The Application of Discourse Ethics as an Approach in Revisiting Cultural Understandings in Cypriot History Education
##plugins.themes.bootstrap3.article.main##
Abstract
This paper provides an examination of the parallel efforts undertaken by the Greek and Turkish Cypriot communities of Cyprus in order to revise their history curricula. Although the high nationalistic discourses which were elected to address the way in which history was taught in the two communities has come under considerable revision, both groups still have a long way to go before a totally ‘critical’ and ‘apolitical’ space is reached wherein they locate their approaches to history. By delving into the historical and current geopolitical background of Cyprus, this paper argues that the two communities share many commonalities that form the basis upon which an ethically communicative and discursive space may be developed for inter-communal dialogue via history teaching
##plugins.themes.bootstrap3.article.details##
Keywords
history school textbooks, reconciliation agendas, discourse ethics, critical theory, inter-communal dialogue
References
Association for Historical Dialogue and Research (AHDR) (2003) ‘Proposal by the AHDR on the Reform of History Education’. Available at: [http://www.ahdr.info/home.php], accessed on 14 September 2014.
Aune, F.R., Rosendahl, K.E. and Sagen, E.L. (2009) ‘Globalisation of Natural Gas Markets – Effects on Prices and Trade Patterns’, The Energy Journal, Vol. 30, No. 2, pp. 39–54.
Bradshaw, M.J. (2010) ‘Global Energy Dilemmas: A Geographical Perspective’, The Geographical Journal, Vol. 176, No. 4, pp. 275–290.
Christodoulou, D. (1992) Inside the Cyprus Miracle: The Labours of an Embattled Mini-Economy. Minnesota: University of Minnesota Press.
Christou, M. (2006) ‘A Double Imagination: Memory and Education in Cyprus’, Journal of Modern Greek Studies, Vol. 24, No. 2, pp. 285–306.
Constantinides, S. (2013) ‘British Heritage’, In Depth, Vol. 10, No. 5, pp. 7–9. Nicosia: Cyprus Centre for European and International Affairs (CCEIA) [http://www.cceia.unic.ac.cy].
Council of Europe (2004) Reports of the Activities of the Council of Europe in History Teaching in Cyprus in 2004. Strasbourg: Council of Europe.
Council of Europe and Makriyianni, C. (2005) Multiperspectivity in Teaching and Learning History: Presentations from Seminars and Workshop Materials. Nicosia: Council of Europe.
Demetriou, O. (2014) ‘Situating Loss in the Greek-Turkish Encounter in Cyprus’, in Lytra, V. (ed.), When Greeks and Turks Meet: Interdisciplinary Perspectives on the Relationship Since 1923. King’s College London: Centre for Hellenic Studies.
Easton, S.E. (1964) The Rise and Fall of Western Colonialism. New York: The Free Press.
Evripidou, S. (2008) ‘A Struggle for the Future of Cyprus’, Cyprus Mail archived article, 14 September 2008.
Famagusta Revival (2008) ‘Report of SDDP Co-Laboratories’ Available at: [http://www.Futureworlds.eu/w/images/f/fd/CSD_SDDP_Famagusta_Report_final.pdf], accessed on 14 September 2014.
Firillas, M. (2008) ‘Slogans and National Interest’, In Depth, Vol. 5, No. 4, pp. 1–2. Nicosia: Cyprus Centre for European and International Affairs (CCEIA) Available at: [http://www.cceia.unic.ac.cy/index.php?option=com_search&searchword=firillas], accessed on 19 September 2014.
Foucault, M. (1980) Power/Knowledge. New York: Harvester Wheatsheaf.
Georgiades, S.D. (2006) ‘Favouritism as a Form of Injustice in Cyprus: Ubiquitous and Eternal?’, The Cyprus Review, Vol. 18, No. 2, pp. 105–125.
Grossman, P.L. (2001) ‘Research on the Teaching of Literature: Finding a Place’, in Richardson, V. (ed.), Handbook of Research on Teaching. New York: American Educational Research Association, pp. 15–37.
Habermas, J. (1990) Moral Consciousness and Communicative Action. UK: Polity.
Habermas, J. (1993) Justification and Application: Remarks on Discourse Ethics. UK: Polity.
Halil-Ibrahim, S. (2013) Reshaping of Cyprus: A Two-State Solution. Bloomington, Indiana: Xlibris Corporation.
Hamilakis, Y. (2003) ‘Learn History! Antiquity, National Narrative, and History in Greek Educational Textbooks’, in Brown, K. and Hamilakis, Y. (eds), The Usable Past: Greek Metahistories. Lanham, Maryland: Lexington Books, pp. 39–67.
Hicks, D. (1980) Images of the World: An Introduction to Bias in Teaching Materials. London: University of London Institute of Education.
Horkheimer, M. (1982) Critical Theory. New York: Seabury Press.
Iliopoulou, E. and Karathanasis, P. (2014) ‘Towards a Radical Politics: Grassroots Urban Activism in the Walled City of Nicosia’, The Cyprus Review, Vol. 26, No. 1, pp. 169–190.
Jenkins, K. (1991) Re-Thinking History. New York: Routledge.
Joint Committee on Education and Science (2008) Teaching History in Areas of Recent Conflict: The Irish Context. University of Ulster, Coleraine: UNESCO Centre.
Karahassan, H. and Zembylas, M. (2006) ‘The Politics of Memory and Forgetting in History Textbooks: Towards a Pedagogy of Reconciliation and Peace in Divided Cyprus’, in Ross, A. (ed.), Citizenship Education: Europe and the World. London: CiCe, pp. 701–712.
Karatsioli, B. (2014a) ‘“What kind of state are we in when we start to think of the state?” Cyprus in Crises and Prospects for Reunification’, The Cyprus Review, Vol. 26, No. 1, pp. 147–168.
Karatsioli, B. (2014b) ‘Cyprus in Europe: (In)-dependence and In-debtedness’, The Cyprus Review, Vol. 26, No. 1, pp. 15–32.
Kasbarian, S. (2013) ‘Diasporic Voices from the Peripheries – Armenian Experiences on the Edges of Community in Cyprus and Lebanon’, The Cyprus Review, Vol. 25, No. 1, pp. 81–110.
Laouris, Y., Laouri, R. and Aleco, C. (2008) ‘Communication Praxis for Ethical Accountability: The Ethics of the Tree of Action: Dialogue and Breaking down the Wall in Cyprus’, Systems Research and Behavioural Science, Vol. 25, No. 2, pp. 331–348.
Makriyianni, C. and Psaltis, C. (2007) ‘The Teaching of History and Reconciliation’, The Cyprus Review, Vol. 19, No. 1, pp. 43–69.
Massialas, B. and Flouris, G. (1994) ‘Education and the Emerging Concept of National Identity in Greece’. Paper delivered at the Annual Conference of the Comparative and International Education Society, San Diego, CA, USA, 21–24 March.
Mavratsas, C. (1997) ‘Greek Cypriot Economic and Political Culture: The Effects of 1974’, in Calotychos, V. (ed.), Cyprus and its People: Nation, Identity and Experience in an Unimaginable Community 1955–1997. Colorado: Westview Press, pp. 285–299.
MOEC (Ministry of Education and Culture of Cyprus) (1996) Αναλυτικά Προγράμματα Δημοτικής Εκπαίδευσης στα Πλαίσια της Εννιάχρονης Εκπαίδευσης [Primary Education Curricula in the Context of Nine-Year Education]. Nicosia: MOEC.
MOEC (Ministry of Education and Culture of Cyprus) (2008a) Inclusion in the Cyprus Educational System at the Beginning of the Twenty First Century: An Overview. Nicosia: MOEC. Available at: [http://www.ibe.unesco.org/National_Reports/ICE_2008/Cyprus_NR08.pdf], accessed 14 September 2014.
MOEC (2008b) Στόχοι σχολικής χρονιάς 2008–2009 [Educational Aims for the Academic year 2008–2009]. Nicosia: MOEC. Available at: [http://www.moec.gov.cy/anakoinoseis/2008/pdf/10_09_2008-stxoxoi_sx_xronias_mesi.pdf], accessed on 14 September 2014.
Morag, N. (2004) ‘Cyprus and the Clash of Greek and Turkish Nationalisms’, Nationalism and Ethnic Politics, Vol. 10, No. 4, pp. 595–624.
Mullen, F., Apostolides, A. and Besim, M. (2014) The Cyprus Peace Dividend Revisited: A Productivity and Sectoral Approach. Cyprus: Peace Research Institute Oslo.
Papadakis, Y. (2008) History Education in Divided Cyprus: A Comparison of Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot Schoolbooks on the ‘History of Cyprus’. Oslo: International Peace Research Institute.
Papadakis, Y. (2014) ‘The Good, the Bad and the Ugly: Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot School Books on the History of Cyprus’, in Lytra, V. (ed.), When Greeks and Turks Meet: Interdisciplinary Perspectives on the Relationship Since 1923. King’s College London: Centre for Hellenic Studies.
Papadakis, Y., Peristianis, N. and Welz, G. (2006) Divided Cyprus: Modernity, History, and an Island in Conflict. Bloomington, Indiana: Indiana University Press.
Pashiardis, P. (2007) ‘Cyprus’, in Horner, W., Dobert, H., Kopp, B. and Mitter, W. (eds.), The Education Systems of Europe, Kluwer Academic, Netherlands: Springer, pp. 202–222.
Peristianis, N. (2006) ‘Cypriot Nationalism, Dual Identity, and Politics’, in Papadakis, N., Peristianis, N. and Welz, G. (eds.), Divided Cyprus: Modernity, History, and an Island in Conflict. Bloomington, Indiana: Indiana University Press, pp. 100–120.
Psaltis, C., Lytras, E. and Costache, S. (2011) History Educators in the Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot Community of Cyprus: Perceptions, Beliefs and Practices. Nicosia: K&L Lithofit.
Stradling, R. (2003) Multiperspectivity in History Teaching: A Guide for Teachers. Strasbourg, Germany: Council of Europe.
The American Historical Association (n.d.) ‘England’s Indirect Rule in its African Colonies’, in Through the Lens of History: Biafra, Nigeria, The West and the World. AHA Teaching Guide. Available at: [http://www.historians.org/tl/lessonplans/nc/trask/indirect.htm], accessed on 31 August 2014.
Theophanous, A. and Tirkides, Y. (2006) Accession to the Eurozone and the Reunification of the Cyprus Economy. Nicosia: Intercollege Press.
Trimikliniotis, N. (2004) ‘Mapping Discriminatory Landscapes in Cyprus: Ethnic Discrimination in a Divided Education System’, The Cyprus Review, Vol. 16, No. 1, pp. 53–86.
Unesco (1949) A Handbook for the Improvement of Textbooks and Teaching Materials as Aids to International Understanding. Paris: Unesco.
Worsley, P. and Kitromilides, P. (1979) Small States in the Modern World: The Conditions of Survival. Nicosia: The New Cyprus Association.
Yergin, D. (2013) ‘The Globalisation of Energy Demand’, CNBC, 3 June 2013. Available at: [http://www.cnbc.com/id/100784599], accessed on 14 September 2014.
Aune, F.R., Rosendahl, K.E. and Sagen, E.L. (2009) ‘Globalisation of Natural Gas Markets – Effects on Prices and Trade Patterns’, The Energy Journal, Vol. 30, No. 2, pp. 39–54.
Bradshaw, M.J. (2010) ‘Global Energy Dilemmas: A Geographical Perspective’, The Geographical Journal, Vol. 176, No. 4, pp. 275–290.
Christodoulou, D. (1992) Inside the Cyprus Miracle: The Labours of an Embattled Mini-Economy. Minnesota: University of Minnesota Press.
Christou, M. (2006) ‘A Double Imagination: Memory and Education in Cyprus’, Journal of Modern Greek Studies, Vol. 24, No. 2, pp. 285–306.
Constantinides, S. (2013) ‘British Heritage’, In Depth, Vol. 10, No. 5, pp. 7–9. Nicosia: Cyprus Centre for European and International Affairs (CCEIA) [http://www.cceia.unic.ac.cy].
Council of Europe (2004) Reports of the Activities of the Council of Europe in History Teaching in Cyprus in 2004. Strasbourg: Council of Europe.
Council of Europe and Makriyianni, C. (2005) Multiperspectivity in Teaching and Learning History: Presentations from Seminars and Workshop Materials. Nicosia: Council of Europe.
Demetriou, O. (2014) ‘Situating Loss in the Greek-Turkish Encounter in Cyprus’, in Lytra, V. (ed.), When Greeks and Turks Meet: Interdisciplinary Perspectives on the Relationship Since 1923. King’s College London: Centre for Hellenic Studies.
Easton, S.E. (1964) The Rise and Fall of Western Colonialism. New York: The Free Press.
Evripidou, S. (2008) ‘A Struggle for the Future of Cyprus’, Cyprus Mail archived article, 14 September 2008.
Famagusta Revival (2008) ‘Report of SDDP Co-Laboratories’ Available at: [http://www.Futureworlds.eu/w/images/f/fd/CSD_SDDP_Famagusta_Report_final.pdf], accessed on 14 September 2014.
Firillas, M. (2008) ‘Slogans and National Interest’, In Depth, Vol. 5, No. 4, pp. 1–2. Nicosia: Cyprus Centre for European and International Affairs (CCEIA) Available at: [http://www.cceia.unic.ac.cy/index.php?option=com_search&searchword=firillas], accessed on 19 September 2014.
Foucault, M. (1980) Power/Knowledge. New York: Harvester Wheatsheaf.
Georgiades, S.D. (2006) ‘Favouritism as a Form of Injustice in Cyprus: Ubiquitous and Eternal?’, The Cyprus Review, Vol. 18, No. 2, pp. 105–125.
Grossman, P.L. (2001) ‘Research on the Teaching of Literature: Finding a Place’, in Richardson, V. (ed.), Handbook of Research on Teaching. New York: American Educational Research Association, pp. 15–37.
Habermas, J. (1990) Moral Consciousness and Communicative Action. UK: Polity.
Habermas, J. (1993) Justification and Application: Remarks on Discourse Ethics. UK: Polity.
Halil-Ibrahim, S. (2013) Reshaping of Cyprus: A Two-State Solution. Bloomington, Indiana: Xlibris Corporation.
Hamilakis, Y. (2003) ‘Learn History! Antiquity, National Narrative, and History in Greek Educational Textbooks’, in Brown, K. and Hamilakis, Y. (eds), The Usable Past: Greek Metahistories. Lanham, Maryland: Lexington Books, pp. 39–67.
Hicks, D. (1980) Images of the World: An Introduction to Bias in Teaching Materials. London: University of London Institute of Education.
Horkheimer, M. (1982) Critical Theory. New York: Seabury Press.
Iliopoulou, E. and Karathanasis, P. (2014) ‘Towards a Radical Politics: Grassroots Urban Activism in the Walled City of Nicosia’, The Cyprus Review, Vol. 26, No. 1, pp. 169–190.
Jenkins, K. (1991) Re-Thinking History. New York: Routledge.
Joint Committee on Education and Science (2008) Teaching History in Areas of Recent Conflict: The Irish Context. University of Ulster, Coleraine: UNESCO Centre.
Karahassan, H. and Zembylas, M. (2006) ‘The Politics of Memory and Forgetting in History Textbooks: Towards a Pedagogy of Reconciliation and Peace in Divided Cyprus’, in Ross, A. (ed.), Citizenship Education: Europe and the World. London: CiCe, pp. 701–712.
Karatsioli, B. (2014a) ‘“What kind of state are we in when we start to think of the state?” Cyprus in Crises and Prospects for Reunification’, The Cyprus Review, Vol. 26, No. 1, pp. 147–168.
Karatsioli, B. (2014b) ‘Cyprus in Europe: (In)-dependence and In-debtedness’, The Cyprus Review, Vol. 26, No. 1, pp. 15–32.
Kasbarian, S. (2013) ‘Diasporic Voices from the Peripheries – Armenian Experiences on the Edges of Community in Cyprus and Lebanon’, The Cyprus Review, Vol. 25, No. 1, pp. 81–110.
Laouris, Y., Laouri, R. and Aleco, C. (2008) ‘Communication Praxis for Ethical Accountability: The Ethics of the Tree of Action: Dialogue and Breaking down the Wall in Cyprus’, Systems Research and Behavioural Science, Vol. 25, No. 2, pp. 331–348.
Makriyianni, C. and Psaltis, C. (2007) ‘The Teaching of History and Reconciliation’, The Cyprus Review, Vol. 19, No. 1, pp. 43–69.
Massialas, B. and Flouris, G. (1994) ‘Education and the Emerging Concept of National Identity in Greece’. Paper delivered at the Annual Conference of the Comparative and International Education Society, San Diego, CA, USA, 21–24 March.
Mavratsas, C. (1997) ‘Greek Cypriot Economic and Political Culture: The Effects of 1974’, in Calotychos, V. (ed.), Cyprus and its People: Nation, Identity and Experience in an Unimaginable Community 1955–1997. Colorado: Westview Press, pp. 285–299.
MOEC (Ministry of Education and Culture of Cyprus) (1996) Αναλυτικά Προγράμματα Δημοτικής Εκπαίδευσης στα Πλαίσια της Εννιάχρονης Εκπαίδευσης [Primary Education Curricula in the Context of Nine-Year Education]. Nicosia: MOEC.
MOEC (Ministry of Education and Culture of Cyprus) (2008a) Inclusion in the Cyprus Educational System at the Beginning of the Twenty First Century: An Overview. Nicosia: MOEC. Available at: [http://www.ibe.unesco.org/National_Reports/ICE_2008/Cyprus_NR08.pdf], accessed 14 September 2014.
MOEC (2008b) Στόχοι σχολικής χρονιάς 2008–2009 [Educational Aims for the Academic year 2008–2009]. Nicosia: MOEC. Available at: [http://www.moec.gov.cy/anakoinoseis/2008/pdf/10_09_2008-stxoxoi_sx_xronias_mesi.pdf], accessed on 14 September 2014.
Morag, N. (2004) ‘Cyprus and the Clash of Greek and Turkish Nationalisms’, Nationalism and Ethnic Politics, Vol. 10, No. 4, pp. 595–624.
Mullen, F., Apostolides, A. and Besim, M. (2014) The Cyprus Peace Dividend Revisited: A Productivity and Sectoral Approach. Cyprus: Peace Research Institute Oslo.
Papadakis, Y. (2008) History Education in Divided Cyprus: A Comparison of Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot Schoolbooks on the ‘History of Cyprus’. Oslo: International Peace Research Institute.
Papadakis, Y. (2014) ‘The Good, the Bad and the Ugly: Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot School Books on the History of Cyprus’, in Lytra, V. (ed.), When Greeks and Turks Meet: Interdisciplinary Perspectives on the Relationship Since 1923. King’s College London: Centre for Hellenic Studies.
Papadakis, Y., Peristianis, N. and Welz, G. (2006) Divided Cyprus: Modernity, History, and an Island in Conflict. Bloomington, Indiana: Indiana University Press.
Pashiardis, P. (2007) ‘Cyprus’, in Horner, W., Dobert, H., Kopp, B. and Mitter, W. (eds.), The Education Systems of Europe, Kluwer Academic, Netherlands: Springer, pp. 202–222.
Peristianis, N. (2006) ‘Cypriot Nationalism, Dual Identity, and Politics’, in Papadakis, N., Peristianis, N. and Welz, G. (eds.), Divided Cyprus: Modernity, History, and an Island in Conflict. Bloomington, Indiana: Indiana University Press, pp. 100–120.
Psaltis, C., Lytras, E. and Costache, S. (2011) History Educators in the Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot Community of Cyprus: Perceptions, Beliefs and Practices. Nicosia: K&L Lithofit.
Stradling, R. (2003) Multiperspectivity in History Teaching: A Guide for Teachers. Strasbourg, Germany: Council of Europe.
The American Historical Association (n.d.) ‘England’s Indirect Rule in its African Colonies’, in Through the Lens of History: Biafra, Nigeria, The West and the World. AHA Teaching Guide. Available at: [http://www.historians.org/tl/lessonplans/nc/trask/indirect.htm], accessed on 31 August 2014.
Theophanous, A. and Tirkides, Y. (2006) Accession to the Eurozone and the Reunification of the Cyprus Economy. Nicosia: Intercollege Press.
Trimikliniotis, N. (2004) ‘Mapping Discriminatory Landscapes in Cyprus: Ethnic Discrimination in a Divided Education System’, The Cyprus Review, Vol. 16, No. 1, pp. 53–86.
Unesco (1949) A Handbook for the Improvement of Textbooks and Teaching Materials as Aids to International Understanding. Paris: Unesco.
Worsley, P. and Kitromilides, P. (1979) Small States in the Modern World: The Conditions of Survival. Nicosia: The New Cyprus Association.
Yergin, D. (2013) ‘The Globalisation of Energy Demand’, CNBC, 3 June 2013. Available at: [http://www.cnbc.com/id/100784599], accessed on 14 September 2014.
Section
Articles
Copyright: © University of Nicosia, Cyprus
All rights reserved.
No restrictions on photo-copying.
Quotations from The Cyprus Review are welcome, but acknowledgement of the source must be given.
How to Cite
“The Application of Discourse Ethics As an Approach in Revisiting Cultural Understandings in Cypriot History Education”. 2017. Cyprus Review 26 (2): 85-103. https://cyprusreview.org/index.php/cr/article/view/96.