Citizens critical thinking is not an isolated
goal unrelated to other important goals in policy research, policy practice and
policy evaluation. Rather, it is a seminal goal which, done well, simultaneously
facilitates a rainbow of other ends. It is best conceived, therefore, as the
hub around which all other educational ends cluster. It is clear that there is
no way to bring critical thinking successfully into instruction across the
curriculum with a stand-alone one or two-day workshop. Critical thinking is a
difficult thing to define with much precision. Academics across diverse fields
such as pedagogy, cognitive psychology and curriculum development each have
their own understanding of the term. The theme of the lecture augurs on challenges and opportunities in interfacing pathways
for translating research evidence through policy to practice for sustainable citizen
engagement in foreign policy formulation. The key research question is what
research protocols and models of foreign policy formulation can be deployed
to reform the research, policy and practice interface? The finding of the
research portend the underpinnings of ideology and agency for the research,
policy and practice nexus in Africa, uncertainty and complexity in foreign policy
formulation and management. Analytical
challenges to the foreign policy formulation research-policy-
practice nexus are generally marked by a tendency to narrow the
nexus to the terms and categories of immediate, not very well considered,
political and social action and inattention to problems of articulation or
production of global systems and process within local politics rather than
simply as formal or abstract possibilities.
Key words: foreign policy, public policy, security,
development, citizen participation
See paper here
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