The Twinning of Bildung and Competence in Environmental and Sustainability Education: Nordic Perspectives

TY - CHAP

T1 - The Twinning of Bildung and Competence in Environmental and Sustainability Education

T2 - Nordic Perspectives

AU - Carlsson, Monica Susanne

PY - 2023/1

Y1 - 2023/1

N2 - This chapter explores the twinning of Bildung (political and democratic formation) and competence in the action competence (AC)concept, highlighting its assumptions regarding what constitute appropriate forms of learning, action, and change in justifications of curricular content and teaching and learning approaches and potentials and constraints in terms of guiding educational practice. It is drawing on conceptualizations of AC in key theoretical texts within environmental and sustainability education (ESE), as well as on the concept’s use in a set of Nordic guidelines for ESE practice. Its conceptualization as an educational ideal is well aligned with notions of active democratic citizenship in Nordic educational policies and curriculum frameworks and is referring to both a non-affirmative and a transformative approach to education. On the one hand, underlining that education is not about shaping children and young people in line with a preexisting or given society; on the other hand, emphasizing the potential of education to transform and change subjectivities. The use of the concept in the Nordic guidelines illustrates different understandings of AC, validating the introductory description of the concept as a vehicular educational idea that can be taken up in different ways in pursuit of various ends, its hermeneutic, and contextual flexibility allowing it to balance different interests within educational research, policy, and practice. Its use in the guidelines can furthermore be described as framed by an adaptive approach, referring to forms of learning, action, and change that do not challenge existing frameworks or rationales in schools.

AB - This chapter explores the twinning of Bildung (political and democratic formation) and competence in the action competence (AC)concept, highlighting its assumptions regarding what constitute appropriate forms of learning, action, and change in justifications of curricular content and teaching and learning approaches and potentials and constraints in terms of guiding educational practice. It is drawing on conceptualizations of AC in key theoretical texts within environmental and sustainability education (ESE), as well as on the concept’s use in a set of Nordic guidelines for ESE practice. Its conceptualization as an educational ideal is well aligned with notions of active democratic citizenship in Nordic educational policies and curriculum frameworks and is referring to both a non-affirmative and a transformative approach to education. On the one hand, underlining that education is not about shaping children and young people in line with a preexisting or given society; on the other hand, emphasizing the potential of education to transform and change subjectivities. The use of the concept in the Nordic guidelines illustrates different understandings of AC, validating the introductory description of the concept as a vehicular educational idea that can be taken up in different ways in pursuit of various ends, its hermeneutic, and contextual flexibility allowing it to balance different interests within educational research, policy, and practice. Its use in the guidelines can furthermore be described as framed by an adaptive approach, referring to forms of learning, action, and change that do not challenge existing frameworks or rationales in schools.

KW - Action competence

KW - Environmental and Sustainability Education

KW - Bildung

KW - Competence

KW - Nordic guidelines

KW - Policy

KW - Practice

U2 - 10.1007/978-3-030-82976-6_9-1

DO - 10.1007/978-3-030-82976-6_9-1

M3 - Book chapter

SN - 978-3-030-82976-6

T3 - Springer Handbooks

SP - 1

EP - 16

BT - Handbook of Curriculum Theory and Research

A2 - Trifonas, Peter

A2 - Jagger, Susan

PB - Springer

CY - Cham

ER -