The use of a state-sanctioned historical narrative to legitimise Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which began on 24.02.2022, proves once again how important critical textbook research is for political debate and for education in schools and universities. A working group comprising four Ukrainian researchers planned to examine the depictions of history and the historical narrative on Eastern Europe in textbooks for geography, history and political education. The group examined the content of current Ukrainian, Belarussian, Russian and German textbooks that addresses the history of the region as a whole and of Ukrainian history in particular, and used this examination to analyse the development of this narrative since the 1990s. In addition to the narratives themselves, the researchers also focussed on historico-political strategies that may serve a legitimising role or aim to boost a national sense of self-assurance, convey unquestionably presupposed ‘truths’, or may be designed to stimulate critical thinking and encourage students to position themselves in the context of competing narratives from the past.
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Aims
The aim of the working group was to carefully contrast the common and conflicting narratives on the past that are perpetrated through the education systems of these three neighbouring countries and Germany, and to examine how political shifts have affected the narratives on the history of the Ukrainian nation – including topics such as the Ukrainian-Lithuanian Duchy, the role of Ukraine in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth and the Hapsburg Empire, experiences of violence in the twentieth century and the creation and dissolution of the Soviet Union as well as the new European order that has emerged since 1990. Textbooks as a genre are particularly interesting when analysing societal upheaval, as they are not only an educational tool but they may also document political doctrine and strategies of historical legitimisation. The interaction or the dissonance between historical narratives of political leaders, specialist historical publications and textbooks therefore were at the centre of the research conducted by the working group.
The study focussed on identifying and comparing narratives that address the history of a region in which Russia is currently waging a war of aggression and largely attempting to legitimise it using claims derived from historical developments. A cursory look at current Russian textbooks shows that this process of legitimisation has been evident in educational media for some years. The study therefore tested the thesis that textbooks act as indicators of social or political changes and crises.
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Methodology
The analysis was based on the following questions:
- How is the history of Ukraine told (or not told) from the different perspectives? Which historical figures and events are highlighted in the narrative of the region and how are transnational links or relationships interpreted? What current challenges do the textbooks attribute to events in the past?
- What errors, stereotypes or distortions can be identified in the textbooks? To what extent can these be traced back to political interests and narratives?
The source material for the textbook analysis was material already held by the GEI Research Library and any new educational media that was acquired if necessary. The GEI’s textbook collection encompasses approximately 183,000 print and online media items from 180 countries and a corresponding collection of approximately 9,000 curricula. The educational media collection is complemented by a corresponding collection of specialist academic literature. The library already has many textbooks from Belarus, Russia and Ukraine. Textbooks released at the start of the 2022/2023 academic year, which were acquired where available, may already document current developments. The study also included an examination of complementary educational media (grey literature and digital materials) in order to include the latest narratives.
In order to ensure comparability between the analyses for the different countries, the working group created a common framework containing particularly relevant themes and terms. The methodological basis was qualitative content analysis, which was supported by quantitative analysis where possible and expedient. The following analytical categories were used: a) thematic framework, b) didactic treatment and methodology, c) cited sources and types of document, d) conceptual framing, e) persons featured or mentioned, f) linguistic patterns in depictions.
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Results
The results of this research project will initially comprise the textbook analysis and the documentation of controversies related to politics and memory-culture, which will be published in an article in an English-language journal and as a report.
Furthermore, the project will provide education policy-makers and practitioners with an impetus firmly based in research. Policy briefs, directed at politicians and policy-makers, are also planned, as is training for teachers, and the creation of educational materials with the following objectives:
- To use systematic analysis to educate the public in Germany and Ukraine and the counter-public in Russia and Belarus about narratives disseminated in textbooks.
- To make the public, policy-makers and education practitioners in Germany aware of stereotypes and simplifications in German textbooks with regards to the depiction of Eastern Europe and Ukraine.
- To produce recommendations for education policy-makers and publishers of educational media in Germany that address the depiction of Ukrainian history and Russian politics, especially with regards to Ukrainian students who have fled to Germany.
The didactic stimuli resulting from the project can be published on the German-language teaching platform www.zwischentoene.info and on the hi-storylessons.eu/de platform, which provides digital educational materials in seven languages. Training sessions and workshops for teachers, based on the results of the study, will be offered in the Leibniz Institute for Educational Media’s digital lab, The Basement.
