European values in adult education: their significance and how to communicate them in a contemporary manner
Original language: German
About the author: Tino Boubaris has worked on European projects at the Association of Education Initiatives in Lower Saxony for 18 years and coordinates the strategic partnership “European Values through European Intelligence”, which will be developing and disseminating ideas for the communication of European values in adult education until October 2018. The project is co-financed by the EU Commission via the Erasmus+ programme.
What significance do European values have for you and your learners? How important is it to communicate these values to learners, and how to do so in a contemporary manner? Join the discussion!
Is Europe a community of values?
The following sentence can often be heard in political discussions about the European Union: “The EU is a community which is based on common values.” The statement is mostly used to counter prejudices that the European Union only arose for economic reasons, only benefits large corporations or deals in superfluous matters. The first set of agreements that regulated the relationship between European states after the Second World War (the Treaty of Rome) did indeed facilitate economic cooperation, but their primary aim was to ensure peace in Western Europe. In the Maastricht Treaty, with which the European Union was officially founded in 1992, Article 6 states: "The Union is founded on the principles of liberty, democracy, respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms, and the rule of law, principles which are common to the Member States." In 2000, with the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, these principles for a European community of values were expanded upon to create an extensive set of rules for the institutions and member states of the European Union.
If Europe is a community of values—what are these values?
But what are the actual values, and what significance do they have for both the cohesion of the European Union and for its citizens? Certainly by the time this question is posed to any randomly assembled group of people in Europe, controversy is bound to arise. For some, the basic values of democracy, human rights and freedom are the main priority. Others hold the view that social cohesion, the preservation of natural resources, religion or security should occupy top spot.
In a Eurobarometer-Survey from spring 2012, only 28% of those questioned named democracy as one of the three most important values to them personally. Is that what you would have expected? At this point it becomes clear, especially in such times as these when Europe seems to be faltering and in many places even basic values are questioned, how important the communication of these fundamental values is and will remain.
How can European values be communicated and discussed in a contemporay manner?
First of all, an explanation of the concept is required. What are universal values, how are they different from individual value concepts and norms? What the individual regards as an indisputable value may in fact be just the belief of a single person or group and cannot be defined as a value shared by the community. At the same time, it is necessary to tolerate and respect the beliefs and opinions of each individual—which brings us back to the issue of fundamental values and the realisation that there is often tension between these values. Much more important, therefore, than the ranking of values, is the manner in which we deal with these values and discuss them with one another. Many learners have had their own experience of European values, their usefulness and limits, and will bring this experience to bear on the discussion.
One approach for discussing European values in a group of learners and allowing these learners as experts in their own right to participate in the results of the learning process is Critical Thinking. Critical thinking can be described as a self-determined, self-disciplined, self-monitoring and self-correcting form of thinking. It stands in direct contrast to egocentric thinking, in which neither the rights and needs of other participants in the discussion are taken into consideration, nor are their views and the limits of one’s own views appropriately valued. More than ever, in this era of fake news and belligerent commentary, it is essential to fight such forms of thinking and to offer alternative means of thinking and discussing.
How important is the discussion about European values to you? What methods and tools do you consider appropriate to communicate these values? Leave a comment and share your opinion!
Sources:
Elder, L. / Paul, R.: Kritisches Denken: Begriffe und Instrumente - ein Leitfaden im Taschenformat. Stiftung für kritisches Denken 2003 [The Miniature Guide to Critical Thinking Concepts and Tools. Foundation for Critical Thinking Press] (www.criticalthinking.org)
European Commission: Standard Eurobarometer 77, Spring 2012: The Values of Europeans (http://ec.europa.eu/commfrontoffice/publicopinion/index.cfm)
You can find more information about the project at www.val-eu.eu
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