The role of education in shaping historical consciousness and national identity: An analysis of international experiences

Abstract

This article addresses the pressing issue of the relationship between education and the formation of national identity and historical consciousness in the context of contemporary geopolitical challenges. It argues that educational systems are not neutral institutions for the transmission of knowledge, but rather active agents in the construction of collective identity. Particular attention is paid to societies experiencing or having experienced armed conflict. The purpose of the study is to conduct a comparative analysis of models for the formation of historical consciousness and national identity in the educational systems of Ukraine, Poland, the Baltic states, and Germany, taking into account their shared post-Soviet or post-colonial context. The methodological basis of the work comprises a comparative-pedagogical approach, combined with an analysis of regulatory and legal documents and scientific publications from 2021 to 2025. In the work, the author focuses on three temporal contexts of analysis: armed conflict, the post-conflict period, and peaceful development. The results revealed four distinct pedagogical models: the mobilization-decolonial model (Ukraine), the reconstructive-ethnic model (Poland), the consolidation-unification model (the Baltic states), and the reflective-self-critical model (Germany). Based on an analysis of comparative material, it was established that the democratic development of society does not guarantee critical thinking in the interpretation of history. It was noted that social crises accelerate the reform of educational content but do not guarantee its substantive quality. The conclusions confirm that none of the analyzed systems has resolved the fundamental contradiction between the cognitive and socialization functions of the “History” discipline. It is argued that an educational system’s capacity for critical reflection on the past is determined not by the length of time that has elapsed since a conflict, but by the presence of institutionally embedded reflective practices. Regarding Ukraine, a contradiction is noted between the normatively established decolonial course and the lack of developed didactic tools for addressing complex and controversial topics.