Education is the key to preventing youngsters and young adults from being attracted to violent extremist ideologies and organisations. Prevention in formal and informal education focuses on fostering active citizenship, democratic values, media literacy, critical thinking and cultural diversity, and on challenging stereotypes, discrimination and extremist attitudes and behaviour. It aims at building resilience and strengthening democratic citizenship by encouraging young people to actively engage with their social environments, institutions and society at large.
Prevention work in educational settings is not limited to targeting youngsters and young adults that are vulnerable to radicalisation; it also addresses teachers and their institutions to facilitate the participation of students and to enhance identification with society. In addition, it aims at raising awareness among educators for risk factors and providing adequate institutional responses. Preventative measures include the implementation of preventative approaches in teaching, the training of educators, the implementation of procedures to identify and manage potential cases of radicalisation, as well as the creation of institutional environments that encourage youngsters to engage and articulate their interests and perspectives.