Synen på kristendom en analys av läromedel i religionskunskap
Discourse analysisImage analysisCurriculaSyllabusReligious educationTeaching aidsTextbooksChristianity
The purpose of this thesis is to analyze the perception of Christianity in nine textbooks andidentify changes in-between them and over time. The content of the textbooks will also bediscussed in relation to the steering documents connected to each book.I have chosen to focus on three curriculums, Lgy 70, Lpf 94 and Gy 11. My researchquestions are: how Christianity is treated in textbooks in religious studies in relation to theperception of Jesus, God and man? What are the differences/similarities across time andlearning materials? In what way does the textbooks change with the syllabuses?Text consumption and discursive practices is analyzed with the help of a set of tools thatare based on the critical discourse analysis and Fairclough's three-dimensional model. Theimage of Jesus, if described by a textbook, is also analysed.Three textbooks were chosen from each curricula. In the background, a historicaloverview of the religious education in Sweden is given, the various curricula and theirsyllabuses in religious studies are described. These are then used in the further analysis.The final conclusion is that the context of the different textbooks does not differsignificantly. Christianity has a special status in the textbooks but also in the steeringdocuments. Jesus is presented both as a human and as devine. Two of the older books doesnot describe the Trinity, but the concept is implied. The view on mankind is approximatelysimilar in all the textbooks over time. Mankind is seen as an associate of God and is thedivine image. The human is not perfect, and because of the free will, we can make mistakes.All textbooks expect one correspond very well to the syllabuses. It is difficult to achievethe goals of the syllabuses by only using the textbooks. Still Christianity has a special statusand are given more space in the textbooks compared to the other religions. This is probablybecause Christianity is a part of our cultural legacy.