Welcome to Tammy Tsang’s inquiry blog.
My question for my inquiry project is: “How does a teacher incorporate the five themes of good citizenship in the elementary classroom?”
The question came up during my practicum when I realized how some students were not aware of how to treat others respectfully and to demonstrate responsible behaviour as a citizen. I want to explore how to motivate students to become good citizens in our society. I observed that even adults in our society do not have the understanding of the five themes of good citizenship. Therefore, by inquiring on how to incorporate good citizenship in the elementary school classroom, I aspire to motivate students to practice good citizenship not only within the classroom but also outside of the school and throughout their lives.
The question is significant to the community because once the framework of citizenship is explored and understood within the classroom, the concepts of citizenship can be practiced in the community. In order to have a thriving community, I think that people within the community should be encouraged to practice good citizenship. By incorporating honesty, compassion, respect, responsibility and courage within the educational community, the climate of the community will be a positive one.
What I have seen and encountered that has influenced my thoughts are people who do not practice citizenship. This makes me wonder how students and people can be motivated to practice good citizenship. I was taught when I was younger to be a good citizen in the classroom and in the community by my grandparents, parents, teachers and other role models. My initial biases may be that I think I have an idea as to what being a good citizen is.
My inquiry ventured me into not only how the five themes of good citizenship can be incorporated into the classroom but also how it can be incorporated into our society. Through literature research, personal experiences, observations and what I have learned from various courses, I was able to explore the examples and framework of being a good citizenship within the global context. As a teacher who wants to incorporate the five themes of good citizenship into the classroom, I will also need to learn how to follow those themes of citizenship. I will reflect upon my practices to determine whether I have followed the five themes of good citizenship. I will also observe whether the five themes of good citizenship are practiced within the classroom that I am doing my practicum in. The five themes of citizenship are also practiced globally.
New questions that arise for me were: what makes a global citizen? Another question is how to tie together the 5 themes of good citizenship with the aspects of a global citizen?
