抄録
The purpose of this paper is to consider the legitimacy of the legal status of the subject of ‘Ethics and Philosophy’(Ethikunterricht) in secondary schools in the Federal Republic of Germany. This is a controversial issue, i, e., how morals and values in school education should deal with the problem of values transfer in a pluralized civil society.
In Germany, the subject of ‘Religion’(Religionsunterricht), which has mainly played the role of moral and values education in school, is being re-examined. At present, ‘Ethics and Philosophy’ is established as a substitutive or an alternative subject for ‘Religion’ in all states (Lander). The legal basis and educational content of ‘Ethics and Philosophy’ has given rise to an argument centering on its relation with ‘Religion’. The main point of the legal argument is how to come to a compromise between the legal status of ‘Ethics and Philosophy’ and the status of ‘Religion’ that is provided as a compulsory subject in the constitution of the Federal Republic of Germany (the Basic Law) Article 7, 3rd.
In this paper, first the legal basis of ‘Religion’ is discussed, followed by an analysis of the arguments and actions regarding the legitimacy of the legal status of ‘Ethics and Philosophy’ in the following two states. One state is Bavaria, where ‘Religion’ is positively guaranteed and‘Ethics’ is established as an “alternative subject”. The other is Brandenburg, where ‘LER’(Lebensgestaltung-Ethik-Religionskunde) is a “compulsory subject” while ‘Religion’ is a “supplementary subject”. Moreover, it is also a noteworthy contrast that Bavaria is one of the southern states where the CSU (Christian Social Union) government follows a conservative educational policy, while Brandenburg is one of the states which are led by the SPD (Social Democratic Party), just as many other northern states are.
