European Identity - Individual, Group and Society - HumanitarianNet

11.What Makes us European? Identity Constructionin the School FrameworkInés M.ª Gómez-ChacónInternational Programmes´ ManagerEducation for an Interdependent World, BelgiumEuropean identity has been recently defined as a constantly shiftingkaleidoscope, mixing perceptions of the past with the search for acoherent future..., as a multiform and complex ensemble which first ofall includes a sense of belonging to a common legal space 1 .One component of identities is denominations, i.e. the names usedto designate things or individuals. Both may have proper names (names,surnames, but also names of countries, places...) or can also be equallydefined in terms of matter, technique, profession, group... Saying “whoI am” or “who the other is” constitutes an act of social categorization.Very often it also implies describing the subject, ascribing a value to it.Identities are not only categories themselves, but also their propertiesand the values transmitted through judgements. For instance, sayingthat someone is Arabian does not currently have the same connotationsas saying that the same person is a lawyer. In modern societies, adultshave various identities insofar as they belong to different local, cultural,professional and political groups, many of which are strictly associatedwith status. One often has a “main status”: for example, one´s professionor ethnic origin. This social identity is not innate but the consequence ofthe socialization of the individual. It is not entirely personal but ratherdepends on the judgement from others.Schools constitute an important arena for socialization (such as theinternalization of the world) where the identity of the other becomes1“European identity; a kaleidoscope undergoing constant development”. Councilof Europe. “The notion of Identity”. Discussion April 17-18, 2001.