Hakan Forsell | Stockholm University (original) (raw)
Articles by Hakan Forsell
The article deals with two lines of economic and cultural development of the Swedish Norrbotten a... more The article deals with two lines of economic and cultural development of the Swedish Norrbotten as a region subjected to a special exploitation and internal colonial power relations in the decades around 1900. It is in the first place the industrial modernization of basic industries and a modern employment market, which spurred the rapid urbanization of a landscape that previously barely created any urban areas. And second the article deals with the enlargement and the boundaries of the state’s educational territory during the same time-period. The position of the Sámi population in the new educational system that evolved with society’s gradual democratization is discussed within the context of internal colonization. Government policies in different areas such as urban planning, infrastructure, education and schooling based themselves in the beginning of the twentieth century on discussions of the Sámi’s ‘qualified dissimilarity’, a concept which also was meant to ‘protect’ this group. This was a government-sanctioned differentiation and a cultural segregationist policy to ensure a non-mixing of different societal and economic interests. But even more so, the purpose was to place the Sámi economic activities within cultural parenthesis, isolate the traditional way of life, devalue it and make it immutable and static, severing it from industrial development and the promises and materialization of modernity and progress.
Pursuing Colin Ward’s work on urban childhood and especially the theme of the city as a curriculu... more Pursuing Colin Ward’s work on urban childhood and especially the theme of the city as a curriculum resource, the paper wishes to investigate the main features and the historical context of a pedagogical avant-garde movement in early twentieth century Europe.
The concept of “metropolitan pedagogy” got foothold in larger industrial urban areas in Central Europe the years before World War I. The advocates of this loosely organized reform movement – progressive primary school teachers in rapidly growing German speaking cities – emphasized urban space as a learning environment of outmost importance. They experimented with excursions and new textbooks to “adjust” the official school curriculum to real life situations and demands. They also sought to practice the conviction that the city could serve as a vehicle for democratic culture, community awareness and economic realism, and function as a negotiation platform to tackle the knowledge inflation of modern society. In focus of the educators’ practice stood pragmatism and work ethics. At the same time they addressed questions that have not lost their topicality: What is the relationship between school as a static institution and the city as a constant transformer? Does big city life cultivate a radically different ethical relationship between humans, and if so, in what way could this promote both individual as well as public welfare?
Papers by Hakan Forsell
Sweden is internationally renowned for its generous welfare state. However, over the past decades... more Sweden is internationally renowned for its generous welfare state. However, over the past decades, changes in economic circumstances and population composition, as well as increasing population concentration in larger urban areas, have imposed new challenges to the Swedish model. What does this imply for individual and collective identity formation? Why and how have some places become more attractive than others? What individuals or groups prosper from these changes and who looses? The authors of this anthology highlight social and political change in Sweden from different perspectives, based on various studies in urban and rural Sweden. They represent five disciplines: history, human geography, political science, social work and sociology. Contextualised by theories on place and identity, the book's ten chapters focus on ageing, lifestyle migration, rural landscape, place branding, group identity, religion, music, the school as a meeting place, unsafety and residential projects...
This is the introductory chapter for the anthology "Place and Identity; A new landscape of social... more This is the introductory chapter for the anthology "Place and Identity; A new landscape of social and political change in Sweden", edited by Marco Eimermann and Anders Trumberg. It is a collection of chapters written by members of the Centre for Urban ad Regional Studies, Örebro University, sweden.
Historia Social Y De La Educacion, 2012
Urban History, 2007
There are not many studies that try to balance the economic underpinnings of urban growth with th... more There are not many studies that try to balance the economic underpinnings of urban growth with the political and socio-cultural perspectives that often are more familiar to historians. Håkan Forsell's actor-oriented dissertation, however, is a promising attempt. Its subject matter is a ...
The article deals with two lines of economic and cultural development of the Swedish Norrbotten a... more The article deals with two lines of economic and cultural development of the Swedish Norrbotten as a region subjected to a special exploitation and internal colonial power relations in the decades around 1900. It is in the first place the industrial modernization of basic industries and a modern employment market, which spurred the rapid urbanization of a landscape that previously barely created any urban areas. And second the article deals with the enlargement and the boundaries of the state’s educational territory during the same time-period. The position of the Sámi population in the new educational system that evolved with society’s gradual democratization is discussed within the context of internal colonization. Government policies in different areas such as urban planning, infrastructure, education and schooling based themselves in the beginning of the twentieth century on discussions of the Sámi’s ‘qualified dissimilarity’, a concept which also was meant to ‘protect’ this group. This was a government-sanctioned differentiation and a cultural segregationist policy to ensure a non-mixing of different societal and economic interests. But even more so, the purpose was to place the Sámi economic activities within cultural parenthesis, isolate the traditional way of life, devalue it and make it immutable and static, severing it from industrial development and the promises and materialization of modernity and progress.
Pursuing Colin Ward’s work on urban childhood and especially the theme of the city as a curriculu... more Pursuing Colin Ward’s work on urban childhood and especially the theme of the city as a curriculum resource, the paper wishes to investigate the main features and the historical context of a pedagogical avant-garde movement in early twentieth century Europe.
The concept of “metropolitan pedagogy” got foothold in larger industrial urban areas in Central Europe the years before World War I. The advocates of this loosely organized reform movement – progressive primary school teachers in rapidly growing German speaking cities – emphasized urban space as a learning environment of outmost importance. They experimented with excursions and new textbooks to “adjust” the official school curriculum to real life situations and demands. They also sought to practice the conviction that the city could serve as a vehicle for democratic culture, community awareness and economic realism, and function as a negotiation platform to tackle the knowledge inflation of modern society. In focus of the educators’ practice stood pragmatism and work ethics. At the same time they addressed questions that have not lost their topicality: What is the relationship between school as a static institution and the city as a constant transformer? Does big city life cultivate a radically different ethical relationship between humans, and if so, in what way could this promote both individual as well as public welfare?
Sweden is internationally renowned for its generous welfare state. However, over the past decades... more Sweden is internationally renowned for its generous welfare state. However, over the past decades, changes in economic circumstances and population composition, as well as increasing population concentration in larger urban areas, have imposed new challenges to the Swedish model. What does this imply for individual and collective identity formation? Why and how have some places become more attractive than others? What individuals or groups prosper from these changes and who looses? The authors of this anthology highlight social and political change in Sweden from different perspectives, based on various studies in urban and rural Sweden. They represent five disciplines: history, human geography, political science, social work and sociology. Contextualised by theories on place and identity, the book's ten chapters focus on ageing, lifestyle migration, rural landscape, place branding, group identity, religion, music, the school as a meeting place, unsafety and residential projects...
This is the introductory chapter for the anthology "Place and Identity; A new landscape of social... more This is the introductory chapter for the anthology "Place and Identity; A new landscape of social and political change in Sweden", edited by Marco Eimermann and Anders Trumberg. It is a collection of chapters written by members of the Centre for Urban ad Regional Studies, Örebro University, sweden.
Historia Social Y De La Educacion, 2012
Urban History, 2007
There are not many studies that try to balance the economic underpinnings of urban growth with th... more There are not many studies that try to balance the economic underpinnings of urban growth with the political and socio-cultural perspectives that often are more familiar to historians. Håkan Forsell's actor-oriented dissertation, however, is a promising attempt. Its subject matter is a ...