Educational Materials

The 4-corner-method allows students to have an open discussion about different and sometimes controversial topics. Here, you find more information about the method and examples for questions and answers.

This workshop explores digital resilience in an AI-driven world using hands-on and solution-oriented methods. The goal is to understand what AI is, where it shows up in our lives, and how to build digital resilience. Participants are invited to identify the frameworks and attitudes that allow them to navigate this increasingly digital world with confidence. By the end, they should be able to recognise how they can contribute to a safer and more resilient digital space as critically active young citizens.

This publication offers a checklist for the participatory designing of educational formats. Based on experiences gathered in the network of Understanding Europe, the authors discuss the concept of focus groups.

This workshop introduces participants to the role of narratives in politics and security. Through discussions, short exercises, and scenario-based group work, participants examine how different actors can interpret the same event in conflicting ways, and why some narratives gain influence while others do not.

In 2020, our annual publication takes a look at diversity-sensitive educational processes from different perspectives. Contributors are Prof. Dr. Karim Fereidooni, Prof. Dr. Claudia Lenz and Maja Bogojević.

This year's publication is entitled “Going digital together: pathways to inclusive citizenship education online”. Next to contributions from education experts on fake news and digital inclusion, some of our network members report on their experiences with digital peer education.

The climate crisis terrifies young people all over Europe. The 2022 Educational Briefing explores how citizenship education can tackle this major challenge of our times – featuring practical suggestions by academics, activists and network members.

This publication explores the concept of resilience as a means for young people to deal with today's multiple crises – featuring practical suggestions by a psychologist, educational scientist and network members.

In this year’s Educational Briefing we explore the concept of a European culture of remembering, highlighting the role of memory in shaping collective identity.

This publication examines the growing role of youth-led and inclusive critical media education in empowering young people to actively engage with, shape, and transform the digital media environment in Europe.

Who has the power within the EU? How do EU policies come into being? How can I influence EU decision-making? This puzzle introduces the different EU institutions and visualizes their responsibilities.

These timeline cards introduce you to important European personalities who are often overlooked despite their inspiring stories.

Here, you can find all materials for a workshop on fake news & hate speech developed by Maja Bogojević and Clara S. Thompson. It examines various challenges and forms of discrimination that arise when dealing with media, and how we can react to them. The material includes a manual and a presentation.

You want to know more about the European history of flight and migration? Our timeline cards visualize and explain the most crucial events and developments.

Here, you can find all materials for a workshop discussing the importance of the freedom of press for democratic societies. It was developed by Hamed Alhamed and includes a course manual and role cards.

This workshop focuses on fundamental rights as a legal framework to protect people in light of the rise of far-right narratives. Participants will learn to recognize and name fundamental rights – and identify when and how those rights are being violated. They will gain a clear and accessiable understanding of how different legal systems (national, EU, and international) work together to protect rights.

These timeline cards show stories of EU (dis-)integration and address questions such as: Why was the EU founded? Which countries are part of it and is it possible to leave the EU? Which problems does democracy face in Europe?

This German publication includes contributions form a variety of educational actors and was published by the association „Gegen Vergessen – Für Demokratie“. It sheds light on the crucial importance of Peer Education for promoting social diversity and democracy.

How can I influence European politics? What options do I have to become active and participate? Our poster visualizes ideas on how young people can influence the future of Europe. The poster is available in English and 10 other languages.

In this publication, Prof. Dr. Karim Fereidooni gives an introduction to racism-critical education and illustrates, using two examples from the classroom, why it is so important.

This workshop focuses on security as a concept. Participants will reflect on the concept of security at both personal and global levels and explore their connection. They will further create a deeper understanding of the concept, stakeholders and policy fields of security policy through the use of physical activity and independent research.

Perceptions and ideas around Europe can be very different within Understanding Europe network members. This report explores stories, concerns, suggestions and visions of Europe from thirteen young volunteers active in the network.

Here, you find all materials for a workshop discussing the representation of young people in the media. It was developed by Julia Rieger consists of a manual, a presentation and two videos.

This publication of the DARE BLUE LINES series offers recommendations on how to promote competences for democratic cultures in the non-formal educational setcor. It includes contributions by our team members Thimo Nieselt and Laura Meijer.

On the occasion of our ten-year anniversary, we are happy to give insights into the knowledge gained during the last decade and provide consequent approaches to diversity-oriented Peer Edcuation.

Here, you find all materials for our workshop on security. Next to a workshop-manual, you will find a video in which young people from all over Europe talk about what security means to them.

Social media shapes the everyday lives of young people and increasingly influences how information is perceived, opinions are formed, and societal debates are conducted. The workshop 'Media Literacy and Democracy Education' addresses this reality and helps young people reflect on their own media use while developing a critical and responsible approach to digital information.

Dieser Workshop beschäftigt sich mit der Bedeutung von Solidarität und Resilienz. Die Teilnehmden lernen dabei auf einfache und zugängliche Art mehr über die Konzepte Solidarität und Resilienz. Sie werden dazu angeregt, über die Bedeutung in ihrem Leben und ihrem Umfeld nachzudenken und Erfahrungen darüber zu teilen.

This workshop by Kansu Ekin Tanca aims to raise awareness of our rights and responsi­bilities online by prioritising digital participation, valuing active and responsible digital citizens, and highlighting that children and young people should fully enjoy their rights online.

This workshop is aimed at de-stigmatising ideas connected to disability and seeks to empower young people to advocate for Disability Justice. At the end of the workshop, pupils should be more comfortable and knowledgeable regarding the concept of disability.

This workshop by Farah Abdi tackles the problem of mis- and underrepresentation of marginalised groups by encouraging young people to use social networks as platforms to organize and to advocate for diversity and inclusion.

This workshop by Davit Manukyan seeks to empower young people to exercise active citizenship on digital platforms they are used to. It draws from the assumptions that many young people have the willingness to be more politically active, however, lack capacity to seize the opportunities provided by digital spaces.

In their workshop, Gabriela Mayungu and Firas Hallak address discriminatory language and images in media coverage. The goal of their workshop is to develop a critical view of dominant narratives in the media and to strengthen digital media skills of young people.

The aim of the workshop is to introduce different, maybe unknown circumstances, that marginalized groups are confronted with due to climate change. Participants engage in discussions on climate justice and intersectionality.

This workshop focuses on the impact of diverse narratives on a specific minority in Europe: Muslim women. Participants will approach and understand the concept of narratives and will then deconstruct one-sided narratives into more diverse, active, and complex ones.

This workshop by Naz Al-Windi and Fanus Ghorjani introduces young people to the topic of algorithms. It aims to draw attention to the fact that algorithms fundamentally change and structure the democratic public sphere and have great influence on opinion-forming and decision-making processes.

This workshop by Elena Popescu aims to teach young people how to create a social media campaign on topics related to Europe. It is meant to help the participants experience their first European Moment in the digital world.

This workshop is an educational effort to empower participants to recognize their potential as peacebuilders in Europe and beyond. It reveals the process of peacebuilding by using virtual reality (VR) tools and encourages them to practice digital peacebuilding in everyday life.

In this workshop young people discuss different professions and their respective climate impact in a dialogue-oriented format. The participants' own strengths and interests serve as a basis for identifying relevant job fields or even specific job positions.

Compiled into a publication, Understanding Europe's Peer Educators have created 22 Photovoices. Consisting of an image and a text fragment, they were created at the European Summer School last August.