Johannes Westberg

Funding the Rise of Mass Schooling

The Social, Economic and Cultural History of School Finance in Sweden, 1840 ¿ 1900

• Broschiertes Buch

Produktbeschreibung

This book presents expert analysis on how the remarkable rise of mass schooling was funded during the nineteenth century. Based on rich source materials from rural Swedish school districts, and drawing up evidence from schooling in countries including France, Germany, England and the U.S., Westberg examines the moral considerations that guided economic practices and sheds new light on how the advent of schooling did not only rest upon monies, but also on grains, firewood and cow fodder. Exploring school districts' motives and economic culture, this book shows how schooling was neither primarily guided by frugal impulses nor motivated by a fear of the growing working classes. Instead, school spending served multiple purposes in school districts that pursued a fair and reasonable economic practice.

In addition to being a highly-detailed case study of Sweden 1840 - 1900 this book also entails a broadening of the theoretical horizon of history of education into social, agrarian and economic history in a wider context. With a focus on different systems of school finance, this work reveals a key change over time: from a largely in-kind system supporting schools in an early phase, followed by an increasingly monetarized, depersonalized and homogenized system of school finance. Boasting an interdisciplinary appeal, this will be a welcome contribution of interest to scholars in the fields of education history, sociology, and economics.

Produktdetails

• Verlag: Palgrave Macmillan / Springer International Publishing / Springer, Berlin
• Artikelnr. des Verlages: 978-3-319-82107-8
• Softcover reprint of the original 1st ed. 2017
• Seitenzahl: 260
• Erscheinungstermin: 12. Juli 2018
• Englisch
• Abmessung: 210mm x 148mm x 15mm
• Gewicht: 344g
• ISBN-13: 9783319821078
• ISBN-10: 3319821075
• Artikelnr.: 53571585

Autorenporträt

Johannes Westberg is Professor of Education at Örebro University, Sweden. Since defending his thesis in 2008, Westberg has published widely on the history of early years education and primary schooling. 

Inhaltsangabe

Chapter 1. A Mundane History of School Finance Pieces of a larger puzzle Three issues in the history of school finance A history from below The Swedish setting The rural school districts of Sundsvall Sources and methods The structure of the book
Chapter 2. The Political Will to Levy Local Taxes The school act of 1842 Tackling population growth and long school routes Unfit school buildings and ambulatory schools Economic issues and social status Conclusion
Chapter 3. Pursuing a Fair and Reasonable Economy The management of school districts' affairs A multifaceted economic culture Balancing needs and resources Budgets determined by school spending A "billig" economy The issue of frugality Strategies to increase revenues Conclusion
Chapter 4. The In-kind Economy of Early School Districts An economy of in-kind transactions Taxes in grain, hay and firewood Gifts and boarding arrangements Farmwork and janitorial services The restricted use of account books State subsidies, local taxes and interest payments Conclusion
Chapter 5. An Expanding Monetary Economy An increasingly monetized economy A liberation or a loss? A variety of local monetary taxes Rising state subsidies Loans from banks, funds and individuals Conclusion
Chapter 6. School Funding and Mass Schooling An affordable and flexible in-kind economy The benefits of an in-kind salary The thorny cow fodder question The abolition of cow fodder Damp firewood and other concerns Conflicting regimes of value Conclusion
Chapter 7. Conclusions The political will and economic culture From in-kind to monies The rise of mass schooling School finance and beyond

Rezensionen

"Not only does Westberg illuminate essential dimensions of the process of school funding, but this book is also extremely valuable for its timely reframing of historical research on education that should serve as a useful guide for subsequent scholarship. ... By unearthing the important and neglected practices of school funding in rural Sweden, Westberg has opened up exciting new paths for further research on the rise of mass schooling." (Cristina V. Groeger, History of Education Quarterly, Vol. 58 (2), May, 2018)