need to rethink their policies on integrating youth engagement to accommodate the voices and interests of young people and expand on theories of citizenship and highlights cultivating active participation as important aims of civic education.

Promoting Effective Political Socialisation Strategies for Youth Leadership Development among Universiti Putra Malaysia Student Leaders

“…The training student leaders received at different leadership programmes emboldened them to represent the interests of their teeming followers at management level of UPM. Wong et al (2022) buttress this situation when they aver that well-organized learning activities by teachers provided space for student participation and articulate voice that enhance contribution to civic engagement despite many challenges. At this point, both themes 4 and 5 provide answers to RQ 2 on how educational institution stimulate youth leadership development in terms of getting students equipped with the leadership competence to set realistic goals while dealing with UPM students from diverse racial backgrounds.…”

Strengthening Political Socialization As A Catalyst for Youth Leadership Development among Students of Universiti Putra Malaysia

“…Educational institutions, for example design civic curriculum as a medium to impart in students, political ideology, national principles, political mobilization and the conduct of foreign policy with other sovereign states with a view to strengthening spirit of nationalism, sense of loyalty to the nation and strong determination to defend the country when occasion demands. Expectedly, as Wong et al (2022) reveal, teachers offer civic education which avails student the opportunity to participate in civic engagement, and express their opinions as "good citizens" that contribute to nation building. Academic environment enables students to interact with different categories of lecturers, staff and fellow students from diverse racial backgrounds, religious beliefs and ideological orientations which help broaden their awareness of political realities across the world.…”

“…"Undi18 provides a platform for the young generation to exercise leadership responsibilities"[SR#12]. The policy offers fresh insights into electoral maturity of young individuals as they embark on political sensitization and advocacy on social media sites with a view to incorporating Malaysian youth into the struggle(Weiss, 2022). Gorodova et al(2023) affirmed that digital competence enhances youth political awareness of contemporary political development.…”

Innovations in Education: Moral Education, Social Cohesion, and Culture diplomacy

“…While citizenship may focus on teaching on rights and responsibilities of citizens as a specific level of equality (Janoski, 2014) and that citizenship manifests itself in a wide range of practices and in diverse places, locally, nationally and supra-nationally (Sassen, 2002(Sassen, , 2003, there are certainly much more challenges to handle in East Asian societies. For example, apart from recent issues such as enhancing global citizenship (Chong, 2020), both active and global citizenship such as community participation about understanding the world can be found alongside their emphasis on enhancing national citizenship (Shi et al, 2019), what to teach citizenship to young people during a global pandemic era (Chong, 2021), catering for student participation and voice in experiential learning (Wong et al, 2022). and then the Chinese experience of citizenship shows that de-Westernism needs to be considered by adopting more diverse perspectives to de-Westernise and enrich our understanding of citizenship (Guo, 2022), this collection of papers further upfront recent issues such as moral education, community participation for social cohesions, and using educational institutes to promote culture as soft power.…”