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Constructing Culture and Educating Citizens in Developmental States: Singapore and China

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International Handbook on Education Development in Asia-Pacific

Abstract

This chapter sheds light on the cultural and ideological construction through education in state-led socioeconomic developments in Singapore and China, both regarded as Confucian heritage societies. Approaching the two cases through the notion of developmental state, the chapter critically examines how Confucian-based culture, or “Confucianism,” is constructed, essentialized, and championed through education by the respective states to produce developmental citizens for top-down developmental goals and, ultimately, for ruling legitimization. This is manifested as Asian Values in Singapore and Chinese Traditional Culture in China. Emphasis will be placed on the civics and citizenship curriculum in each state. The chapter concludes by arguing that Confucian-based culture is a double-edged sword for the two developmental states under changing political and socioeconomic circumstances.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. The University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia

    Yeow-Tong Chia

  2. Kyushu University, Fukuoka, Japan

    Sicong Chen

Authors
  1. Yeow-Tong Chia
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  2. Sicong Chen
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Correspondence to Yeow-Tong Chia .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Singapore Institute of Adult Learning, Singapore University of Social Sciences, Singapore, Singapore

    Wing On Lee

  2. School of Social Sciences, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK

    Phillip Brown

  3. University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, Hong Kong

    A. Lin Goodwin

  4. Institute of Education, University College London, London, UK

    Andy Green

Section Editor information

  1. Institute of Education, University College London, London, United Kingdom

    Andy Green

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Chia, YT., Chen, S. (2022). Constructing Culture and Educating Citizens in Developmental States: Singapore and China. In: Lee, W.O., Brown, P., Goodwin, A.L., Green, A. (eds) International Handbook on Education Development in Asia-Pacific. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-16-2327-1_132-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-16-2327-1_132-1

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Singapore

  • Print ISBN: 978-981-16-2327-1

  • Online ISBN: 978-981-16-2327-1

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