Former Yugoslavia:History that Connects
Project Outline
History that Connects seeks to address issues in the sensitive periods in the shared history of the Balkans that were left unaddressed in previous work of the history educators. The project aims to develop through collaborative writing inclusive and multi-perspective ready to use class room teaching material with a focus on the history of the region from 1900-1945. These materials want to address how to teach about the Balkan Wars, the First World War, the first Kingdom of Serbians, Croats and Slovenes and the Second World War on the region, respecting the problems and victims but without burdening future generations with feelings of mistrust and hatred for other peoples in the region. It therefore wants to widen the traditional approaches and will focus not only on political and economic history but will include the history of culture and everyday life, and address topics such as technology, environment, gender, diversity, migration and human rights and responsibilities. The project also wants to further expertise in innovative methodology and pedagogy among the participating history educators and their peers. With this focus on new content, as well as on innovative methodology and pedagogy it would also open space for innovative curriculum thinking in the participating countries. The project participants are required to decide what goals, concepts, processes history curricula should address to make history education an experience that not only educates about a list of past events, but contributes to development of responsible local to global citizenship and forming of multi-layered identities for the learners.The region needs this project as there is a need for greater innovative expertise in the teaching and learning of history, especially with a cross border regional focus, empowering dialogue and critical thinking on sensitive topics in the recent history. Without enhanced innovative high-quality professionalism, history curricula, history textbooks and the (in-service) history teachers training might continue to play a dividing force in this region. The project is also required as it will develop a bottom-up understanding of European standard curriculum development key and transversal competencies as laid out in the European Reference Framework also relevant for innovative learning in history classes.
Building on previous activities
EUROCLIO has been working since 2000 with inclusive teams of history educators from Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Republic of Macedonia, Serbia and Slovenia resulting in at least 40 training seminars and workshops and several publications: Ordinary People in an Extraordinary Country. Every Day Life in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia and Serbia between East and West 1945‐1990. A History of Yugoslavia 1945‐1990 in 20 lessons written by a collective authors team, published in Bosnian, Croatian, Serbian and English (2008); Retelling the History Thematic teaching materials on the history of the Republic of Macedonia after the Independence looking at political life, transition, interethnic relations and every day life, published in Albanian, English and Macedonian (2007) and Change and Continuity in Everyday Life in Albania, Bulgaria and Macedonia 1945‐2000, a Teacher Resource Book, published in Albania, Bulgarian, English and Macedonian, (2003)Project Outcomes
- Intense professional capacity building among present and new leading history educators in the region, aimed at individual and collective teacher leadership and critical thinking for meaningful stakeholdership in education.
- A practical methodology of working with controversial topics in school history acting as a replicable best-practice model for history education projects in other post-conflict societies.
- An exemplar inclusive and multi-perspective cross-border school textbook/web-tool with focus on sensitive and controversial topics the history of the region from 1900-1945, This multilingual production will constitute ready to use classroom materials for all countries involved;
- A widened sustainable national, regional an international network of innovative history educators and historians in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Kosovo, Montenegro, Serbia and Slovenia, taking responsibility for their share in peace and stability in the region
Activities
- Regional seminars for stake holding history educators from the region how to develop innovative history curricula, also addressing controversial and sensitive topics in history; Regional workshops for key history educators from the region developing innovative curriculum approaches;
- Piloting, publication, and dissemination of a exemplar textbook on the regional history with focus on the period between 1900-1945;
- National teacher training seminars, implementing the results of the project to a wide history teaching audience;
- Development of recommendation and a methodology on working with controversial topics in school history;
- Collaborative action research for innovative history curricula standards and assessment;
- Reaching out to history educators and their networks from Kosovo and Montenegro;
- Bridging activities between academic historians, educational institutes and history educators in the region.
First Regional Work Session Programme, Sarajevo, February 2011
Download here the Work Session's Presentations
Posted in Programmes - Former Yugoslavia:History that Connects
On28-29 April, the Country Coordinators from Bosnia-Herzegovina, Croatia, Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia and Slovenia will convene in Istanbul. After the last Regional Work Session that took place in Pula on 1-4 March, they will meet in order to further the framework of the educational material that is under development, and work to prepare the proceedings of the 5th (and final) regional work session, which will take place in the end of June in Veles, Macedonia.
The Fourth Regional Seminar within the EUROCLIO/OSI/UNAOC Programme “History that Connects. How to teach sensitive and controversial issues in the countries of Former Yugoslavia” will be held in Pula,Croatia on 1st – 4th March 2012. Representatives from all Former Yugoslavia, as well as contributors from Israel and Italy will actively engage during the seminar. The seminar is co-organised with the More Articles...
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