Citizenship Education

Citizenship Education in Austrian schools

Depending on type of school, Citizenship Education in Austria is taught as a subject in its own right, is provided from grade 6 in combination with another subject, or can be taught by any teacher – even at primary level and before grade 6 – as a principle of cross-curricula teaching based on the Decree on Citizenship Education.

polis – The Austrian Centre for Citizenship Education in Schools works on behalf of the Austrian Federal Ministry of Education, Science and Research (Department for Citizenship Education). The educational service institution for Citizenship Education develops materials for skills-oriented teaching and publications for teachers, serves as an information platform and advisory centre, provides topic dossiers, a best-practice archive and workshops, as well as information about the Citizenship Days.

Citizenship Days
The Austrian Citizenship Days (23 April to 9 May - annual) are a forum for all topics related to Citizenship Education and will provide an opportunity to discuss and offer manifold approaches, including outreach programs, discussions, and methods. More and on Twitter

For more information see Citizenship Education in Austria

Citizenship Education activities in Europe – networks and databases
Several networks enable cooperation between governmental institutions and key stakeholders to foster progress in Citizenship Education on a European level.

NECE – Networking European Citizenship Education
The network aims to provide transparency about stakeholders and approaches in Citizenship Education.
The NECE database provides information about experts, organisations and projects and helps identify potential partners for projects or cooperative ventures.
To encourage networking and exchange, NECE invites education specialists, activists from civil society and multipliers from the fields of politics and business to discuss and debate the new common responsibilities for Citizenship Education and civil society in the EU.

The European Wergeland Centre (EWC)
A resource centre for Education for Intercultural Understanding, Human Rights and Democratic Citizenship has been established in cooperation between Norway and the Council of Europe. Its target group are teachers, teacher trainers, decision makers and multipliers in the above-mentioned field.
The EWC network Share & Connect is an expert database designed to facilitate online networking, looking for peers and exploring potential cooperation and partnerships.

DARE – Democracy and Human Rights Education in Europe
A network of NGOs and other organisations devoted to raising the profile of Education for Democratic Citizenship and Human Rights, as well as enhancing its quality and promoting transcultural and transnational cooperation.

EUROCLIO – European Association of History Educators
Its aim is to connect European history teachers and support the development of responsible and innovative History, Citizenship and Heritage Education. With training events, teaching tools and materials, research into the needs of the target group and conferences to connect people, EUROCLICO constitutes a vibrant network with more than 50 members.

All activities mentioned above are linked with the Council of Europe's work based on the

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