The Transformation of Humanities Education: The Case of Norway 1960-2000 from a Systems-Theoretical Perspective

This first comprehensive study of Norwegian humanities education employs systems theory to analyze its transformation from a form of teacher training to its modern status as research-oriented generalist education. Using historical documents and statistical analyses, Vidar Grøtta shows that the expansion of the post-war research system in Norway led to an increase in admissions to humanities education in the 1960s and an ensuing research drift in humanities curricula. Interacting with certain political dynamics and the knowledge economy that has emerged since the 1970s, this research drift resulted in a shift in humanists' career patterns and a transformation of the societal functions of the humanities. The most recent developments in Norwegian humanities education, from 2000 to 2018, are outlined and discussed in the afterword to this volume.

Frontmatter 1 Contents 5 Preface 7 1. Introduction to part one 13 2. Niklas Luhmann's systems theory 23 3. Key concepts in systems theory 27 4. Comparing theories for higher education research 51 5. The use of theory in this study 71 6. Introduction to part two 75 7. The humanities and higher education policymaking, 1955-1975 123 8. Stagnation in humanities education, 1975-1987 177 9. The second expansionist period, 1987-2000 191 10. Conclusions to part two 221 11. Introduction to part three 231 12. History 273 13. English studies 303 14. General literature studies 331 15. Philosophy 359 16. Conclusions to part three 389 17. Introduction to part four 407 18. The period 1960-1975: Humanities education as teacher education 429 19. The period 1975-1985: The transformation 449 20. The period 1985-2000: Humanities education and "boundaryless" careers 483 21. Conclusions to part four 507 22. Conclusions to the study 515 Afterword, 2000-2018 523 Appendices 539 References 547