„Politics often begins when it becomes possible to make power visible, to challenge the ideological circuitry of hegemonic knowledge, and to recognize that “political subversion presupposes cognitive subversion, a conversion of the vision of the world” (Giroux, 2010, p. 487).

 The Covid-19-pandemic caught all actors education systems by surprise. Neither teachers nor learners were prepared for the challenges. Moreover, policies to contain the pandemic included considerable constraints of social life in almost every country around the globe (Meyer-Resende 2020). While the public discourse mainly focusses on school closures and distant learning, there are wider issues of educational concern outside of learning institutions and beyond the age of schooling. This unique historical situation provides a transnational space-time for education (McLeod/Sobe/Seddon 2017), representing opportunities and necessities for the building of knowledge about individual, social and societal effects of collective experiences of crises and catastrophes. Although the pandemic quickly prompted activities to reflect the related implications (e. g. DIE 2021; Preston & Firth 2021; Sgobba 2021), international comparative research is scarce (Käpplinger & Lichte 2020).

Our paper concentrates on the social dimensions of learning, taking the covid-19 crisis as an exemplary point of departure to ask about the collective and individual learning experiences in times of crisis, with a special focus on citizenship engagement, political and social participation. We draw on the theoretical concept of disaster education (Preston 2012). While pedagogical strategies in the sense of disaster education are well developed in many other countries, e. g. the USA and Japan, the concept is largely unknown in Germany (Chadderton 2015; Kitagawa/Preston/Chadderton 2017). Aiming to explore the socio-historical-cultural and political reasons, we will

1. introduce and examine the concept of disaster education as a policy of public education in a transnational comparative perspective;

2. illustrate which would be corresponding approaches of (preventive) crisis education within the German education system, by presenting two contrasting field studies: Firstly, we focus on the organisational side of transitions of young people throughout the pandemic, to reconstruct the pedagogical policies of stakeholders and institutions to guide – in particular non-privileged – young people through the crisis. Empirical data shows that young people are massively affected by these measures (e. g. Andresen et al. 2020; Hoekstra 2020; Ravens-Sieberer et. al. 2021). In particular in late adolescence and early adulthood major institutional and biographical transitions need to be passed or even coped with (Stauber/Pohl/Walther 2007). Secondly, we provide insights from an ongoing research project, targeted at the implicit consequences of the corona crisis on public adult education. Focusing on adult education centres in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany we investigate how adult educators, leaders and learners experience the pandemic and how they deal with the related restrictions. While coping with the corona crisis leaders of adult education centres draw on the narrative of embracing the crisis as chance for learning and innovation (Ehses et al. 2021).

3. discuss implications for crisis education and theorize our findings.

Several authors have argued that educational policies in relation with crisis or catastrophes often push towards neoliberal transformation as „disaster pedagogy” (Preston 2012; Chadderton 2015) or shock doctrine (Klein 2008). We argue however, that the pandemic is experienced as a collective crisis, being an event of collective concern, which puts (some of) the basic orders of the social space (not only) of adult education at risk. To investigate the impact of crises on education the public sphere appears as a collective space for learning experiences, a space-time of education (McLeod, Sobe & Seddon 2017; Reischmann 2014) where public pedagogy evolves (Sandlin et al 2010).

Our methodological approach combines a crossnational comparative perspective and a reconstructive analysis of qualitative data. Data collection and analyses are guided by the principles of grounded theory and comparative qualitative research. To introduce and examine the concept of disaster education as a policy of public education in a transnational comparative perspective we draw on a thorough literature review (see list of references). To illustrate corresponding approaches of (preventive) crisis education within the German education system we will analyse expert interviews and notes from field observations, gathered in two contrasting field studies, following the standards of the grounded theory methodology. To discuss implications for crisis education and theorize our findings once again a comparative approach will be applied, which is sensitive to socio-historical, cultural and political differences. This section will refer to the concepts of public pedagogy, space-times of education and crossnational comparisons. The umbrella concept of public pedagogy offers a framework for educational research that critically examines influences in the public sphere, not narrowing the focus to learning or educating subjects, nor to didactic or political strategies, but aiming to examine the interrelationships as well as the goals of learning activities outside and beyond schools. Public pedagogy includes any type of learning, whether informal or formal, self-organized or institutionalized. It therefore allows us to explore the public sphere as a learning space for adults and to bridge institutional, organizational, structural and cultural differences. Whereas the term public pedagogy is broadly discussed in English-speaking educational publications, it has been rarely adopted in the German discourse.The approach not only provides an analytical tool to contextualize the learning experience of adults in the multi-crisis, it could enhance discourses in the field of youth research and adult education, while retaining due sensitivity to the specificities of culturally-bound methodologies and methodological nationalism (Beck/Grande 2010).

We expect theoretical, methodological and conceptual outcomes regarding pedagogy in the face of crises. We aim to better understand the concept of disaster education in the context of education policy and as part of education politics, that allow us to draw conclusions concerning the role and importance of (public) education in times of crisis - also beyond the current pandemic.Which are the implicit lessons taught by a crisis and/or in times of crisis? Who are the visible or invisible instructors? At the same time we test and reflect our methodological approach as an appropriate means to record and analyse social and societal reconfigurations, obvious and tacit implications of an ongoing collective experience of crisis. Furthermore, conclusions can be drawn with reference to the pedagogical practice.

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