Nevoparudimos



?sterreich verstehenDas Portrait eines Landes auf 50 Seiten-1005843937"The European Commission support for the production of this publication does not constitute an endorsement of the contents which reflects the views only of the authors, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein."?sterreich verstehenDas Portrait eines Landes auf 50 SeitenWir haben uns die Aufgabe nicht leichtgemacht: Viele Diskussionen, unterschiedliche Ansichten über die Welt, Europa, Migration wurden im Laufe der 4 Projekttreffen geführt und ge?u?ert.Das einigende Band war der Ehrgeiz, ein gutes Produkt zu erarbeiten und somit einen Beitrag zum Verstehen des Landes und zu einer – so gewünscht – erfolgreichen Integration zu leisten.Wir sind davon überzeugt den Lehrerinnen und Lehrern eine didaktische Zusammenstellung liefern zu k?nnen, die es so noch nicht gibt.Wir werden uns in der Folge bemühen für eine gr??tm?gliche Verbreitung des Handbuchs zu sorgen: Inner- und au?erhalb des Projektes.Dank und Anerkennung gilt dem Autor und der Autorin Günther Stockinger und Anna Smuck.Die einzelnen Kapitel finden Sie hier:Geschichte2Institutionen11Demokratie20Leben in ?sterreich29Alles Gute!Herbert Depner, ProjektkoordinatorWien, M?rz 2018An diesem Projekt waren beteiligt:Poleski Osrodek Sztuki, PolenHamburger Volkshochschule, DeutschlandNevo parudimos, Rum?nienEU Warehouse, BelgienSprachendienst Konstanz, DeutschlandBulgarian Development Agency, BulgarienDie Wiener Volkshochschulen, ?sterreich als KoordinatorDie Partner waren für zwei Aufgaben verantwortlich:Erstellung des Handbuchs für ihr LandMitarbeit, Diskussion, Herstellung des Handbuchs ?Understanding Europe“HistoryAustria in the First World War 1914-1918Nationalist strife in the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy (1867 – 1918, about 52 Mio inhabitants, about 676000 km2; comprising territories of today’s states Austria, Hungary, Slovakia, Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Hercegovina, Romania, Montenegro, Poland, Ukraine, Italy and Serbia) increased during the decades until 1914. The assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, the heir to Franz Joseph as Emperor, in Sarajevo in 1914?by a?Serb?nationalist group, helped to trigger?World War I. In November 1916 the Emperor died, leaving the relatively inexperienced?Charles (Karl)?in command. The defeat of the?Central Powers?in 1918 resulted in the disintegration of Austria-Hungary, the Emperor went into exile.The First Republic (1918-1938)The First World War effectively ended for Austria on 3 November 1918, when the defeated army signed an armistice at Padua. Austria was forced to cede all territory occupied since 1914, plus a considerable amount of other territory, and the allies were given access to Austria. The empire was thus dissolved.The Provisional National Assembly met in Vienna in October 1918. It consisted of those members of the Reichsrat ?(Imperial Council) elected in 1911 from German speaking territories. After elections in 1919 it adopted a provisional constitution and on 12 November it adopted?German Austria?(Deutsch?sterreich) as the name of the new state. Austria was now a republic.However the provisional constitution stated that it was to be part of the new?German Republic?proclaimed three days earlier. Karl Renner?was proclaimed Chancellor of Austria?and led a grand coalition of the SDAP? (Social Democratic Workers’ Party), CS (Christian Social Party), and GDVP (German National Movement). In February 1919 elections?were held for what was now called the Constituent National Assembly. For the first time women were allowed to vote. Although the Social Democrats won the most seats (41%) they did not have an absolute majority and formed a?grand coalition?with the second-largest party, the Christian Socialists. In March the National Assembly declared "German Austria" to the part of the "German Republic".Austria's exact future remained uncertain until formal treaties were signed and ratified. The fledgling Republic of German-Austria was to prove short lived. The proposed merger with the German Empire (Weimar Republic) was vetoed by the Allied victors in the?Treaty of Saint-Germain-en-Laye (1919) under Article 88 which prohibited economic or political union. The allies were fearful of the long held Mitteleuropa dream—a union of all German speaking populations. The treaty was ratified by parliament in October 1919. The treaty also obliged the country to change its name from the "Republic of German Austria" to the "Republic of Austria" (Republik ?sterreich), i.e., the?First Republic, a name that persists to this day. In Austria itself, almost all political parties together with the majority of public opinion continued to cling to the concept of unification laid out in the 1918 constitution. Only the Communist Party (founded in 1918) explicitly rejected this concept of unification from 1924 onwards.The Treaty of Saint Germain also meant that Austria lost significant German-speaking territories, in particular the southern part of the?County of Tyrol?(now South Tyrol) to Italy and the German-speaking areas within?Bohemia?and?Moravia?to?Czechoslovakia.The grand coalition was dissolved in June 1920, being replaced by a CS- SDAP? coalition, necessitating?new elections which were held in October, for what now became the?National Council?(Nationalrat), under the new?constitution?of 1 October. This resulted in the Christian Social party now emerging as the strongest party, with 42% of the votes and subsequently forming a CS minority government without the Social Democrats. The CS were to continue in power till end of the First Republic.The borders continued to be somewhat uncertain because of plebiscites in the tradition of Woodrow Wilson. Plebiscites in the regions of?Tyrol?and?Salzburg?between 1919–21 (Tyrol in April 1921, Salzburg in May 1921) yielded majorities of 98 and 99% in favour of a unification with Germany. However such mergers were not possible under the treaty.In October 1920, a plebiscite in the Austrian state of?Carinthia?was held in which the population chose to remain a part of Austria, rejecting the territorial claims of the?Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes?to the state. The German-speaking parts of western Hungary, now christened?Burgenland, joined Austria (now about 6,5 mio inhabitants) as a new province in 1921, with the exception of the city of?Sopron, whose population decided in a referendum to remain with Hungary. Despite the absence of reparations, Austria under the coalition suffered?hyperinflation?similar to that of Germany, destroying some of the financial assets of the middle and upper classes, and disrupting the economy. The terms of the Treaty of Saint Germain were further underlined by the Geneva Protocols of the?League of Nations?(which Austria joined in December 1920) in October 1922 between Austria and the Allies. Austria was given a guarantee of sovereignty provided it did not unite with Germany over the following 20 years. Austria also received a loan of 650 million Goldkronen which was successful in halting hyperinflation, but required major restructuring of the Austrian economy. The Goldkrone was replaced by the more stable Schilling, but resulted in unemployment (about 600,000 people) and new taxes, loss of social benefits and major attrition of the public service. Emerging from the war, Austria had two main political parties on the right and one on the left. The right was split between clericalism and nationalism. The?Christian Social Party, (Christlichsoziale Partei) CS), had been founded in 1891 and achieved majority?from?1907–1911?before losing it to the socialists. Their influence had been waning in the capital, even before 1914, but became the dominant party of the First Republic, and the party of government from 1920 onwards. While in power, the CS was working for an alliance between wealthy industrialists and the?Roman Catholic Church. The CS drew its political support from conservative rural Catholics. In 1920 the?Greater German People's Party? (GDVP) was founded from the bulk of liberal and national groups and became the junior partner of the CS.On the left the?Social Democratic Workers' Party of Austria?(SDAP?) founded in 1898, which pursued a fairly left-wing course known as? HYPERLINK "" \o "Austromarxism" Austromarxism?at that time, could count on a secure majority in "Red Vienna" (as the capital was known from 1918 to 1934), while right-wing parties controlled all other states. The SDAP? were the strongest voting bloc from 1911 to 1918.Between 1918 and 1920, there was a?grand coalition?government including both left and right-wing parties, the CS and the?SDAP?). This gave the Social Democrats their first opportunity to influence Austrian politics. The coalition enacted progressive socio-economic and labour legislation (cf. chapter Institutions: Social Welfare State) such as the vote for women in November 1918, but collapsed in October 1920. In 1920, the modern Constitution of Austria?was enacted, but from 1920 onwards Austrian politics were characterized by intense and sometimes violent conflict between left and right. The bourgeois parties maintained their dominance but formed unstable governments while socialists remained the largest elected party numerically.Both right-wing and left-wing?paramilitary?forces were created during the 20s. The Heimwehr first appeared in 1920 and became progressively organised over the next three years and the Republikanischer Schutzbund was formed in response to this in February 1923. In 1923 there were violent clashes between Socialists and Nazis in Vienna. Further episodes occurred in May and September 1923. A clash between those groups in Schattendorf,?Burgenland, in January 1927 led to the death of a man and a child. Right-wing?veterans?were indicted at a court in Vienna, but acquitted in a?jury trial. This led to massive protests and a fire at the Justizpalast in Vienna. In the?July Revolt of 1927, 89 protesters were killed by the Austrian police forces.Political conflict escalated until the early 1930s. The?elections of 1930?which returned the Social Democrats as the largest bloc turned out to be the last till after World War II. In May 1932,? HYPERLINK "" \o "Engelbert Dollfu?" Engelbert Dollfu?, Christian Social Party Agriculture Minister became?Chancellor, with a majority of one.One of the major features of Austrian society before and after the First World War was anti-Semitism. Up to the second half of the 19th century it was mainly based on Catholicism, at the turn of the century and in the 20th century it had become racially based. Anti-Semitism played an important role in party politics except with Social Democrats and Communists.Austrofascism (1933-1938)Dollfu? and the?Christian Social Party, moved Austria rapidly towards centralized power in the?Fascist?model. He was concerned that?German National Socialist leader?Adolf Hitler?had become?Chancellor of Germany?on 30 January 1933, after his party had become the largest group in the?parliament?and was quickly assuming absolute power. Similarly the?Austrian National Socialists?(DNSAP) could easily become a significant and rising minority in future Austrian elections. ?The events in Austria during March 1933 echoed those of?Germany, where Hitler also effectively installed himself as dictator in the same month.In March 1933, there occurred an irregularity in the parliamentary voting procedure. The?Dollfu??cabinet seized the opportunity to declare the parliament unable to function. While Dollfu? described this event as "self-elimination of Parliament" it was actually the beginning of a?coup d'etat?that would establish Austrofascism lasting to 1938.Using an emergency provision enacted during the?First World War, the executive assumed legislative power in March and advised President Wilhelm Miklas to issue a decree adjourning it indefinitely. The?First Republic?and democratic government therefore effectively ended in Austria. Immediate measures included removing the right of public assembly and freedom of the press. Dollfu? would have been aware that?Nazi?troops had seized power in neighbouring?Bavaria?on 9 March. Finally, on 31 March, the? HYPERLINK "" \o "Republikanischer Schutzbund" Republikanischer Schutzbund? was dissolved (but continued illegally).Dollfu? then met with?Benito Mussolini?for the first time in?Rome?in April. In April too, the National Socialists (DNSAP) gained 40 per cent of the vote in the Innsbruck?communal elections, becoming the largest voting bloc, so in May all state and communal elections were banned.In May 1933, Dollfu? replaced the Democratic Republic with a new entity, merging his Christian Social Party with elements of other nationalist and conservative groups, including the? HYPERLINK "" \o "Heimwehr" Heimwehr, to form the Patriotic Front (Vaterl?ndische Front). The DNSAP was banned in June 1933. Dollfu? was also aware of the Soviet Union's increasing influence in Europe throughout the 1920s and early 1930s, and also banned the Communists, establishing a one-party Austrofascist dictatorship largely modeled after Italian fascism, tied to?Catholic?corporatism?and?anti-secularism.In August 1933, Mussolini's government issued a guarantee of Austrian independence. He was interested in Austria forming a buffer zone against Nazi Germany. The new? HYPERLINK "" \o "Austrofascist" Austrofascist?regime ordered the headquarters of the Social Democrats to be searched on 12 February 1934, provoking the Austrian Civil War, in which the weakened party was quickly defeated and banned.On 1 May 1934, the Dollfu? cabinet approved a new constitution that abolished freedom of the press, established a one party system and created a total state monopoly on employer-employee relations. This system remained in force until Austria became part of the?Third Reich?in 1938. In July 1934 pro-Hitlerite sympathizers assassinated Dollfu? in a putsch that failed.His successor?Kurt Schuschnigg?was forced to resign on 11 March 1938 following a demand by?Adolf Hitler?for power-sharing with pro-German circles. Following Schuschnigg's resignation, German troops occupied Austria with no resistance by the Austrian army.“Anschluss”, German occupation (1938-1945) and liberationAlthough the?Treaty of Versailles?and the?Treaty of St. Germain?had explicitly forbidden the unification of Austria and Germany, the native?Austrian?Hitler?was vastly striving to annex Austria during the late 1930s. When the conflict was escalating in early 1938, Chancellor Schuschnigg announced a plebiscite on the issue on 9 March, which was to take place on 13 March. On 12 March,?German troops, who met celebrating crowds, entered Austria, in order to install Nazi puppet?Arthur Seyss-Inquart?as Chancellor. With a Nazi administration already in place the country was now integrated into the Third Reich as so-called? HYPERLINK "(Austria)" \o "Ostmark (Austria)" Ostmark. A rigged?referendum?on 10 April was used to demonstrate the alleged approval of the annexation with a majority of 99.73% for the annexation. In November 1938, Nazi thugs burned down nearly all synagogues in Austria, attacking and killing Jews and stealing their property.As a result of the “Anschluss”, Austria ceased to exist as an independent country. This annexation was enforced by military invasion but large parts of the Austrian population were in favour of the Nazi regime, and many Austrians participated in its crimes. Jews, Romani and Sinti, disabled persons, Communists, Socialists, members of resistance movements and hostile politicians were sent to concentration camps, murdered or forced into exile, in total more than 200,000 people. 49 concentration camps were built in Austria – including the notorious Mauthausen.Nevertheless, resistance mainly led by Communists, grew over the years and contributed to Austria’s independence and liberation (Declaration on Austria, Moscow 1943).Just before the end of the war, in March 1945, American troops and the Soviet Union's Red Army crossed the borders liberating Austria.The Second Republic (since 1945)In April 1945?Karl Renner, an Austrian elder statesman, declared Austria separate from Germany and set up a government which included Socialists, Conservatives and Communists. A significant number of these were returning from exile or Nazi detention, having thus played no role in the Nazi government. This contributed to the Allies treating Austria more as a liberated, rather than defeated, country, and the government was recognized by the Allies later that year. The country was occupied by the Allies from 9 May 1945 and under the?Allied Commission for Austria?established by an agreement in July 1945, it was divided into Zones occupied respectively by American, British, French and Soviet Army personnel, with Vienna being also divided similarly into four sectors—with an International Zone at its heart. Austria would benefit from the?Marshall Plan?but economic recovery was slow.Unlike the First Republic, the?Second Republic?became a stable democracy. The two largest leading parties, the Christian-conservative?Austrian People's Party?(?VP) and the?Social Democratic Party?(SP?) remained in a coalition led by the ?VP until 1966. The?Communist Party of Austria?(KP?) remained in the coalition until 1950 and in parliament until?1959. For much of the Second Republic, the only opposition party was the?Freedom Party of Austria?(FP?), which included?German national?and liberal?political currents. It was founded in 1955 as a successor organisation to the short-lived?Federation of Independents?(VdU), mainly consisting of ex-Nazi-Party members.The?Austrian State Treaty?was signed on 15 May 1955. Upon the termination of allied occupation, Austria was?proclaimed?a?neutral country, and everlasting neutrality was incorporated into the?Constitution?on 26 October 1955 being Austria’s national holiday since then.The political system of the Second Republic came to be characterized by the system of Proporz, meaning that posts of some political importance were split evenly between members of the SP? and ?VP. Interest group representations with mandatory membership (e.g., for workers, business people, farmers etc.) grew to considerable importance (called “Sozialpartnerschaft”, social partnership) in fact being a non-constitutional “extra government” leaving Parliament aside. The ?VP-SP? coalition ended in?1966, when the ?VP gained a majority in parliament. However, it lost it in?1970, when SP? leader?Bruno Kreisky?formed a?minority government?tolerated by the FP?. In the?elections of 1971,?1975?and?1979?he obtained an absolute majority. The 70s were then seen as a time of liberal reforms in?social policy. However, with the election of Kurt Waldheim as president in 1986, the first cracks appeared in Austria’s cosy post-war political cohabition. Waldheim’s impeccable international profile was dynamited by revelations that he had omitted details of his Wehrmacht service in the Balkans and Salonika. With the world’s media on his trail, Waldheim denied knowledge of Nazi atrocities and deportations, claiming that he had been on leave. Austrian voters refused to be swayed by international pressure and duly voted him president. The affair rekindled debate on the Nazi period in Austria and its complicity during World War II and ended Austria’s myth being “Hitler’s first victim”.In September 1986, in a confrontation between the German-national and liberal wings,? HYPERLINK "" \o "J?rg Haider" J?rg Haider?became leader of the FP?. Chancellor Vranitzky rescinded the coalition pact between FP? and SP?, and after?new elections, entered into a coalition with the ?VP. J?rg Haider's populism and criticism of the? HYPERLINK "" \o "Proporz" Proporz?system allowed him to gradually expand his party's support in elections. The?Green Party?managed to establish itself in parliament from 1986 onwards.The fall of the Iron Curtain in 1989 and Austria’s entry into the EU in 1995 brought new challenges. Austria was set on the track towards joining the?Eurozone, when it was established in 1999. From the 1999 elections onwards, Fears of foreign meddling were exploited by the Freedom Party (FP?). Austria saw an erosion of the traditional political system, in the way that the “old parties” lost influence and votes and the populist right-wing party FP? gained even more influence (e.g. their candidate Norbert Hofer in the latest presidential elections in December 2016 gaining 47% of the votes).In the 1999 elections, the ?VP fell back to third place behind the FP? in the?elections and entered a coalition with the FP? under considerable national and international protest. Subsequent elections in 2002 saw Chancellor Schüssel’s ?VP as winner continuing the coalition with the FP?. In October 2006 the SP? won a?head-on-head election and negotiated a grand coalition with the ?VP. The grand coalition headed by Alfred Gusenbauer collapsed in the early summer of 2008 over disagreements about the country's EU policy. The?early elections?held in September resulted in extensive losses for the two ruling parties and corresponding gains for?Heinz-Christian Strache's FP?. Nevertheless, SP? and ?VP renewed their coalition continuing it also after the latest elections in 2013. Meanwhile this coalition broke and national elections will take place in October 2017.With the worsening of the refugee crisis in Europe in 2015, the inflammatory tone of the FP? today reflects, and even supersedes, Haider’s anti-immigration discourse of the 1990s. Austria faces a rough ride, politically and socially. Teaching the contentStepsContentMethod/ToolsLearning OutcomesRequired timeAnnexes1Milestones of Austrian history in the 20th and 21st centuriesHow many milestones do you count?Ask them what they know about Austria; collect information; students are to make notes in their first language; put notes into a structureRead one milestone (e.g. Austria in the First World War), look for words unknown in dictionary, write them with translation, and explain content of milestone to one other person in or outside your course. Read the text, mark the milestones, find sub- headings ; write/give one sentence to summarize the content of some paragraphs Understanding of Austrian history in the 20th and 21st centuries 2 hrsAudio-visual material in different languages referring to Austria (according to origin country)Internet2The map of Austria today and before World War I; give a comparisonGive the names of countries belonging to the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy that are part of today’s states (one’s own country?)Collect a glossary of historical-political termsWrite/give sentences using historical-political terms and look them up in a dictionaryKnowing facts 2hrs (Historical) atlas;Internet3Find out changes and developments in Austrian political systems since the beginning of the 20th century(Monarchy, Republic, Fascism)Explain the difference “Monarchy – Republic”Difference “Monarchy-Republic” and their own experienceAdvantages/disadvantages of current political systems (written/orally)Understanding of historical changes, policy changes1,5 hrsBooklets, audio-visual material issued by Austrian institutions 4Look at the country you are living in now: Find out about historical facts related to the 20th centuryGo to the Internet; read the article on the respective countryGive an oral summary of the Internet articleWrite a summary of the Internet articleKnowing detailed facts of own country, understanding differences in situations2 hrsInternet5Rise of populism in Austria and their own countryFind out about the meaning of populismFind arguments for rise of populism in the textWrite an argumentative text on populismAbility to analyze a text and summarize the details2 hrsEU-Materials on populism published in GermanInstitutions in AustriaState power and separation of powers"State power" means the power which a state must exercise in order to secure internal order and protection to the outside world.?The state power is divided into three classical state functions:■?legislation ■?administrative (or executive)■?justice The task of legislation is the enactment of laws.?The laws formulate so-called "general facts" (ie possible violations of law), to which certain legal sequences (punishments) are linked (eg "killing someone has to go to prison for a certain number of years").?In addition, the laws stipulate the conditions under which a certain success (eg the conclusion of a contract) can occur.?The task of the execution is to enforce and apply the laws in individual cases - if necessary also with compulsion.The great difference between these two powers lies in the position of their organs (e.g. persons or institutions which actually enforce laws). These include, for example, the Federal President and the Federal Government, but also administrative officers and judges.?While the administration is bound by instructions, the courts are completely independent in their decision.?This means that administrative officers have to stick to the orders of their superiors (up to the Federal President), while judges can decide independently.?The principle of separation of violence is defined in the Austrian Federal Constitution.?This means that legislation, jurisdiction and administration must be separated from one another and that these areas must not be crossed.? Jurisdiction in Austria In Austria there is a four-stage appeal.?In Austria, all courts (except the Supreme Court) have a superior court, to which one can turn if necessary.?Sub-appeal is understood to mean the appeal to the next higher court with the aim of altering or abrogating the decision of a subordinate authority. The regular courts are organized in Austria in four "ascending" steps (steps of appeal)):■?District Courts (can always be active only in the first instance)■?Regional courts (either active in first or second instance)■?Courts of Appeal (which operate only in the second instance)■?Supreme Court (operates only in the third instance)The Supreme Court is the highest judicial body and is therefore also referred to as the Supreme Court (next to the Constitutional Court and the Administrative Court).?Jurisdiction: The OGH decides (in civil and criminal matters) within Austria as the last instance.?Anyone who wants to challenge a decision by the OGH can therefore only refer to the "Commission for Human Rights" and the "European Court of Human Rights" - but this is only possible in the event of a violation of human rights.?In addition, the OGH has a special significance for the interpretation of the laws in Austria.?Social SecurityStatement of a Syrian student: "Our social insurance is the family" In the countries from which our students come, the large family usually provides protection from existential needs.?It provides the means for education for the young generation, for the care of the elderly and for the care of family members who do not have work.?It provides (depending on income better or worse) in disease and distress.?A prerequisite for this is a relatively narrow life in the family association.?At the end of the 19th century, industrialized countries in Europe, including in Austria, increasingly offered jobs at industrial sites.?This demanded mobility from the people.?They could and had to get rid of the bound rural employment.?They left their villages, where they were mostly active in agriculture and many of them were dependent on food and clothing. But they also fell from the traditional social contexts and protective communities.?In the first factories there were often very bad working conditions: low pay, 12 to 15 hours working daily, miserable housing conditions.?The workers began to organize.?Their main demands were: just pay "work that gives us bread") care in case of illness, accidents and unemployment ("no fear of illness and distress") care in old age and education and future for the children.?Other political movements were also interested in the maintenance of law and order, to defuse the social question by means of governmental legislation in order to prevent deeper social changes.?What was once the task of the large family (livelihood in the widest sense) was seen by the socialist and communist workers' movement as the task of a solidarity society and fought for it.?The solidarity community has been broadly defined and the obligations redistributed.?The slogan was: all pay for all in a large common pot for ages, accidents, health and unemployment.?This system has been extended over the years, for example, by a long-term care allowance and a minimum allowance.?If there is not enough money in the pot (in which the employer and the employer pay) (as in times of low employment), the deficit is covered by taxes.?Today, social security is an important pillar of the welfare state.?Their roots date back to the Middle Ages.?It secures everyone against risks within the limits set.The four pillars of social insurance areHealth insuranceAccident Insurancepension insuranceunemploymentHealth insurance: A legal regulation of social insurance in the current sense came for the first time in 1889. Subsequently self-administration was introduced.?In Austria, health insurance is compulsory insurance, which means that every employee whose gross salary is above the de Minimis limit is also insured with health insurance.?The insurance contributions are deducted directly from wages or salaries in the case of employed persons and are paid to the health insurance company together with the share that the employer pays.?This is regulated by law in the ASVG (General Social Insurance Act of 1956).?Health insurance covers disability due to illness and maternity.?It pays for hospital and medical stays (benefits in kind) as well as sick pay and weekly allowance (cash benefits).?Entrepreneurs and self-employed persons are insured with health, accident and pension insurance at the Social Insurance Institution for the Commercial Sector (SVA).Everybody who has social insurance gets a so-called “E-Card” which he/she has to present when attending a doctor or going to hospital. This is the key to his/her data in social insurance and necessary for diagnosis and therapy.Accident insurance: it was introduced in 1889, as industrialization led to an increase in accidents and occupational diseases.?In order to avert the risk of individual claims for damages against the employer, which could possibly mean the ruin of a company, the employers were legally united to a risk community, which was financed jointly by all employers.?The accident insurance is still financed exclusively by the employer today.?The accident insurance covers the insurance cases of the accident as well as the occupational disease.?In addition to in-kind payments, Austrian accident insurance also provides cash benefits, mainly in the form of accident pensions.Pension insurance: In 1906 the statutory pension insurance scheme was introduced for some of the employees.?The pension insurance covers the insurance cases of age (pension), death (widow's and orphan's pension) and diminished employability (invalidity pension).?The amount of the pension is dependent on the contribution period and contributions.?Pension is intended to replace income and ensure the livelihood of pensioners.?The PVA is also responsible for the?care allowance?(if constant need for assistance due to mental and physical disabilities is)Unemployment insurance: The unemployment insurance cover is covered by unemployment insurance.?For the first claim, you have to pay 52 weeks of unemployment insurance contributions in the last 24 months.?The contributions are graduated.?According to the unemployment allowance, the unemployed will be entitled to a state-financed emergency aid after 6 months.?Social assistance in Austria is a state-of-the-art minimum level guarantee.?It is intended primarily to help people who are permanently unable to work, or to increase the number of families, and thus, to a small extent, in quantitative terms. Each of the nine Austrian provinces regulates social assistance through a separate social assistance law.?Thus, the laws have developed differently and sometimes show considerable differences.?The socio-cultural subsistence minimum is generally granted.?As of 1 September 2010, the required minimum allowance as a substitute for social assistance was introduced as a joint performance of all federal states.??Third-country nationals, ie the majority of asylum seekers are only entitled to social assistance or minimum allowance if they have legally lived in Austria for more than five years.?Recognized refugees and subsidiary protection beneficiaries are only entitled to social assistance and / or minimum allowance, provided their status as refugee or subsidiary protection is granted.The?Austrian Federal Government?is a collective body that exercises?executive power?in the?Republic of Austria. It is composed of the?Chancellor, who is?leader of the government, the?Vice-Chancellor, and senior?ministers. The?President?and the Government together form the?executive branch?of Austria.Since the 1929 reform of the?Austrian Constitution, all members of the Federal Government are appointed by the Austrian Federal President, who nevertheless has to seek a consensus with the National Council?parliament, since a?vote of no confidence?would immediately enforce their dismissal. In practical terms usually the leader of the strongest political party, who ran as "chancellor candidate" in the?parliamentary election, is asked to become Federal Chancellor; although there have been exceptions in the past. The nominations of the ministers take place at the suggestion of the Chancellor, though the President is permitted to withhold his or her approval. Likewise, the President may dismiss the Chancellor and/or the whole government at any time. However, a new government must be formed by the parties that control parliament.The Chancellor presides over cabinet meetings as?first among equals?without decisional authority, regardless of his right of proposal concerning the appointment of the government's members by the President. The cabinet adopts resolutions in the presence of at least half of its members and, according to the ruling of the Austrian Constitutional Court, unanimously – in particular the introduction of bills to the National Council. Each federal minister is also responsible for his or her own ministry, and may be supported by one or more?state secretaries?(junior ministers), who also participate in the cabinet's meetings. State secretaries are not considered members of the government, and have no right to vote during cabinet meetings.The?President of Austria (lit. "Austrian Federal President") is the?federal?head of state?of?Austria. Though theoretically entrusted with great power by the?Constitution of Austria , in practice the president is, for the most part, merely a ceremonial?figurehead?who acts mostly on the advice of the Chancellor?and the Cabinet. The President of Austria is directly elected by universal suffrage once in every six years. The president's offices are located in the? HYPERLINK "" \o "Hofburg Palace" Hofburg Imperial Palace, in?Vienna.The?Austrian Parliament is the legislature?in?Austria. It consists of two chambers: the?National Council? and the?Federal Council. In specific cases, both houses convene as the Federal Assembly. The legislature meets in the?Austrian Parliament Building?located on Vienna’s Ringstra?e.The?National Council?is composed of 183 members elected through?proportional representation?in a general election. The legislative period lasts five years, elections are held earlier if the National Council prematurely moves for its own dissolution. The National Council is the dominant house in the Austrian Parliament, and consequently the terms?Parliament?and?National Council?are commonly used synonymously.The?Federal Council?is elected indirectly, through the provincial assemblies of the nine?States?of the Federal Republic, and reflects the distribution of seats in the provincial assemblies. The states are represented in the Federal Council roughly in accordance to the size of their populations. With regard to most issues, the Federal Council only possesses a dilatory right of veto which can be overridden by the National Council. However, the Federal Council enjoys absolute veto powers over bills intended to alter the powers of either the states, or of the Federal Council itself.The?Federal Assembly? is a body whose function is mostly ceremonial in nature, and consists of the members of both houses of Parliament. The Federal Assembly convenes only rarely, for instance to witness the inauguration of the Federal President. It might be noted, however, that under exceptional circumstances the?Austrian constitution?endows the Federal Assembly with significant responsibilities. An example of this would be its pivotal role in the hypothetical impeachment of a Federal President.EducationEducation in Austria is entrusted partly to the?Austrian states?(Bundesl?nder) and partly to the federal government. School attendance is?compulsory?for nine years, i.e. usually to the age of fifteen.Pre-school?education (called?Kindergarten), free in most states, is provided for all children between the ages of three and six years and, whilst optional, is considered a normal part of a child's education due to its high takeup rate. Primary education, lasts for four years, starting at age six. It is generally expected that a class will be taught by one teacher for the entire four years and the stable bond between teacher and pupil is considered important for a child's well-being. The?3Rs?(Reading, wRiting and aRithmetic) dominate lesson time. Children work individually and all members of a class follow the same plan of work. Secondary education consists of two main types of schools, attendance at which is based on a pupil's ability as determined by grades from the primary school. The?Gymnasium?caters for the more able children, in the final year of which the Matura?examination is taken, which is a requirement for access to university. The Neue Mittelschule (NMS)?prepares pupils for vocational education but also for various types of further education ( HYPERLINK "" \o "H?here Technische Lehranstalt" H?here Technische Lehranstalt?HTL = institution of higher technical education; HAK = commercial academy; HBLA = institution of higher education for economic business; etc.). Attendance at one of these further education institutes also leads to the?Matura. The Austrian university system had been open to any student who passed the?Matura exam until recently. A 2006 bill allowed the introduction of entrance exams for studies such as Medicine, since then such exams for many more studies have been introduced. . In 2001, an obligatory tuition fee of €363.36 per term was introduced for all public universities. Private universities and Universities of Applied Sciences charge a higher tuition fee. (For a more detailed description see chapter “Living in Austria”)Teaching the content: Social Insurance in AustriaStepsContentMethod/ToolsLearning OutcomesRequired timeAnnexes1History of the Welfare State in AustriaAsk them what they know about the Welfare State; collect information about differences between families in the countries of origin and families in Austria (size, housing situation, family income…); students are to make notes in their first language; put notes into a structure.Role play: At the doctor’s; appropriate grammar, phrases and vocabulary. Read the paragraph on Health Insurance, look for unknown words in the dictionary, write them both in German and first language, and explain the content of the paragraph to one other person in or outside your course. Pairwork. Role play between insurance agent and client.Read the text, mark the keywords, find sub- headings ; write/give one sentence to summarize the content of some paragraphs Understanding of the development of the Welfare State in the 20th century2 hrsAudio-visual material in different languages referring to Austria (according to origin country)Internet: website of Social Insurance in Austria2Tasks of the state vsTasks of the familyMake a glossary of health-related terms (group work)Presentation of the 4 pillars by 4 students, students ask questions (pair work; group work; role plays)Knowing facts 2hrs Internet: Wikipedia on Social Insurance in Austria3Service/Duties of Social Insurance/the insuredFocus on Unemployment Insurance; go through AMS-material; students are to collect and explain labour market-related terms (individual + pair work, group work; writing dialogues and short scenes; practising situational German; appropriate grammar, phrases and vocabularyComprehending rules of Social Insurance and AMS-rules1,5 hrsBooklets, audio-visual material by AMS (Austrian Labour Market Service)4Problems of the Austrian Social Insurance SystemInterpreting demographic diagrams; comparison to country of origin; group work; giving presentations; language of presentationsKnowing detailed facts of own/host country, understanding differences to Austria2 hrsInternet: Statistics Austria; statistics country of origin 5Income: Wages; taxes; gross/net payFind out about the basics of tax system in AustriaFind out the differences in gross/net pay; dialogue between employer/employee about one’s payslipAbility to analyse a payslip and summarize the details both written and orally2 hrsA payslip Teaching the content: State power and separation of powers in AustriaStepsContentMethod/ToolsLearning OutcomesRequired timeAnnexes1Structure of state power and separation of powers in AustriaAsk them what they know about this structure; collect information about differences between the structure in the countries of origin and in Austria; students are to make notes in their first language; put notes into a structure. Role play: At the police station: appropriate grammar, phrases and vocabulary of interviews. Read a paragraph of the text, look for unknown words in the dictionary, write them both in German and first language, and explain the content of the paragraph to one other person in or outside your course. Pairwork. Role play between police officer/asylum officer etc. and client.Read the text, mark the keywords, find sub- headings ; write/give one sentence to summarize the content of some paragraphs Understanding of the development of the structure of separation of powers in Austria2 hrsAudio-visual material in different languages referring to Austria (according to origin country)Internet: website of Ministry of Justice in AustriaCopies of interviews at the Asylum Authority/protocols from police interrogations2“Ascending steps” of regular courtsMake a glossary of law-related terms (group work) for everyday usePresentation of the 4 steps by 4 students, students ask questions (pair work; group work; role plays)Knowing facts 2hrs Internet: Wikipedia on the court system in Austria3 Focusing on the single courts and their tasksstudents are to collect and explain more difficult law-related terms (individual + pair work, group work; writing dialogues and short scenes; practising situational German; appropriate grammar, phrases and vocabularyComprehending rule of law2hrsBooklets, audio-visual material by Austrian Lawyers’ AssociationDemocracy - participation-interest groupsShort revision of important forms of governmentMonarchy. In previous times ?the monarch had?any political rights.?They were the most powerful persons in the respective empire (hence the name: Monarch means as much as a ruler).?They were seen as “chosen by God” and their rule was inherited.?Because their power was so great, one spoke of the absolute monarchy.?Austria?was,?for?example, at times of?Maria Theresia an absolute monarchy.Throughout centuries people lived in a pyramidal feudal system, an order with the king on the top, followed by nobles, down to craftsmen and mostly farmers and workers without rights.During the 18th century, however, the rights of the monarch were gradually restricted Today there are only parliamentary or constitutional monarchies.?In?a monarchy, the queen or the king signs the laws and represents the state formally.?But the laws are made in Parliament.?For example, Britain is a constitutional monarchy.Dictatorship is a form of government that does not contain essential elements of democracy.?There are often parliaments and governments, but no free elections and mostly no opposition.?Political opponents and opponents of a dictatorship are suppressed, very often by torture or arbitrary arrest.?There is no free press or freedom of travel;?newspapers and television and radio stations are monitored and censored by the dictatorial regime.?At the?top of a dictatorship there is usually a male?dictator.?Nazism in Germany (1933-1945) was a dictatorship, Hitler?and Stalin were?dictators.?But there are still dictatorships (e.g. North Korea) and countries whose leaders are indeed elected, but they rule in a dictatorial / authoritarian way?and?ban the press and freedom of opinion, influence the judiciary and persecute political opponents.Democracy means "rule of the?people".?The people are all the citizens?in?a state.?A must have for a democratic society is: a parliament, a system of multiple political parties, free and secret elections and a constitutional state respecting the fundamental human rights.Characteristics of a democracy-Participation: Democracy allows and needs participation of all the people.?All citizens?are invited to participate in political life and in policymaking.?We must understand that we all?are the state and?have?a say how we want to live.-Constitutional state: All citizens?of a democracy have equal rights and duties.?These are enshrined in laws, which is also called legal order, and democracy is always a legal state.?All in the state (including the government) must comply with these laws.-Separation of powers: A functioning separation of violence is indispensable for a democracy.?Details see chapter 2-Constitution: The essential characteristics of a democracy is the existence of a constitution.?In a?constitution, there are the rules,?how a state is structured and who can pass laws.?But above all a constitution is to regulate the rights of every human being in the state (fundamental and human rights)?and freedoms?against the state.?For example,?the right to life, the prohibition of torture and?inhuman punishment or the prohibition of slavery.?This includes the fundamental right that all people "are equal before the law" and therefore?must be treated?equally by the institutions of the?state.-Freedom of opinion and assembly: Part of fundamental and human rights as well as an important principle of democracy is freedom of opinion and assembly.?You can say what you think and get together with others to make your opinion public.?The right to form an association or a party is also a fundamental right.?In a democracy, a free association for political groups and special interest groups (freedom of association)?must?be guaranteed.-Freedom of press and information: This, too, must exist in a functioning democracy.?This means that television, newspapers, radio and all other media?are allowed to publish?any type of information.-Protection of minorities: Ethnic groups (national or language minorities), social minorities (homosexual, transgendered, disabled) must not be disadvantaged in a majority society.?They have?minority rights?that must be preserved.-elections: Free elections is the backbone of a democracy.?The Constitution says: "Austria is a democratic republic. Its law emanates?from?the?people."?The Austrians?do not decide on their laws themselves but through national elections they designate representatives?who will do the work on the laws in their?favor.?The members of the National?Council.Who can vote?There is a distinction between active and passive voting rights: ie the right to vote and the right?to be elected.?Austrians?can vote from 16 years onwards and can be elected from 18 onwards.?Exception: If you?want to be?President, you?have to be at least 35 years old.?The general free ballot is so important because it?is supposed to guarantee older?all citizens?to have a say hen?in politics.?Politicians?can also be voted out by the way: This, too, is part of democracy.What are the elections in Austria??There are five different elections in Austria: the National Council, the Provincial Parliaments, the Municipal Council, the European Parliament and the Federal Presidential Elections.Person?or list:In Austria, there are two types of elections: on the one hand personality elections, on the other hand list suffrage and proportional representation.?Personality election means: The right to vote is to elect a person directly and personally.?List suffrage means: Parties run each with a list of?candidates.?The electorate elect a party and the related?person.?The federal president?and the mayor in many municipalities are elected personally and directly.List?representation:? Parties are primarily elected.Proportional?representation:?Proportional representation calculates cast votes into mandates.Political?Parties?Political parties are associations of people with similar political goals.?They have three main tasks.?Parties choose those people who sit on their behalf in parliaments and other institutions and make decisions there. Most political parties have emerged in the 19th century?(including the Social Democratic Party - Social Democratic?Party,?the ?VP - Austrian People's Party).?However, at that time they had?different names.?The FP? (Austrian Freedom Party) and the Greens are?relatively young parties from the middle or second half of the 20th century. Since 2013 the NEOS party (Das neue ?sterreich) has seats in the parlament.National elections 2017: ?VP 31,5% / SP? 26,9% / FP? 26% / NEOS 5,3% / Liste Pilz 4,4%The federal state of?Austria?The Republic is a federal state composed of nine independent federal provinces?(Burgenland, Carinthia, Lower Austria, Upper Austria, Salzburg, Styria, Tyrol, Vorarlberg and Vienna) and?is formed?with Provincial Parliaments and a Provincial Governments (federal?principle).?These federal provinces have a long history of their own.?Through its voluntary coming together, the Republic of Austria was born in 1918 after the collapse of the Habsburg?monarchy.Participation through instruments of direct?democracy?In a democracy, popular participation in the political process is necessary and desirable.?Participation in the political process means that one participates in decision-making processes, by which you are affected in any way - whether in school, in youth centres, in the municipality, in the region or in concrete social or socio-political concerns.?This can happen in different ways.?One form is participation in elections.?But there are also direct-democratic instruments such as petition, plebiscite, or referendum.?Involvement in political parties, NGOs and associations is just a form of participation as participation in citizens’ initiatives, writing letters to the editor, contacts with politicians?(such as emails or blogs)?or the boycott of goods manufactured by child labour.?Participation in demonstrations or strikes is a different form of participation; in any case, it is not only about watching, but also about being active.?Participation can mean support for the government, but also protest against it.?The more people take part in politics, the more their interests become visible for political parties and?politicians.?Plebiscite:?A plebiscite in Austria belongs to the means of direct democracy - voters can use it to directly decide on a law.?If Parliament does not wish to adopt a law itself, the National Council may adopt a popular vote.?In this popular vote, voters and voters then decide if the law should be passed or not.?The result is binding.Danger in plebiscites: They can be influenced and manipulated by government and media and influential interest groups.?This is particularly true of emotional issues such as the death penalty.Petition: ?In a petition a number of voters want the Parliament to adopt a particular law.?Voters can sign a petition, and if this is done by more than 100,000 people in Austria, the National Council must deal with it.?This does not mean that this law must also be adopted.?In the run-up to popular campaigns, this is often and extensively reported in media.?The real purpose of a petition is therefore not always the corresponding law, but that a topic is made public and discussed.?Altogether there have been almost 40 referendums, most of which were able to reach the necessary number of 100,000 signatures.Referendum:?The referendum is a means of direct democracy in Austria.?Referendum means?that?voters?express?their opinion on a certain issue.?The result is not binding on politicians.Citizens ' Initiative:?Several people join to prevent a particular project or enforce it.?If, for example, a particular building project is to be carried out in one place and several persons are opposed to it, they can found a citizens' initiative and jointly counter this project.?But a citizens' initiative may also be established to enforce a certain goal as well: for example, if too few nursery places are available in a?municipality.Legal and free representative?institutionsMany interests are not only the interests of individuals, but of larger groups.?Employees, for example, have a common interest in fair working conditions, regular holidays and appropriate wages.?If every single person were to try to enforce these interests alone, this would be very complicated, on the other hand difficult.?This is why there are institutions to represent these common interests.?The most famous institutions of interests are the Chamber of Labor (AK), Chamber of Commerce (WK) Chamber of Agriculture (LK), Chamber of the “Free Professions”) , furthermore the independent associations the association of Austrian Industry IV and the Austrian Federation of Trade Unions- ?GB The Chamber of Labour (AK), is the legal representation of the employees in Austria.?It has existed since 1920 in every province and represents the social, economic, occupational and cultural interests of?workers.?For most workers, there is a compulsory membership in the chamber?(as of?2017).Trade Unions?The other large interest representation of the employees is the trade union (in Austria: ?GB).?The ?GB is not an institution anchored in law, but an association based on the voluntary membership of employees.?For example, if wages?are?negotiated, union representatives are involved.?When it comes to layoffs in a company, union representatives are consulted?by employers.?The Chambers of Commerce are the statutory representatives of the entrepreneurs of the commercial economy.?They were founded as commercial chambers as early as 1849.?The Association of Austrian Industry ("Industriellenvereinigung", IV)) is understood as a representation of interests at Austrian and European level, as well as a service organization for its members.?Membership is voluntary.?As an Austrian industrial representation, the aim of the association is to sustainably represent the interests of its members in Europe and Austria and to strengthen the business location Austria and Europe.?Social PartnershipThe Austrian Economic and Social Partnership (the official name) is the cooperation between the large economic interest groups (Chamber of Labor, AK, ?sterreichische Gewerkschaftsbund - ?GB, Landwirtschaftskammer - LK and Wirtschaftskammer ?sterreich - WKO).?It is not just about negotiating collective agreements, but about all economic and social policy issues.?This cooperation is voluntary, and organizations try to solve future challenges together.Citizenship?Citizenship means belonging to a state.?Everyone has a right to citizenship.?If people move from their home country to another country, they initially retain their original citizenship.?For example, a Swede who moves to Austria and now lives here remains a Swedish citizen.?If, after some time, she wants to get Austrian citizenship, she submits a request for it.?If she fulfils all necessary requirements (these are regulated by law), then she can be naturalized.Legal requirements (as of?2017):At least 10 years of legal and uninterrupted?stay in Austria, of which at least five years of residence permit No judicial convictions No pending criminal proceedings Sufficiently secured livelihoodProof of one’s own regular income from employment or self-employment.Knowledge of the German language and basic knowledge of the democratic order and derived from these basic principles and of Austrian history Democracy participation-interest groupsTeaching the content StepsContentMethod/ToolsLearning OutcomesRequired timeAnnexes13 different?state formsTake the images of social pyramid - parliament and try?to identify the difference. Learn by heart a nursery rhyme dealing with the society layers in feudal societies (Kaiser, K?nig, Edelmann, Bürger, Bauer, Bettelman)Group work:?Underline the essential characteristics of the different forms of government in the text and place them opposite each otherDescribe the form of government in the countries where you have lived and their essential characteristicsKnow essential features of forms of government (democracy, monarchy and dictatorship)1 hour?"My decision-our future” (political?education for young people) Boehm, Wolfgang2Introduction?to the topic?DemocracyDrawing a word?cloud? about Politics &?Democracy?collecting associative terms; definitions also in the student languageTeacher guides through an interactive quiz with questions concerning students experience in political participation (e.g. Do you know someone who has taken part in a demonstration..?belongs to a minority?. Is active in a political party?. Has never voted?. Is in trouble because of his religion?Notice links between their own (concrete) experience? and experience of?colleagues?with the (abstract) topic democracy1 hour 3Characteristics?of a democracyMost important indicators of a well functioned democracy)Make a vote to stabilize some negotiable rules in classroom ( break, use of mobiles….)Read the text, underline the most important terms, try a summary of the most important indicators of a well functioned democracy)Make groups of the students with the same country of origin: They should try to describe the differences to their countriesKnowing?facts?(developing an understanding of the essential elements of a democratic state)1.5 hoursExperience teaching materials for youth parliament democracyzdf_logo Lehrerheft Demokratie fileadmin/media/pdf/.../PoliPedia_U-Material_web.pdf4Austrian?parties in parliamentName political parties in Austria now Worksheets: match abbreviation with party name and match colors and political parties, understand?billboard slogans, describe election campaign placardsAssign election posters to the individual partiesRead?excerpts from?party?programs (different parts for the different levels)Organize a mock election in classroom: ballot papers, ballot box, a team which count the votes, calculate percentage and compare to official electionInvite the participants to create a fictional political party. Participants should define the core of their party, including the main goals in a mini-party program and design a campaign poster that communicates the main goals of the?party.Knowledge of standing for election Austrian parties?and their ideas.1.5 hourscaritasakademie.at/fileadmin/redakteure/Oesterreich_Landeskunde_2012.pdf opportunitiesGroup work: Students write a list and collect the possibilities where they can participate in political/social life in Austria additionally, they can list where they wish and are able to participate; oppose the two listsStudents agree on topics which they want to protest for making a demonstration plan collecting demands and slogans, writing slogans and postersAwareness of opportunities for participation and non-participation.?Exercise in practical employment with a form of direct democracy, application of the terms1.5 hoursTeaching materials democracy and participation6Direct democracy in AustriaShow TV-reports or video clips on citizens’ initiatives (about the demonstration against the nuclear power plant Zwentendorf, demonstration against deportations, November 2015 refugees in Hungary ) try to understand slogans on the banners. Read?text?and?underline,?gather and discuss in the?group,?write down demand(s) of the citizens' initiativeGroup work: students (of the same country of origin) should describe instruments of direct democracy in their countries, work out?differences, make presentationKnowledge of opportunities for participation in social life?in Austria, understand protest and civil initiative as a form of participation1 hourTV-Reports, you tube videos, newspaper articles or information about current citizen’s initiatives or protests against government plansLiving in AustriaReligion in AustriaThe majority of Austrians are Christian and about 73 percent of the population is registered as Roman Catholic. Approximately 5 percent are Lutheran and another 5 percent are Muslim. There are also very small groups of Buddhists, Jews and Hindus.In regards to religious tolerance, there have historically been many contrary moments. Austria has always been a stronghold of Catholicism, resulting time and again in the religious persecution of Austrian citizens of Jewish faith. Under National Socialism practiced under the “Third Reich”, many Austrian Jewish citizens were forced to flee the country (about 140.000) and many others were murdered in concentration camps (about 65.000). Many of these citizens were significant artists, important intellectuals and scientists.Protestants were also religiously persecuted in Austria and during the counter-reformation, thousands were forced to leave the central regions of the Habsburg monarchy. Later, during the period of Austro-Fascism, Protestants were not permitted to hold official offices.Conversely, under Josef II, a proponent of enlightened absolutism, his famous Patent of Tolerance permitted the free worship for Protestants within certain constraints. During the royal and imperial monarchy at the time of the occupation of Bosnia-Herzegovina, Austria was the first European nation to recognize Islam as an official religion.Legal recognition bestows public legal recognition of a church or religious community, whereby this position means the church becomes a corporate body subject to public law. A characteristic of these types of corporate bodies is in the perception of tasks by public interest. Thus, this means in addition to religion, social societal and culture political tasks are serving the common welfare.There are currently 14 churches and religious communities legally recognized in Austria. (For details see: meinglaube.at).Besides, as of January 1998, supporters of confessions not yet legally recognized in Austria can join registered confessional communities and acquire legal entity after submitting an application to the Federal Ministry of Education. Of course, this is not the same as legal recognition as a church or religious society. (For details see: meinglaube.at).SportsSports have a great social, political and economic impact in Austria. Popular companies invest over € 300 million in sports and sponsorship.Every tenth job in this country is associated with a field of sports. Over 355,000 people earn their living directly or indirectly from sports and € 15 billion or, 7 percent of the net domestic product of the Austrian economy, comes from this field.Nowadays in Austria the number of skis sold (about 500,000 Alpine skis) outnumbers the number of television sets (about 416,000) purchased in this country. In order to enjoy sport activities, Austrians spend over € 15 million a year on accommodations. The media also profit from sports reporting and sports advertising earning about € 193 million, and there is no end in sight. Most popular sports are football/soccer and (Alpine) skiing. (For details see: sport-oesterreich.at)Communication & MediaCommunication is a vital aspect of everyday life and being available 24 hours a day in a personal context is becoming increasingly important. Recent studies show that almost 60 percent of all Austrians age 12 and up cannot imagine life without a mobile phone. (For details on contracts, technical equipment and providers see: telekom.at, tele2.at, as of 2017).The most important emergency numbers to know are122Fire133Police144Ambulance / Paramedics140Mountain Rescue Service112European Emergency NumberCalling any emergency number is free of charge. In most European countries, 112 can be dialled on any mobile phone, even on those with no SIM Card. Post Office Services: The Post AG, Austria’s national postal provider, has locations in nearly every city and village in this country. Smaller villages have access to “Post Partner” which are companies that work together with the post office to provide a wide range of post office services. (For office hours, see the search function on the Post AG website: post.at)TV & RadioIn compliance with Austria’s RGG law (TV and Radio License), all broadcasting reception equipment , such as television set or radio is subject to a monthly fee which can vary from province to province. The mandatory license fee serves to financially support public television channels (ORF). Furthermore, there are quite a number of private and local channels. The same applies to radio stations. (For details see: orf.at)Newspapers & MagazinesAs of 2017, there are 10 daily newspapers, both national and regional and a small number of weekly newspapers and magazines. A lot of special interest magazines serve a market which is altogether quite small in comparison to other European countries. Concerning daily papers, there is in fact a press monopoly by the tabloids Kronen Zeitung, Heute and Oesterreich which have more daily readers than the quality press (i.e. Kurier, Die Presse, Der Standard, Kleine Zeitung, Salzburger Nachrichten). (For details see: wiki/Liste_?sterreichischer_Zeitungen)EconomyAs one of the most prosperous and stable EU Member States, Austria offers its investors ideal conditions. The Austrian economic system can be characterized as a free market economy with a strong social focus by also taking into account the weaker members of society. Austria also features a tried and tested system of economic and social partnership, which has traditionally played a strong and reconciliatory role in wage and price policies.Austria is a highly developed industrialized country with an important service sector. The most important industries are food and luxury commodities, mechanical engineering and steel construction, chemicals, and vehicle manufacturing.In the field of agriculture, Austria is witnessing a strong trend towards organic farming. With an overall share of 11.9%, organic farms in Austria occupy a leading position among the EU Member States. In this organic branch of agriculture, 88.1% of enterprises are dedicated to livestock farming.As regards raw materials and energy production, Austria can draw on an abundance of resources. It has natural resources of iron ore, non-ferrous metals, important minerals and earths. The constant growth of the industrial sector, however, increasingly requires supplementary imports. This is also true of fuels, energy resources, and the electricity-generating industry. Austria has its own resources of petroleum and natural gas. The generation of hydroelectric power is constantly being expanded, which makes Austria the leader in the field of hydroelectric power in the European Union.Austria's industrial and commercial sectors are characterized by a high proportion of medium-sized companies. Austrian industry covers every branch of manufacturing, from basic goods to the labour-intensive production of highly processed products. The construction of plants and systems (encompassing the planning, delivery, and assembly of turn-key production facilities, including the required know-how and operational expertise) is making up an increasingly important share. This field is strongly export-oriented, as is the electronics sector (including, for instance, the production of integrated circuits).Austria is world-famous for its arts and crafts, most notably fine hand-crafted items, customized jewellery, ceramics, and glassware.Tourism is an essential pillar of the Austrian economy. Austria is a mountainous country with one of the largest natural land reserves in central Europe.In the global-political arena, Austria is increasingly becoming an international meeting point, which is illustrated by the large number of summits and conferences held in Austria. At the same time, the country's relevance as a vital transit country between the economic areas of Europe is increasing, especially for European energy supplies, including petroleum, natural gas, and electricity.(For current economic statistics please visit the websites of Statistik Austria - and Federal Ministry of Science, Research and Economy: )The Welfare StateAustria provides a comprehensive system of social security and welfare schemes. The network operates at two levels. First, there is the principle of insurance, which provides cover for all gainfully employed persons, and to a large extent for their dependents in cases of sickness, accident, unemployment, parental leave, and pensions, and, secondly, there are public welfare benefits made available by the federal, provincial and municipal authorities to citizens in need, who are not covered by the insurance system.Social protection systems in Austria can be broken down as follows:Social insurance: primarily includes social pension, health and work accident insuranceUnemployment insurance: primarily covers unemployment benefits, unemployment assistance and active labour market policiesUniversal schemes: family allowance and tax credit for children, childcare allowance, long-term care system (and, de facto, the benefits in kind offered by the health care system)Means-tested benefits (means test on income):?primarily include minimum income levels under the pension insurance scheme (equalization supplements), unemployment assistance under unemployment insurance, the means-tested minimum income scheme (social assistance until 2010) and grants to pupils and studentsSocial protection for civil servants?(tenured civil servants subject to special pension law)Social compensation systems: primarily for victims of war, military service and crimeProtection under labour law: e.g. continued payment of wages in case of illnessOccupational pension schemesSocial services(For details: Federal Ministry of Labour, Social Affairs and Consumer Protection; the welfare state ; chapter 3 Institutions)Gender equality in Austrian economy – Still a long way to goDemographic change as well as a stronger focus on service and knowledge intensive industries will lead to a significant shortage of (qualified) skills in Europe. In order to fill the upcoming gap between labour demand and labour supply companies need to improve their access to the full talent pool by ensuring equality. Currently, Austrian companies do not make full use of the existing female labour force potential. Five groups of indicators show the status quo in 2011: ? The employment rate of women in the Austrian labour market (66.5%) is above the EU-27 average (58.5%). Moreover, there are fewer women looking for work in comparison to the European peer group (4.4% vs. 9.8%). ? The rate of female employees working part-time is significantly above EU-27 average. Whereas 43.4% of Austrian women work part-time, the EU-27 average is only about 31.6%. ? Secondary education is more frequented by Austrian women (73.4%) than on EU-27 average (69.8%). However, college/university (tertiary education) attainment of Austrian women equals 14.8% and thereby lies clearly below EU-27 average (24.8%) – additionally, the challenge remains to motivate high school students to enter gender atypical fields of study . ? The status quo of horizontal segregation in Austria indicates that the distribution of women across economic sectors and occupations varies significantly from the distribution of men. In comparison to the EU-27, the segregation of the workforce is above average in regard to both sectors and occupations. ? The status quo of vertical segregation shows that women are underrepresented in decision-making positions. The share of women on boards is 11% in Austria (compared to 14% on EU-27 average) and only 30% of management positions in large companies and SMEs are occupied by women (vs. 33.0% in Europe). The unadjusted gender pay gap in Austria exceeds the EU-27 average significantly. In Austria, women earn 25.5% less than men (EU-27: 16.4%). It is the highest gender pay gap in Europe.MigrationAustria, and especially the Greater Vienna area, can look back on a long migration history.As the capital of a large empire Vienna attracted many to migrate from the crown lands –mostly Czechs, Slovaks, and Jews.The population of Vienna and its suburbs in 1830 was approximately 400,000 inhabitants, 40 years later, it was more than doubled (900,000)and had grown in 1890 to 1.4 million. The historic peak was reached in 1916 with 2,239,000 inhabitants.After World War I, the population was constantly decreasing and dropped to 1.6 million after World War II. There were many soldiers killed in action, prisoners of war and 140.000 Jews forced to flee and more than 60.000 killed.Some years after the war an economic upswing began. Austria decided from 1962 onwards to get migrant workers, also called “guest workers” into the country. Most came from Serbia and Turkey and they should return to their country after some time. The peak of labour migration in 1973 was around 230,000 guest workers. At that time (oil crisis) Austria started to reduce working migration. However, most of them did not return to their countries of origin, but stayed and brought their families to Austria.From 1990 on there was a change in the immigration and asylum policy. Foreigners' laws were being enforced in so-called integration agreements: Upper limits (10% quota for foreign workers) were introduced, family reunification reduced, compulsory German courses introduced, and their number of hours increased. The right to asylum was also limited by many measures.Between 1989 and 1993, the number of persons of foreign nationality living in Austria increased from 387,000 to 690,000. Reasons for this increase were the fall of the Iron Curtain, the wars and expulsions in former Yugoslavia, in Afghanistan and in Chechnya.At the end of 2015 many refugees came from the Syrian war, because of the unrest in Afghanistan and Iraq and the precarious situation in the major refugee camps to Austria.According to figures of the Interior Ministry 88.340 people applied in 2015 for asylum in Austria, in 2016 there were 42,285. Most asylum seekers in 2016 come from Afghanistan, Syria and Iraq. Asylum seekers are described as people who had to flee their country of origin due to political, religious and other persecutions.People are considered to be migrants who have left their home countries for personal, social and political reasons.According to Statistics Austria, there are around 8.4 million people living in Austria in 2016, 1.9 million of whom have a migration background (including 420,000children born in Austria).Austria has long been an immigration country. Traditional Austrian history is also a history of immigrants.HousingAustria is a land of tenants. 44?% of the population lives in rented flats, which is the second highest rate in the EU after Germany. In Vienna rental expenses are especially high, around 80 percent are tenants, one in five lives in a co-operative apartment.In the countryside, living in private homes prevails. In Austria there are more and more single-family homes, especially the wrapping of landscape around cities is progressing (according to Statistik Austria Wohnbericht 2013). The construction and acquisition of residential property becomes tax-promoted.RentIn conurbations, the share of rented apartments predominates.Tenant protection associations were created 100 years ago in times of pressing housing shortage and exploitation of tenants. Thanks to strong tenancy law, they ensured tenant protection against insecurity and high rents.Tenancy law distinguishes between two types of tenancy, the main rent and the sublease. The main differences lie mainly in the amount of the rent as well as in notice protection.Since living space has become very expensive, especially in the big cities, especially young people are moving into shared flats.Municipal dwellings - social housingMany small cities and municipalities in Austria provide cheap living space. Above all, Vienna has a long tradition in social housing. The Social Democratic Labour Party ruling in the First Republic (1918-1934) was determined to improve the living conditions of the workers. In just 20 years around 65,000 community apartments were built, mostly in large residential complexes. These condominiums often also had libraries, kindergartens, laundry rooms and bathrooms and, above all, extensive green areas for general use.There are certain conditions for obtaining a municipal dwelling, eg maximum net income, minimum age, minimum length of residence. Today, the city of Vienna has 220,000 municipal apartments, making it the largest property management in Europe.Recently, the construction of municipal dwellings has been reduced and housing has been left to private and public institutions. This leads to a constant increase in the price of housing. In the cities, living becomes a luxury. Up to 60% of disposable income must be spent on the home. (Comparison municipal dwelling 1925: 2.6% of income)Cooperative apartments – non-profit housingCooperative flats are built by non-profit building associations (housing associations) and leave them for use to their members. In order to acquire a co-operative apartment, you have to become a member of the cooperative. The monthly payments cover the repayment of construction, maintenance and administration costs. There is no profit for a landlord.The Austrian education systemThe Republic of Austria has a mandatory and free public school system, this means all children have to attend school free of charge. This free and mandatory school system was introduced by Maria Theresa of Austria (1740–1780), mandating in 1775 that all children of both sexes from the ages of six to twelve had to attend school. Nowadays it is obligatory for children to attend nine years of education. From the age of 6 to 10 all children attend an elementary school (Volksschule) of their surrounding area. The next 4 years of education are spent either in a Neue Mittelschule (lower secondary education = Hauptschule) or in a Grammar School (Gymnasium AHS). The ninth year of education can also be taken in a polytechnic institute (Polytechnische Schule), which specifically prepares its pupils for starting an apprenticeship after their mandatory nine years of education. The majority of children that age attend lower secondary education.After finishing the ninth year of school there are two possible ways forward: One can either enter an apprenticeship or continue one’s education for another 4 to 5 years at a school of higher education (or Grammar School). Further education AHS and BHSIn Austria, there are two types of schools of higher education. There are vocational schools with higher education entrance qualification (Berufsbildende H?here Schule) and grammar schools. The final exam for either one of those higher education institutions are A-levels which is the highest qualification you can achieve at the end of your high school education and allows you to pursue your education further at a university. Both types of schools of higher education teach the general subjects like Math, English, an additional foreign language, German, Science and Arts. In addition to those subjects the vocational school with higher education entrance qualification (BerufsbildendeH?here Schule BHS) each have a specific focus on a profession like fashion, technics, tourism, social work or marketing. This means, that after graduating a BHS you not only graduate but also qualify in the specific field of profession the BHS focuses on. ApprenticeshipAfter nine years of education it is possible to enter an apprenticeship in a company. There are 250 legally recognized apprenticeship trades in Austria such as hairdresser, plumber, back office administrator, retail salesperson, car mechanic or cook. An apprentice works and studies at the same time. The job training is a company-based training supported by a mentor or trainer in the company who has gained the qualifications needed to educate another person in his trade. The training of apprentices is complemented by compulsory attendance of a part-time vocational school. A few years ago the system of inter-company apprenticeship training (?berbetriebliche Lehre) was created. Here the apprentice does not learn the trade in a company but in practice oriented courses organised by the regional unemployment office. With this initiative, the state of Austria is working against the rise of unemployment of young people and the decreasing numbers of companies offering apprenticeship positions.An apprenticeship training usually takes between three to four years. At the end of the successful training and the passing of an exam the apprentices reach the level of journeyman. This qualifies them to work in their trade and pursue their training up to the Master Craftsman Exam. Since 2009 it has been possible for apprentices to take extra courses in general subjects of higher education in addition to their vocational school hours. After successfully completing those extra courses the apprentice gains the right to take not only the professional certification exam of his trade but also the A-level exam, which allows him to pursue his education at a university. UniversityTo be able to gain admission at an Austrian University it is necessary to pass A-levels. Students from other countries, who wish to study in Austria, must prove that their high school graduation exam is comparable to the Austrian exam.Arts and cultureFor centuries Austrian culture has been interwoven with and influenced by European culture. This unique and versatile cultural background left its marks in Austrian architecture, music and literature. Through the ages and epochs Austria has created and maintained buildings and structures of which many are now granted the status of UNESCO world heritage sites, such as Sch?nbrunn Palace and the city centres of Vienna, Salzburg and Graz.Moreover, Austria is well known for its big and small museums, where treasures and magnificent pieces of art display the long history of Austria.Music has played a significant role in Austrians history and is till today best known for its classical music composers. During the 18th and 19th centuries Austria dominated the European music scene with the so called First Viennese School (Wiener Klassik) the most famous representatives of which are Haydn, Mozart and Beethoven. Till today Vienna is a hot spot for classical music lovers. Daily performances at the Opera and numerous concert houses with their renowned orchestras and celebrated international artists attract many people from far and away. The same thing is to say about Austrian music academies who attract students from all over the world and are held in the highest international esteem. Equally famous became the Viennese waltz which is still popular today and its music fills ballrooms all over the city year after year. Following the tradition of performing waltzes composed by Johann Strau?, the New Year’s concert performed by the Vienna Philharmonics is broadcast around the world and draws tourists to Vienna. Next to classical music today’s Austria offers a lively contemporary music scene. The folklore-pop music scene attracts huge crowds to concerts. But also, contemporary Austrian Pop music artists have also become famous abroad, like the Pop music artist Falco, the bands Bilderbuch and Wanda, folklore singer Hubert von Goisern or Austrian Pop musicians like Ambros, Danzer, and Fendrich. From big concert halls and nightclubs to traditional folklore and brass band music in the smallest of villages, music is an important art in Austria widely practised and held in high esteem.LiteratureIn former times, the multi-ethnic state Austria was a state that tied together many nationalities: Germans, Croatians, Romanians, Serbs, Slovaks, Hungarians, Ukrainians and Czechs. Their ethnic conflicts within this big nation led to a culturally enriching atmosphere always striding between friendship and hostility. These unique circumstances led to a formal and content related cultural autonomy of Austrian literature within the German speaking areas.After the Second World War and the end of the Nazi regime in Austria, people experienced a cultural vacuum. Some speak of a tabula rasa after the book burning in the Nazi state of 1933. It proved to be necessary for Austrian writers to process the experiences of the Second World War, catch up on new achievements and developments in contemporary literature and find new ways of writing.In the 1960s and 70 s Austrian literature flourished once more with famous writers like Peter Handke, Ingeborg Bachmann und Thomas Bernhard, who had an impact on literature strongly and permanently up to this day.Literature Nobel Prize winner Elfriede Jelinek writes critical, sarcastic and feminist literature as does her colleague Marlene Streeruwitz.Contemporary Austrian literature is diverse, successful and high in demand. Recent prizes were awarded to: Daniel Kehlmann, Wolf Haas, Christoph Ransmayr, Michael K?hlmeier, Arno Geiger.Teaching the content: Living in AustriaAim: Understanding life in AustriaStepsContentMethod/ToolsLearning OutcomeRequired timeAnnexes 1Religion in AustriaStudents talk about their experience with religion in their home countries. Importance of religion to them. Why is religion important/not important to them?Group work along ethnicity/with members of different denominations.Know the differences of religion and denominations between countries they have arrived at and their home countries.At least 2 hoursmeinglaube.atRead the text. Explain unknown words. Explain the difference of legal recognition and public recognition/impact.Difference between state and religion in Europe after since EnlightenmentAt least 2 hoursmeinglaube.at (and further links there)2SportsStudents talk about importance of sport in their lives. Importance of sport in their home countries.Read the text. Sum it up. Explain unknown terms. Practise numbers and percentage.Importance of playing sport for your own life and health. Importance of sport for nation (building) and society. Importance of sport for the country’s economy.2 hourssport-oesterreich.at.Students (and trainers) practise sports (e.g. volleyball or other team games). Practice of relevant language and vocabulary. Group/pair/individual work4 hourssport-oesterreich-at3Communication & MediaExplain Austrian communication system. Explain emergency numbers. Pair work: Students have to make a phone call in an emergencyUnderstanding of how communication and media work in Austria2 hourstelekom.attele2.atShow examples of Austrian newspapers and magazines of different quality. Students read and sum up short articles according to their language level.Students listen to/watch different radio/TV channels.Realising different quality of media.4 hoursorf.atLinks to private and local channels (e.g. Okto, Augustin, etc.)45EconomyExplain basics of Austrian economy going through the text.Explain unknown words. Studentstalk about economy of their countries of origin. Try to work on the differences to Austria. Group/pair work. Role plays: Shopping and managing money.Understanding of Austrian economy.Managing shopping affairs. Understanding Austrian/European currencies4 hoursen.bmwfj.gv.atThe Welfare StateRead the text and thoroughly explain content, words, etc.Role plays: at authorities, Sozialamt, AMS. Language of (logical) argument. Use of tenses (present – past). Group/individual work.Understanding Austrian welfare system and the importance to the students. Understandingdifference to the countries of origin.8 hours./the welfare state; chapter 2: institutions6789Gender equality in AustriaExplain the term “gender” and its importance in western societiesRead the text, explain unknown words.Explain the role of women in Austrian society. Students talk about the status of women in their countries of origin. Oral statements, written statements (if possible).Mix ethnicities. Group/individual work.Understanding of (fundamental) differences of man/woman issue in Austria/countries of origin.4 hoursMigrationExplain the terms “migration”, “migrants”, “refugees”; Geneva Convention; Human Rights Charta. Give examples; Group work: Students are to tell/write their own story of migrationUnderstanding migrations as being existent in human history all the time2 hours work: Naming?problems in the rented apartment?methods?/?tools.?Students call for housing advice.?Role play.?(Or:?Search?the Internet for the conditions for?obtaining a municipal dwelling):Learning?outcome?: Vocabulary?development of rental problems.1 hourAnnexes:? Austria Housing Report / fuenfschritte.html Austrian Education SystemGroup work: Participants select a type of school or training and research the admission requirements, subjects, goals and certification or degrees of this form of education. In-depth information and knowledge of the different education systems in Austria and different degrees and qualifications in Austria.1 hourbmukk.gv.at/schulen/bw/ueberblick/bildungswege.xml10Arts and CultureViewing the song ?J? schau“ by the artist Georg Danzer on youtube. Viennese slang words and socio-dialect should be prepared as a hand out to help with the task. Fill in the blanks in the song text.Annexes: youtube: ?j? schau“ Georg DanzerBiography Ingeborg Bachmann. Poem ?An die Sonne“. Learning the last verse of the poem by heart.The goal is to understand Viennese slang used in this song and to describe the situation shown in the video.Getting familiar with Austrian Pop Music, encountering Viennese Dialect and Austrian spoken German. Goal is to interpret and understand the poem.Getting to know an Austrian contemporary writer. Getting to know the lyrical literary genre.3 hoursIngeborg Bachmann: Mein erstgeborenes Land. Gedichte und Prosa aus Italien. ................
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