Kampen om samfunnsfaget – eit forskingsoversyn med vekt på lærarane si rolle

Abstract

Subject matter didactics is concerned with all aspects of a school subject. However, this literature is strikingly uninterested in what influences and may influence the subject matter itself. Didactically competent, critical  teachers ought to understand how the subject is influenced by many actors, and that they themselves may take part in this process. To exercise such critical thinking, the teacher profession needs a widely defined subject matter didactics as part of their knowledge basis. The subject may be influenced from many levels, transnational, national and local. Considering increasing emphasis on Norwegian teachers as reflective professional practitioners, we would expect them to make a major difference at several of these levels. If not, professionalism is rather weak. Research about what influences the social studies subject has to start from a review of existing research, and this article is a review of research about what has influenced and shaped the Norwegian social studies subject. The conclusion is that the matter is not much explored, but the sparse research that do exist suggests that the teachers are not a driving force in the development of the subject.