The EU Dimension in Education for Democratic Citizenship: a Legal Analysis

Education for democratic citizenship equips learners with knowledge, skills and understanding and develops their attitudes and behaviour, with the aim of empowering them to exercise and defend their democratic rights and responsibilities in society, to value diversity and to play an active part in democratic life (the consensual definition in the Charter on Education for Democratic Citizenship and Human Rights Education of the Council of Europe, 2010). What does this mean for EU citizens? The dissertation reads this Charter in combination with EU law and argues that an EU dimension must be incorporated in national citizenship education. A method for objective, critical and pluralistic EU learning is proposed, a method based on the Treaties and on case teaching (stories for critical thinking). Starting from EU law, suitable content for the EU dimension in mainstream education is then explored on the basis of four criteria: (i) additional content for national education for democratic citizenship, (ii) significant content, i.e. relating to foundational (EU primary law) values, objectives and principles, (iii) inviting critical thinking, (iv) affecting the large majority of EU citizens, including static citizens (who live at home in their own country). A broader view of EU citizenship is developed, beyond that resulting from classic citizenship rights. Finally, it is argued that the EU has the legal competence to support the EU dimension in education. Member States are invited to take more action to ensure quality education, which must now include education for democratic citizenship and its EU dimension. Democracy in the EU needs an educational substratum.