Sample chapter

Sample chapter (in German) provided by Eduversum as illustrative material

“Europe – Our History” is a four-volume textbook series for day-to-day use in the history classroom at the first stage of secondary education. Volume 1 is targeted towards learners in the first two school years in which history is a formal part of the curriculum. The textbook/workbook provides learners with an introduction to the new subject and discusses the period commencing in prehistory and ancient history, spanning early civilisations and the ancient Greek and Roman worlds, and concluding with the end of the Middle Ages around 1500. Continue reading

Sample chapter (in German) provided by Eduversum as illustrative material

Volume 2 comprises the modern period to 1815. The series’ approach to European history takes a new perspective, transcending traditional nation-state-centred viewpoints and shining a spotlight on the plurality and diversity of historical narratives in Europe and the rest of the world. The incorporation of changes of perspective into the books’ structure is designed to raise learners’ awareness of differing points of view on historical events and issues. Due to these features, the series sees itself as pointing the way to a European idea of the continent and its history which meets the diversity of historical memories and interpretations held by individual nation states with a transnational approach and an attempt to empower students to reflect critically and engage in dialogue on their history. Continue reading

Sample chapter (in German) provided by Eduversum as illustrative material

Volume 3 begins with the Vienna Congress and deals with European and world history up to the First World War. Developed through the work of a Polish-German project team, “Europe – Our History” takes an innovative approach to putting findings of current and recent historical and educational research into practice. It supports learners in developing their skills and competencies and provides an appealing and motivating range of materials, presented in an age-appropriate manner and context. The series’ volumes are being successively made available in two versions, identical in content and design, for use in Polish and German schools.
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“We’ll be able to see history from two sides. It’ll be more objective and there’ll be topics included which have been left out until now.” Year 8 student, Poznań

Sample chapter (in German) provided by Eduversum as illustrative material

Volume 4 – 20th century to the present – completes the series. Students in Germany and Poland now have the opportunity for the first time to learn about the entire subject matter from a transnational perspective that includes the memories of the neighbour. This provides innovative impulses for history teaching – and the opportunity for a new depth of understanding in Europe.

“Presenting the history of the 20th century in a joint textbook for German and Polish pupils was a really big challenge, since we are constantly in a process of negotiating national memory, which continues to have an effect today. The experience of the German occupation in the Second World War, for example, is still painfully alive in Polish families, while awareness of it is only weakly developed in Germany. But the experience gained in twelve years of compiling the volumes clearly shows that if we include the perspectives of others in our own memories through dialogue, this promotes trust and strengthens cohesion in Europe”.

Eckhardt Fuchs, Leibniz Institute for Educational Media | Georg Eckert Institute