This educational project offers learning paths that help students to gain a deep understanding of the European integration history through the exploration of archival collections preserved by the Historical Archives of the European Union. Additionally, the project aims to provide insights into the functioning of European institutions and the fundamental principles of European citizenship.
Through co-designed and shared activities, the students involved will reflect on the principles and norms underpinning European citizenship. Moreover, the educational offer of the Historical Archives of the European Union (HAEU) includes activities designed to complement the curriculum, particularly in relation to the cross-curricular teaching of Civic Education, as outlined in Law No. 92 of August 20, 2019.
At the HAEU, students are given the opportunity to engage in a unique experience within an international environment. They are introduced to the role of archivists and archival staff - who are not only cultural operators and promoters but also advisors and research collaborators.
The project is designed to be carried out individually or by a group of students. It includes also other individual European traineeship curricular programmes activated in other European Educational Context (e.g. Transition Year in Ireland). In Italy is related with the PCTO (it. Percorsi per le Competenze Trasversali e per l’Orientamento - Paths for Transversal Skills and Orientation) programme. This is a program within Italian high schools that combines theoretical education with practical work experiences. The aim of PCTO is to help students develop essential skills, such as teamwork and communication, while also providing them opportunities to explore potential career paths and gain insights into the professional world. This programme is designed to better prepare students for their future careers and further studies.
The activities planned within the project are organized throughout the school year and are distributed according to the offer of the Historical Archives of the European Union and the interests of the participating students.
The primary goal of the educational project is to introduce students to the specific activities carried out in the archival context by involving them in the main activities of the archives:
- Experience firsthand an international environment, such as the one of the Historical Archives of the European Union.
- Become familiar with the role of the archive as a place for preserving and disseminating cultural and historical heritage, as well as a space for collaboration and development of historical research.
- Develop specific skills related to each educational and operational pathway (e.g., independently recognizing, valuing, and describing both institutional and private primary sources).
- Learn how to conduct archival research while acquiring new knowledge.
- Participate in the various stages of organizing a cultural event promoted by HAEU.
- Cultivate a positive and responsible attitude and take on an active role in the work life of an institution.
- Embrace a European culture and perspective.
- Develop language skills.

The activities are guided by the tutors responsible for the training: both the tutor/teacher from the educational institution and the tutor assigned by the HAEU. Skills are acquired through tutoring, brief theoretical lessons, group activities, and direct participation in various tasks. The students are responsible for documenting each activity carried out and are required to produce a visual project as a summary of their professional experiences, in a format of their choice: poster, video story, collage, etc. This project must be submitted at the conclusion of the training and become part of the living archive collection of the HAEU Educational Programme.
For this purpose, the following educational approaches are selected:
- Guided work with the tutor, individual work done independently, or in small groups.
- Preparatory or follow-up work involving the student’s class, school, family, or community.
- Learning to recognize the hierarchy/structure of concepts and developing the ability to establish one’s own.

The students acquire basic knowledge about the activities that the HAEU carry out in various areas: research, the process of cataloguing and describing sources, the organization and functioning of public services, and more. The students become more aware of the challenges and opportunities involved in navigating the Internet and gain useful skills for information retrieval through the HAEU database. The students also gain experience working in a team under the guidance of specialized staff.

PCTO (Italy); Transitional year (Ireland)

Scientific and Educative use and partial reproduction, in the form of digital reproduction of documents are subject to the provisions in force at the HAEU.

English, Italian

Artifact, Audio, Electronic File, Map/Drawing, Photograph, Textual, Video