Chapter 19: European Political Consciousness in German Schools: A Framework for Qualitative Research

The AGORA Political Education at the Leibniz University of Hannover (http://www.ipw.uni-hannover.de/3654.html) with its focus points and empirical approaches of the work closely cooperates with other faculty’s didactics. The qualitative research concept presented on European political consciousness in schools is part of this context, and builds upon Markus W. Behne’s doctoral research on the didactical structure of European political conceptions held by European youth. It also builds on integration theory. The survey of the doctoral work, scheduled for completion in 2010, evaluates concepts and social patterns of interpretation (Plaß & Schetsche, 2001) on how groups of young Europeans procure a discursive presence and didactically contrasts them against the ideas, approaches, and theories about how they can and are developed in the political science discussion regarding the European integration process.