European Identity - Individual, Group and Society - HumanitarianNet

158 EUROPEAN IDENTITY. INDIVIDUAL, GROUP AND SOCIETYtions and duties that are part of lining in society. Individuals do nothave absolute freedom, or anything like it: we are all limited by socialobligations. It used to be held that the role of education was simplyand only to transmit existing social structures: to reproduce socialpatterns, structures and relationships. Thus a century ago, Durkheimcharacterised education as “the image and reflection of society. Itimitates and reproduces the latter in an abbreviated form; it does notcreate it” (1897, p 372). Education was held to hold a mirror to society,reproducing social behaviour, distinctions and patterns. But currentthinking gives education an additional and a more sensitivetransfomative role. Education can change and transform society, ratherthan simply reproduce it. It can open new opportunities to individualsand groups, enhancing their ability to participate in the community—economically, politically and socially. Social exclusion can be lessened,inequalities reduced, and access to power, influence and involvementincreased. Much of this is achieved by ensuring that the structures thatprovide education distribute knowledge, ideas, skills and attitudes inways that all groups and classes of people can achieve. But social andcivic education develops particular abilities and attitudes that areespecially important for the development of a civic culture amongstyoung people.This paper considers the challenges that are set for schools in thedevelopment of citizenship education. This analysis has been reachedby the combined efforts of members of the Network Children’s Identityand Citizenship in Europe: there follows a brief outline of our scopeand activities, to give the context of this analysis. CiCe is a ThematicNetwork Project supported by the European Commission’s ERASMUSprogramme, designed to further cooperation between universities inthe various countries of the European union and the Associate states.Thematic Networks link Departments in Universities and Collegesacross Europe to co-operate around a particular discipline or theme,and to define and develop a European dimension within this. TheNetwork links 29 European states and 90 University and CollegeDepartments which educate students about how children and youngpeople learn about and understand their society, their identity andcitizenship. It is a cross-disciplinary group, with interests in socialpsychology, pedagogy, psychology, sociology and curriculum studies,who educate various professions such as teachers, social pedagogues,psychologists, early childhood workers and youth workers, as well asstudents on academic pathways (see also Ross, 2001a).CiCe members are working in an important policy area for theEuropean Union. The Commission’s priorities for European education