Pupils' concepts of the 'nation' - implications for political education

The ambivalent thing about nationalism is that it excludes certain groups from the national community, but at the same time has a great potential for integration for the in-group (Münkler/Münkler 2016). The nation, according to Benedict Anderson, is an "imagined community" (Anderson 1996: 14), it depends on persons who believe in the nation and maintain it through this belief. This belief in the characteristics and history of the nation and feelings towards the nation are widespread throughout society, as quantitative studies have shown for decades (Zick 2021; Mader 2016). However, certain people are not seen as part of society in this nation thinking. If certain groups of people are excluded from society and are not seen as members, this contradicts the values of a democracy (Füllekruss/Mecheril 2021). Therefore, civic education is required to deal with the concept of the nation and to look at it critically. The resulting nation-critical political education can support the concept of inclusive citizenship education (Kleinschmidt/Lange 2019), but also for racism-critical education (Bönkost/Apraku 2017; Mroz/Reid 2017). Learning theory assumes that learners already have conceptions about social and political issues and adapt new impulses into their citizen awareness (Lange 2008). Therefore, it is necessary to first ascertain empirically which beliefs pupils have. The problem-centred, guideline-based interviews are analysed with the qualitative content analysis according to Kuckartz (Kuckartz 2016). Implications for political education are concluded based on this. During the poster presentation, the topic of 'nation' will first be presented theoretically and its socio-political problem potential will be outlined. Initial findings from the survey process will also be part of the presentation. Literature: Anderson, Benedict (1996) [1988]: Die Erfindung der Nation. Zur Karriere eines folgenreichen Konzepts. Frankfurt am Main: Campus. Bönkost, Jule/Apraku, Josephine (2017): Verhandlung von Deutsch-Sein: Verbindungslinien zwischen Kolonialismus, Nationalismus und Rassismus. In: Drücker, Ansgar/Seng, Sebasitan (Hrsg.): Made in Gemany. Reader für Multiplikator_innen in der Jugend- und Bildungsarbeit. Düsseldorf, S. 15-21. Füllekruss, David/Mecheril, Paul (2021): Politische Bildung in der Migrationsgesellschaft – demokratische Paradoxien und rassismuskritische Perspektiven. In: Schweizerische Zeitschrift für Bildungswissenschaften, 43(2), 222–232. https://doi.org/10.24452/sjer.43.2.3 Kleinschmidt, Malte/Lange, Dirk (2019): Inclusive Citizenship in der Migrationsgesellschaft. Ein empirisch-analytischer Forschungsansatz. Unimagazin der Leibniz Universität Hannover, S. 56- 59. Kuckartz, Udo (2016): Qualitative Inhaltsanalyse. Methoden, Praxis, Computerunterstützung (Grundlagentexte Methoden). Weinheim. Mader, Matthias (2016): Stabilität und Wandel der nationalen Identität in der deutschen Bevölkerung. In: Kölner Zeitschrift für Soziologie und Sozialpsychologie (68), S. 435-456. Mroz, Joschka/Reid, Ruben (2017): Nation ohne Rassismus? In: Drücker, Ansgar/Seng, Sebasitan (Hrsg.): Made in Germany. Reader für Multiplika tor_innen in der Jugend- und Bildungsarbeit. Düsseldorf, S. 42-47. Münkler, Marina/Münkler, Heribert (2016): Die neuen Deutschen. Rowohlt: Berlin. Zick, Andreas/Krott, Nora Rebekka (2021): Einstellungen zur Integration in der deutschen Be völkerung von 2014 bis 2020. Studienbericht der vierten Erhebung im Projekt ZuGleich – Zugehörigkeit und Gleichwertigkeit. Online abrufbar unter: https://www.stiftung- mercator.de/content/uploads/2021/08/ZuGleich_Studienbericht_2021_Andreas Zick.pdf, zuletzt abgerufen am 14.06.2022.