Teaching Democratic Principles in a Period of "Crisis": Experiences of Teaching Practice

Abstract

The present study is placed in an ethno-methodological framework and focuses on everyday teaching and students-teachers interactions in secondary education. More specifically, we studied the experiences of teachers teaching citizenship education. The research questions were focused on everyday teaching conditions, students’ attitude towards democracy and civil rights issues, as well as difficulties that the teachers are facing. A qualitative approach was followed, data were collected through focus groups interviews and then they were analyzed through thematic content analysis. Results indicate the teachers' strong belief in the value of the course and the influence of the economic crisis on students’ attitude towards citizenship matters.