In the beginning of the 20th century, the pedagogue Emilia Fogelklou (1878-1972) was a critical voice in the debate on secular religious education in Sweden. The debate occured in a time of renegotiation, when old institutions and ideologies began to dissolve. The traditional view of the infallibility of the Bible was challenged by natural science as well as historical-critical biblical scholarship, and many debaters questioned the confessional religious education in public schools carried out under the auspices of the Church of Sweden. The essay “Religionsundervisningen” written by Fogelklou in 1904 illustrates the conflict between old and new ideas in religious education. Fogelklou quotes a news-item with the headline "Inappropriate subject combination: Christianity – Natural Science”. She points out that the subtitle is a striking illustration of the schism between Christianity and science in the educational debate. The situation was tumultuous and caused uncertainties and risks both for students and for teachers. Fogelklou points out, ironically, that the situation for the students became quite peculiar. What was regarded as truth in one classroom was dismissed as false in the next. However, at the same time new opportunities and promises emerged. From a political point of view, the liberal politician and elementary school teacher Fridtjuv Berg in 1903 suggested that the Lutheran catechism be replaced by non-confessional Christian education (Landahl, 2016, Lindström & Lindmark, 2018). Fogelklou was representative of the elementary school in the debate. In her essay of 1904 she not only identifies certain problems but also presents possible solutions, both regarding subject contents and teaching methods.

     The 1904 essay will serve as the point of departure of the proposed paper. What does Fogelklou criticize and what possible solutions does she address? Another source that will be used is Fogelklou’s essay “Religionsundervisningen än en gång", published in 1919 when the 1919 Elementary School Curriculum was passed in the Parliament. In this publication she comments on the 1919 reform and develops her ideas regarding subject contents and teaching methods for religious education.

      By studying a single women’s contributions to ideas of education, new insights about both educational history and the views of pioneer women teachers can be created. This is true for Sweden as well as other countries. In the article “Reflection on Writing a History of Women Teachers”, historian Kathleen Weiler reflects on the historiography of Country School women in rural California. Weiler emphasizes that women teachers were, for many years, ignored by historians of education. She draws on poststructuralist theory and discusses ”the importance of considering the conditions under which testimony is given”, among other things by referring to how femininity is presented in an authoritarian context (Weiler, 1999). In the proposed paper I will argue that such an approach will contribute to situating the production, recognition and ownership of knowledge in a social context by addressing questions concerning what kind of knowledge is produced by whom and which ideas are canonized while others are not (Foucault, 1993; Scott, 1996; Kerber, 1997).  

Based on an ideational analysis, the methodological tools consist of three generic thought dimensions, that can be reconstructed in VDP-triads: (V); values, value-judgement, how things appears. (D); descriptions and judgements of reality, what is desirable or non-desirable. (P); prescriptions, recommendations or practical proposals for action, (Lindberg, 2018). As an analytical tool I will use different parameters that span between two extremes such as: confessional – non-confessional, theoretical – practical, collectivism – individualism. In the next step the aim is to relate the statements to the political context of the debate. Further my methodological ambition has theoretical implications. It is important in the analysis to take into account the actual structures that oppress women, while emphasizing the woman as an intellectual subject. In gender studies a duality appears. On the one hand the intention is to refute the disparaging of women, and on the other hand, there is a tendency to analyse the individual thinker as a representative of a predetermined gender category at the expense of the individuality of the female subject (Scott, 1996; Carlsson Wetterberg, 2010). This dual approach has been highlighted in previous research: "how to evoke the oppressive structures that maintained a patriarchal order while at the same time affirming that women were not the passive victims of that oppression.” (Rentice, 1991, Theobald, 1991).

Preliminary findings indicate that Fogelklou emphasizes the importance of a non-confessional teaching. Religious education should be objective, ethical and biblical-historical. Students should not be encouraged to believe in a particular belief system. It is more a matter of personal growth, not the belief in itself. Further Fogelklous educational ideals represent a synthesis between theoretical and practical knowledge and student and teacher centred methods. Individual work is also not opposed to cooperation with others. More generally Fogelklou emphasizes the potential of education as a progressive force in the society at large, and in particular for the development of the human being. Fogelklou uses the phrase human education where individual freedom is not about competition, but personal growth. Pupils should develop their creativity and their personal maturity, which is not only beneficial for the individual as a moral being, but also a prerequisite for universal peace.

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