Evidence-Based Policy Making: A Catalyst in Nordic Education Reform Work

• In Event: Global Education Policy: Evidence, Competencies and Interpretations

Proposal

In recent years, evidence-based policymaking has gained significant momentum within the international education agenda. Ongoing discussions address both the use of evidence and the potential for actors to collaborate in producing relevant knowledge. To advance this goal, policymakers invite researchers and other experts to participate in reform efforts. How these actors engage and provide knowledge, and the extent to which their involvement acts as an institutional catalyst for change, remains an empirical question.
This study aims to compare contemporary reform policies in Nordic education and explore how the knowledge contributions of involved actors shape the narrative of the Nordic education model. It draws on a dataset from the comprehensive research project POLNET (Policy Knowledge and Lesson Drawing in Nordic School Reform in an Era of International Comparison) (Karseth et al., 2022). The paper analyzes citation clusters within 38 policy documents from five Nordic countries, authored and referenced by state authorities between 2002 and 2017. By counting and comparing the frequency of references to specific types of knowledge sources in parliamentary papers (White Papers) and public inquiry commissions (Green Papers), the paper examines whether and how these citation clusters reflect the "Nordic model" as a guiding narrative, based on authorship and publisher location. Additionally, it seeks to explain why the countries differ in their reflection of the Nordic education model’s key features.
The paper begins by describing the Nordic education model as a narrative, with public welfare services being a defining feature of the nation-states (Eide, 1992). It provides background information on the development of the education systems into public institutions across northern Europe (Esping-Andersen & Korpi, 1986). Four institutional features, representing different conceptualizations of the purpose, organization, and governance of the model, are then presented:
1. Education as a reflection of various academic professions, emphasizing their right to self-governance based on their substantive knowledge.
2. Education as an institution serving state/national goals and adhering to formal procedures.
3. Education as a "bargaining democracy," where local communities make decisions based on citizens’ interests.
4. Education as an instrument for achieving external goals, embedded in competitive markets.
These four dimensions, grounded in political sociology (Olsen, 2007), serve as analytical lenses to compare how Nordic nation-states adopt and adapt evidence-based policy, and how this process influences the evolving narrative of the Nordic model.
The Nordic countries provide ideal cases for a comparative study of how education policy operates and adapts in conjunction with evidence-based approaches. Comparing the five cases and their reference practices offers a unique opportunity to understand the institutional logics of reform and their normative preferences for engaging experts and drawing on various knowledge sources.
The Nordic dataset highlights significant variations in how policymakers across the region use evidence to inform education reform. Norway’s reliance on sector research from community-based institutions reflects both a regulative and local community-based approach, while Finland emphasizes government documents alongside regulative and professional expertise. Sweden’s strong preference for referencing its own government publications underscores a more regulative orientation. Iceland supports a community-based approach, while Denmark, leaning towards a combination of a community and an instrumental approach, that draws heavily on international sources such as OECD knowledge. These differences reveal distinct institutional logics and preferences for how evidence is mobilized, shedding light on the diverse ways in which the Nordic countries navigate the balance between national traditions and international influences in education policy.
Ultimately, this comparative analysis demonstrates that evidence-based policymaking plays a nuanced role in shaping the narrative of the Nordic education model, with each country adapting it in ways that reflect its own institutional priorities and governance structures. By examining these citation patterns, the study provides valuable insights into the changing landscape of education policy in the Nordic region, and the evolving role of evidence and expertise in guiding reform efforts.
References
Eide, K. (1992). The future of European education as seen from the North. Comparative Education, 28(1), 9-17.
Esping-Andersen, G., & Korpi, W. (1986). From poor relief to institutional welfare states: the development of scandinavian social policy. International Journal of Sociology, 16(3-4), 39-74.
Karseth, B., Sivesind, K., & Steiner-Khamsi, G. (Eds.). (2022). Evidence and Expertise in Nordic Education Policy. A Comparative Network Analysis. Palgrave McMillan.
Olsen, J. P. (2007). The institutional dynamics of the European university. In University Dynamics and European Integration (pp. 25-54). Springer.

Authors

• Kirsten Sivesind, Universitetet i Oslo

• Berit Karseth, University of Oslo