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Two analyses have been carried out for the purpose of this study. The first refers to the analysis of the gender differences in the development of civil sense (understanding citizenship) & the practice of citizenship (practicing citizenship). The second refers primarily to the analysis of the variables of the "school experience" (the school climate or the perceived opportunity for an open classroom discussion, & the variables of the perceived tasks of classroom learning or education) & how they influence the expected voting behaviour of adults. The findings were compared to similar international comparative studies (the 2001 TEA study, C. Hahn's study of 1998). Our study has shown that the gender differences regarding the civil political sense & the culture among young people have been diminishing but have not fully disappeared, & that there are significant differences among individual countries in that respect. Our research has shown that there are significant gender differences in their understanding of citizenship; these differences are somewhat smaller for the variable of the practice of citizenship among high-school students. However, those differences are not particularly pronounced. It seems that it is no longer justified to talk about civil political culture as "male culture," though gender still creates marked differences but no longer solely in favour of men. We have not come to the end of the road leading to a balanced civil political culture yet, at least regarding gender. & secondly, our study has shown that the political education of students & the perceived tasks of political education in schools influence the expected adult voting behaviour. This confirms the thesis that the classroom political education is relevant, at least to a limited degree, for the key variables of civil sense & practice. 4 Tables, 6 References. Adapted from the source document.

In this paper the author uses the analysis of a concrete case -- the introduction of political education into England's school system -- to describe the scientific, professional & political debates surrounding the status of school political education in schools in democratic states. Based on this analysis he concludes that England's case unmistakably proves that the proposals regarding the introduction of the new political education syllabuses, regardless of their quality, will invariably fail unless there is a strong political will i.e. the resolve of the political elites to accept & implement them. He also concludes that in today's democratic states there is some sort of a consensus on the necessity of the existence of this segment of education as an essential component of school systems. The consensus is based on the understanding that the future of democratic political systems to a large extent depends on the existence of citizens who possess the knowledge, attitudes & capabilities necessary for their informed & responsible inclusion in the process of political decision-making. The author thinks that the analysis embarked on in this paper might serve as an incentive for the actualization of the debate on the present status, scope, models & contents of political education in Croatian schools. Tables, References. Adapted from the source document.

The Council of Europe, founded in 1949 to promote greater unity & safeguard the political & cultural heritage of the continent, has become the largest international governmental organization in Europe with its 46 members. It proclaimed the year 2005 the "European Year of Citizenship through Education." The promotion of democracy & democratic political culture is one of the chief objectives of the Council of Europe, & the interest & active participation of citizens in public affairs are the conditions necessary for the development of democratic political culture. The awakening of citizens' interest & civic involvement begins at school. The Republic of Croatia as a member of the Council of Europe will observe 2005 as a Year of Citizenship through Education. In January of that year, the Croatian Ministry of Education, Science, and Sports set up a special commission consisting of 22 members representing educators & teachers from all three levels of the educational system, nongovernmental organizations, ministry departments, & mass media. The commission developed an action plan which it presented to the public in March of 2005 & which contained the principal objectives that the country's schools should seek in their teaching democratically minded citizenship. Z. Dubiel

Describes the study of the evolution of the awareness (understanding) & the practice (activities, participation) of citizenship among Croatian high school students (the first new generation of full-age citizens). The research was conducted in line with similar models in relevant international studies, which enabled a comparative analysis. The analysis of the concept (basic theory) of citizenship was followed by a comparative analysis of the development & the distribution of the citizenship awareness & the yardsticks of the practice of citizenship among Croatian high school students. A number of indicators of the awareness of citizenship (civic identity, the model & the type of citizenship, the concept of the "good citizen," & the concept of the rights & duties of citizens in democracy), & several measures of the practice of citizenship (political interest, discussing politics, following news in the media, the expected conventional & protest political activism, political tolerance) have been used. The comparative analysis has shown that the Croatian students are in some aspects of citizenship at the level of students in many of the comparison nations, but that in others there are significant differences; eg, their level of political interest is significantly lower. The analysis has shown that there is a high awareness of the rights, but relatively a low awareness of the duties, which may be the main problem in the development of political culture of Croatian students & citizens. The expected conventional & protest participation among the Croatian students is significantly lower than among students from other countries. The research also shows that among Croatian students (that phenomenon has also been noticed in other countries) there is a significant discrepancy between, for example, the awareness of the rights & duties of citizens in democracy & the level of political tolerance: the high level of awareness of one's rights (freedom of speech, association, etc) coexists with a relatively low level of tolerance. Thus, it can be said that various inconsistencies tag & "burden" the evolution of citizenship among Croatian high school students. 13 Tables, 40 References. Adapted from the source document.

Education & breeding, like culture in general, are, in the broadest sense, universal human phenomena inseparably linked & interactive. Anthropology, generally speaking, is a holistic science of man, his nature, & culture, so its approach & findings are always current, even in the scientific pedagogic treatment of education & its application. Because of that, the notions "education & breeding" & "anthropology," as a science of man & culture, are first theoretically determined so they can both contextually & explicitly be deduced & their necessary dialectical connection & mutuality be ascertained. The second, applied part of this paper is about religious education (scientifically, religiologically based) as a school subject & studies in the context of democratic social & political changes in Croatia & their relation to catechism. Adapted from the source document.

The author analyzes the role of religion in the formation of national identities in Central & Eastern Europe on the example of the Catholic Church in Poland in the 20th century. In Poland, like in most Central-European & Eastern-European societies, national identity developed against the state & was founded on certain elements of ethnic culture & tradition, the central position belonging to the Church. During communism, the Polish Catholic Church had the leading position in the construction of national identity, which identified Polishness with Catholicism. The Church also had a crucial role in the destruction of the communist system. However, it has found it increasingly difficult to adapt to the new conditions of political democracy as well as ideological & cultural pluralism. As has been sown through the debates on abortion & religious education in state schools, the attempt by the Church to achieve the statues of moral arbiter, above all democratic institutions, has resulted in new divisions & jeopardized its influence in the society. 7 References. Adapted from the source document.