Session at The 27th Congress of Nordic Historians, 11-14 August 2011
The session is hosted by:
Sigriður Mathíasdóttir, Dr. phil., Iceland University
Else Hansen, PhD, seniorreseacher, National Archives, Copenhagen
The universities, together with some other institutions of higher education, were without doubt a most important melting pot for the fundamental changes of western society in demographical, economical, social and cultural respect. They constituted an essential arena for a whole range of the most penetrating issues of the period. As an example of the social currents which manifested themselves at the university may be mentioned the new educational politics, promoted for example by OECD. These politics emphasized the close connection between the level of education of the population and the economic growth of the nation and were most important in justifying the expansion of the universities in the period.
Taking departure in the history of the universities of the Nordic countries, the round-table will have two objectives. First to show how the history of the universities and other institutions for higher education can be used to display and analyze the social changes. Second to look at the proposition that the university history may be used to reexamine the so called ´68 revolution. Examples from the history of universities in Denmark and in Iceland do for example indicate that there was a broader consistency and compatibility between the students on the one hand and the university authorities on the other hand than previously has been denoted
That means that there is a reason to take up and critically look into the picture of the radical students who rose up and, with their individualism and idealism, caused profound changes in a long stagnated university and society. This is not to say that the radical university students did not play an important role in the process. However the student revolution of the 1960´s and 1970's should perhaps be explained to a greater degree in connection to the profound structural transformation and "modernization" of society in the after-war period, socially, culturally and economically based.
Thomas Brandt, dr.art, NTNU, Trondheim, thomas.brandt@ntnu.no
In Trondheim, Norway, the 1968 students' revolt dovetailed with university reform. Despite the reluctance among the local faculty at Norway's Teachers College and the Norwegian Technical College, the Norwegian Parliament decided that these institutions should form the basis of a new university. The process of establishing a new university was steeped in controversy from the beginning. For the first time, students were involved in deciding upon the institutional developments at their college. Along with the mid-level faculty members and the non-academic staff, the students were the winners in the bid over university democracy in Norway. The power of the professors over teaching, research and university government was put under pressure.
Else Hansen, ph.d., seniorforsker, Statens Arkiver, København, eha@ra.sa.dk
Kort efter 1968 blev de danske universiteters interne styrelsesforhold ændret radikalt med Styrelsesloven. Professorerne mistede deres hidtidige dominans, og såvel ikke-professorale lærere som studerende blev optaget i universiteternes styrende organer. Vilkårene for universiteternes styrelse blev tillige påvirket af, at der få år senere blev oprettet nye statslige organer til styring og kontrol af universiteterne.
De ændrede styrelsesforhold på universiteterne er senere blevet forstået som en sejr for 1968's studenteroprør. Studenternes centrale krav "Bryd professorvældet" og "Medbestemmelse nu" blev tilsyneladende indfriet, da Folketinget i 1970 vedtog den borgerlige regerings forslag til en Styrelseslov for universiteterne.
Studenteroprørets krav var imidlertid ikke nye, men havde været diskuteret de forudgående 10-15 år, hvor kravet om et opgør med professorernes dominans ikke kun var blevet fremført af studenterne, men også af borgerlige politikere og teknokratiske embedsmænd.
Efter 1968 ønskede både studenter og politikere at udfylde magt-tomrummet efter de detroniserede professorer.
Oplæggets tese vil være, at ikke blot studenteroprøret i 1968, men også de forudgående års diskussioner og forandringer på universiteterne påvirkede de nye styrelsesforhold.
Sigriður Mathíasdóttir, dr. phil., Iceland University, sigma@hi.is
In the history of the Icelandic University, few periods are as consequential as the period or decade from ca. 1965-1975/6. Until then the primary role of the University had been to train professionals, providing education for Icelandic doctors, lawyers and clergymen, and to emphasize education in the so called Norse or Icelandic Studies. Since around 1940 this range had been changing and from the mid 60s, it began to undergo a fundamental change. The school was thus expanding into a different and much larger institution, with a broader emphasis, providing a basic education in most subjects. The number of students increased rapidly (from around 850 students in 1965 to 2.200 students in 1975). Moreover, the University was restructured with the introduction of new departments and faculties, such as the Faculty of Natural Science in 1966, the Department of General Sociology 1970 and, finally, the Faculty of Social Sciences in 1976.
The leaders of the University at the time faced various difficulties at this time, such as chronic lack of funds and financing and the problems of inadequate facilities. At the same time they were also struggling with raising the scientific standards of the University. These problems unavoidably marked the activities of the institution, which generally had to face severe critics from different sides.
In my paper I will discuss the hypothesis that, in several important cases at the University of Iceland, especially in the late 1960s, it is not possible to distinguish clearly between the critics of the students on one hand and the professors and rector on the other hand. It is more accurate to say that the University as an institution was scrutinized from different sides. Students expressed themselves differently and had in many ways a different world view. Criticism was however not only expressed by them but also by the representatives of the University itself as its rector and some of the professors. I will thus for example ask the question if the radical waves of the late 1960s served as a general incentive for criticism in order to try to reach the ears of the government and other instances in power, and subsequently for change?
Fredrik W. Thue, Universitetet i Oslo, f.w.thue@iakh.uio.no
"Studentopprøret" ved Universitetet i Oslo begynte som en radikalisering av studentenes politiske offentlighet. Det "nye venstre" var i utgangspunktet ikke kritisk vendt mot universitetene, men mot den kapitalistiske og imperialistiske verdensorden, med Vietnamkrigen som et avgjørende brennpunkt. Først fra 1968/69 ble de nymarxistiske analysene vendt mot universitetene selv, især gjennom "kampen mot Ottosenkomiteen", en regjeringsoppnevnt komité som foreslo omfattende reformer i hele det høyere utdanningsvesenet etter liknende modell som bl.a. den såkalte U-68 i Sverige.
Det norske studentopprøret rettet seg i det hele tatt mer mot statsmakten enn mot professorene, som i 1960-årene viste betydelig reformvilje og allerede var i ferd med å gjennomføre dyptgripende demokratiske reformer på eget initiativ. Spissformulert kan det hevdes at universitetets strukturelle problemer som følge av den forserte veksten i 1960-årene bare i liten grad var direkte "årsak" til studentopprøret. Derimot var det ved universitetene og især i den tilhørende studentoffentligheten at studentopprøret fikk sine mest dramatiske virkninger.
I dette foredraget vil jeg drøfte disse virkningene med vekt på fire ulike sfærer: den allmennpolitiske, den universitetspolitiske, den vitenskapelige og den studentkulturelle. En hovedtese vil være at det var en betydelig diskrepans mellom studentopprørernes selvforståelse og ideologiske målsettinger på den ene side, og de faktiske virkninger av deres handlinger og "diskurser" på den andre.
