Examining the impact of the social studies syllabus on students’ perceptions of national identity

• Main Author: Foo, Leon Yong-Wen
• Other Authors: Genaro Castro-Vazquez
• Format: Final Year Project
• Language: English
• Published: 2015
• Subjects: DRNTU::Social sciences::Sociology::Social institutions; DRNTU::Social sciences::Sociology::Social control
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/10356/62386
• Institution: Nanyang Technological University

As part of the National Education (NE) programme, the Social Studies syllabus is no stranger to multiple cohorts of students who have sat through countless hours of lessons on case studies like Sri Lanka and Venice that are meant to generate belonging and attachment in them. Being such a familiar subject to many, this paper aims to examine the impact of the Social Studies syllabus on students’ perceptions of national identity. This paper concludes that while the Social Studies syllabus has clearly had an impact in terms of instilling pride in the material achievements of the nation and generating in students an awareness of their social environment, the lack of criticality in syllabus contents and teaching approaches leave one with multiple concerns.