Fostering critical thinking about Citizenship education in particular contexts : notes from an Anglo-Turkish student teachers' exchange programme

Student teachers and staff from three universities in Turkey and from Leicester University, England took part in an exchange programme in Turkey and Britain in 2008-2009. Funding for this from the European Union (EU) and Turkey was in part related to Turkey’s application for EU membership and currently contested discourses about the nature of citizenship, citizenship education and European identity. The views of participating student teachers’ on these topics were collected before the exchange visits, during the preparation phase, by a questionnaire and during the exchange visits by focus groups. Staff reflections on the programme were gathered after it was completed. Students’ understandings of citizenship, the education processes of the Other and their own definitions of appropriate pedagogy were challenged by their experiences during the exchange visits. They also questioned the construction of knowledge engendered by the programme choosing atypical school sites for their visits. Participating staff reflected critically on the impact of the programme on different institutional agendas.