Graduate Student, OISE
Ph.D Candidate
Thesis Title: Education for Citizenship in Singapore, 1955 - 2004
About
My dissertation is a historical study of citizenship education in Singapore (1955-2004). In this dissertation, I explore the interconnections between changes in history, civic and social studies curricula, and the politics and policies of nation-building in Singapore. My theoretical starting point is the relationship between education and state formation. This is one of the key areas of study in comparative and international education. While scholars have debated the role that education plays in state formation and vice-versa, the literature has by and large adopted an institutionalist framework. What is missing is the role that culture plays as a mediator of education and state. By culture, I mean the invisible patterns and social forces that are embedded within educational and political institutions. These are usually historically transmitted, and manifest through worldviews, epistemologies and unquestioned 'ways of life' amid nation-building. My thesis makes a case for culture (and values) as an important variable in better understanding the link between education and state formation. In the context of Singapore, analyzing culture would entail a nuanced examination of, in particular, the role of Confucianism and Asian Values, as well as the culture of crisis management by the authoritarian Singapore state.
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