Cosmopolitanism, Parochialism, and Interculturality

Abstract

Under convergence hypotheses, the practice and conduct of civic and religious education is expected to confirm a similar range of ideals and worldviews across European states. This chapter investigates the descriptive accuracy of this approach by comparing seven systems of civic/religious education in northern Europe. The analysis draws on recent original research in the area and uses a simple parochialism ↔ cosmopolitanism axis to assess and order the cases. The chapter concludes that national cultures have major importance for the orientation of civic and religious educational programmes and ideals in the region. Instead of converging educational regimes seem to if not diverge, then at least play out at significant distances from each other. National imagery and specificity are key starting points across all cases, even if some systems define their national identities and communal propensities in less parochial and more conditional terms than others.