Moldova Hosts EUSTORY Network Meeting 2024
Competition organisers from 20 countries met in person and virtually in the Class of the Future at the Ion Creangă State Pedagogical University in Chișinău from March 6 to 10. Hosted by the National Association of Young Historians of Moldova (ANTIM), the conference programme was developed together with Körber-Stiftung. This year's network meeting was entitled "History in a Polarised World", in recognition of current Europe-wide challenges such as disinformation, the war against Ukraine and AI.
Rumors about Transnistria
Rumours from Transnistria, a separatist breakaway region in eastern Moldova, shook the preparations for the annual network meeting. After a brief war in 1992, following Moldova’s independence from the Soviet Union and Transnistria’s subsequent declaration of independence from Moldova, the Russian military is still present in the territory east of the Dniester River. Just days before the participants headed off, Moldovan media reported that the Transnistrian authorities might ask for the official annexation by Russia – a claim reminiscent of the start of the war against Ukraine. While Transnistria ultimately refrained from joining Russia, the news caused fear and insecurity. Moldovan Speakers at the Network Meeting – historians and experts on the situation in Moldova – took time to comment on the current developments in Transnistria.
Paula Erizanu is a journalist and writer based in Chișinău. She urges the international media to be more careful about the rumours they pick up.
Sergiu Musteață, historian and founder of ANTIM, organises the Moldovan History Competition. He calls for more involvement from the international community.
Historian Andrei Cusco specialises in Bessarabia and nation-building in the region. He emphasises the responsibility of historians to explain, teach and undermine simplifying narratives of identity of the past.
Thursday, 7 March 2024 – Getting to know Moldova
The pre-conference programme gave the competition organisers the opportunity to learn more about this year’s host country and to network with local partners.
The organisers of the competition met with Nadine Gogu, founder of the Independent Journalism Center. The NGO, based in Chișinău, supports investigative journalism, fights propaganda and disinformation in the media and promotes critical thinking among young people. They run teacher training courses and competitions for high school students to improve their media literacy.
Chișinău is also the home of the DVV International office Moldova, that organises the Moldovan history competition together with ANTIM as part of a cooperation project funded by the Foreign Federal Office of Germany. Naturally, the organisers of the competition took the opportunity to visit the premises of DVV International and learn more about its work in the field of lifelong learning and adult education.
The day ended with a guided city tour through the centre of Chișinău, that led to discussions about monuments, preservation and forgotten heritage.
Friday, 8 March 2024 – History, AI, and Dialogue in a Polarised World
The conference was officially opened by Sergiu Musteață, founder of the conference host ANTIM, and Katja Fausser, managing director of the EUSTORY network.
State secretary at the Ministry of Education and Science Valentina Olaru welcomed the competition organisers in the premises of the “Class of the Future” at the Ion Creangă State Pedagogical University and thanked them for their commitment. Thomas Paulsen, member of the Executive Board of Körber Foundation also greeted the competition organisers.
How history shapes the present in Moldova was the central question of the so called “Moldovan kaleidoscope”. Short, poignant presentations with key arguments were followed by an exchange with the speaker in small groups to delve deep into the topics. Historian Andrei Cusco broke the first ground with an input discussing, what makes Moldovan history unique. He argued that Moldova's status as a borderland, its incomplete nation-building and the war in Transnistria are key events in understanding today's situation.
Sergiu Musteață went one step further and explained how these events influence the education system in general, and the teaching of history in particular. History educators face challenges such as the dual use of Romanian and Russian, the Soviet legacy in teaching traditions and Transnistria with its separate, heavily Russian-influenced education system.
The next session continued in the same vein but broadened the scope to include history education in Armenia, Georgia, Moldova, and Ukraine. Mire Mladenovski, a researcher from North Macedonia, presented the results of a study on history-based propaganda in the aforementioned countries. The research was carried out as part of the DVV cooperation project. A team of local experts, led by Mladenovski, examined how teacher training and textbooks deal with history-based propaganda.
The second part of the day dealt with the impact of new technologies. Gabriele Woidelko, head of the department “History & Politics” presented an innovative approach to extended reality monuments being implemented in Hamburg.
She was followed by Pieter Mannak, history teacher trainer at the Hogeschool Utrecht, Netherlands, who spoke about the challenges and opportunities of AI in history teaching. A deep dive into the capabilities of tools like ChatGPT left many organisers speechless. After explaining how large language models work, he gave examples of how AI can be used in the classroom. After his presentation, the contest organisers had the opportunity to test various AI tools themselves and discuss them with their colleagues.
A long day of different inputs finally finished with a dialogue session, moderatored by Maja Nenadović, herself a historian and trainer in human rights and advocacy. Under the title “What is moving us?” she created a space for exchange, reflection, and open discussion. What are the benefits of history competitions? Are we focusing on the right issues? How to teach history in polarised times? These were just some of the many questions that emerged from the discussion.
Saturday, 9 March 2024 – Network exchange, education in times of war and a excursion to rural Moldova
The second day was dedicated to networking and exchanging the ideas. The competition organisers started the day with a light-hearted exercise to learn about the latest news and innovations in the competitions. The Open Space that followed allowed for one-on-one conversations with colleagues, discussions on social media and better writing, as well as inspiration for future contest themes.
Long-time competition organiser Karsten Korbøl from Norway also shared his personal experience with AI in history teaching and presented his colleagues some exercises and methods he uses with his students. He emphasized that open assignments will belong to the past. Teachers rather have to focus more on creative tasks, using sources and encouraging students to use AI in an informed and reflective way.
What can be done about young people leaving high school without a diploma? And how could history competition help combating absenteeism and dropouts? These are the challenges that a new project by the Spanish foundation Real Maestranza de Caballería de Ronda (RMR) aims to address. Director Ignacio Herrera de La Muela presented possible solutions, such as individual supervision and giving students a sense of agency through participation in competitons, like the EUSTORY ones.
Despite the ongoing war, two competition organisers from Ukraine decided to attend the Network Meeting. Nataliya Sadkova and Iryna Kobyzhcha not only talked about the current Ukrainian History Competition, that is nevertheless taking place, but also shared their experiences how to work as a teacher during war.
This year’s closing of the Annual Network Meeting was a rather special one. Competition organisers had the chance to discover rural Moldova on a trip to the archeological complex Orheiul Vechi, about 40 kilometres outside of Chișinău. Located in a gorge of the Răut River, the site is one of the most famous natural and cultural heritage sites in Moldova.
Sergiu Musteață, who has himself worked on excavations in the area, explained the different settlements over time. The group also had the opportunity to visit the Orthodox cave monastery, still inhabited by Orthodox monks.
Afterthought: How Moldova’s comedians, think tanks and influencers are fighting against Russian propaganda and for EU integration
Moldova proved to be a valuable place to discuss "History in a Polarised World". While the country faces many challenges, its civil society is actively fighting for a better future. Paula Erizanu, journalist and special guest at the network meeting, took a closer look at how NGOs, artists and citizens are combating Russian propaganda and fighting for Moldova's path to Europe. Read her report on how media and civil society are also on the frontline of the hybrid war for the hearts and minds of Moldovans: How Moldova’s comedians, think tanks and influencers are fighting against Russian propaganda and for EU integration.