Oliver Holz (Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, VoiceS member of the Belgien national group and the thematic field European Professionalism)
During the In-service training course in March 2014 in Graz Oliver Holz gave a presentation about the European Dimension and European Professionalism. He focused on the integration of the European dimension in teacher training:
With the Treaty of Maastricht in 1992 and for the first time in history of the process of the European unification this agreement had formulated guidelines, which were to be implemented in the course of a “Europeanisation” of the educational system. Articles 126 and 127 of the unification agreement refer to the European Community’s major task of integrating the European dimension into the educational system, in order to foster democratic and socially just principles, along with a respect for human rights as fundamental moral value. As a consequence, young people are facilitated to live together in Europe, and their having both a national identity and a developing “European identity”.
Oliver Holz went on to suggest that defining the European dimension in education' is as complicated as defining the term 'Europe'. An attempt at such a definition cannot possibly claim to be exhaustive. In terms of content, it is determined by criteria such as: curricula, teaching materials, mobility, foreign language teaching, teacher training, the exchange of information and experiences, along-distance learning.
In a narrower sense, the European dimension' can be described by way of several criteria and from various perspectives. This central 'dimension' depends on the particular context and takes into consideration geographical, political, historical, cultural and socio-economical aspects in general. Through more intensive foreign language teaching, student and teacher exchanges, international research projects and the initiation of an extensive exchange of information and other measures, (consistent with the Maastricht agreement) they are capable of making a significant contribution to the implementation of 'the European dimension'.
The development of independence, emancipation, a sense of responsibility, tolerance, democracy, justice, understanding and solidarity should lead to the awareness that, despite subsidiary action by the European Union resulting from our technology-intensive, pluralistic society, decisions also have to be made on a European level and that these will have an influence on the lives of the citizens of Europe.
The aim of the implementation of 'the European dimension in education' is to make pupils aware that in our society European decisions are becoming more relevant than national (ones).
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