Living Democracy » Textbooks
Textbooks
Teachers often struggle to find appropriate teaching resources for citizenship and human rights education. Those which are currently available vary greatly in quality and coverage of topics is patchy. The six Council of Europe “Living Democracy” manuals provide teachers with high-quality lesson materials which have been tested by educators in several countries and are flexible enough to enable both experienced and trainee teachers to introduce citizenship and human rights education into their schools in a fun, interactive and challenging way. They draw on expert authors from different parts of Europe and cover the whole age range from primary to secondary or high school.
Educating for democracy
Background materials on democratic citizenship and human rights education for teachers
The objective of this manual is to support teachers and practitioners in promoting citizenship and human rights education. It addresses a broad range of key questions, including objectives, competences, and a whole school approach to education for democracy and human rights.
The manual consists of three parts. Part I outlines the basic principles of citizenship and human rights education as far as they are helpful and meaningful for the practitioner. Part II gives guidelines and tools to design, support and assess the students’ processes of constructivist and interactive learning. Part III provides toolboxes for teachers and students in EDC/HRE.
The other volumes in this series offer concrete teaching models and materials in EDC/HRE for pupils from elementary to upper secondary level.
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Growing up in democracy
Lesson plans for primary level on democratic citizenship and human rights
This is a manual for teachers in Education for Democratic Citizenship (EDC) and Human Rights Education (HRE), EDC/HRE textbook editors and curriculum developers. Nine teaching units of approximately four lessons each focus on key concepts of EDC/HRE. The lesson plans give step-by-step instructions and include student handouts and background information for teachers. In this way, the manual is suited for trainees or beginners in the teaching profession and teachers who are receiving in-service teacher training in EDC/HRE. Experienced teachers may draw on the ideas and materials. The complete manual provides a full school year’s curriculum for lower secondary classes, but as each unit is also complete in itself, the manual allows great flexibility in use.
The objective of EDC/HRE is the active citizen who is willing and able to participate in the democratic community. Therefore EDC/HRE strongly emphasise action and task-based learning. The school community is conceived as a sphere of authentic experience where young people can learn how to participate in democratic decision making and may take responsibility at an early age. Key concepts of EDC/HRE are taught as tools of life-long learning.
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Living in democracy
This is a manual for teachers in Education for Democratic Citizenship (EDC) and Human Rights Education (HRE), EDC/HRE textbook editors and curriculum developers. Nine teaching units of approximately four lessons each focus on key concepts of EDC/HRE. The lesson plans give step-by-step instructions and include student handouts and background information for teachers. In this way, the manual is suited for trainees or beginners in the teaching profession and teachers who are receiving in-service teacher training in EDC/HRE. Experienced teachers may draw on the ideas and materials. The complete manual provides a full school year’s curriculum for lower secondary classes, but as each unit is also complete in itself, the manual allows great flexibility in use.
The objective of EDC/HRE is the active citizen who is willing and able to participate in the democratic community. Therefore EDC/HRE strongly emphasise action and task-based learning. The school community is conceived as a sphere of authentic experience where young people can learn how to participate in democratic decision making and may take responsibility at an early age. Key concepts of EDC/HRE are taught as tools of life-long learning.
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Taking part in democracy
Lesson plans for upper secondary level on democratic citizenship and human rights education
This is a manual for teachers in Education for Democratic Citizenship (EDC) and Human Rights Education (HRE), EDC/HRE textbook editors and curriculum developers. Nine teaching units of approximately four lessons each focus on key concepts of EDC/HRE. The lesson plans give step-by-step instructions and include student handouts and background information for teachers. In this way, the manual is suitable for trainees or beginners in the teaching profession and teachers who are receiving in-service teacher training in EDC/HRE. Experienced teachers may draw on the ideas and materials. The complete manual provides a full school year’s curriculum for students in upper secondary school (grades 10 to 12), but as each unit is also complete in itself, the manual allows great fexibility of use.
The objective of EDC/HRE is the active citizen who is willing and able to participate in the democratic community. Therefore, EDC/HRE strongly emphasises action and task-based learning. This manual for upper secondary level focuses on key competences that enable young people to participate in democratic decision making and to meet the challenges of a dynamic pluralist society. Key concepts of EDC/HRE are taught as tools of lifelong learning.
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Exploring Children’s Rights
Nine short projects for primary level
Children should know what rights they have, but they should also learn how to appreciate and to use them. To achieve this, schools must allow for a wide range of learning experiences in children’s rights education. Children understand and appreciate their rights by using them, both in school and in everyday life. To encourage children to do so, the challenge for the teacher is to create a setting that is governed by the spirit of democracy and human rights.
This manual has been designed for teachers who are looking for tools to teach children's rights to pupils in the 1st to the 9th year of compulsory education. The manual follows a spiral curriculum in order for the children to explore their rights year by year.
The features of this manual include:
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- A short introduction with information on the conceptual framework and on learning by example.
- Nine small projects of four lessons each for pupils in their first nine years of school.
- Detailed lesson descriptions and plans.
- Task-based approach.
- Appendix with a range of resources (including the Convention on the Rights of the Child and an illustrated version of the Convention) and background information on children’s rights.
Teaching Democracy
A collection of models for democratic citizenship and human rights education
This teachers' manual contains a collection of exercises and models for Education for Democratic Citizenship (EDC) and Human Rights Education (HRE) in schools as well as in non-formal settings of education. These teaching models provide the framework to encourage students to become active by offering examples and inroads to understanding general principles of democracy and human rights. Many exercises are adaptable for different age groups, as the level of reflection may vary.
The wide variety of approaches reflects the fact that authors from all parts of Europe have contributed to this book. They have drawn on different sources and traditions of teaching and learning, and have selected models that they know through practical experience and testing in class. However, there is a shared understanding of EDC/HRE that runs through every part of this book: in EDC/HRE, the method carries the message. This manual offers the users the chance to select and to try out different traditions and approaches to Education for Democratic Citizenship and Human Rights Education.
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