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Multiperspectivity in remembrance and history education for democratic citizenship

Doc. 16090: compendium of written amendments | Doc. 16090 | 28/01/2025 | Final version

Contents

A Draft Resolution
B Draft Recommendation

Compendium index

Amendment 1 Sub-amendment 1 to amendment 1 Amendment 2 Amendment 6 Amendment 3 Amendment 7 Amendment 5 Sub-amendment 1 to amendment 5 Amendment 4

Caption: AdoptedRejectedWithdrawnNo electronic votes

ADraft Resolution

1The importance of history teaching has been affirmed by the Council of Europe Summits of Heads of State and Government in 1993, 1997 and 2005, and its relevance for democratic citizenship and stability is well captured in the motto of the Observatory on History Teaching in Europe: “Teaching History, Grounding Democracy”. A well-designed history education is essential to gain a deeper and more nuanced understanding of the past and apply it to evaluate with a critical eye the present, as it develops the capacity to differentiate between facts, memories, interpretations and perspectives, and to detect and analyse distortion and propaganda.

28 January 2025

Tabled by Ms Yevheniia KRAVCHUK, Mr Eerik-Niiles KROSS, Mr Emanuelis ZINGERIS, Ms Lesia ZABURANNA, Mr Rostyslav TISTYK, Ms Lesia VASYLENKO, Mr Taras BATENKO, Mr Serhii SOBOLIEV, Ms Mariia MEZENTSEVA-FEDORENKO, Ms Olena MOSHENETS, Mr Oleksii GONCHARENKO, Mr Serhii KALCHENKO, Ms Yuliia OVCHYNNYKOVA, Mr Edmunds CEPURĪTIS, Ms Larysa BILOZIR, Ms Iryna KONSTANKEVYCH, Mr Aleksei JEVGRAFOV, Ms Olena KHOMENKO

Votes: 111 in favor 2 against 3 abstentions

In the draft resolution, after paragraph 1, insert the following paragraph:

"At a time when historical narratives are increasingly distorted to justify aggression - most notably in the context of the ongoing war waged by the Russian Federation against Ukraine - the role of critical, evidence-based history education in countering disinformation has become vital. The Assembly emphasises the perils of politicising history and highlights the power of history education to build resilience against the misuse of narratives justifying aggression, human rights abuses, and territorial claims."

Explanatory note

Self-explanatory

28 January 2025

Tabled by the Committee on Culture, Science, Education and Media

Votes: 105 in favor 2 against 6 abstentions

In amendment 1, at the beginning of the second sentence, insert the following words:

"Referring to its Resolution 2558 (2024) and Recommendation 2280 (2024) "Countering the erasure of cultural identity in war and peace","

2The Parliamentary Assembly holds that the inclusion of sensitive and controversial parts of history in school curricula, the consideration of multiple perspectives and the analysis of historical sources can play a role in reinforcing democratic culture within a society and fostering respect for different opinions, pluralism, tolerance and diversity. Taking students out of the classroom to learn in situ from historical places and sites of remembrance should be part of this process. The Assembly firmly believes that history education should be a key part of human rights education and a foundation for young people to develop democratic citizenship.
3However, delivering quality history education in schools can be very challenging due to overloaded curricula, traditional teaching practices and, in many instances, highly centralised education systems. History teachers may struggle with addressing multiple coexisting perspectives; they may lack adequate training and even though they may have deep knowledge of their discipline they often have limited time to work on the overall historical context with students, and limited access to teaching and financial resources. Moreover, in many countries, initial teacher training does not include the development of competences in delivering citizenship education.
4The Assembly values the Reference Framework of Competences for Democratic Culture developed by the Council of Europe and welcomes the political momentum provided by the 2023 Standing Conference of Ministers of Education for the renewal of the civic mission of education. The Education Strategy 2024-2030 “Learners First – Education for Today’s and Tomorrow’s Democratic Societies” aims to establish a European Space for Citizenship Education to exchange good practices and implement existing Council of Europe instruments and tools.
5Education systems must adapt to social changes and respond with new curricula and interactive methodologies to new demands – not only to meet emerging job requirements but also respond effectively to the growing diversity of societies. They should also contribute to countering the erosion of democratic values, particularly among young people in Europe. For these reasons education for democratic citizenship should be provided as a distinct compulsory subject, be included in other relevant subjects, such as history teaching, during all stages of formal education (primary, secondary, and higher education), and form a constituent part of vocational training and non-formal education.

28 January 2025

Tabled by Mr Oleksii GONCHARENKO, Mr Markus WIECHEL, Ms Larysa BILOZIR, Mr Rostyslav TISTYK, Ms Iryna KONSTANKEVYCH, Mr Emanuelis ZINGERIS, Mr Eerik-Niiles KROSS, Ms Olena KHOMENKO

In the draft resolution, after paragraph 5, insert the following paragraph:

"The Assembly also recognises the fact that history studies may be subject to misinterpretation or manipulation, and used as an instrument of propaganda. The Assembly refers to its Resolution 2482 (2023) on 'Legal and human rights aspects of the Russian Federation’s aggression against Ukraine,' which condemned the abduction and illegal deportation of Ukrainian children by the Russian Federation. It further emphasises that Russian Federation uses history as an instrument of russification, subjecting deported Ukrainian children to distorted historical narratives designed to erase their cultural identity and legitimise aggression by twisting historical facts."

Explanatory note

Self-explanatory

6With all these considerations in mind, the Assembly calls on member States of the Council of Europe to undertake a strategic policy review aiming to incorporate the Council of Europe guiding principles for history education and the Reference Framework of Competences for Democratic Culture throughout their education policies, and in particular:
6.1concerning curricula, to:
6.1.1introduce education for democratic citizenship as a distinct compulsory subject and incorporate competences for democratic culture in other relevant subjects such as history teaching during all stages of formal education;
6.1.2provide for more flexibility of history curricula to enable teachers to develop a learner-centred and competence-based approach alongside chronological and knowledge-based teaching;
6.1.3allow sufficient space and time to properly consider the complexities and implications of the 19th and 20th century history, aiming to deepen students’ understanding of the challenges of the present time, including as regards sensitive history and remembrance;
6.1.4include in history curricula the study of different forms of totalitarian regimes as well as other violent ideological movements which have devastated Europe in the 20th and 21st centuries, as serious violations of human rights that people in Europe have suffered;

28 January 2025

Tabled by Mr Pablo HISPÁN, Ms Belén HOYO, Ms Carmen LEYTE, Mr Gonzalo ROBLES, Mr Javier MAROTO

In the draft resolution, paragraph 6.1.4, replace the words "violent ideological movements" with the following words:

"terrorist groups"

28 January 2025

Tabled by Ms Yevheniia KRAVCHUK, Mr Eerik-Niiles KROSS, Mr Emanuelis ZINGERIS, Ms Lesia ZABURANNA, Mr Rostyslav TISTYK, Ms Lesia VASYLENKO, Mr Taras BATENKO, Mr Aleksei JEVGRAFOV, Mr Serhii SOBOLIEV, Ms Olena MOSHENETS, Mr Oleksii GONCHARENKO, Mr Serhii KALCHENKO, Ms Yuliia OVCHYNNYKOVA, Ms Larysa BILOZIR, Ms Iryna KONSTANKEVYCH, Ms Mariia MEZENTSEVA-FEDORENKO, Ms Olena KHOMENKO

In the draft resolution, at the end of paragraph 6.1.4, insert the following words:

", with a particular focus on the ways in which distorted historical interpretations can be deployed to justify acts of aggression in the present day".

Explanatory note

Self-explanatory

28 January 2025

Tabled by Mr Oleksandr MEREZHKO, Ms Larysa BILOZIR, Mr Yuriy KAMELCHUK, Ms Mariia MEZENTSEVA-FEDORENKO, Ms Olena MOSHENETS, Mr Rostyslav TISTYK

In the draft resolution, after paragraph 6.1.4, insert the following paragraph:

"include in history education for democratic citizenship such tragedies as: the Holocaust; the Holodomor; and the genocides against the Crimean Tatars, Chechens, Tibetans and Uyghurs. Such knowledge develops awareness of the need to prevent the crimes of genocide from happening in the future;"

6.2concerning methodologies, to:
6.2.1stimulate critical thinking through learning how to evaluate historical sources and make well-informed judgments;
6.2.2develop human rights-based analysis of historical events, multiperspectivity in history education, and critical consideration of different standpoints;
6.2.3foster interactive pedagogies and co-operative learning in small groups, acknowledging cultural differences and multiple identities among learners in a class;
6.3concerning measures to create a supportive and enabling environment for teachers and learners, to:
6.3.1include the competences for democratic culture in teacher education and vocational training, multiply teachers’ opportunities for professional exchange and development and provide a range of different teaching resources and guidance – including the Council of Europe guiding principles – available in local languages;
6.3.2guarantee free access to virtual learning environments and to open educational resources;
6.3.3promote collaborative learning projects, for instance to facilitate contacts between students and survivors of totalitarian regimes and violent ideological movements, and transnational networking and co-operation in the field of education for democratic culture and history teaching;

28 January 2025

Tabled by Mr Pablo HISPÁN, Ms Belén HOYO, Ms Carmen LEYTE, Mr Gonzalo ROBLES, Mr Javier MAROTO

Votes: 116 in favor 0 against 5 abstentions

In the draft resolution, paragraph 6.3.3, replace the words "violent ideological movements" with the following words:

"victims of terrorist groups"

28 January 2025

Tabled by the Committee on Culture, Science, Education and Media

Votes: 113 in favor 0 against 7 abstentions

In amendment 5, before the words "victims of terrorist groups", insert the following words:

"violent ideological movements and"

6.4concerning synergies between formal and non-formal education, to:
6.4.1facilitate partnerships between schools, cultural institutions and other relevant stakeholders, such as sites of remembrance, museums, archives, civil society and artists, to co-create history lessons; this requires time and financial resources for visits and joint projects, as well as training and curricular support for teachers to prepare for the wider historical context this will involve;

28 January 2025

Tabled by Mr Pablo HISPÁN, Ms Belén HOYO, Ms Carmen LEYTE, Mr Gonzalo ROBLES, Mr Javier MAROTO

In the draft resolution, in paragraph 6.4.1 after the word "artists", insert the following words:

", and associations of victims of terrorist groups"

6.4.2grant funding and autonomy to museums and remembrance sites to develop as “safe learning spaces for democracy”, co-creating educational projects based on thorough academic research, a human rights-based analysis and multiple perspectives, aiming inter alia to foster intergenerational dialogue within local communities and accompany visitors towards fresh perspectives and a more nuanced understanding of the past.

BDraft Recommendation

1The Parliamentary Assembly, referring to its Resolution … (2025) “Multiperspectivity in remembrance and history education for democratic citizenship”, underscores that history education is key to enabling democratic debate and sustaining and strengthening pluralism and democratic values in society. Moreover, multiperspectivity and the appropriate handling of controversial and sensitive issues in history lessons can be a powerful tool to support peace and reconciliation in societies. By learning about difficult history from the angle of human rights and democracy, using interactive and co-operative learning methodologies, young people will gain confidence and competency in discussing complex and controversial historical events affecting their communities and societies from a multi-perspective and nuanced point of view.
2The Assembly welcomes the political momentum provided by the 2023 Standing Conference of Ministers of Education for the renewal of the civic mission of education, and emphasises that the Council of Europe guiding principles for quality history education and the Reference Framework of Competences for Democratic Culture are excellent tools to be further promoted and broadly implemented in member States as part of the new Council of Europe Education Strategy 2024-2030 “Learners First – Education for Today’s and Tomorrow’s Democratic Societies” and the European Space for Citizenship Education.
3The Assembly considers that education for democratic citizenship should be part of school curricula both as a distinct compulsory subject, and as part and parcel of other relevant subjects, such as history teaching, during all stages of formal education (primary, secondary, and higher education), as well as in vocational training and non-formal education. Partnerships between formal and non-formal education – including sites of remembrance, museums, archives, audio-visual sector, civil society, and artists – can provide valuable opportunities for teachers and learners to co-create history lessons and exercise competences for democratic culture outside a formal setting.
4The Assembly accordingly recommends that the Committee of Ministers:
4.1support the different Council of Europe activities relating to history education, ensuring synergies between the different strands of the intergovernmental programme and the Observatory on History Teaching in Europe; and encourage all member States which have not yet done so to join the Observatory;
4.2encourage creating further links and transversality between the Council of Europe activities on culture, heritage, education and youth;
4.3provide support and assistance to member States in reviewing their education policies and integrating in national education curricula the Council of Europe guiding principles for history education and the Reference Framework of Competences for Democratic Culture.