Special issue: Research on ‘Bildung’ and Practice in Education: Opportunities and Challenges.

‘Bildung’ is a key concept in academic work that has gained increasing prominence in the international research literature in recent years (cf. Tahirsylaj et al. 2025). It is relevant to a range of practical applications within fields such as didactics, curriculum development, the development of educational institutions, education policy and the teaching profession. The concept of ‘Bildung’ encompasses far more than the transfer of knowledge from one generation to the next. It refers to the complex processes of interaction and development that unfold between the individual and society in formal educational institutions such as kindergartens, schools and universities, in non-formal educational settings such as leisure activities, or in informal educational practices such as family contexts and peer groups.

The conceptual discussion of ‘Bildung’ gives rise to a wide range of interpretations and associations (cf. Sjöström 2017; Jobst 2023). Furthermore, theoretical and empirical research highlights the ambivalent nature of educational practices. ‘Bildung’ is attributed with the potential to ensure democratic participation, self-determination and solidarity among people in a society – as, for example, Klafki (1999) elaborates in his ‘Bildungstheory’-based didactics. At the same time, the pedagogical practices of educational institutions are linked to the production and reproduction of social inequality (Bourdieu & Passeron 1977; Skarpenes 2014), to discipline (Foucault 1979), to conformism (Freire 2000) and hegemony (Gramsci 1991) or to ‘half-education’ – all processes that hinder the holistic development of personality and critical thinking and contribute to alienation, whereby people distance themselves from their own needs and desires (Adorno 1959; Heydorn 1980).

One of the key challenges facing research into ‘Bildung’ today is to re-examine practices within this field of tension, both empirically and theoretically, to identify development opportunities despite existing challenges in educational practices (cf. Krüger, 2018). This special issue aims to investigate the extent to which contemporary educational research constitutes a 'practice of freedom' (Freire, 2000) that contributes to the identification, critical discussion, development and implementation of solutions to pressing societal challenges, such as environmental destruction, political instability, the erosion of democracy, alienation, violence, war, displacement, economic hardship, social inequality, marginalisation and exclusion.

Against this backdrop, we invite the academic community to submit papers that specify and operationalise the concept of 'Bildung' as a scientific, action-oriented concept. We want to discuss how 'Bildung' – with all its dimensions and tensions – manifests itself in pedagogical and didactic practices, how it can be explored in a critical-reflexive manner, and what potential for liberation it offers in concrete pedagogical practice within organisation of kindergartens, schools and teacher training.

We are delighted to offer a platform for national and international researchers and practitioners from various disciplines and professions to advance research in this field.

This special issue publishes articles that address one or more of the following aspects:

• a theoretical understanding of ‘Bildung’ and/or empirical research into ‘Bildung’
• the relationship between ‘Bildung’ and pedagogical or didactic practice
• perceptions of ‘Bildung’ in the context of today’s societal challenges, such as promoting solidarity, responsibility, justice, equality, upholding democratic principles, fostering peaceful coexistence with nature and resolving social conflicts
• the potential of ‘Bildung’ perspectives to stimulate interdisciplinary research and thereby promote collaboration between different disciplines and/or with the field of practice.
• the complex network of meanings of the traditional German concept of ‘Bildung’ in relation to ‘education’ and ‘Erziehung’, as well as related concepts in other countries, such as ‘danning’, ‘bildning’, ‘obrazovanie’, ‘oświata’ or ‘formation’
• new approaches and concepts within ‘Bildung’ and education research.

 

Literature:

Adorno, T. W. (1959). Theorie Der Halbbildung. Frankfurt: Suhrkamp.

Bourdieu, P. & Passeron, J.C. (1977). Reproduction in Education, Society and Culture. London: Sage.

Foucault, M. (1977). Discipline and Punish. The Birth of the Prison. London: Penguin Classics.

Freire, P. (2000). Pedagogy of the Oppressed (30th anniversary ed.) New York: Contimuum.

Gramsci, A. (1991). Gefängnishefte. Kritische Gesamtausgabe. Hamburg: Argument Verlag.

Heydorn, H.-J. (1980). Ungleichheit für alle. Zur Neufassung des Bildungsbegriffs Vol. 3.Bildungstheoretische Schriften. Frankfurt am Main: Syndikat.

Jobst, S. (2023). Is the Concept of Bildung Still Relevant? Rethinking Bildung from a Praxeological Perspective. Nordisk tidsskrift for pedagogikk og kritikk, 9, 277–289. http://doi.org/10.23865/ntpk.v9.5478

Klafki, W. (1999). The Significance of Classical Theories of Bildung for a Contemporary Concept of Allgemeinbildung. In I. Westbury, S. Hopmann, & K. Riquarts (Eds.), Teaching As A Reflective Practice (pp. 85-107). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203357781

Krüger, T. (2018). Danning, didaktisk praksis og forskning. Et romorientert perspektiv. Bergen: Fagforelag.

Sjöström, J. (2017). Use of the concept of Bildung in the international science education literature, its potentials, and implications for teaching and learning. Studies in Science Education, 53(2), 165–192.

Skarpenes, O. (2014). Education and the demand for emancipation. Scandinavian Journal of Educational Research, 58 (6), 713–733. https://doi.org/10.1080/00313831.2013.840677

Tahirsylaj, A., Rønningen, E., Engen, D. A. A., Corral Granados, A., Hoveid, H., Hoveid, M. H., Solhaug, S., Veelo, N., & Jensen, M. R. (2025). Mapping scholarship on Bildung in educational research: A systematic research review 1990–2020. European Educational Research Journal, 0(0). https://doi.org/10.1177/14749041251379633

 

 

Proposal Format 

The special issue will have room for different formats, from scientific articles and essays to video presentations of performative Pecha-Kucha performances (see explanatory note below). We welcome both theoretically oriented contributions and contributions that have a clear bias towards the practice-oriented and socially relevant. Contributions will be assessed both editorially and in a blind review process.

Proposal: Abstract up to 500 words. Deadline: June 1, 2026

Format of completed contribution:

• Scientific article/essay: max. 30,000 characters including spaces. Style: APA7
• Video recording of Pecha Kucha/20*20 presentation (see explanation below)

In the first submission, the following must be stated:

1. Format of completed contribution (scientific article, scientific essay or Pecha Kucha presentation)
2. Language (Norwegian, other Scandinavian language or English)

Deadlines:

• Tentative abstract: 1 June 2026
• Notification of the abstract decision: 1 July 2026
• Submission of full paper: 1 October 2026

 

About Pecha Kucha:

Pecha Kucha is a presentation form with a concentrated and limited format, and a type of event where a series of such presentations are performed.

Pecha Kucha as a format involves showing 20 images and spending 20 seconds talking about each image, also called a "20x20 presentation". Pecha Kucha has been used in particular to share creative ideas and projects. (Source: “Store norske leksikon”)