Kanon eller inte kanon? : En enkätstudie bland samhällskunskapslärare i årskurs 7-9

Abstract

The aim of the present study is to investigate whether social studies in compulsory school grades 7–9 can be perceived as having a clear canon regarding subject content, methods, used sources and examination methods. Previous research has suggested that social studies is unclear, vague and that it lacks a subject canon. The results of the present study points in both directions. On the one hand, the study shows that there is a clear core of content around which lower secondary social studies teaching revolves and a common foundation regarding how this content is mainly conveyed and examined. On the other hand, the study shows that there is also great variation between different teachers, variation that can be partly explained by the teachers' preferences. Different teachers seem to have different preferences when it comes to how they teach, what methods and sources they use and how sections are examined. For example, there are significant correlations between how teachers who use group-based methods also use group-based examinations. An important factor for the variation between teachers can be traced to gender. At group level, we see differences regarding male and female teachers based on subject matter, methods, sources and examination methods. In general, there is a common core for most social studies teachers, regardless of gender, but female teachers tend to cover a broader subject content, use a wider array of methods and sources and more varied forms of examination