Abstract

Democracy is a contested concept. While democracy is generally interpreted as a political system that promotes self-government, once we unpack these terms, several questions, tensions, and disagreements emerge. Because of these disagreements, scholars also disagree over the meaning and value of democracy. In this chapter, I aim to bring to life to these debates, by focusing on three major areas of concern over the relationship between democracy and education. How should we conceptualize the role of education within a democracy? How ought we to understand education for a democracy? How do we conceptualize the role of education without democracy? By framing our discussion through the lens of an education within, for, and without democracy, I hope to invite the reader into the rich, yet contested, debate over the relationship between education and democracy.