Methods of Implementation of Heritage Education into School Curricula

In order to support curricular reform in the Czech Republic, the Department of History and the Teaching of Historiography of the Faculty of Education of the Charles University in Prague launched the project Methods of Implementation of Heritage Education into School Curricula in 2006. The two-year project funded by the European Social Fund and the Czech Republic Government aimed to (re)develop educational potential of cultural heritage.

An interdisciplinary group of academics who participated in the project defined cultural heritage as such aspects of landscapes and both tangible and intangible culture that are the legacy of the past and it is of public interest that they are protected for the benefit of the future generations. A group of educational experts in co-operation with teachers from pilot schools then developed concept of heritage education that emphasized four main features: a cross-curricular approach, a personal development, a project-based learning and a community interaction. In 2007, eight regional pilot heritage educational projects were proposed, delivered and evaluated. The projects were based on partnerships between schools (lower- and upper-secondary) and heritage institutions (museums, galleries, and heritage sites). More than 350 pupils and students (aged 11 – 14 years) participated in the projects.

In 2008 about 300 attendants at both final conference and following in-service training workshops were introduced into results of the project. Other outcomes of the project included the publishing an academic publication on the educational potential of cultural heritage, heritage education handbook for teachers and presentations of six examples of good practice.