[hre-asiapacific] Training citizens involves training teachers

[***Moderator's note: The short interview below was published by the
Council of Europe in the framework of the European Year of Citizenship
through Education.***]

INTERVIEW WITH DAVID KERR

How do we equip our children to cope with a world of uncertainties while
at the same time developing their optimism, curiosity and capacity for
openness and tolerance? A broad political consensus about meeting that
challenge has made the United Kingdom one of the EDC leaders in Europe.
Interview with David Kerr, national EDC co-ordinator for the United
Kingdom and researcher at the National Foundation for Educational Research

17.05.2005

Question: What benefits does the European Year have for EDC policies in
the United Kingdom?

David Kerr : Having had little history or tradition in EDC, there has been
a sudden burst in policy and practice which has placed the countries of
the UK as one of the leading EDC proponents in Europe. We are working hard
to translate EDC policy into everyday effective practices.

Because we have broad political consensus on it, EDC is not identified
with any particular political party but viewed as a national objective.
Reform of the national curriculum, which began in 1997, led in 2002 to a
new curriculum subject, Citizenship, being incorporated into the national
curriculum in schools in England.

European Year has been a confidence boost for everyone working in EDC in
Britain, as evidence that EDC is not just a national concern but an
important challenge for all countries in Europe and beyond: how do we
equip our children to cope with a world of uncertainties while developing
their capacity for optimism, curiosity, openness and tolerance?!

The European Year has also helped the four countries of the UK ­ England,
Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales ­ to compare and co-ordinate their
approaches to EDC.. A showcase conference in Manchester in May will
provide the opportunity to share UK practice with colleagues from across
Europe.

Question: A recent survey by the National Foundation for Educational
Research in Britain found that European Union institutions and political
institutions generally were little taught in EDC. That finding matches
British students’ suspicion of national politicians and above all of Euro
MPs. How do you account for the situation?

David Kerr : Flexibility is one of the EDC strengths in England: there are
no compulsory textbooks, just a strong outline curriculum framework.

Thereafter it is market forces that decide how the particular textbook
fares, according to demand from schools and teachers. Teachers are free to
choose what topics they teach their classes in line with the framework:
subject matter ranges from the referendum on the European Constitution to
local-authority difficulties.

There is a concern that some teachers, at present, lack the confidence to
tackle the complexities of electoral processes and European institutions
and feel ill-equipped to take an institutional approach to politics.

For example, teachers view the European Constitution as containing a large
number of highly technical issues in which they are not really qualified
to weigh the pros and cons, particularly as the subject of the
Constitution is conspicuously absent from public discussion in the United
Kingdom.

That is why training for teachers is of prime importance in UK EDC, and in
EDC in Europe too.

Question : You are one of the main authors of the pan-European study on
EDC policies. What were the study’s main findings?

David Kerr : The pan-European study helped the Council of Europe to
formulate and rank priorities for the EDC programme. The findings
underlined the need to provide training for teachers, evaluate constantly,
and pay attention to quality of formal and informal teaching of democratic
citizenship. The regional reports, based on the national case studies,
provided keys to understanding the diversity of practices and problems in
putting EDC into effect in European countries. I suggest that the reports
be made more accessible to the public by being given greater prominence on
the Council of Europe site.

Source: Council of Europe
http://www.coe.int/t/e/com/files/interviews/20050517_interv_kerr.asp



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