Abstract
The aim of the article is to revisit the principle of universalism and analyze how it has changed in the legislation on compulsory education by asking: how are different characteristics of universalism emphasized in the basic education legislation and parliamentary discussion (in 1968, 1982 and 1997)? The analysis portrays the varieties of universalism within the comprehensive school, produced by the four instruments used to govern education (legislation, economy, ideology and evaluatory). According to the analysis, the foundation of the comprehensive school system in the 1960s was laid on uniform content and aims at the ideological level, emphasizing equality of education. The 1980s was a transition phase between ‘old’ and ‘new’ universalism, when instruments of legal and economic governance enabled the expansion of universalism and increased costs. Simultaneously, the aims of the comprehensive system and its contents were increasingly set at the local level. We conclude that the ‘new’ comprehension of universalism in the 1990s entailed issues such as the rise of the evaluation of education, local economy of education and individualism.
Highlights
The principle of universalism, manifested in publicly funded and state-regulated welfare services, has been one of the most essential ideas behind the Nordic welfare states
The Nordic strategy for building high quality and equality in education has been based on the construction of the publicly funded comprehensive school system which does not select, track or stream students during their basic education until the age of 16 (Lie, Linnakylä, & Roe, 2003)
Our aim in this article is to revisit the principle of universalism and analyze its adjustment in the government proposals and parliamentary discussions on the basic education acts
Summary
The principle of universalism, manifested in publicly funded and state-regulated welfare services, has been one of the most essential ideas behind the Nordic welfare states. Nordic welfare states are characterized by a low degree of selectivity, a high coverage of social protection and universal, publicly provided services (Kuivalainen & Niemelä, 2010; Sipilä, 1997). The provision of basic education at the primary level is one of the oldest and most consistent welfare services provided along universalist principles (Budowski & Künzler, 2020). The Nordic strategy for building high quality and equality in education has been based on the construction of the publicly funded comprehensive school system which does not select, track or stream students during their basic education until the age of 16 (Lie, Linnakylä, & Roe, 2003). Our aim in this article is to revisit the principle of universalism and analyze its adjustment in the government proposals and parliamentary discussions on the basic education acts. We asked how the distinctive characteristics of universalism are emphasized in the in the legislation and parliamentary discussion
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