| dc.description.abstract | At the start of the 2013-2014 school year, the revised subject curricula of Natural Science, Norwegian, English, Mathematics and Social Studies in the National Curriculum for Knowledge Promotion (LK06) was in place. The thesis study area is the Social Studies subject in lower secondary school and particularly the main subject areas Geography and The Explorer (Utforskaren). The latter is a new installation in the subject curriculum. The Explorer has been authored in the mould of the main subject area The Budding Researcher in the subject curriculum of Natural science. In The Explorer, content pertaining to methods, critical assessment of new and established knowledge using sources and source criticism is central. The subject main area attempts to convey and stimulate wonder, curiosity, and ultimately the development of knowledge and competence. The content of The Explorer is predominantly extracted from the parallel main subject areas Civics, History, and Geography.
The thesis contains an analysis of the expired vs the revised subject curriculum, with attention to the main subject areas The Explorer and Geography. The thesis seeks to identify important changes in the subject curriculum. The subject curriculum and the process of development are seen to be co-dependant. Subsequently the main part of the thesis consists of data and discussion of interviews that have been conducted. The eight informants are professionals with important roles concerning the revision and interpretation of the curriculum. The interviews give perspectives on the process and product of the revision from members of the curriculum committee; The Directorate for Education and Training; the teacher’s perspective; the textbook author’s perspective; as well as the perspective from the designer of The Budding Researcher.
Through the inspiration from constructivist theoretical approaches, this thesis gives a behind-the-curtain view of the process of curriculum revision, and the discursive activities and processes that form the experiences and understanding of The Explorer and geographical content in Social Studies in lower secondary schools. The findings reveal that, as a part of Social Studies, Geography after the curriculum revision may be a more robust main subject area with stronger representations of pupil activity, as well as having clear indications towards the use of excursions. | nb_NO |
