Key subjects

The key subject "democracy education" includes work dedicated to the question of what promotes democracy and equal participation and what jeopardizes it. The KomRex develops and offers relevant qualification and education programs.

With the expansion of the KomRex in 2017, research questions on the topic of democracy education and promotion have become a central task of the KomRex. Democracy is a form of life, society and governance that requires knowledge, judgment and action skills. Democracy education does not primarily mean the teaching of topics, but all processes of (personal) acquisition of democratic knowledge as well as corresponding judgment and action competence. It sets high demands on methodological competence and requires didactics of experience and active participation. Democracy education strengthens a human rights-oriented sense of responsibility and addresses the questions of what promotes democracy and equal participation and what endangers them.

Our tasks in the field of democracy education include:

• Evaluations and scientific monitoring in the field of democracy education and promotion
• Transfer of scientific findings to politics, practice and civil society
• Practice-oriented cooperation with multipliers and education institutions

As part of the key subject of democracy education, KomRex offers ongoing project support and advice that strengthens practice partners in the implementation of democracy education principles. In addition, KomRex offers and further develops corresponding qualification and training courses.

With this in mind, researchers at KomRex developed the "Aktionsplan Demokratiebildung für Thüringen", an agenda, which contains proposals for strengthening and broadening the impact of formal and non-formal education in Thuringia as well as suggestions for its implementation.

With regard to the key subjects "societal integration", KomRex examines the potential for, prerequisites for and obstacles to integration. The aim is to strengthen political approaches to the integration of migrants and refugees through scientific findings.

The topic of societal integration has been one of the key subjects of KomRex since the expansion of the research institute at Friedrich Schiller University Jena in 2017.

Strengthening discourses and political approaches to the integration of migrants and refugees through scientific findings is a main task of this working area.

Our tasks in the area of social integration include:

• Conducting relevant research and evaluations
• Transferring scientific findings to politics, practice and civil society with regard to potentials, prerequisites and obstacles in the field of social integration