Topic: The citizen of the European Union

Author: Anna Rabiega

Addressee:

high school / technical school student

Core curriculum:

• old curriculum:

standard level:

1. A young citizen at an office.

The students:

1) explains, how Polish and European citizenship is acquired.

extended level:

45. Poland in the European Union.

The student:

2) describes the rights and obligations resulting from holding the citizenship of the European Union.

• new curriculum:

standard level:

VII. Contemporary international relations.

The student:

10) presents the rights of a citizen of the European Union.

extended level:

XII. Human rights and their international protection.

The student:

6) characterizes the human rights protection system in the European Union (Charter of Fundamental Rights, activities of the European Ombudsman) and the Organisation for Security and Co‑operation in Europe.

The general aim of education:

The student explains the character of human rights and freedoms and the fundamental protection mechanisms.

Learning outcomes:

The student:

• explains what European citizenship is.

• analyzes the rights of a citizen of the European Union.

Key competences:

• communicating in a foreign language,

• digital competence,

• learning to learn,

• social and civic competences.

Teaching methods:

• discussion,

• mind map,

• source material analysis,

• jigsaw puzzle,

• SWOT analysis

• teaching conversation using interactive scheme, interactive board, interactive exercises.

Forms of work:

• self‑learning,

• group work,

• whole‑class activity.

Material & equipment needed:

• computers with loudspeakers/headphones and internet access,

• multimedia resources from the e‑textbook,

• source text for each student (see: Notes for the teacher)

• interactive whiteboard/blackboard, felt‑tip pen/a piece of chalk.

Lesson plan overview (Process):

Introduction:

1. The teacher presents the goal of the lesson: You will analyze the meaning of the European citizenship.

2. The teacher asks the students a question: What do you know about the European citizenship? He asks the students to prepare a mind map, containing information on the institution. He sets the time to complete the task, and after the time is up writes the question on the board and asks the students to come up and write their suggestions. In a teaching conversation, the teacher can also ask leading questions e.g.:

• When and how was the European citizenship introduced?

• Who may be granted such citizenship?

• Does the European citizenship replace the national one (e.g. Polish citizenship)?

• What rights originate from holding the European citizenship?

Implementation:

1. The teacher asks the students to count to five, remembering their number. During this and the next exercise they are going to work according to the jigsaw puzzle method. First, the task of the students will be to familiarize themselves with one of the five aspects of the European citizenship that are decisive for its character (accordingly to the student’s number) – scheme “Nature of EU citizenship”. The the students join in groups of five (in such a way, that each group consists of students 1 to 5) and each member of the group explains the aspect of EU citizenship he is familiar with to the other group members. The teacher sets the time to complete the task, monitors its course, making sure the students actually teach each other, instead of just simply reading the information from the abstract individually. After the time is up, the teacher asks the students, what they have learned and what their understanding of each of the aspects is. Willing/selected students give their answers, and the teacher corrects and supplements them.

2. This time the students are divided into five groups – according to the numbers assigned earlier (each group is created out of students of the same number). The task of each group is to use the source material to find out, what rights the citizens of the European Union enjoy:

• group of students with number 1 – analyze articles 15 and 18,

• group of students with number 2 – analyze article 21,

• group of students with number 3 – analyze article 22,

• group of students with number 4 – analyze article 23,

• group of students with number 5 – analyze article 24.

The students’ task is to analyze the assigned article and write down the right the citizens of the European Union enjoy using their own words (the content of the note is agreed upon by the whole group in a short discussion). The teacher sets the time to complete the task and monitors its course (he assists the students in finding the most precise expressions describing the rights of the European citizens).

3. In the next stage of the activity, the students return to their original groups (of students with numbers 1 to 5) and report to the other members of the group what they have learned during the source material analysis. This way all the students gain the information on the rights resulting from holding the EU citizenship.

4. The teacher informs the students, they are going to analyze the problem of the functioning of the European citizenship using the SWOT analysis method, and explains the method if necessary. The students of one of the previous groups split into other groups, so that four groups remain. Each group will analyze one of the following: the strengths (advantages), the weaknesses (disadvantages) of the European citizenship, and the opportunities and threats resulting from its functioning. The teacher points out that while conducting the analysis the students should try to look at the problem from various points of view (the EU as an organisation, the European society, nation states, individuals, etc.). He sets the time to complete the task. The students write their conclusions down.

5. After the activity is over representatives present the results of their group work, and the teacher writes them down in an appropriate box in the table displayed on the interactive board (Exercise 1). Then the teacher asks some willing/selected students to sum up the activity.

Summary:

1. At the end of the class the teacher asks the students to finish the sentences:

• Today I learned…

• I understand now that…

• I was surprised…

• I found out…

• It was easy for me…

• It was difficult for me...

The last two sentences help evaluate the difficulty of the discussed question; they enable the student to evaluate his own knowledge and skills.

2. Homework proposal:

a. Are you happy to hold the European citizenship? (If you don’t have it – would you like to have it?). Present your opinion on the subject.

b. Listen to the abstract recording to review the material and new vocabulary. Then do the vocabulary exercise at the end of the chapter.

Notes for the teacher:

The following terms and recordings will be used during this lesson

Terms

Texts and recordings

A citizen of the European Union

Citizenship of the European Union was introduced by the Maastricht Treaty in 1992 and confirmed in the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union. It has been granted to all persons who have citizenship of a member state of the European Union, which means that they also Polish citizens are entitled to it.

The scope of EU competences is smaller than that of the member states, which means that the possibility of granting rights is limited. However, the scope of EU civil rights is greater than in the member states. It also includes rights related to inter‑state life within the Union. Although Article 20 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union mentions that citizens are subject to the obligations provided for in the treaties, EU law consists only of rights and does not impose any obligations. Also, the case law of the Court of Justice of the European Union has not laid down any obligations.

The idea of European citizenship appeared for the first time in 1947, but it was implemented only after the Treaty of Maastricht. The current legal status has been in force since the entry into force of the Treaty of Lisbon (December 1, 2009) with which the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights has acquired binding force.

The rights of citizens of the European Union may be divided into two areas. The first area is fundamental rights, resulting from the constitutions of member states and only strengthened by the protection of the European institutions. The second is the rights of citizens of the Union, indicating their equality regardless of the state from which they come from. Citizenship of the European Union is not associated with any individual's duties towards the European Union, although they are provided for in the Treaty introducing citizenship.

Political rights

• voting in European elections: a right to vote and stand in elections to the European Parliament, in any EU member state,

• voting in local elections: a right to vote and stand in local elections in an EU state other than their own, under the same conditions as the nationals of that state,

• accessing European Union documents: a right to access to European Parliament, Council of the European Union, and European Commission documents,

• petitioning the European Parliament and the Ombudsman: a right to petition the European Parliament and the right to apply to the European Ombudsman in order to bring to his attention any cases of poor administration by the EU institutions and bodies, with the exception of the legal bodies,

• language rights: a right to apply to the EU institutions in one of the official languages and to receive a reply in that same language.

Rights of free movement

• right to free movement and residence: a right of free movement and residence throughout the Union and the right to work in any position (including national civil services with the exception of those posts in the public sector that involve the exercise of powers conferred by public law and the safeguard of general interests of the state or local authorities),

• freedom from discrimination on nationality: a right not to be discriminated against on grounds of nationality within the scope of application of the Treaty.

Rights abroad

• right to consular protection: a right to protection by the diplomatic or consular authorities of other member states when in a non‑EU member state, if there are no diplomatic or consular authorities from the citizen's own state: this is due to the fact that not all member states maintain embassies in every country in the world.