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This book sought to understand strategies,methods and other influences for training primary students in two different environments to become socially responsible adults and citizens. The book includes two qualitative cross-cultural case studies from Turkey and the USA. It consists of field based data based on the qualitative investigations on school communities at primary schools. The findings revealed that democracy is not only a goal to be reached,and not just a form of government but also a concept experienced in all stages of schools,as Dewey suggested. The major finding was that there is a gap between what the school teaches as theory and the reality experienced in school and at home. The data showed that democracy and human rights education should start at early grades, preferably in kindergarten through establishing authentic learning environments where a variety of instructional methods, techniques,materials,textbooks and technology are employed.Besides, the importance of character education,school culture and values that are reflected through the hidden curriculum in schools are crucial for effective democracy&human rights education.

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Kerim Gündo du received his B.A. from Hacettepe University, M.Ed.degree from the Newcastle University,the U.K. He completed his Ph.D. work in Curriculum&Instruction Department at the Middle East Technical University in 2004. He received scholarships from the YÖK, TÜBA, Fulbright and DAAD. He is an academician at Atatürk University, Turkey.

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