From nation building to global citizenship: human rights education in the Nordic folk high schools
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.7577/hrer.4470Abstract
Citizenship education played a crucial role in the 19th century transition from royal sovereignty to democracy in the Nordic region, with folk high schools (FHS) playing an important role. While established to empower the people (folk) for active participation in society, the contemporary folk high schools have reoriented from their initial national focus to emphasise global citizenship education. The paper traces this development and asks how the identity and practice of the FHS reflect the ideals of human rights education. The article outlines the ideology and history of the Nordic folk high schools and builds an analytical framework for two empirical studies of student texts. The final discussion applies the presented material to shed light on the research question and concludes by suggesting that the Nordic folk high schools can be seen as a regional adaption of human rights education.
Downloads
Metrics
References
Al-Daraweesh, F., & Snauwaert, D. T. (2018). The hermeneutics of human rights education for deliberative democratic citizenship. In M. Zembylas, & A. Keet (Eds.). Critical Human Rights, Citizenship and Democracy Education: Entanglements and Regenerations, (pp. 85-99). London: Bloomsbury.
Afdal, G. (2015). Modes of learning in religious education. British Journal of Religious Education, 37(3), 256-272. https://doi.org/10.1080/01416200.2014.944095 https://doi.org/10.1080/01416200.2014.944095
Andersson, D.E. (2017). Teaching the History of Human Rights. In A. Sjöborg, & H.G. Ziebertz. (Eds.). Religion, Education and Human Rights. Theoretical and Empirical Perspectives. Vol 1. (pp. 91-100). Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-54069-6_7 https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-54069-6_7
Association of Folk High Schools in Denmark (n.d.). Peoples Future Lab. Retrieved from: https://danishfolkhighschools.com/global-folk-high-school-movement/peoples-future-lab
Bagley, S. S., & Rust, V. D. (2009). Community-based folk high schools in Norway, Sweden, and Denmark. In R.L. Raby, & E.J. Valeau. (Eds.). Community college models. Globalization and Higher Education Reform (pp. 279-298). Dordrecht: Springer Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4020-9477-4_16 https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4020-9477-4_16
Bajaj, M., Cislaghi, B., & Mackie, G. (2016). Advancing Transformative Human Rights Education: Appendix D to the Report of the Global Citizenship Commission. Cambridge, UK: Open Book Publishers. http://dx.doi.org/10.11647/OBP.0091.13 https://doi.org/10.11647/OBP.0091.13
Bajaj, M. (2017). Human rights education: Theory, research, praxis. Philadelphia, PA: University of Pennsylvania Press. https://doi.org/10.9783/9780812293890 https://doi.org/10.9783/9780812293890
Bajaj, M. and Wahl, R. (2017). Human Rights Education in Postcolonial India. (pp. 147-169). In M. Bajaj. Human rights education: Theory, research, praxis. Philadelphia, PA: University of Pennsylvania Press. https://doi.org/10.9783/9780812293890 https://doi.org/10.9783/9780812293890-008
Becker, A. (2021). Decolonial human rights education: changing the terms and content of conversations on human rights. Human Rights Education Review, 4(2), 49–68. https://doi.org/10.7577/hrer.3989 https://doi.org/10.7577/hrer.3989
Borèus, K. & Bergström, G. (2005). Textens Mening och Makt: Metodbok i Samhällsvetenskaplig Text- och Diskursanalys [The meaning and power of the text: Methods for text and discourse analysis in the social sciences]. Lund: Studentlitteratur.
Broadbridge, E., Jonas, U., & Warren, C. (2011). The School for Life: NFS Grundtvig on Education for the People (Vol. 1). Århus: Aarhus Universitetsforlag.
Bugge, K. E. (2013). The International Dissemination of Grundtvig’s Educational Ideas. Grundtvig-Studier 64(1), 76-91. https://doi.org/10.7146/grs.v64i1.20909 https://doi.org/10.7146/grs.v64i1.20909
Bryn, S., Eidsvåg, I, Trosholmen, I. (2015). Understanding the Other: Dialogue as a Tool and an Attitude to Life. Lillehammer: Nansen Fredssenter. Retrieved from https://www.peace.no/nb/download/understanding-the-other/#more-81
Dahlstedt, M., & Nordvall, H. (2011). Paradoxes of solidarity: Democracy and colonial legacies in Swedish popular education. Adult Education Quarterly, 61(3), 244-261. https://doi.org/10.1177/0741713610380445 https://doi.org/10.1177/0741713610380445
DePalma, R. (2009). Leaving Alinsu: Towards a transformative community of practice. Mind, Culture, and Activity, 16(4), 353-370. https://doi.org/10.1080/10749030902818394 https://doi.org/10.1080/10749030902818394
DESA, U.N. (2016). Transforming our world: the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Publisher: United Nation, Department of Economic and Social Affairs. Retrieved from https://sdgs.un.org/2030agenda
Eidsvåg, I., Lindholm, T. & Sveen, B. (2004). The emergence of interfaith dialogue: The Norwegian experience. In Facilitating freedom of religion or belief: a deskbook (pp. 777-789). Brill Nijhoff. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-5616-7_35 https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-5616-7_35
Eurostat (n.d.). Grundtvig programme. Retrieved from https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/index.php?title=Glossary:Grundtvig_programme
Fana Folkehøgskule (2021). Retrieved from https://www.fanafhs.no/
Franzosi, R. P. (2009). Content analysis. In M. A. Hardy, & A. Bryman (Eds.). Handbook of data analysis. London: Sage Research Methods. https://dx.doi.org/10.4135/9781848608184 https://doi.org/10.4135/9781848608184
Furuland, L. (1991). Folkhögskola [Folk high school]. In Nationalencyclopedin. Höganäs: Bra böcker.
Gustavsson, B. (2013). The idea of democratic bildung: Its transformation in space and time. In Laginder, A., Nordwall, H. & Crowther, J. (eds.) Popular Education, Power and Democracy. Swedish Experience and Contributions, (pp. 35-49). Leicester, UK: National Institute of Adult Continuing Education.
Grundtvig, N. F. S. (2011). The School for Life: NFS Grundtvig on Education for the People. Aarhus: Aarhus University Press
Helldén, A. (1968). Folkhögskolegruppen i riksdagen [The folk high school group in parliament] (pp. 59-225). In D. Degerman (Ed.). Svensk folkhögskola 100 år. Stockholm: Liber.
Holm, A. (2019). The Essential N.F.S. Grundtvig. Aarhus: Filo.
IPCC (2021). Summary for Policymakers. In V. Masson-Delmotte, P. Zhai, A. Pirani, S. L. Connors, C. Péan, S. Berger, ..., B. Zhou (Eds.), Climate Change 2021: The Physical Science Basis. Contribution of Working Group I to the Sixth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Cambridge University Press. In Press.
Johansson, L. & Bergstedt, B. (2015). Visions unite through the concept of democracy: The school and the Popular Adult Education. Scandinavian Journal of Educational Research. 59(1), 42-57. https://doi.org/10.1080/00313831.2013.838697 https://doi.org/10.1080/00313831.2013.838697
Knutas, A. & Solhaug, T. (2010). Som en sang i sinnet – som et eneste sollyst minne [Like a song in my mind – like a sunny memory]. Trondheim: NTNU Samfunnsforskning.
Knutas, A. (2013). People’s high schools in Scandinavia: A contribution to democracy? International Journal of Lifelong Education, 32(6), 780-796. https://doi.org/10.1080/02601370.2013.804129 https://doi.org/10.1080/02601370.2013.804129
Korsgaard, O. (2000). Learning and the changing concept of enlightenment: Danish adult education over five centuries. International Review of Education, 46(3), 305-325. https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1004078416861 https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1004078416861
Korsgaard, O. (2002). A European Demos? The Nordic adult education tradition--folkeoplysning-- faces a challenge. Comparative Education, 38(1), 7-16. https://doi.org/10.1080/03050060120103829 https://doi.org/10.1080/03050060120103829
Korsgaard, O. (2011). Grundtvig's philosophy of enlightenment and education. In E. Broadbridge, U. Jonas, & C. Warren. The School for Life: NFS Grundtvig on Education for the People (Vol. 1). Århus: Aarhus Universitetsforlag.
Kunnskapsdepartementet. (2021). Hegstad skal leie utval som skal sjå på folkehøgskulane [Hegstad to chair commission to look at folk high schools]. Retrieved from https://www.regjeringen.no/no/dokumentarkiv/regjeringen-solberg/aktuelt-regjeringen-solberg/kd/nyheter/2021/hegstad-skal-leie-utval-som-skal-sja-pa-folkehogskulane/id2862278/
Laginder, A., Nordwall, H. & Crowther, J. (Eds.) (2013). Popular Education, Power and Democracy. Leicester: National Institute of Adult Continuing Education.
Landström, I. (2008). Långt borta och nära. Med det globala i sikte - nordiska folkhögskolan och internationalisering [Far away and close by. With a global focus - the Nordic folk high schools and internationalisation]. Nordiska Folkhögskolerådet. København: FFD.
Larsson, S. (2013) Folk high schools as an educational avant-gardes in Sweden. In Laginder, A., Nordwall, H. & Crowther, J. (Eds.) Popular Education, Power and Democracy. Leicester: National Institute of Adult Continuing Education.
Lysgaard, J. A. (2020). Bæredygtig udvikling og folkehøjskoler. In J.A. Lysgaard, & N. Jordt Jørgensen (Eds.). (2020). Bæredygtighedens pædagogik: forskningsperspektiver og eksempler fra praksis (pp. 226-241). Frydenlund Academic.
Lövgren, J. (2015). Norwegian folk high schools redefine their role as value-based institutions-Analysis of value documents from two folk high schools. Nordisk kulturpolitisk tidsskrift, 18(02), 199-217. https://doi.org/10.18261/ISSN2000-8325-2015-02-05 https://doi.org/10.18261/ISSN2000-8325-2015-02-05
Lövgren, J., & Nordvall, H. (2017). A short introduction to research on the Nordic folk high schools. Nordic Studies in Education, 37(02), 61-66. https://doi.org/10.18261/issn.1891-5949-2017-02-01 https://doi.org/10.18261/issn.1891-5949-2017-02-01
Lövgren, J. (2017). The Reflective Community-Learning processes in Norwegian folk high schools (Unpublished doctoral dissertation). MF Norwegian School of Theology, Oslo.
Lövgren, J. (2019). Community, Self and the Other: Learning Processes in Norwegian Folk High Schools. Scandinavian Journal of Educational Research, 63(5), 789-804. https://doi.org/10.1080/00313831.2018.1452288 https://doi.org/10.1080/00313831.2018.1452288
Mikkelsen, A. (2014). Frihet til å lære. Frilynt Folkehøgskole i 150 år [Freedom to learn. Liberal Folk High Schools for 150 years]. Oslo: Cappelen Damm.
Milana, M., & Sørensen, T. B. (2009). Promoting Democratic Citizenship Through Non Formal Adult Education: The Case of Denmark. Scandinavian Journal of Educational Research, 53(4), 347-362. https://doi.org/10.1080/00313830903043125 https://doi.org/10.1080/00313830903043125
Milas, I. (2005). The new school: A project for integrated schooling in Eastern Croatia. In H.S. Røhr (Ed.). Dialog – mer enn ord. Jubileumsskrift for Nansen Dialog 1995–2005 [Dialogue – more than words. Decennial Issue for Nansen Dialog 1995-2005], (pp. 89-94). Lillehammer: Norsk Humanistisk Akademi
Miles, M. B. & Huberman, A. M. (1994). Quantitative data analysis: A source book. Beverly Hills: Sage.
NECE (2011). Learning for the Future: Competences in Education for Sustainable Development. Report eECE/CEP/AC.13/2011/6. UNECE, Geneva.
Nordvall, H. & Åberg, P. (2011). Folkhögskolan som myt. Om global spridning och användning av nordiska folkbildningsideer [Folk High Schools as myths. On global spread and adoption of Nordic bildung ideas]. Pedagogisk forskning i Sverige, 16(1), 1-17. Retrieved from http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:oru:diva-21347
Nordvall, H., & Fridolfsson, F. (2019). The folk high school - a contemporary educational pathway for Swedish parlamentarians? Scandinavian Journal of Educational Research, 63(3), 347–362. https://doi.org/10.1080/00313831.2017.1375006 https://doi.org/10.1080/00313831.2017.1375006
Omidvar, O., & Kislov, R. (2014). The Evolution of the Communities of Practice Approach. Journal of Management Inquiry, 23(3), 266-275. https://doi.org/10.1177/1056492613505908 https://doi.org/10.1177/1056492613505908
Ordfront (2021). FSO och Ordfront erbjuder fortbildning i mänskliga rättigheter och demokrati [FSO and Ordfront offer further eduction courses in human rights and democracy]. Retrieved from: https://www.ordfront.se/aktuell/kurser/kurs-manskliga-rattigheter
Osler, A. (2008). Human rights education: The foundation of education for democratic citizenship in our global age. In Arthur, J., Davies, I., & Hahn, C. (Eds.). The SAGE Handbook of Education for Citizenship and Democracy, (pp. 455-467). London: Sage. https://doi.org/10.4135/9781849200486.n36 https://doi.org/10.4135/9781849200486.n36
Osler, A. (2016). Human Rights and Schooling: An ethical framework for teaching for social justice. New York: Teachers College Press.
Osler, A. (2018). Human rights education: a project for our common future. Human Rights Education Review, 1(1), 01-04. https://doi.org/10.7577/hrer.2805 https://doi.org/10.7577/hrer.2805
Osler A. & Yahya, C. (2017). Challenges and Complexity in Human Rights Education: Teachers’ Understandings of Democratic Participation and Gender Equity in Post-Conflict Kurdistan, Iraq. In Bajaj, M. (2017). Human Rights Education: Theory, Research, Praxis. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press. https://doi.org/10.9783/9780812293890-007 https://doi.org/10.9783/9780812293890-007
Pastuhov, A., Lövgren, J. & Nordvall, H. (2019). Forskning på Nordisk folkehögskola. En översikt 1998-2018 med sammanfattningar [Research on the Nordic folk high schools. A bibliografy 1998-2018 with notes]. Linköping: Linköping University Electronic Press.
Riis-Søndergaard, L. (2021, June 15). Debat: De frie skolers frihed er under pres [Debate: The freedom of the free schools is under pressure]. Højskolebladet. Retrieved from https://hojskolebladet.dk/nyhedsarkiv/2021/jun/debat-de-frie-skolers-frihed-er-under-pres
Röda korsets folkhögskola (2022) Retrieved from https://www.rodakorsetsfolkhogskola.se/
Sjöborg, A. & Ziebertz, H-G. (Eds.) (2017). Religion, Education and Human Rights: Theoretical and Empirical Perspectives. Heidelberg: Springer International. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-54069-6 https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-54069-6
Skovmand, R. (1983). Samspillet mellem Nordens folkehøjskoler indtil anden verdenskrig [The interaction between Nordic folk high schools until World War II]. Århus: Universitetsforlaget i Aarhus.
Straume, I. S. (Ed.). (2013). Danningens filosofihistorie [The History of Bildung]. Oslo: Gyldendal.
Sund folkehøgskole (2022). Retrieved from https://www.sundfhs.no/
Tibbitts, F. L. (2017). Evolution of Human Rights Education Models (pp. 69-95). In M. Bajaj. (2017). Human rights education: Theory, research, praxis. Philadelphia, PA: University of Pennsylvania Press. https://doi.org/10.9783/9780812293890-005 https://doi.org/10.9783/9780812293890-005
United Nations (2011). Declaration on human rights education and training. Adopted by the General Assembly, Resolution 66/137, A/RES/66/137, 19 December. Retrieved from https://www.ohchr.org/en/resources/educators/human-rights-education-training/11-united-nations-declaration-human-rights-education-and-training-2011
Weiss, M.N. (2017): With Life as Curriculum: On the Relevance of the Socratic Method in Norwegian Folk High Schools. Journal of the American Philosophical Practitioners Association, 12(3), 2005-2027.
Wenger, E. (1998). Communities of practice: learning, meaning, and identity. Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511803932 https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511803932
Wenger-Trayner, E. & Wenger-Trayner, B. (2015). Learning in the landscape of practice: A framework (pp. 13-30). In E. Wenger-Trayner, M. Fenton-O’Creevy, S. Hutchinson, C. Chris Kubiak, B. Wenger-Traynor (Eds.) Learning in Landscapes of Practice: Boundaries, identity, and knowledgeability in practice-based learning. London: Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315777122-3 https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315777122-3
Westerman, W. (2005). Folk schools, popular education, and a pedagogy of community action. In E. Ewing (Ed.). Revolution and pedagogy: Interdisciplinary and transnational perspectives on educational foundations, (pp. 107-132). London: Palgrave Macmillan. https://doi.org/10.1057/9781403980137_6 https://doi.org/10.1057/9781403980137_6
Zembylas, M., & Keet, A. (Eds.). (2018). Critical human rights, citizenship, and democracy education: Entanglements and regenerations. London: Bloomsbury.
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2022 Johan Lövgren
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Authors who publish with Human Rights Education Review agree to the following terms:
- Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See The Effect of Open Access).
Cited by
