UNIT 7: Responsibility – I go eco … my school takes part!

Unit 7: Key concept – “Responsibility” (for primary level)

Background information for teachers: how do students’ values reflect their perception of the concept of human rights?

Welcome to my morning, welcome to my day
I’m the one responsible, I made it just this way
To make myself some pictures, see what they might bring
I think I made it perfectly, I wouldn’t change a thing

From the song Farewell Andromeda (1973) by John Denver

Nowadays, children learn to take responsibility for their own actions from an early age. This is taken for granted in many families and societies. A democratic state can only function if citizens do not ask what the state can do for them but instead ask what they can do for the state. The quotation that is often used in this respect was one of John F. Kennedy’s: “Ask not what your country can do for you – ask what you can do for your country”.

There are different types and degrees of responsibility. Responsibility can be personal, collective or moral. There is responsibility of the parliament, the government or of the media. There is the responsibility for educating parents or teachers, etc. These forms of responsibility either have a legal background or represent moral values.

In this unit, students realise that there are different forms of responsibility and that they are often confused. The most important thing for us is that students start to realise that taking responsibility for their immediate surroundings is also a contribution to the community. In doing so, students not only contribute to community life but also gain power and influence. Depending on the political situ­ation or the political tradition in the country (or depending on the school tradition or the school’s governing body), it might be easy to take responsibility and thus gain power or it might be very difficult. Being denied responsibility creates frustration in everyday life that has to be analysed and overcome.

Human beings have the capacity for moral judgment from an early age and realise when they are acting responsibly and when not. Yet it is important not to restrict oneself to only social and moral learning at primary level; rather if we decide to do this within the framework of EDC/HRE – with its underlying principles of international human rights legal instruments – the goals that have been set will expand. Reflecting on the experience gained through taking responsibility leads to a broader understanding of oneself as a citizen. Moreover, this experience leads not only to being given further responsibility, but also to an automatic taking of responsibility.

Just like in the quotation from the song by John Denver shown at the beginning: “I am the one responsible, I made it just this way”, students should learn to experience taking responsibility. They should make decisions and be responsible for the results of their decisions. Learning and living democracy in school means that school is the place in which to prepare for life, but also the place in which to live together and decide together. It is obvious to everyone that there are clear divisions of roles and that laws and rules are necessary. Nevertheless, in most schools worldwide, the potential for granting more space to students and handing over more responsibility to them is still not used. Teachers and head teachers can easily change this within the existing framework of rules and laws.

The aim of education for democratic citizenship is to support the development of competences in three areas. This unit has the following competence profile:

UNIT 7: Responsibility
I go eco … my school takes part!

How do students’ values reflect their perception of the concept of human rights?