Study: Baltic Sea Region back in the classrooms

As part of an international project the Unitas Foundation is conducting a study on Baltic Sea Region history education in Estonia, Latvia, Finland, and Sweden. The preliminary results indicate that the history of the region as well as that of neighbouring countries is taught to a minimal degree and only in direct relation to state developments in the project countries.

“Neighbouring countries, as well as crucial developments in European history such as Soviet repressions and the occupation of the Baltic states, are rarely or never touched upon in the history curricula of Finnish and Swedish schools. Considering that Nordic countries are global leaders in human rights protection, their insufficient treatment of crimes against humanity against their closest neighbours is highly regrettable. A while ago it was explicable with the desire to be politically correct in order to maintain diplomatic relations with the Soviet Union. In the present day integrating Europe, however, one is expected to contribute more to understanding one’s neighbours,“ says Uve Poom, CEO of the Unitas Foundation.

As part of a history education project Different Nations – Shared Experiences, an expert group of Estonian, Latvian, Finnish, and Swedish researchers analyse the curricula of the four project countries. The initial results of the study indicate the need to educate youth on the Baltic Sea Region as a unified region and talk about state history as part of a whole. Since curricula are modified every 5-10 years, at the present stage the experts suggest developing topical courses in the field of Baltic Sea Region history education.

“Even though the Baltic Sea has, for centuries, been a uniting factor, largely due to recent historical events it has become a divider. Shared traditions and collaboration have been severed due to inadequate knowledge about each other and regional history. Negative stereotypes on Baltic countries are still widely held among the Finnish and Swedish, deriving directly from insufficient historical knowledge. Based on preliminary research results we maintain that the development of educational materials and methodologies should be a priority, and that the stories of refugees and new immigrants should be taken into account in the process,“ Uve Poom concludes.

The Unitas Foundation was established in 2008 with the mission to build reconciliation between and within societies divided by totalitarianism. The Foundation focuses mainly on educational and awareness raising activities on the history of communist regimes, human rights issues and promoting active citizenship.

Published by Unitas Foundation

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