In this paper, we draw on policy sociology and democratic theory to illustrate how evidence-based practice not only limits teachers' capacities to exercise professional discretion and authority, but also jeopardises the democratic project of schooling more broadly. Using theoretical concepts from Foucault's discipline with Connolly's…

This open access book presents an in-depth analysis of data from ICCS. An international group of scholars critically address the state of civic and citizenship education in the four Nordic countries that participated in the IEA International Civic and Citizenship Education Study (ICCS) in 2009 and 2016. The findings are of particular relevance to…

This paper investigates how education legislation in Denmark, Norway and Sweden define democracy, especially in relation to a complex society with diverse linguistic, religious and cultural practices. What tasks are assigned to educators through education policy documents pertaining to democratic values? The analysis points out that the designated…

Egalitarian and participation-oriented teaching emphasizes critical discussion and informal relationships between students and professors. The authors argue that the use of egalitarian and some aspects of participation-oriented teaching at business schools differs systematically across countries according to the strength of democratic culture.…

The purpose of this article is to examine the connection between school democracy and a strong principalship. The point of departure is taken as the Danish Folkeskole, the aim being to extract some general trends from this Danish case. It is shown how international trends have influenced the Danish situation, making it possible to speak of a…

Many educational systems, like many public sectors, find themselves in the midst of rapid changes. In many cases, decentralisation is the order of the day, often alongside re-centralisation. The new relations between supra-national, national, local and organisational levels create novel conditions for leading schools and for establishing…

In an effort to explain the relationship between democracy and education, this article presents three differing definitions of democracy: liberal, communicative, and deliberative. Argues that deliberatively influenced education makes possible a more rational approach to Denmark's debates concerning democratic education. Provides a brief historical…

Phase one of the IEA Civic Study was designed for fourteen-year-old students. In Denmark this included students from the eighth and ninth grades although civics is not part of the required curriculum until grade nine. Students' answers to questions concerning civic knowledge were collected together with information related to student attitudes,…