Arts, Aesthetics, and Citizenship Education: Democracy as Experience in a Postmodern World

Abstract

Educators across academic environments seek to prepare students for participation in the development of a more just and caring society and world. In this paper, I explore the value of “art” and “aesthetics,” broadly defined, as means of addressing these issues through citizenship education. After a brief historical review of the social studies, I identify a particular conception of democratic education toward which we might aim. Next, I discuss existing relationships between the arts and civics education and introduce a postmodern alternative. I conclude with a detailed exploration of the value of arts and aesthetics within a postmodern context for the development of a strong, creative democracy in a multicultural society.