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17 SES 11 A: Retracing, Visibilising, Scrutinising – Historical and Historiographical Cases
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17. Histories of Education
Paper Constructing a Multilayered Timeline: a Methodological Approach for Understanding Education System 1: University of Luxembourg, Luxembourg; 2: University of Coimbra, Portugal Presenting Author:Historical research in education increasingly mobilises different types of sources (normative legislation, curriculum, institutional archives, oral testimonies etc.), yet methodological tools that enable these materials to be analysed relationally across time remain insufficiently theorised. Responding to this challenge, we propose to look into multilayered timelines as methodological approaches for historical research in education, advocating that timelines can function not merely as descriptive representations, but as analytical devices for articulating sources with different temporalities, epistemic statuses, and scales of analysis (see also Abbott, 2001). The methodological proposal builds on the construction of timelines through the systematic layering of diverse datasets, including educational acts and reforms, curriculum frameworks, teacher education programmes and institutions, professional development initiatives, and mappings of academic research. Drawing on document analysis approaches that treat policy texts and curricula as active historical actors (Ball, 1993; Asdal & Reinertsen, 2022), this contribution discusses the methodological challenges involved in synchronising sources that follow distinct logics of production and circulation. Rather than resolving tensions between linear chronology and discontinuous historical processes, multilayered timeline exhibits these tensions as analytically productive, allowing researchers to examine how educational systems evolve through overlapping and sometimes conflicting temporalities (Sewell, 2005). The approach is illustrated through a case study of primary science education in Luxembourg, a context characterised by multilingual schooling, education reforms, and a limited corpus of historical research on primary science education. Methodology, Methods, Research Instruments or Sources Used Legislative acts from the early twentieth century to the present are aligned with curriculum documents that progressively formalise science as a school subject, revealing temporal gaps between policy enactment, curricular prescription, and pedagogical implementation (Trigo, 2023). In parallel, an exploratory mapping of research publications situates the emergence of primary science education research within a highly concentrated scholarly field (te Heesen et al, 2025). To complement documentary sources, the paper integrates timeline interviews as a data production tool for historical reconstruction (Adriansen, 2012; Sheridan et al., 2011). Timeline interviews enable the co-construction of chronological narratives with institutional actors, foregrounding critical episodes, ruptures, and processes of organisational learning that remain underrepresented in written archives. The layer of oral testimonies (semi-structured interviews) is guided by a sociodynamic perspective (Pinto, 2022), understood as an integrative analytical framework that examines how individual recollections are shaped by social, institutional, and socio-political dynamics (see also Halbwachs, 1992). Conclusions, Expected Outcomes or Findings By reflecting on the epistemological and practical implications of constructing multilayered timelines, this paper contributes to methodological debates on sources and research practices in the history of education. We argue that multilayered timelines offer a flexible and reflexive research practice for engaging with diverse historical materials and for addressing the temporal complexity of educational systems beyond linear narratives. References Abbott, A. (2001). Time matters: On theory and method. University of Chicago Press. Adriansen, H. K. (2012). Timeline interviews: A tool for conducting life history research. Qualitative Studies, 3(1), 40–55. Asdal, K., & Reinertsen, H. (2022). How to do things with documents. SAGE. Ball, S. J. (1993). What is policy? Texts, trajectories and toolboxes. Discourse: Studies in the Cultural Politics of Education, 13(2), 10–17. Halbwachs, M. (1992). On collective memory (L. A. Coser, Trans.). University of Chicago Press. (Original work published 1950) te Heesen, K., Trigo, M., Pinto, R., & Siry, C. (2025, August). Primary science education research in Luxembourg: Outlining the history to reflect on the heritage. Paper presented at the 16th Conference of the European Science Education Research Association (ESERA 2025), Copenhagen, Denmark. Pinto. R. F. (2022). The oral testimonies of former teachers about school and Estado Novo in Portugal from a sociodynamic perspective of memory. Paedagogica Historica, 58(3), 406-423. https://doi.org/10.1080/00309230.2022.2065882 Sewell, W. H., Jr. (2005). Logics of history: Social theory and social transformation. University of Chicago Press. Sheridan, J., Chamberlain, K., & Dupuis, A. (2011). Timelining: Visualizing experience. Qualitative Research, 11(5), 552–569. Thomson, A. (2011). Memory and remembering in oral history. In D. Ritchie (Ed.), The Oxford handbook of oral history (pp. 77–95). Oxford University Press. Trigo, M. (2023). Researching primary science education in Luxembourg: The relevance of dialoguing context, diversity and pedagogy. Revista Portuguesa de Pedagogia, 57, e057011. 17. Histories of Education
Paper The School under Scrutiny: Ordinary Citizens and the 1990s Economic Crisis in Finland University of Lapland, Finland Presenting Author:Finland experienced a deep economic recession in the early 1990s. It was the most severe economic downturn in the OECD countries since the Second World War. This crisis had profound repercussions across Finnish society, deeply affecting the educational system as well. As scholars such as Ahonen (2003) and Rinne et al. (2002) have demonstrated, the recession was not merely an economic turning point but had lasting impacts on the school institution. This paper examines the views of ordinary citizens regarding the school institution during this turbulent period. In my previous research, I have noted that teachers often served as scapegoats for the recession, symbolizing a "bloated public sector" with their long summer holidays. (Yliaska 2025) Furthermore, those who lost their jobs felt that teachers and the school system had misled them regarding the realities of the labor market. Building on these findings, this paper explores the broader spectrum of citizens' thoughts concerning the school and its future. The empirical data for this study consists of letters sent to government ministers during the crisis years analyzed through a qualitative close reading. These letters reveal that citizens engaged in an exceptional degree of "temporalization" to make sense of the societal upheaval. To explain how Finland had drifted into the depression, writers sought historical grounds for their experiences. They drew comparisons from diverse eras, ranging from the sacrifices of the Second World War and the postwar construction of the welfare state to the overheating economy of the 1980s. In addition to these historical reflections, the writers were eager to offer concrete savings proposals and suggestions for societal reforms.
Through this framework, citizens extended their analysis to a critical evaluation of the role of the school in society. By mirroring the current crisis against different historical eras, ranging from the disciplined agrarian past to the post-war reconstruction, the letter writers sought to legitimize their views. The analysis reveals a dual approach. While some writers utilized these narratives to advocate for specific austerity measures and structural rationalization, others focused on a moral diagnosis. These writers contrasted the perceived sheltered nature of the school institution with the harsh reality of the depression. Consequently, the letters serve as a medium where citizens navigated the uncertainty of the present, oscillating between demands for concrete reforms and a broader critical assessment of the state of the education system. These grassroots voices offer a unique vantage point on how the transnational shift toward educational austerity was interpreted and debated by ordinary citizens. Methodology, Methods, Research Instruments or Sources Used The empirical data for this study consists of two complementary datasets collected during the deep recession of the early 1990s. The first set comprises correspondence sent to the Minister of Education, Riitta Uosukainen, stored in the National Archives of Finland (1991–1994). These documents represent direct citizen appeals, ranging from handwritten notes by parents and unemployed individuals to formal letters by retired teachers. The second set consists of narratives from the "Story of the Unemployed" writing competition organized by the Finnish Literature Society (SKS) in 1993. These narratives provide a deep personal insight into the mental landscape of the crisis. The methodological approach is a qualitative content analysis. The study examines how the writers employed "temporalization" to interpret the societal upheaval. The analysis categorizes the letters based on the primary arguments used by the citizens. First, the analysis identifies "moral diagnoses," where the school system was criticized through historical contrasts. In these views, writers juxtaposed the perceived sheltered nature of the school institution with the harsh reality of the depression. Second, the analysis identifies "reform proposals," where citizens offered concrete austerity measures based on international comparisons to demonstrate the inefficiency of the current system. Conclusions, Expected Outcomes or Findings The analysis reveals that the legitimacy of the school institution was severely challenged from the grassroots level. The results indicate that citizens did not merely react to top-down cuts but actively formulated a "discourse of scarcity" to justify them. A central finding is the pervasive use of moral and historical contrasts. Writers frequently characterized the school system and universities as "sheltered" environments that had drifted away from the realities of working life. By comparing the perceived idleness of the current era with the discipline of past decades or the efficiency of foreign systems, citizens constructed a narrative where the expansive welfare state education was no longer sustainable. Consequently, the study argues that the recession served as a catalyst for a moral shift. In this new climate, ordinary citizens demanded a harder, more efficient, and less "cushioned" school system to match the harsh economic times. Ultimately, this study serves as a lens into a broader phenomenon: how European citizens experienced the geopolitical and economic rupture following the end of the Cold War. The letters illustrate the grassroots reception of the era’s market liberalization. References Ahonen, S. (2003). Yhteinen koulu – tasa-arvoa vai tasapäisyyttä? Tampere: Vastapaino. Rinne, R., Kivirauma, J. & Simola, H. (2002). Shoots of Revisionist Education Policy or Just Slow Adjusting? The Finnish Case of Educational Reconstruction. Journal of Education Policy. Yliaska, V. (2025). Laman kokemukset. 1990-luvun laman kokemushistoriaa. Tampere: Vastapaino | ||