ABSTRACT
At first glance, the European union (EU) states' educational aspirations seem wholly laudable. Few people do not wish for economic security and the ending or diminution of social exclusion consequent upon this security being extended to more of the population. All European states are multicultural in that they contain a range of peoples and citizens with differing histories, cultural practices, languages and religions. The United Kingdom is a complicated state that even its own citizens do not fully understand. Its current boundaries were last redrawn as recently as 1921, when most of Ireland gained independence. In terms of the History curriculum, there are significant differences. In Northern Ireland, the History curriculum in the state funded Catholic schools, although ostensibly the same as in the state funded schools which the Protestant community use, is in practice very different. The state's desire is for unity and the absence of conflict.
