Slovenia’s independence marks a milestone in the history of the Slovenian nation and represents its long-standing aspirations and efforts. The aim of the master’s thesis was to analyse how and to what extent is the topic of Slovenian independence taught in secondary schools as part of the history course. We focused on both the grammar school education, and vocational and technical secondary education. We specifically touched upon the curricula, the textbooks and the views of secondary school history teachers on the selected topic. We found that the current curricula for history in secondary school cover the chosen topic, encompassing different aspects of the subject matter (political, economic, judicial, etc.). The selected textbooks for history in secondary schools also cover the chosen topic, covering different aspects of the subject matter and include additional written material, image material and questions to complement the main textbook text. Finally, from the interviews, we found that secondary school history teachers teach the topic of Slovenian independence and generally consider that the subject matter is well represented in the curricula and textbooks. However, they only partly use additional materials of the latter (e.g., image material and questions) in their lessons. Teaching the subject matter in secondary school is of utmost importance, as it helps to raise the youth’s awareness of national identity and the historical achievements of the Slovenian state. Additionally, it strengthens their understanding of contemporary Slovenian society and the place of the Republic of Slovenia in the world.
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