Five go 'Bildung' in Norway
Research on Norwegian Thinking Schools
Alisdair Wade reviews an article in the Nordic Journal of Comparative and International Education
If you haven’t heard of bildung, it isn’t a typo, though its literal translation is ‘formation’, so pretty close to building… No, bildung is an educational concept that is at the heart of the curricula in Germany and Scandinavia. In a nutshell, it refers to personal growth, deep learning, and developing as a well-rounded human being. Bildung is about shaping a person’s thinking, character, and ability to engage meaningfully in society.
Bildung combines:
- Self-development – learning to think critically, independently and understand how to make progress
- Cultural understanding – respecting the beliefs and customs of different cultures
- Social responsibility – becoming an active, thoughtful member of the community.
In short, bildung has more than a whiff of the Thinking School approach to it. It’s about educating the whole child, not just to pass exams (though it helps with that too), but for life. It’s therefore not a surprise that an increasing number of schools from Northern Europe are leaning on us to support them.
Is it having an impact? Well, we thought you might be interested in this report from Oslo Met University looking at the Thinking School approach in Norway through the eyes of five teachers at Hallagerbakken School in Oslo. Whilst it’s referencing a somewhat dated model of the Thinking Matters approach, there are still some undeniable positives. Since then we’ve increased the approach’s flexibility, so that it can be applied to any setting and fit any budget.
Contact us to connect and explore how, when you are ready, we might be able to support you.
Quotes from five teachers in Norwegian Thinking Schools
“ This is a toolbox that you bring for the rest of your life. It is like a hammer and toothbrush. You need (to know how to use them) for the rest of your life.”
“ The thinking school approach has made me think… made me think about asking more open questions, right? Instead of only closed ones. And facilitate within a topic: How can I use the tools and how do I use them? And what kind of in-depth understanding can the children gain?”
“ After using ‘habits of mind’ a lot, we can see the pupils develop their language. I have had a parent-teacher conference, and the pupils are really good at explaining what they need to work on.”
“ I think it is fun that the school has a vision, or that we have an aim. Here, we have a foundation we work from and everyone is aware of it. It gives a lot and creates varied teaching, too.”
“ Yes. A study method. And that is really fun because that is what we are teaching our children. It means that they learn about study methods as early as the first grade, and that is fantastic.”
