Bildung: alive and allowed? A critical study of work plan practices in Norwegian schools

Abstract

This article addresses how elementary school teachers approach Bildung when planning and monitoring the in-school- and at-home work of 6- and 9-year-old pupils. By examining a national sample of 204 weekly work plans designed by teachers in Norwegian schools, we investigate whether and how curriculum practices acknowledge principles of Bildung by opening up multiple futures through encouraging pupils to engage in meaning-making processes. To identify how work plans structure pupils’ schoolwork, we adopt a system-theoretical framework that distinguishes between conditional and purposive programme forms. The most interesting finding is that a substantial number of the investigated teachers use a purposive programme form. Through specifying objectives and assessment criteria, the teachers expect that pupils will develop and master a set of competencies. Some teachers apply a conditional form by devising work plans that emphasize subject matter content, but most of the work plans combine the two programme forms. By developing a typology of the various combinations, we find that, in addition to the pure conditional approach, a combined approach that provides objectives alongside broad descriptions of teaching content best reflects the principles of Bildung by promoting creative, dialogic interaction between teachers, pupils and parents.