This project report details the discussions and findings of the Teaching History Programme of the Ratiu Forum from 2023 to 2024, sitting under the Central and South-East Europe Programme. The workshops and conferences engaged with History teachers of post-communist Europe to address the challenges of politicised History curricula and explore methods for teaching difficult and dark pasts – facilitating and improving cross-border understanding within the region. The report concludes with recommendations for teachers generated by the workshops, geared towards open and democratic societies to counter political extremism and autocratic populism, as well as considering the direction for future workshops.
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Teaching Difficult Histories: Key Principles for Democracy
This report was published on Thursday 11 June 2024.
About the authors
Stuart Austin is Programme Manager of the Central and South-East Europe Programme (CSEEP) at ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳ IDEAS, overseeing the Ratiu Forum and working closely with the CSEEP team at the Jagiellonian University, Krakow. Stuart studied History BA at the University of Kent, then completed an MSc in History of International Relations at ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳—specialising in the Cold War, the Balkans, and the Rise and Fall of Communism in Europe. After working in several UK Government departments, Stuart joined ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳ IDEAS in early 2020, as research assistant to the Engelsberg Chair for History and International Affairs—most recently Professor Margaret MacMillan. Following the end of the Engelsberg series in Summer 2022, he was subsequently also appointed Publications Editor.