Search

The dynamic of how civic education is framed during turbulent periods is illuminated through analysis of three Hong Kong official civic education curriculum guidelines (1985, 1996, 2012). These publicly available, officially sanctioned statements of purpose have particular relevance for education professionals, and are used around the world to characterize educational initiatives. Our focus is on guidelines, written during periods in which there was colonial hegemony by the UK (1985), an attempt to promote liberal democracy by the Hong Kongese (1996) and, an assertion of Chinese nationalism (2012). We argue that guidelines about civic education are similar across these times of political turbulence. There are shifts in the content of the guidelines but fundamental differences are not made explicit. The documents are not aligned with a theoretical framework of colonialism, liberal democracy or, Chinese nationalism but rather they are pragmatically oriented. Guidelines are signifiers of attempts to achieve normative stability.

This study aims to refine our understanding of the potential perils and possibilities of national myths for democratic history education. Previous research studies in history education have often assumed that national myths are ideological constructs serving the interests of the privileged. This study examines national myths as empty signifiers responding to students’ present demands. The focus is the case of Catalonia, where nationalism has recently grown. Based on interview (14) and questionnaire (340) data collected from Catalan secondary students, my analysis suggests that national myths can be open to existing contemporary demands against a powerful Other. As such, national myths can be considered an interface where history educators can intervene. National myths, and likely other myths and countermyths, might implicitly or explicitly exclude some students whilst providing others with a collective identity capable of political action.