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Powerful Knowledge in Social Studies Subjects—Challenges and Possibilities: A Problematizing...
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Powerful Knowledge in Social Studies Subjects—Challenges and Possibilities: A Problematizing Approach

A special issue of Social Sciences (ISSN 2076-0760).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (1 September 2023) | Viewed by 14909

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Olof Franck

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Pedagogical, Curricular and Professional Studies, University of Gothenburg, 405 30 Gothenburg, Sweden
Interests: religion education; ethics education; ethics; philosophy of religion
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Prof. Dr. Christina Osbeck

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Pedagogical, Curricular and Professional Studies, University of Gothenburg, 405 30 Gothenburg, Sweden
Interests: religious education; existential issues; ethics education and values education
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Socially oriented subjects are rooted in democratic values and in an effort to conduct knowledge development on a scientific basis. Knowledge-based teaching in subjects such as geography, history, religious education (RE), and civics is fundamental to nurturing and developing a democratic, scientific approach to societal problems and challenges.

At a time when challenges to both science and democratic values tend to grow and create an increasing polarization between both groups and individuals, the scientific and democratic mission of socially oriented subjects appears to be fundamental. The discussions that, not least in various media, give room for “factual resistance”, relativizing science criticism and various kinds of conspiracy theories, constitutes a reason for teachers and researchers in social studies subjects to formulate strategies for developing knowledge-based teaching in these subjects as well as an understanding of its importance. The discussions in which democratic values are questioned by denying people of a certain identity, gender, ethnicity, sexuality, or outlook on life an indispensable place among all those whose equal value and dignity are an unwavering ethical cornerstone constitutes a reason for teachers and researchers in social studies subjects to face the question of how a current teaching is conducted as well how a democracy-developing teaching in social study subjects could be designed.

Central to Michael Young’s social–realist approach to how a disciplinarily anchored teaching lends a general offer to all students to develop a knowledge that reaches beyond the everyday images of the world is the concept of powerful knowledge. This concept, shaped in the sphere of personal experience, has played a significant role in contemporary discussions about how pedagogy and curriculum, school, and academy, on complementary arenas can constitute a platform for identifying a potent platform for the implementation of significant prerequisites for children's and young people’s equal access to education on the basis of knowledge development. Such access empowers young students to seek knowledge, to learn more, to understand the world, and act in it in a conscious way. 

The powerful knowledge discourse raises conceptual as well as theoretical and methodological issues of great interest for discussions on knowledge-based education with regard to the contemporary situation, where epistemic and democratic worry seems to take shape in many contexts and in varying ways. The contributions this discourse could make to how a strong scientifically and democratically founded teaching in social studies subjects can be deepened and broadened can inspire new thinking and progressive development, but also critical considerations and analyses.

The aim of this Special Issue is to make room for constructive contributions to a discussion around how powerful knowledge discourse can offer substantial guidance in the development of knowledge-based education in social studies subjects—as well as how it can be challenged and re-interpreted—in a time where the concepts of knowledge and democracy seem to be subject to questioning and relativization.

For consideration, please submit a 250 word abstract by 15 January 2023 that includes explicit reference to title, methods, theoretical contribution, research question(s), and findings (or anticipated findings).

Please submit your abstract and any questions to special issue guest editors, Professor Olof Franck ([email protected]) and Professor Christina Osbeck ([email protected]).

Prof. Dr. Olof Franck
Prof. Dr. Christina Osbeck
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a double-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Social Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1800 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • powerful knowledge
  • social studies subjects
  • epistemic and democratic worry
  • empowerment
  • equity
  • development of knowledge-based teaching

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Published Papers (9 papers)

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Editorial

Jump to: Research

3 pages, 176 KiB  
Editorial
Powerful Knowledge in Social Studies Subjects—Challenges and Possibilities: A Problematizing Approach—Introduction
by Olof Franck and Christina Osbeck
Soc. Sci. 2023, 12(12), 689; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci12120689 - 18 Dec 2023
Viewed by 1128
Abstract
Issues relating to the design of knowledge-based teaching in social studies subjects are always topical and it is important to discuss them in light of both research and pedagogical practice [...] Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Powerful Knowledge in Social Studies Subjects—Challenges and Possibilities: A Problematizing Approach)

Research

Jump to: Editorial

8 pages, 248 KiB  
Article
Powerful Knowledge in Religious Education—Questions of Epistemology and Subject Literacy in Democratic and Inclusive Educational Contexts
by Bodil Liljefors Persson
Soc. Sci. 2023, 12(12), 642; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci12120642 - 21 Nov 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1939
Abstract
In this article, the focus is to grasp ongoing discussions regarding powerful knowledge in relation to social sciences in a broader sense, but especially in relation to religious education. Discussions around norms and values are central in classrooms where both multireligiousness and secularity [...] Read more.
In this article, the focus is to grasp ongoing discussions regarding powerful knowledge in relation to social sciences in a broader sense, but especially in relation to religious education. Discussions around norms and values are central in classrooms where both multireligiousness and secularity characterize students’ everyday life and where students constantly move between different multicultural contexts. It is the aim of this contribution to explore the ongoing discussions relating powerful knowledge in RE to existential questions and controversial issues. One way for teachers to work with these goals is to focus partly on subject literacy and on powerful knowledge in relation to inclusive teaching, and partly on subject content where core value issues are expressed together with existential and controversial questions. This will be discussed and explored in this contribution focusing on powerful knowledge and epistemology in social science, and especially in the school subject of religious education. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Powerful Knowledge in Social Studies Subjects—Challenges and Possibilities: A Problematizing Approach)
16 pages, 276 KiB  
Article
Powerful Knowledge as a Conceptual Frame for Teaching Controversial Issues in Ethics and Values Education in Social Studies Subjects
by Olof Franck
Soc. Sci. 2023, 12(11), 619; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci12110619 - 8 Nov 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1786
Abstract
Much has recently been written about how teaching on “controversial issues” may be designed and developed in accordance with various pedagogical and didactic guidelines and based on a democratic ethos. In this article, I develop an analysis of the theoretical prerequisites for a [...] Read more.
Much has recently been written about how teaching on “controversial issues” may be designed and developed in accordance with various pedagogical and didactic guidelines and based on a democratic ethos. In this article, I develop an analysis of the theoretical prerequisites for a tenable and solid teaching on controversial ethical issues in social-studies subjects. With reference to Diana Hess’s research, which identifies four pedagogical strategies in teaching on controversial issues in a general sense, I critically examine how these strategies can be conceived in a context where ethics and values education are taught in school. I make a claim for the importance of exploring an ethical meta-language for the establishment of a theoretical framework, defined with regard to the concept of powerful knowledge, where teachers may find support for teaching on controversial ethical issues. This claim is supported by a critical discussion of Michael Hand’s well-known defence of the “epistemic criterion”. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Powerful Knowledge in Social Studies Subjects—Challenges and Possibilities: A Problematizing Approach)
10 pages, 286 KiB  
Article
School Geography’s Critical Role for a More Sustainable Future: Powerful Knowledge and Praxis
by Sally Windsor and Jeana Kriewaldt
Soc. Sci. 2023, 12(11), 585; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci12110585 - 24 Oct 2023
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1636
Abstract
In this theoretical article we draw on the concepts of powerful knowledge and powerful pedagogies to argue that the school geography curriculum is key to developing structured teaching programmes for students to extend their knowledge and actions for a sustainable future. We argue [...] Read more.
In this theoretical article we draw on the concepts of powerful knowledge and powerful pedagogies to argue that the school geography curriculum is key to developing structured teaching programmes for students to extend their knowledge and actions for a sustainable future. We argue that geography education uniquely opens up opportunities for action with its focus on place-based, sensory and multimedia experiences, that centre on students’ schools and their communities. This article posits that, although important, merely identifying geographical powerful knowledge is not enough, teachers must also incorporate geographical “powerful pedagogies”. Geography, as a discipline, holds a critical role when it comes to sustainability and education for the future as it makes the links between people and the environment clearly visible. Yet for Geography to be a discipline that empowers students to navigate their current and future life-worlds, it must encompass action through fieldwork and incorporate dialogue between students, teachers, experts and the public that focus on perspectives and possibilities for praxis—action for the good of humankind. This article situates geography education in the powerful knowledge debate by offering a new synthesis of theories connecting curriculum, practice architectures and praxis/action for the future. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Powerful Knowledge in Social Studies Subjects—Challenges and Possibilities: A Problematizing Approach)
10 pages, 249 KiB  
Article
Important Perspectives and Concepts to Teach in Ethics Education
by Annika Lilja
Soc. Sci. 2023, 12(10), 582; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci12100582 - 22 Oct 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1269
Abstract
In the field of ethics, which is a part of the subject religious education (RE) in Sweden, there is still insufficient research related to powerful knowledge. The aim of this article is to contribute knowledge to the field by examining what teachers see [...] Read more.
In the field of ethics, which is a part of the subject religious education (RE) in Sweden, there is still insufficient research related to powerful knowledge. The aim of this article is to contribute knowledge to the field by examining what teachers see as important perspectives and concepts in ethics education. To fulfil this aim, eight teachers in Swedish compulsory schools have been interviewed about central perspectives and concepts related to their teaching in ethics. The results show that the interviewed teachers emphasize three perspectives which concern: (1) society locally and globally, (2) different ethical dilemmas and (3) the students’ experiences in school and at home. The teachers also believe that certain concepts are needed for students to understand what a democratic society means, to succeed in subsequent stages of education and to understand their own lives. The teachers’ descriptions of what they view as important perspectives and concepts relate to knowledge that has power and potential for social justice. They want to prepare and engage their students in relation to questions that they may face both now and in their futures. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Powerful Knowledge in Social Studies Subjects—Challenges and Possibilities: A Problematizing Approach)
10 pages, 283 KiB  
Article
Knowing and the Known: A Philosophical and Pedagogical Critique on the Concept of ‘Powerful Knowledge’
by Siebren Miedema
Soc. Sci. 2023, 12(10), 578; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci12100578 - 18 Oct 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1671
Abstract
It is remarkable how the popularity of the concept of ‘powerful knowledge’ has increased during the last decade in academic circles and among politicians, too. This is especially the case when the issue of the place and function of knowledge in the curriculum [...] Read more.
It is remarkable how the popularity of the concept of ‘powerful knowledge’ has increased during the last decade in academic circles and among politicians, too. This is especially the case when the issue of the place and function of knowledge in the curriculum is addressed. A strong impetus for the increased attention paid to this concept of knowledge came from the writings of Michael Young and Johan Muller. Based on his own critical-hermeneutical-pragmatist-and-(neo-)Vygotskian-inspired philosophy of education and philosophy of science as his ‘Vorverständnis’ (Gadamer), but also based on the recent criticism articulated by the philosophers of education John White and Ingrid Carlgren and educational theorist Gert Biesta, the author shows the philosophical, pedagogical and didactical inadequacy of this concept. The author is criticizing the philosophical and pedagogical presuppositions of Young and Muller’s stance in propagating their core concept of ‘powerful knowledge’ as it is grounded in a social realist view and the way this concept has been used in educational studies by others. It is the author’s conviction that the concept of ‘powerful knowledge’ and the underlying social realist paradigm are incompatible and even incommensurable (in a Kuhnian sense of the terms) with sociocultural and pragmatist paradigms. It is, in his view, theoretically and conceptually confusing when authors who work along the lines of these paradigms are trying to complement these with the concept of ‘powerful knowledge’ along the lines of social realism as outlined by Young and Muller. Let us stick to knowing and the known as a theoretical conceptualization of ‘knowledge’. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Powerful Knowledge in Social Studies Subjects—Challenges and Possibilities: A Problematizing Approach)
12 pages, 257 KiB  
Article
Learning about What? Non-Confessional Religious Education after the Dissolution of the Binary Categories ‘Religion’ and ‘Secular’
by Peder Thalén
Soc. Sci. 2023, 12(10), 573; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci12100573 - 13 Oct 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1272
Abstract
The binary division between ‘religion’ and ‘secular’ as an analytical tool has long been criticised within the research field of ‘critical religion’ in religious studies. There has also been a parallel critique in the academic discussion about post-secularity. Recently, sociologists have picked up [...] Read more.
The binary division between ‘religion’ and ‘secular’ as an analytical tool has long been criticised within the research field of ‘critical religion’ in religious studies. There has also been a parallel critique in the academic discussion about post-secularity. Recently, sociologists have picked up and deepened this criticism, as expressed in Mitsutoshi Horii’s book ‘Religion’ and ‘Secular’ Categories in Sociology: Decolonizing the Modern Myth (2021). Based on a critical processing of Horii’s application to sociology, the aim of this article is to discuss the challenges for non-confessional religious education (RE) that the ongoing dismantling of this binary division entails. In particular, it looks at how a non-confessional RE could be designed that transcends the binary division and how powerful knowledge could be understood in a non-binary context. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Powerful Knowledge in Social Studies Subjects—Challenges and Possibilities: A Problematizing Approach)
13 pages, 330 KiB  
Article
Can Powerful Knowledge Save Us? Critical Reflections through the Lens of Political Education
by Johan Sandahl and Mattias Björklund
Soc. Sci. 2023, 12(10), 556; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci12100556 - 5 Oct 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1738
Abstract
In most Western democracies, there is an ongoing discussion on the role of education, particularly in times of increasingly polarized political views, leading to democratic erosion and social unrest. Citizens have been described as living in echo chambers, relying on, and often receiving, [...] Read more.
In most Western democracies, there is an ongoing discussion on the role of education, particularly in times of increasingly polarized political views, leading to democratic erosion and social unrest. Citizens have been described as living in echo chambers, relying on, and often receiving, information that confirms their own world views and political ideas. In this climate, education has been emphasized as an important antidote to provide students with knowledge, skills, attitudes and values to strengthen democracy and social cohesion. In most cases, this assignment is primarily tasked with subjects that can be considered political education, such as social studies, civics or social science education. However, there is no consensus on what kind of knowledge, skills, attitudes and values students need to fulfil a “good political education”. Historically, there has been a rift between advocates of progressive ideas such as political deliberation and those who favor an emphasis on disciplinary-based knowledge. The latter perspective has been, for some time now, highlighted in educational sciences through Michael Young’s concept of powerful knowledge, where knowledge from academic disciplines is emphasized in shaping youth into critical thinkers on social and political issues. This article critically examines the ideas of powerful knowledge and its potential for political education in secondary school. An important argument is that powerful knowledge, or disciplinary thinking, is necessary for a good political education but not sufficient in its own right. In order to deal with complex political issues, students need to be invited with their life-world perspectives. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Powerful Knowledge in Social Studies Subjects—Challenges and Possibilities: A Problematizing Approach)
23 pages, 4093 KiB  
Article
Powerful Knowledge and the 2017 Swedish National Test in Religious Education
by Klas Andersson, Mattias Börjesson and Kristoffer Larsson
Soc. Sci. 2023, 12(10), 533; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci12100533 - 22 Sep 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1204
Abstract
In the 21st century, there has been a recurring discussion about social realism in educational research: the idea that subject knowledge derived from academic disciplines should constitute the heart of the school curriculum. The argument is that this knowledge, because it is produced [...] Read more.
In the 21st century, there has been a recurring discussion about social realism in educational research: the idea that subject knowledge derived from academic disciplines should constitute the heart of the school curriculum. The argument is that this knowledge, because it is produced according to specific standards, is powerful knowledge, and has better claims to truth and is more valid than knowledge gained from students’ everyday experiences. Because of its validity and universality, this knowledge empowers the knower to transcend her or his everyday experiences and take part in society’s conversations, which are central goals of social studies education. The aim of this study is to identify in which ways aspects of powerful knowledge are manifested in the 2017 national test in RE. For the analysis, both items and students’ answers from the 2017 test are used. The focus with regard to the items is on whether the students are expected to demonstrate knowledge and abilities in relation to powerful knowledge. We also analyze the students’ answers to these items using the same framework. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Powerful Knowledge in Social Studies Subjects—Challenges and Possibilities: A Problematizing Approach)
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