Education and democracy in schools through the lens of Australian print media from 2013 to 2023: what counts in a changing world

According to the American philosopher and educational reformer John Dewey, it was only through education that an intense democracy could exist. For Dewey, cultivating a well-informed public opinion through communication among citizens was a central aspect of the construction and renovation of democracies across the generations. Nevertheless, in past years, we have seen an increase in debates about democracy and schooling (Kahne et al, 2016; Hussain et al, 2024).  On one hand, scholars have been demonstrating the potential that school curricula have in influencing young students’ political participation within their communities. Studies look at how youth activists use technology within schools to mobilize for crucial issues of contemporary times, such as climate change (Hilder & Collin, 2022). On the other hand, conservative governments (e.g. Bolsonaro in Brazil, previously Morrison in Australia) are eager to argue against the ‘politization of the curricula’ with demands to schools to ‘go back to the basics, with more learning and less activism’ (Knijnik, 2021). This paper investigates the ongoing tensions in the conceptualization of democracy and education within Australian society through the lens of four national daily newspapers over an eleven-year period from 2013 to 2023. It presents an early themed analysis of more than 1,000 articles using systematic search terms like ’democratic education’, ‘neo- liberal education’, ‘youth participation’, ‘Indigenous youth’, ‘citizenship education’ and ‘curriculum change’. Preliminary findings show that three dominant themes are exposed:  i) the political agenda of democratic education (including school funding and which political party is leading government, plus its influences on all levels of education from childcare through to tertiary and the vocational sectors, ii) the politico-social factors persuading democratic education and curriculum (including race, class, capitalism, fascism, national reporting benchmarks such as NAPLAN, national curriculum reform, and the global pandemic), and iii) the pre-occupations of democratic education and curriculum (including civics education, values and moral education, liberalism, drug education, consent education, indigenous perspectives, language and literacy). Considering that 70% of the world’s population will vote in elections in 2024, the findings of this study highlight the public political tug-of-war over democratic ideals in Australian schooling and curriculum. This struggle may shape how young people are equipped with the essential foundations for informed citizenship. The analysis underscores the significant impact of political and social forces on educational content, emphasizing the need for policies that balance ideological diversity with the goal of fostering active, informed participation in democracy.