The Nordic Model in Education: Education as part of the political system in the last 50 years

Telhaug, Alfred Oftedal; Mediås, Odd Asbjørn; Aasen, Petter

doi:10.1080/00313830600743274

Cited by 351 publications

(119 citation statements)

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“…Historically, the position of Swedish unions in general has been very strong as they played a key role in the construction of what has come to be known as 'the Nordic (or Swedish) Model' (Oftedal Telhaug et al 2006). Following the end of the Second World War, a social democratic system evolved within the Nordic countries stressing compromise and cooperation above conflict in the process of constructing the Nordic welfare systems.…”

Section: Swedish Teachers' Unions and The Context Of Swedish Educatiomentioning

confidence: 99%

A quest for legitimacy: on the professionalization policies of Sweden’s Teachers’ Unions

Lilja

2013

Journal of Education Policy

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Abstract. The aim of this article is to contribute to the ongoing discussion on teacher professionalism by analyzing the professional strategies of Sweden's two teachers' unions from an organizational perspective. Drawing on institutional theory, the article argues that the teachers' unions' focus on strategies of professionalization has as much to do with questions of legitimacy in the eyes of the public, as with any specific effort at transforming the practice of teaching in a professional direction.Against the background of two recent Swedish education reforms, the article shows that the unions are 'trapped' within a normative order emphasizing professionalization as the primary way of organizational development and legitimacy, resulting in a need for the unions to adopt professional attributes. In the case of the Swedish unions, this is accomplished through mimetic processes whereby union policies, aimed at the improvement of teaching, are modeled upon the medical profession, regardless of the differences between the technologies and practices of the occupations. In this way, the professional rhetoric of the unions is decoupled from the practice of teaching in order to maximize the public legitimacy needed for improving the declining societal status of teaching.

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Section: Swedish Teachers' Unions and The Context Of Swedish Educatiomentioning

confidence: 99%

A quest for legitimacy: on the professionalization policies of Sweden’s Teachers’ Unions

Lilja

2013

Journal of Education Policy

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show abstract

“…The new international radicalism was followed by an increasing cultural focus on what Telhaug et al (2006) describe as the "pupil's individual emancipation" so that the local impact on educational development was strengthened (p. 256).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…For many decades, "The Nordic Model of Education" (Telhaug, Mediaas, & Aasen, 2006) has been a recognized metaphor for the open and democratic educational system in Scandinavian countries. Education has been a primary political objective for the Social Democratic governments that have held majority seats in Scandinavian parliaments for substantial periods in the post-war period.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Foros and Vetlesen (2012) have explained that former educational ideals and conceptual metaphors like the learner at the center and equality through education suddenly lost political relevance and were replaced by more meritocratic and utilitarian programs. According to Telhaug et al (2006) the Nordic school in the 1980s entered its third and final phase:…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Education has been a primary political objective for the Social Democratic governments that have held majority seats in Scandinavian parliaments for substantial periods in the post-war period. According to Telhaug, Mediaas, and Aasen (2006), schooling should be involved in the realization of "social goals such as equal opportunities and community fellowship" (p. 245). Several studies also show that the post-war commitment to public schools and opportunities for education had a democratic effect (Aamodt & Stølen, 2003).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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