Since the 80's, Europe has experienced major social and political changes that have brought about ambivalence and uncertainty. On the one hand, democracy and democratic ideals have spread through the old continent, but on the other xenophobia and radical nationalism have given raise to conflicts that Europeans were becoming used to consider extraordinary. Besides, any analysis of educational policies must recognize the complexity of the concept of Europe in itself. As Nóvoa (1996) puts it one should recognize the existence of various Europes: "the small Europe that is designated as European Union and has its center in Brussels (...) [but that must be related with] other Europes, beyond but also behind the wall of Maastricht: the Europe of immigrants, of the new forms of discrimination, of the voiceless groups in our communication society". The emphasis on citizenship education in European educational policies since these the mid-nineties was seen as sort of antidote against the tensions of identity and belonging – which explains the almost mythical nature assumed by citizenship education that generated an apparent consensus on its (obvious) relevance and importance (Menezes et al., 2004). However, since its (re)appearance in European curricula, citizenship education has been the object of intense debates that involve both the discussion over the meanings and limitations of citizenship in itself (e.g., Araújo, 2007; Beiner, 1995; Eisenstadt, 1999; Haste, 2004; Naval, 2000; Young, 1995), and in Europe in particular (Benhabib, 1999), but also what type of educational practices could best promote critical, engaged and active citizens (Gentilli, 2000; Haste, 2004; Lang, Katz & Menezes, 1998; Menezes, 1999). The present symposium aims to uncover the current tensions and debates surrounding citizenship education in different European countries, including both the meaning of citizenship as well as the educational strategies that prevail from the point of view of media, teachers and students.

The papers in this symposia use a combination of methods including media analysis, focus-groups and case-studies.

In spite of the diversity of assumptions and practices surrounding citizenship education in Europe, citizenship education is generally approached as if there was an obvious consensus on its goals or methods. We hope that this symposium helps to uncover the tensions and contradictions that citizenship education entails and makes a contribution to the debate on the role of education in the promotion of active and critical civic and political involvement of individuals in their communities.