Facing the New Situation of Religious Education in Iceland

Gunnar J. Gunnarsson

doi:10.3390/rel11100537

Abstract

Over the last two decades, Iceland has faced rapid societal changes in many ways, and cultural and religious diversity has grown faster than ever before. This has influenced the curricula of religious education. In 2011/2013, drastic changes were made to the National Curriculum Guide, and the curricula of individual subjects were merged into larger entities. Religious education thus became a part of the social studies curriculum, together with history, geography, sociology, life skills, ethics and philosophy. The aim of this article is to explore and discuss the influences of the societal changes in Iceland on religious education in compulsory schools. As little research exists on the consequences of the changes made to the curriculum for the practice of religious education, the focus will also be on some of the research that can shed light on the changing conditions of religious education in Iceland, such as Icelanders’ attitudes towards religion, and parents’ attitudes towards religious education in compulsory school. Particular attention will be paid to research into young people’s views towards the growing cultural and religious diversity in Iceland. The aim is to understand better the new situation of religious education in Iceland and the changes that have been made to the National Curriculum Guide.

Highlights

Over the last two decades, Iceland has faced rapid societal changes in many ways
If we look at the social studies in The Icelandic National Curriculum Guide from 2013, we can see that the emphasis has shifted to some extent from a ‘substantive’ understanding of religion, with emphasis on the substance and traditions of individual religions, to a ‘functional’
The young people were, in general, positive toward the growing cultural and religious diversity in society, and they seem to be ready to respect everybody’s freedom of belief, and they understand the importance of mutual respect

Summary

Introduction

Over the last two decades, Iceland has faced rapid societal changes in many ways. During the first decade of the twentieth century, the country has seen an economic rise, fall, and a rise again. For most of the 20th century, Icelandic society was rather homogeneous, but in recent decades the languages, cultures and religions of Iceland’s population have become increasingly diverse. Religions 2020, 11, 537 over the last few decades, and the general public’s trust in the Church is not the same as it was before the turn of the century (Gallup 2020) With this development in mind, it is of interest to explore the ways in which such changes have influenced the curricula of religious education. Particular attention will be paid to research into young people’s views towards the growing cultural and religious diversity in Iceland because they have grown up in times of these societal changes, and students do not leave their views and attitudes behind when they enter the classroom.

The Situation in Iceland

Educational Policy and the National Curriculum Guide from 2011

Religious Education in the Subject Areas Curriculum Guide 2013

Findings

Conclusions