PhD scholarship in History Education

The University of Stavanger invites applications for a PhD scholarship in History Education at the Department of Cultural Studies and Languages (IKS), Faculty of Arts and Education.

This is a trainee position that will give promising researchers an opportunity for academic development leading to a doctoral degree.

Appointment is for four years with research and 25% compulsory duties. The position is vacant from 01.08.2018.

The position is in History Education and the appointee will be part of the Future-Pasts Research Group at IKS and of its international network, which focuses on research within History Education, Public History, Uses of History, Critical-Historical Literacy and Cultural Memory Studies. This research group is interested in the study of various forms of uses, representations and understandings of the past articulated by individuals or groups and in the preconditions these representations shape for the future.

Past events are used in public spaces by different actors, individuals and groups, in order to create a collective perception and feeling of past and identity in the present and for the future. In our contemporary world, globalization and digitalization, processes of migration and multiculturalism challenge national canons, well-established historical narratives and history teaching. During the last 20 years, researchers in history education have revealed the existence of a constant ?tension" regarding the role history education has had in different national contexts. In some cases, politicians, historians and other policy makers have argued for an essentialist use of history in education as an arena for the celebration of the national past. Others have kept insisting on the critical role history should have in education focusing on two related approaches: on the one hand, the need for a clear cross-cultural approach rather than approaches focusing simply on national contents; on the other hand, educational methods that promote the development of critical-historical consciousness, historical culture and historical thinking to understand the complex social world we are a part of.

The Future-Pasts Research Group invites applicants to propose a research project that addresses one or several aspects of the following topic:

How to design a meaningful framework for history education and/or history teaching for the 21st century that incorporates complex thinking, experiences of students and transcends the conventional understanding of national canons and narratives of essentialist pasts and identities?

Conceptually, the project should deal with the examination of notions like historical consciousness, historical memory, cultural memory, historical thinking or historical culture in relation with representations or uses of the past (within and/or out of schools).

Thematically, the project could focus on one or more of the following topics: the implementation of innovative teaching methods in history teaching (e.g. historical video games, films, social media, digital resources, etc.) and the development of historical thinking, the study of educational policies/curricula in history and their impact on history teaching, the analysis of teaching resources in history and their relationships to the development of historical literacy, etc. The consideration of comparative and international perspectives in the research project would be considered an advantage.

Template for research proposal is found here.

Applicants must have a strong academic background with a five-year master degree within History Education/Didactics or other relevant fields of research, preferably recently, or possess corresponding qualifications which could provide a basis for successfully completing a doctorate.

Both the grade for the master's thesis and the weighted average grade of the master's degree must individually be equivalent to or better than a B grade.

In evaluating the applicants, emhasis will be placed on their potential for research in the field.

The appointee must be able to work independently and as a member of a team, be creative and innovative.

The appointee must have a good command of both oral and written English.

The resulting PhD degree will qualify for research and teaching positions at University level.

The appointee will be based at the University of Stavanger, with the exception of a stay abroad at a relevant centre of research. 

The research fellow is salaried according to the State Salary Code, l.pl 17.515, code 1017, LR 20, NOK 436.900,- per annum.

The position provides for automatic membership in the Norwegian Public Service Pension Fund, which guarantees favourable retirement benefits. Members may also apply for home investment loans at favourable interest rates.

Project description and further information about the position can be obtained from Professor Alexandre Dessingué, telephone +47 51831380, email alexandre.dessingue@uis.no or from Head of Department Odd Magne Bakke, telephone +47 51832341, email odd.m.bakke@uis.no.

Information about the appointment procedures can be obtained from HR-advisor Janne Halseth, telephone +47 51833525, email janne.halseth@uis.no

The University is committed to a policy of equal opportunity in its employment practices. The University currently employs few female research fellows within this academic field and women are therefore particularly encouraged to apply.

Please register your application in an electronic form on jobbnorge.no. Relevant education and experience must be registered on the form. Research proposal, certificates/diplomas, references, list of publications and other documentation that you consider relevant, should be submitted as attachments to the application as separate files. If the attachments exceed 30 MB alltogether, they will have to be compressed before uploading.