European Identity - Individual, Group and Society - HumanitarianNet

168 EUROPEAN IDENTITY. INDIVIDUAL, GROUP AND SOCIETYwhich he tried to answer “I hope I’ll carry on doing so for the rest ofmy life.” Various parts of Europe detach themselves: Boystov observesthat Russians simultaneously conceive of themselves as mainly Europeans,but also include Europe as the other.The implications of this are that we will have civic and socialrelationships that are rather different from the older, simpler loyalties ofnation, class and family. Tolerance of differences and empathy, andrecognition of underlying similarities and solidarity, will become keyelements of social life.I will now try to bring together some of these points together in anagenda of challenges for schools:1. allowing individual identity to develop in a way that allows thechild to define other groups in a way that is not alienating,intolerant or xenophobic,2. allowing individual identity to develop in a way that allows thechild to identify with the needs and requirements of others inthe society,3. allowing individual identity to develop in a way that allows thechild to see themselves as a member of a variety of differentgroups, which may have needs that are sometimes complementary,sometimes contradictory,4. allowing citizenship skills and understanding to develop in away that allows for rapid changes in social structures, in groupidentities and memberships,5. allowing citizenship skills and understanding to be respectfulof the needs of other groups, including those with other ethnicorigins, cultural roots, languages and faiths,6. developing both identity and citizenship in a way that allowsmutual respect between teacher and pupil, where differentpupils’ views are valued and respected,7. developing both identity and citizenship in a way that allowsteachers to respect children’s rights,8. developing both identity and citizenship in a way that allowsteachers to protect children’s rights from encroachment by thestate,9. developing both identity and citizenship in a way that developsparents’ skills and abilities to protect and value the rights oftheir children,10. teaching identity and citizenship in a democratic schools, thatrecognises the limitations of conventional knowledge andrecognises the potential power of the hidden curriculum,11. teaching identity and citizenship in a manner that allows the