The group has a keen interest in regional literature and the cultural history of Northern Norway and Trøndelag, and the group sees it as a special responsibility to link literary historical research with a regional identity.
The group will work with key topics in the disciplinary fields mentioned above. In addition, such subjects as identification questions (why should literature have a place in school teaching?), Bildung theory and literary teaching (what is literary teaching's primary or specific contribution to Bildung processes?), methodological questions (how to work with literature in school?), the question of canon (what texts are relevant in the school's literature teaching, and why?) are important.
The group’s scholars and researchers work with literary history projects on central Norwegian authors such as Dass, Wergeland, Hamsun and Vinje, important contemporary authors such as Merethe Lindstrøm, Gro Dahle and Ingvild H. Rishøi, but also lesser known (often regional) authorship. The group's members have a broad theoretical approach to didactics and literary theory and practice. The main goal of the group is to develop a strong research environment within the fields of literary didactics and Nordic literary science in Northern Norway. The group's ambition is to make a solid contribution in both fields, while at the same time ensuring that didactic and literary research come into fruitful dialogue.
The most important social mission of The Faculty for Teacher Education is to educate well-qualified schoolteachers. The research group's most important contribution will therefore be to ensure solid research-based teaching in the central Norwegian area. Both didactic, practical research and basic scholarly research will be important in this regard. This is fully in line with the faculty's strategy: "The research activity should include basic research, applied research and development work (...)" This is how the group contributes to the faculty's goal of "developing the professional field, the education we offer and the research-based knowledge related to this" (presentation of FLU at www.nord.no). In line with the faculty's focus on professional knowledge, the literary teacher's practical knowledge will be a relevant research area.
Literary education in the school has a central role to play within the three interdisciplinary themes in the new curriculum: sustainable development, democracy and citizenship, and public health. Researchers in the group are already working on historical literary studies with a particular focus on politics and ideology and the question of education in light of literary education (cf. democracy and citizenship), ecocritical literature (cf. sustainable development) and a project on affect and children's books (cf. public health).
Literature and literary education, of course, play fundamental roles in the formation of competent and well-functioning citizens, and the research group will therefore be able to anchor future and ongoing research projects in these interdisciplinary topics.
Hallvard Kjelen, contact person
Haakon Halberg, contact person
Snorre Johansen
Leiv Sem
Anne Lise Wie
Kathrine Fosshei
Renate Nordnes
Eirin Furre
Julie Kleiva
Anne Cathrine Haugdahl
External members:Morten Auklend (UiT)
Grethe Fatima Syéd (HVL)
Rolf Gaasland (UiT)
Wenke Mork Rogne (HiVolda)
Marit Lovise Brekke (HiVolda)
Elin Aaness (Bodin VGS)
Ronny G. Spaans (UiO)
Åse Marie Ommundsen (OsloMet)The professional literature teacher
Project leader: Hallvard Kjelen
The aim of the project is to acquire more knowledge about literary education in the school, with a particular focus on the literature teacher's practice.
