Cross-Cultural Influences in the Development of Educational Theories

Conveners: Eckhardt Fuchs (University of Mannheim), Klaus-Peter Horn (University of Tübingen), and Christoph Lueth (University of Potsdam)

The planned symposium will be the fourth meeting of the International Standing Working Group on Cross-Cultural Influences in History of Education. After having discussed methods of cross-cultural approaches, networks, and the role of national and international organizations in the cross-cultural history of education at the previous meetings, the Umeå symposium focuses on the transnational transfer of educational theories, their dissemination, and reception as well as on the impact of such transfers on the development of existing and new educational concepts. Central points of discussion shall not only be the reasons, the means, and the actors of this transfer, but also the way in which these theories were received, recontextualized, and implemented in specific theoretical and educational settings. This transfer always took on different forms in different countries, regions, and cultures. The intentions and the results of transfer and reception differed, and these differences reshaped the theories themselves. We encourage proposals that exceed a person-centered perspective, such as Dewey in Russia or Froebel in America, and rather investigate, based on theoretical concepts such as reception theories, the transformation educational theories and concepts undergo while travelling across borders.
We invite you to submit proposals along the lines suggested above. They should include an abstract of the presentation (about 500 words in English) and a short CV of no more than two pages, including a list of relevant publications. The deadline for submissions is November 30, 2005. The chosen applicants will be notified by mid-December.