Academic year 2026/2027
Overview
This course engages participants in both the theory, values, educational psychology, and practices of democratizing teaching, learning, and leadership. Participants will learn the principles of adult education, as well as the participatory and collaborative modalities of folkbildning together with tools from restorative pedagogy.
The course also explores how folkbildning, as both a movement and an educational infrastructure, can be adapted to serve the emancipatory needs of different contexts. Special emphasis will be given to questions concerning how to bridge the gap between civic engagement and structures of governance. Together, participants will learn to design collaborative learning environments by adapting and applying learning taxonomies to create learning outcomes that promote the personal integration of knowledge, self-awareness, and the holistic formation of both groups and individuals.
Throughout the course, participants and instructors collaborate to model collegial workflows that tie together the experiences and material learned during the course into the practical skills of designing learning outcomes, course plans, and syllabi that explicitly promote democratic processes.
The aim of the course is to enhance awareness and practices for professional educators, with a particular focus on community building, democratic education, folkbildning, and restorative practices. The course explores dialogue and humility as the foundation for seeking knowledge.
Learning outcomes
Upon completion of the course, the participants are (individually and collectively) expected to be able to:
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- apply democratic educational leadership principles and practices with competence and confidence;
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analyze and adapt folkbildning concepts and methods to diverse local educational contexts;
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implement democratic and collaborative learning approaches effectively in educational settings;
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demonstrate restorative education techniques and practices in teaching and learning environments;
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address diverse educational contexts with cultural sensitivity, including trauma-informed approaches to education; and
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design comprehensive course materials and learning experiences that foster democratic processes and enhance self-awareness at both individual and group levels.
Learning Approach
At Sankt Ignatios Folkhögskola, the overarching principle that guides learning is that all knowledge is intersubjective.
Knowledge is dialogue, which requires humility and empathy.
This course is built on collaborative and dialogical learning where participants actively shape not only their common learning journey but also the course itself. The content, materials, and methods will be adapted in real time based on participants’ needs, interests, and input. Beyond mastering subject matter, a central goal is for each participant to become aware of how shared learning experiences and dialogue transforms their thinking, practice and identity. Through dialogue, narrative, group discussions, shared reflection, creative expression, and collective exploration, participants develop awareness of their own growth while supporting others’ development. The learning community becomes a space where everyone’s experiences and questions not only enrich understanding but actively guide the direction of the course, helping each person to integrate learning into their own life context in meaningful, personally transformative ways.
The Deans Council revised the syllabus on 14 January, 2026.