The project is focused on an innovative, participatory-based, pedagogical method for developing transversal skills related to multiculturalism and integration. It aims to ensure first and foremost the right of children to be fully integrated through adequate intercultural and inter-religious mediation.
The main value of European citizenship is its dynamic and dialogical character: it is inclusive and based on the cultural diversity of its memberships. For this reason, since religion is a paradigmatic element of culture, the development of religious pluralism and the implementation of tools to ensure it, especially within schools, are relevant aspects in order to save the intercultural dimension of Europe. In this sense, education to religious pluralism is a key to achieve civil awareness and social cohesion in the construction of a democratic model of European citizenship.
The approach enhances the opportunity to consider the spiritual and cultural dimension as a specific background of personal and relational competences. The responsive measures for the creation of a multicultural space are addressed to promote an active role of pupils in the realization of a multicultural space.
The project aims also at strengthening the profile of the teaching professions because it will provide teachers with the content and methodological skills to develop in participatory form an innovative pedagogical method to teach religion. Teachers will be supported in handling the differences, in order to become in their own classes facilitators of a process of critical research enabled by the children, in which they will be asked to express their needs, their vision of the world, and their aspirations in relation to the religious pluralism. Therefore, the project addresses both the content of religious education and an innovative pedagogical method, applying the participatory approach to religious education in order to promote an intercultural citizenship “from below”, which is activated by the children.