UCLA UCLA Electronic Theses and Dissertations Title The Struggle for “Bread, Freedom, and Social Justice”: (Re)Imagining Citizenship(s) and University Citizenship Education in Egypt Permalink https://escholarship.org/uc/item/9ht8q9v5 Author Dorio, Jason Nunzio Publication Date 2016 Peer reviewed|Thesis/dissertation eScholarship.org Powered by the California Digital Library University of California UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA Los Angeles The Struggle for “Bread, Freedom, and Social Justice”: (Re)Imagining citizenship(s) and University Citizenship Education in Egypt A dissertation submitted in partial satisfaction of the requirements for the degree Doctor of Philosophy in Education by Jason Nunzio Dorio © Copyright by Jason Nunzio Dorio 2016 ABSTRACT OF THE DISSERTATION The Struggle for “Bread, Freedom, and Social Justice”: (Re)Imagining citizenship(s) and University Citizenship Education in Egypt by Jason Nunzio Dorio Doctor of Philosophy in Education University of California, Los Angeles, 2016 Professor Carlos A. Torres, Chair Situated within the context of the January 25 Egyptian Revolution and the subsequent socio- political transitions, this dissertation focuses on the experiences of 24 university students and educators in Egypt, particularly emphasizing meanings and actions of participatory citizenship and citizenship education. Through a hermeneutic phenomenological qualitative approach, I explore how the experiences of the January 25 Egyptian Revolution and subsequent events impacted the perceptions and actions of participatory citizenship for university students and educators in Egypt; To what extent does university students and educators in Egypt perceive their actions of participatory citizenship; and How do university students and educators conceive the current role of the university in fostering citizenship education? I conclude that participants learn what it means to be a citizen from various sources, and practice those ideas in multiple spaces. The Revolution and subsequent socio-political events, in ii combination with other influences, have significantly impacted the perceptions of participatory citizenship for participants. And despite a number of challenges to participatory citizenship, the Revolution and subsequent socio-political events provided a critical pedagogical workshop where participatory citizenship was learned and practiced. The Revolution and subsequent events have also impacted teacher attitudes and pedagogies. The participants reveal a connection between social and political events and their perceptions and experiences of teaching and learning, and perceive teaching and learning as a political act of citizenship. Furthermore, participants perceive the university as important site where students can be change agents, where critical thinking is valued and promoted, where the university is seen as an essential part of the public sphere, where student empowerment is nurtured, and as a space where relevant pedagogy, peace education and the construction of good humans can occur. To enhance university citizenship education in Egypt, participants call on universities to focus on faculty and student development, civic engagement programs and international opportunities. iii The dissertation of Jason Nunzio Dorio is approved. James L. Gelvin Edith S. Omwami Robert A. Rhoads Carlos A. Torres, Committee Chair University of California, Los Angeles 2016 iv DEDICATIONS This dissertation is dedicated to those in Egypt who have sacrificed everything in the struggle for social justice and active citizenship. To AGD and ZKD, may we strive for a world filled with love. v TABLE OF CONTENTS ABSTRACT .................................................................................................................................. iii DEDICATIONS ............................................................................................................................ v TABLE OF CONTENTS ........................................................................................................... vii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ......................................................................................................... x VITA ............................................................................................................................................ xiii CHAPTER 1: FROM CALIFORNIA TO CAIRO: A PERSONAL INTRODUCTION ....... 1 1.1 A Biographical Trajectory .................................................................................................. 1 1.2 Chapter Synopses .............................................................................................................. 10 CHAPTER 2: LEGACIES OF CITIZENSHIP AND EDUCATION IN EGYPT ................ 14 2.1 Legacies of Citizenship and Education in Egypt .............................................................. 15 2.1.1 Mehmet Ali, nascent citizenship and the making of modern education .................. 17 2.1.2 British colonization and education ........................................................................... 20 2.1.3 Egyptian nationalism and education (1919 to 1952) ............................................... 21 2.1.4 Arab socialism and education (1952 to 1970) ......................................................... 25 2.1.5 Al-Infitah, Islamism, and education (1970 to 1981)……………………………….32 2.1.6 Authoritarianism and citizenship education (1981 to 2011)……………………….44 CHAPTER 3: REIMAGINING CITIZENSHIP THROUGH REVOLUTION AND CONTENTIOUS POLITICS IN EGYPT: THE CONTEMPORARY SOCIO- POLITICAL CONTEXT IN EGYPT (JANUARY 2011 TO JUNE 2015) ...................... 58 3.1 January 25, 2011 Egyptian Revolution: Chronology of Key Events ................................ 59 3.2 Chronology of Four Post-2011 Transitional Periods ........................................................ 62 3.2.1 Period I: Socio-political transitions and SCAF (February 11, 2011 to June 30, 2012) .................................................................................................................................. 62 3.2.2 Period II: Socio-political transitions and President Mohamed Morsi (June 30, 2012 to July 3, 2013) ......................................................................................................... 69 3.2.3 Period III: Socio-political transitions and Interim President Adly Mansour (July 3, 2013 to June 3, 2014) ................................................................................................ 74 3.2.4 Period IV: Socio-political transitions and President Abd al-Fattah al-Sisi (June 3, 2014 to June 2015) .................................................................................................... 80 3.3 The Significance of the Egyptian Revolution ................................................................... 88 3.4 The Waning Historical Era in Egypt? ............................................................................... 98 3.5 Revolution and Citizenship ............................................................................................. 102 3.6 Why Focus on Universities? ........................................................................................... 105 CHAPTER 4: THE DIALECTIC DANCE BETWEEN SUBJECT AND CITIZEN IN EGYPT: THE CONTINUUM OF PARTICIPATORY CITIZENSHIP AND CITIZENSHIP EDUCATION UNDER AUTHORITARIANISM ................................ 109 4.1 What is Citizenship? Exploring the Ellipsoid that is Citizenship ................................... 109 4.1.1 Political sociology of citizenship and the dialectics of citizenship ........................ 113 vi 4.2 Beyond Marshallian Citizenship: Theories of the State and Perspectives of Citizenship ...................................................................................................................................... 115 4.2.1 Marshallian perspective of citizenship ................................................................... 116 4.2.2 Towards comparative and active models of citizenship ........................................ 117 4.3 Authoritarian States and Citizenship in North Africa and Southwest Asia .................... 119 4.3.1 The authoritarian ruling bargain ............................................................................ 121 4.4 Participatory Citizenship ................................................................................................. 125 4.4.1 Emerging citizenship and the subject-citizen dialectic .......................................... 126 4.4.2 Citizenship and Contentious politics ..................................................................... 128 4.4.3 Broadening the forms of participatory citizenship ................................................. 130 4.4.4 The politics of spaces and participatory citizenship .............................................. 133 4.4.5 Participatory citizenship in Egypt: Beyond the state, family, and religion ........... 135 4.5 Theories of Political Sociology of Education ................................................................. 141 4.5.1 Politicity of the university ...................................................................................... 142 4.5.2 Theories of the state and education: The persistence of authoritarianism ............. 144 4.5.2.1 The challenges of authoritarian structured universities ............................. 145 4.6 Tensions of Citizenship Education ................................................................................. 148 4.6.1 Critical pedagogy and citizenship