Exploring Violence(s) in the History of Education

This special issue addresses the broad theme of education and violence. Its overall aim is to contribute to the understanding of different forms, roles, and meanings of symbolic and physical violence and their significance for past educational practices, and at the same time to give theoretical, methodological, and empirical impetus for future studies in this area. By expanding on the concept, or meta-concept, of violence rather than on more common and restricted terms in educational history research such as discipline, punishment, etcetera, the ambition is that this issue will work as a support for a renewed and broadened dialogue of what might or might not be considered as violence in past educational contexts. The following pages of this introduction focus on the phenomenon and concept of violence and position it within educational and educational history research. In doing this, specific attention is paid to common matters of interest expressed throughout the issue. Finally, the benefits of an expanded understanding of physical and non-physical expressions of violence in educational history research are discussed, as well as how the concept of violence might be helpful in such a broadening. However, a presentation will first be given of the individual articles in the issue. Because they speak for themselves, the presentation will be kept brief.