Background information

In the field of textbook research, the cooperation between the Soviet Union and the Federal Republic of Germany was limited until the 1980s to the subject of geography. Discussions about history were made impossible by the incompatibilities in perception, namely the Soviet Union's refusal to abandon the orthodox Marxist-Leninist historical doctrine, as well as the political refusal to accept or to admit historical facts (e.g. the existence of the supplementary protocol of the Hitler-Stalin-Pact).

After the end of the confrontation between the two superpowers, it was eventually possible to conduct a history conference in 1991, which concentrated on bilateral relations during the years 1917-1933. The atmosphere of this conference was overshadowed by a difficult situation, since it took place immediately following the attempted August-coup intended to overthrow the newly elected President Jelzin. The institutionally and personally transitory situation in the Soviet Union during that time unfortunately disrupted this promising new start. After the renewal and stabilization of the situation in Russia, it was possible to pick up the thread again in 1994. This thread, however, had since that time never really torn, since stipends had been granted to Russian textbook authors, and occasions for conversations were always found even in the difficult times between 1991 and 1994.

Framework

Today Russia is keen to step out of the shadows of the Soviet past, to promote the formation of a civil society, and to find its place in the international community without the claim of being the "avant-garde" of an alternative world order, and without aggressive imperialist attitudes. When Germans and Russians speak of "coming to terms with the past," the deeper meaning of the shaping experiences of totalitarianism that these two nations shared during the 20th century always underlies the discourse. Until this day, these experiences still fundamentally influence both nations. Can these experiences function as a basis for mutual understanding, or do the ideological differences between the regimes, which developed in opposition to each other in the first place, dominate?

The answer to this question also has a European dimension. While many Western European countries still see their experience with National Socialism, including its demise, as a constitutive phenomenon for their own national identities, in Eastern European countries the experience with socialism is a politically decisive factor in the identity formation of these reorganized or newly founded countries. This difference in experience cannot remain without consequences for mutual understanding between "East" and "West." Thus, the German-Russian project "Coming to Terms with the Past" also has an international dimension. The quite frequent participation of scholars from third countries in our conferences takes this into account.

Until 1989, German remembrance only dealt with National Socialism. Thereafter, a tension evolved between the focus on the National Socialist past and the working through of the GDR past. Ever since, in Germany, we speak of a twofold coming to terms with the past, and the comparability of the two dictatorships is controversially debated. Through its own experiences with dictatorships, Germany can contribute significantly to the Eastern European discourse about the treatment of the socialist past. In order to illustrate the common points of reference some core statements and phenomena from the early phase of our cooperative work shall be summarized. Parallels and differences between the situation in Germany and the "coming to terms with socialism" in Eastern Europe (especially in Russia) can thus clearly be stated.

Activities

After 1994, four textbook conferences took place. The first, conducted in Braunschweig in 1994, addressed the topic: "The Change in 'Images' and the Standing of Nationalities in the new Russian Educational System" (Report in: Internationale Schulbuchforschung/International Textbook Research, vol. 17 (1995): 119-22).
The second German-Russian school textbook conference took place in Moscow in 1996 and thematized: "The German Empire and Czarist Russia. Two Empires at the Threshold of the 20th Century. Their Portrayal in Historiography and School Textbooks" (report in: Internationale Schulbuchforschung/International Textbook Research, vol. 19 (1997): 87-92).
"Coming to Terms with the Socialist Past in School Textbooks" was the title of the third conference, which took place in Braunschweig in 1997. (Report in: Internationale Schulbuchforschung/International Textbook Research, vol. 19 (1997): 438-445).
This topic was tackled again at a fourth conference which  took place in Volgograd on September 26th-30th, 2001: "Risen from the ruins - Myths- Taboos - Memories about the postwar years as a subject of history teaching". A comparison between the portrayal of the post-war period in Russian and German school textbooks was a central aspect. Within this context, the problems arising from the use of eyewitness reports was discussed. Numerous teachers from Volgograd and the Volgograd area as well as from Germany participated (report in: Internationale Schulbuchforschung, vol. 24 (2002): 114-118). 

Institutions involved

On the German side, the discussions are led by the Georg Eckert Institute, with the participation of university professors and teachers. The main partner on the Russian side was first the MIROS Institute (Moscow Institute for the Development of Teaching Materials). The Russian Ministry of Education has also been represented at the conferences, in one case by the "Institute for Problems of National Education," which is affiliated with the Ministry. The historical department of the Moscow State University was also an official co-organizer of some of the conferences. Since 2000, the Academy for Civil Service in Volgograd has been giving logistic support in place of the MIROS Institute. The GEI also cooperated for a certain time with the Institute for World History of the Russian Academy of Sciences.
A cooperation with the German-Russian Historian's Commission was also desired, which took place through the participation in one of its conferences (Saratov 2005) and as a common publication. Lately, the focus of our cooperation has been on developing teaching materials on the history of German-Russian relations. In January 2011, a meeting was held at the IfZ Munich to further specify concepts. The GEI wrote a grant application together with the institute for teacher training in Saratov that was handed in to the DFG (German Research Funding Organisation) and the RGNF (Russian Foundation for Arts and Humanities) in accordance with the funding area guidelines. These provide for a bilateral textbook conference in Saratov in 2011.

 

Publications

• A.O. Čubar’jan  and Robert Maier (eds.): Istorija Germanii XX veka v novom izmerenii: istočniki, statistiki, chudožestvennye dokumenty. Posobie dlja učaščichsja srednych i staršych klassov škol, gimnazij, liceev, studentov, učitelej [Deutsche Geschichte des 20. Jahrhunderts in neuer Sicht: Quellen, Statistiken, Bilder. Lehrmaterial für Schüler der Mittel- und Oberstufe, für Studenten und Lehrer]. Moskau: Olma Press 2008, 686 p.

• Robert Maier and G.G. Slyškin (eds.): Pamjat' o Vtoroj mirovoj vojne v sovremennych kommunikativnych technologijach [Die Erinnerung an den Zweiten Weltkrieg in modernen Kommunikationstechnologien]. Wolgograd: Paradigma 2009, 100 p.

• Robert Maier: Dolžno li gosudarstvo konstruirovat’ prošloe? [Welche Rolle spielt der Staat bei der Bearbeitung von Geschichte und Geschichtsbildung?] In: Juri Senokosov (ed.): Vestnik Moskovskoj školy političeskich issledovanij [Schriftenreihe der Moskauer Schule für Politische Studien 2008] No. 4 (43), Moskva 2007, p. 74-80

• Robert Maier: Learning about Europe and the World. Schools, Teachers and Textbooks in Russia after 1991. In: The Nation, Europe, and the World. Textbooks and Curricula in Transition, ed. by Hanna Schissler and Yasemin Soysal, Berghan Publishers, New  York u.a. 2005, 138-162

• Robert Maier: Čto otličaet chorošij učebnik? [Was zeichnet ein gutes Schulbuch aus?] In:Istoričeskoe obrazovanie v sovremennoj škole. Al’manach No. 1. Moskva: Russkoe slovo 2004, 45-48

• M.A. Sukiasjan (ed.): Vozroždenie iz ruin: vospominanija, mify i tabu v prepodovanii istorii poslevoennogo vremeni v Rossii i Germanii [„Auferstanden aus Ruinen“. Erinnerungen, Mythen und Tabus im  Geschichtsunterrichts zum Thema  Nachkriegszeit in Russland und Deutschland]. VAGS Wolgograd: VAGS 2002, 178 p.

• Isabelle de Keghel and Robert Maier (eds.): Auf den Kehrichthaufen der Geschichte? Der Umgang mit der sozialistischen Vergangenheit. Hannover: Hahnsche Buchhandlung 1999, 203 p.

• Robert Maier: "Kräfte der Demokratisierung in Rußland am Beispiel von Geschichtsunterricht und Schulbuchschreibung", in: Ludger Kühnhardt and Alexander Tschubarjan (ed.): Rußland und Deutschland auf dem Weg zum antitotalitären Konsens. Baden-Baden: Nomos Verl.-Ges. 1999, p. 169-186 [also published in Russian language]

• Alexander Shevyrev (ed.): Russija (1856-1917); Germanija (1871-1918) [Rußland (1856-1917) und Deutschland (1871-1918): Die Darstellung zweier Imperien in Historiographie und Schulbuch]. Moskau: MIROS 1999, 172 p.

• Rußland im Umbruch. Internationale Schulbuchforschung, Jahrgang 17, No. 4 (1995)

Contact:

Dr. Robert Maier
Email: maier@gei.de
Telephone: ++49 (0)531 590 99 45