Education for citizenship in the liberal-communitarian debate

This study will attempt to address the dialogue established between liberals and communitarianism in relation to citizenship education. To narrow the field of study, due to the nature of this case, our proposal will concentrate on Martha Nussbaum, representing the liberal contribution, and Alasdair MacIntyre, from communitarianism. Both authors propose a citizenship education while its purpose and nature is very different: the cosmopolitan ideal of liberalism opposes the rooting itself to a specific tradition of communitarianism. The formation of a vigorous citizenship arises from positions that are beyond confrontation, in recent decades, among those defending the roots in specific communities and those who defend rights and universalist approaches (Escamez, 2003). This opposition is what this article aims to highlight, from a comparative perspective. The study will finish with a brief note on European citizenship.