Globalisation, the Third Way and Education Post 9/11: Building Democratic Citizenship

The possibility of acts of terror, whether committed by rogue states, or transnational groups, forces a new consideration of the themes of democracy, community and individual rights. And there must also, I believe, be a new understanding of what citizenship entails, and what the role of education is in relation to creating citizens. The new realisation that the world is full of dangers is leading to a reappraisal of the relations between the state and the individual and between collective interests and individual rights. What confronts us now, more than at any time since the 17th century, is the prospect of a new political settlement that involves a radical revision and restriction of traditional rights and liberties given to individuals. At the same time as states are encouraged to adhere to the ‘steer-but-not-row’ philosophy of neo-liberalism in economic affairs, in the political sphere the state’s need to know, involving increased surveillance and data gathering for the purposes of fighting crime, fraud and preventing acts of terror, has now become an explicit agenda of states. What is being ushered in, indeed, is a new post-liberal political settlement. Within this scenario there are possibilities, openings and dangers. In this paper I will seek to reassess the significance of globalisation, neoliberalism, human rights, community, democracy and the role of education, taking the events of 9/11 into account