The role of school in the process of forming an active citizenship through the eyes of Czech political activists

The aim of the text is a critical sociological analysis of the role of the institution of school in the process of forming an active citizenship which is perceived by the author as a specific pattern of behaviour acquired during socialisation. The participation model of democracy, from which stems the Czech educational curriculum, aims to raise informed and active youth adhering to democratic values. Formal education as one of the actors of secondary socialisation is the only publicly controlled tool of education of citizens. Although the citizenship education is formally a part of the curriculum, contemporary research in the Czech environment shows that school does not play a significant role in political socialisation of young people. For this reason, the author of the text looks at the formal education from a different perspective and discusses other aspects too. The key view for the author is the one of Czech political activists who she perceives as a necessary part of civil society and a prototype of active citizens. The analysis of the role of the institution of school is based on 26 deep interviews with representatives of political activist organisations. The author introduces school as an institution of citizenship education which on one hand fails in the political socialisation of the young, on the..