The Impact of Differences in Curriculum on Knowledge Related to European Citizenship: A Comparative Analysis in the Case of Portuguese and Romanian Pupils

Given the European socio-economic and cultural context of the 21st century, the national educational systems must take into account both the local curriculum reforms and the European regulatory framework and developmental goals. The current research was conducted in Portugal and Romania, within the Comenius-funded ECLIPSE1 project, seeking to investigate how curricular approaches are reflected on pupils European Citizenship knowledge. A comparative analysis of the curriculum on European issues and a knowledge test (pre and post) of European Citizenship were used. Totally, 189 pupils in compulsory education, ages between 12 and 17 years old participated. Findings show an average increase of 3/4 points between the pre and post-tests results in both countries. Further, placing these findings in the context of curriculum differences provides relevant insights.