The Ten Commandments

Diskussion
of Good Practices in History
of Education Research
(Red.) Hermeneutik wurde im 19. Jahrhun- as well as, on the basis of what I have published in
dert als Methode definiert, um den akade- several theoretical, methodological, and historio-
graphical articles. I have called these guidelines, set
misch in Bedrängnis geratenen Geisteswis-
down concisely in the form of propositions, some-
senschaften wissenschaftlichen Charakter zu what provocatively «ten commandments» in the
verleihen. Später geriet die Idee des Geistes hope of stimulating a fruitful discussion. You can
in Verdacht und wurde durch das Konzept find these «commandments» as such at the begin-
ning of the article.
des Diskurses ersetzt, dessen methodische
Erforschung nun die Diskursanalyse war. Proposition #1
Marc Depaepe erinnert jenseits dieser um- The history of education is history
fassenden Ansprüche daran, dass Forschung

H
istorical research, including research into
auch ein Handwerk ist, das sich besser an
the history of education, can be nothing
ein paar Regeln hält. Als Professor einer ka- other than «historical». That is by far not so
tholischen Universität formuliert er diese obvious as it may appear. Since the history of edu-
Regeln in Form von Geboten und stellt sie in cation arose in the late 19th century in educational
training institutes, its objectives were far from the
dem virtuellen Konzil unterschiedlichster Ex-
purely historical. History was used primarily for
ponenten der internationalen Bildungsge- practical educational purposes, such as drawing in-
schichte zur Diskussion. spiration and motivation from the examples of the
past, as well as theoretical purposes, for example,
n Marc Depaepe by providing ideas and conceptions to be used as
building blocks for a contemporary theory of edu-
1. Thou shalt remember that the history of educa- cation. This «educationalizing» dealing with history
tion is history; led to a kind of «historical pedagogy» [histoire de
2. Thou shalt write about the educational past; la pédagogie], conceived as history of educational
3. Thou shalt not fret excessively about present- thought and ideas, and being marginalized in the
ism; institutional field with respect to cultural and social
4. Thou shalt not write a history of the present, historical research. Historians, therefore, generally
nor for the present; looked down on the history of education and left it
5. Thou shalt discourse about discourses; to «pedagogues», with the exception of the history
6. Thou shalt demythologize former narratives and of universities, history of science, and/or history of
discourses about the history of education; knowledge, certainly when it concerned the history
7. Thou shalt interpret multi-perspectively; of primary and pre-school education. Over the last
8. Thou shalt develop theoretical and conceptual few decades, research in the history of education
frameworks from within the history of educa- has become noticeably more «historical», but the
tion; differentiations and tensions in the field – often the
9. Thou shalt strive for pure wisdom within the result of factors external to the science, such as the
context of a cultural approach; striving for prestige, status, and power – have, nev-
10. Thou shalt teach people and especially teachers ertheless, continued. That several historians have
in that spirit. been employed over the years in educational insti-
tutes has, ultimately, not changed very much. More-
Explanation over, being an historian, as such, offers no guaran-
tee at all for the quality of the research nor would

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t the request of the editors, I am stating here it be a conditio sine qua non for it. Good research is
briefly what are, for me, the most impor- assessed not so much by the a priori qualifications
tant rules of thumb of good practices in the of the researcher but rather by the results. And they
history of education research. This I am doing on are generally related to the meaningfulness of a
the basis of my many years of research experience well-nuanced statement of the question, which, by

ZpH Jg. 16 (2010), H. 1

31
 means of its possible operationalization in complex fault. Rather, it is the inevitable condition with
Diskussion
sub-questions, is best dealt with in an interdiscipli- which the history of education researcher has had
nary team. to learn to live with. Obviously, we always look back
to the past from the present, that is to say, from our
Proposition #2 biologically but also our culture historically, sociolo-
Its content is the educational past gically, psychologically rooted position. But that
does not alter the fact that it remains our task to

W
hat is «educational» in the educational avoid as much as possible the presentistic and per-
historiography – a term I prefer, also in spectivistic pitfalls that the «viewpoint» from which
line with the name of this journal, to the we look at the past inevitably involves. As resear-
old-fashioned «historical pedagogy» (which could chers into the educational past, we may not let our-
be erroneously read as the striving for an educa- selves be led or seduced by the desire to score
tional theory or practice on the basis of history) – is points.
thus not so much the research method but the con-
tent of the specialty. The material object (to express Proposition #4
it in the already somewhat older history of science History of education must avoid being a
terminology) of our discipline obviously concerns history «of» the present, let alone «for» the
the educational past (while the formal object – see present
proposition 1 – is precisely «historical» in nature).

I
But since that past took place in a broader social n order to be able to understand history, it must,
context, the researcher may also not be blind to first of all, be contextualized within its own time.
these wider social and cultural contexts. Education And this voyage of discovery into the past as-
is, as a social institution, interwoven in so many sumes, just like that into a foreign culture, a will-
ways with the ideological (by the values, norms, im- ingness to dialogue with the culture of that past.
ages of man) and intellectual (by the knowledge Admittedly, from the present, frameworks of con-
transmission but also by the production of knowl- cepts and diverse conceptual keys have to be devel-
edge and science about education), that collabora- oped with which the past can be interpreted and
tion of educators and historians often does not understood. But that is not yet the same as wanting
even suffice to chart all this adequately. In the Flem- to write a history that interferes with the present
ish interuniversity research team (Leuven, Ghent, and, as the orthodox Foucauldian model seems to
and Kortrijk), which I have been allowed to lead up prescribe, explicitly has intention of wanting to
to now, there was, therefore, place for researchers hazard our own way of being in the present. Inten-
of all sorts: historians, art historians, jurists, educa- tionally writing in function of the present implies
tional experts, philosophical pedagogues (or phi- not only the danger of dealing «educationally»
losophers by training), orthopedagogues (special with the past – for it would ultimately again be di-
educationalists), anthropologists, theologians, soci- dactic or pedagogical (see Proposition 1) – but also
ologists, psychologists, philologists, cultural and that of wearing blinders. The dialogical relation
even sports scientists. But even that is not a suffi- with the past intended here, proper to every «histo-
cient condition for good research. Above all, one riographical operation» (de Certeau) wants precise-
must avoid shortsightedness and particularism in ly, in my opinion, to let the past be fully the past.
the starting questions. It is not good when the re-
searcher or researchers are overly involved in the Proposition #5
subject of the study. To my mind, a movement, an History of education is, like every history, a
institution, a stock of ideas is difficult to map his- discourse about discourses
torically if the author is a participant. At the very

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least, a little distance is necessary to be able to look ith it, injustice is not necessarily done to
at the past critically. Ultimately, this also applies in what Foucault has meant for history in
relation to time. It does not seem sensible to me to general and for the historiography of
want to take each historical study up to the present, education in particular. Quite the contrary. By draw-
for then contemporary educators, believers, and ing attention with him to the linguistic aspects of
the proponents as well as their respective antago- the historiographical operation (what linguistic ide-
nists, will inevitably feel threatened. as and concepts really mean, how they arise and
evolve, to what the modes they are subject, what
Proposition #3 power relations they imply, and so on), it becomes
Presentism is not a methodological «sin» clear not only that history is, above all, a narrative
but rather an unavoidable condition of re- science but that it also possesses its own discursive
search in the history of education power. It is, often unconsciously, the bearer of a
message, the externalization of a social, political, or

T
his is not to say that «presentism» – as con- ideological striving. History is not, as the 19th cen-
tended in the first wave of American revisio- tury empiricism and historicism wanted to present
nism of the early 1960s – is a methodological it, a reconstruction of how it «really» was but the

32 ZpH Jg. 16 (2010), H. 1

endless construction of new, contemporary stories this aside for the moment. In order to expand the

Diskussion
about the past. And as the present changes, these interpretation possibilities of the researchers, it is
stories are unavoidably filled in differently. Each advisable for them to take up as many diverse
generation has the task, with all of the means at its standpoints as possible in the study of the past. Dif-
disposal (sources, literature, interpretation methods ferent «ways of seeing» can lead to multi-layered
and techniques, historical criticism) of producing frameworks of interpretation. Such a change of
from the contemporary position the best story perspective, moreover, not only yields to an episte-
about the past and that obviously implies the «de- mological necessity – our knowledge is necessarily
construction» of the existing, often worn-out sto- limited by its perspectivism – but also witnesses to
ries about history. In this sense, the Sisyphean labor intellectual maturity (if, for example, we may be-
of the historical enterprise is always also a little rel- lieve the developmental psychology of Piaget). All
ativizing, sobering, and often even humiliating. of this ultimately seems so obvious that no learned
treatises need to be written about it. The method-
Proposition #6 ology of historical research is, perhaps even more
Therefore, demythologizing seems to be a than that of other approaches, pre-eminently that
never-ending task in the history of educa- of commonsense. Here, too, applies the adage that
tion the best proof of the quality of the pudding is in
the eating.

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ith the deconstruction of existing stories
about history, dearly cherished myths Proposition #8
about the past are inevitably destroyed. The interpretative qualities of the research
Historical research is, therefore, always a little dis- may be improved by developing theoretical
turbing because it supposes a critical dealing with and conceptual frameworks from within the
what is past. Historical researchers not only pose history of education
awkward questions to the comfortable interpreta-

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tions of the present but they also ultimately show ather than continuing to produce countless
that, in the framework of the behavioral sciences, articles on the nature of research in the his-
there is little reason for triumphalism. In contrast to tory of education, it seems to me to be im-
the unchallenged assumptions from contemporary portant that the interpretative qualities of it be en-
disciplines, which, in their own historical reflections, hanced through a greater degree of theoretical
generally freeze at a kind of «preface history», that awareness. Generally speaking, research into the
is, at a history that presents the development of history of education is still often characterized by a
their won conceptual structures as continuous high degree of description of facts. Which need not
progress, the history of educational thought and of surprise us, for the idiosyncratic and the special na-
the educational sciences shows that the route the ture of certain developments inevitably attract the
past has taken took very many inconsequential de- attention. Still, a certain striving for theory forma-
tours. And that not all of the roads taken have pro- tion about the structural processes that occurred in
duced boundless improvements. Historical research- the history of education is called for. In certain cases
ers are not the best speakers at jubilees or celebra- – as in Latin America, for example – this theoretical
tions because they do not at all say what the party awareness is there more or less, but for the theo-
goers or guests of honor want to hear. It is for this retical models used, it is all too easily plucked out of
reason that they are also readily seen and/or la- the existing history of science and cultural historical
beled as foulers of their own nests. interpretations that have come about outside of
the domain of education. This generally leads to
Proposition #7 very rough generalizations whereby the empirical
The most important aim of the history of material amassed has only to serve to «prove» the
education remains interpretation, but inter- value of those coarse-grained models (such as, for
pretation from a multi-perspective point of example, the Foucauldian normalization paradigm).
view What the need requires, I would hold, is the pro-
duction of more fine-grained explanatory models

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s such, the educational historiography does on the history of education from within: specific in-
not want to judge, let alone to condemn terpretative schemas that are not at all intended to
the past. Its primary task is and remains the serve as manuals for contemporary interventions
interpretation of what has occurred in that past, but to introduce more structure (and thereby more
not to call the actors from that past to account, to insight) into the chaos of the educational past.
accuse them, or to make them look ridiculous, or
whatever, but to be able to have their thinking and
doing better understood. Moreover, this under-
standing is a necessary condition for being able to
«forgive» any «errors» from the past – consider, for
example, damaging ideological choices – but I leave

ZpH Jg. 16 (2010), H. 1

33
 Proposition #9 Proposition #10
Diskussion
The added value of such a history of educa- Nevertheless, such a (cultural) history of
tion consists of nothing more than pure wis- education has a place in the education of
dom – there are no concrete lessons to be people in general and in the training of
drawn from the educational past teachers in particular

S T
uch a history of education does not envision he argument that counts in our neo-liberal
wagging a finger or providing moralizing wis- society is one of economic profitability and
dom. It ignores the strict performance de- utility. This makes the position of cultural his-
mands of professional educators and teachers and torical research, and also education itself, particu-
is, therefore, difficult to be trapped into learning larly difficult. Investing in it does not yield immedi-
objectives, final educational objectives, develop- ately visible results, certainly not in the terms of
mental objectives, and the like that are to be deter- practical utility or professional advantage. Still, the
mined and operationalized beforehand. Its surplus historical approach and way of thinking are far
value is situated on another, a higher, more ab- from superfluous for our society. It makes itself into
stract, and, de facto also more individual level. The a possible dam against the terror of the immediate-
history of education shows in its research not only ly useful. Historical research, also in the historiogra-
the relativity of the often overblown rhetoric with phy of education, transcends the shortsightedness
respect to the «educational» but also provides im- of our own time by making it clear that this prevail-
petus to deal with generally complex, sometimes ing drive for utility is an element of the long-term
paradoxical or ironic, and often problematic out- process of modernization and thereby, at the very
comes of the past. The problem is that it is difficult least, holds the door open for a critical corrective
to strive intentionally for this advance in learning, that could consist of the cultivation of the culture
the penalty being making history something other of the non-utilitarian. Whereby history itself will
than history. For when history is placed in front of demonstrate the extent to which this wish does or
the cart of one or another ideological, political, or does not belong to the realm of illusion.
educational program, it ceases to be history.

The gospel according to St Marc

• Gary McCulloch

M
arc Depaepe’s «ten commandments» of time.» There are some historians who have taken
good practices in history of education re- such a view, but there are many others who have
search are, despite appearances, not tab- not and do not, and there is a great deal of impor-
lets of stone but rather the historical gospel accord- tant and good historical work that examines the
ing to St Marc. There is much wise counsel here with recent and contemporary past up to the present. In
which I am happy to agree, but I would be tempted Proposition #5 Depaepe insists that «History is not,
to take issue and try to develop a number of points as the 19th century empiricism and historicism want-
further, including the idea of «history» that he com- ed to present it, a reconstruction of how it ‹really›
mends as well as the potential contribution of the was but the endless construction of new, contem-
history of education. porary stories about the past.» Here, though, there
I support Proposition #1, that the history of edu- is much debate among historians about the nature
cation is history, but this in itself only takes us so far of historical truth and explanation, and Depaepe is
because there are many types of history and a large posing the issue only in terms of the more extreme
number of approaches to it. Depaepe does not and opposing viewpoints. Proposition #9 asserts
clearly define what he means by history, but his that «when history is placed in front of the cart of
preferences become evident at several stages in the one or another ideological, political, or educational
argument. Some of these are fairly commonplace, program, it ceases to be history»; again this would
but others are disputed, and when put alongside be disputed by many historians.
each other they form a rather curious mixture. In other cases, Depaepe’s notions of history are
One of the assertions made by Depaepe about fairly conventional but do not seem to link very
the nature of history would be criticized by many clearly to his argument as a whole. Proposition #4
historians. For example, under Proposition #2 he suggests that «In order to be able to understand
notes that: «To my mind, a movement, an institu- history, it must, first of all, be contextualized within
tion, a stock of ideas is difficult to map historically if its own time. And this voyage of discovery into the
the author is a participant. At the very least, a little past assumes … a willingness to dialogue with the
distance is necessary to be able to look at the past culture of the past.» This «dialogical relation with
critically. Ultimately, this also applies in relation to the past» would indeed I think be widely endorsed

34 ZpH Jg. 16 (2010), H. 1

among historians, but not all would agree that it Geoffrey Elton. On the other hand, his enthusiasm

Diskussion
necessarily implies an avoidance of the present. for the endless construction of new, contemporary
Proposition #6 notes that historical research sup- stories about the past suggests a flirtation with
poses a «critical dealing» with what is past, leading postmodernist critiques of traditional history. Such
to «deeply cherished myths about the past» being divergences heighten a general impression of eclec-
destroyed; again this is a fair point about history, ticism in the overall account.
although it does not necessarily follow from Propo- Depaepe’s «ten commandments» deploy history
sition #5 despite the use of the word «therefore» to not as an analytical and methodological framework
introduce it. Under Proposition #7, Depaepe argues so much as a rhetorical device that provides a stick
that «The methodology of historical research is, and a carrot for historians of education. It is a stick
perhaps even more than that of other approaches, to provide warnings and chastisement, and a carrot
pre-eminently that of commonsense.» In this case, to raise hopes of redemption. The original sin here
Depaepe is echoing many historians who have been is the tradition of «historical pedagogy». It seems
somewhat impatient with methodology, but hardly that the history of education was tempted to stray
takes the argument forward in a reasoned manner. from the path of righteousness and has been wan-
Finally, in Proposition #10, the historical approach dering in the wilderness ever since, further under-
and way of thinking are held up as «a possible dam mined by the associated sins of «the striving for
against the terror of the immediately useful», which prestige, status, and power». Apparently also we
Depaepe argues is prevalent today. This view would are «led or seduced by the desire to score points».
be shared by many other historians, although it These are strictures that suggest a necessity for us
does not seem to follow comfortably from Proposi- to atone for the sins of our ancestors and to live
tion #9 which holds that the history of education down our past if we are to be admitted into the
should not «envision wagging a finger or providing promised land. In reality, they are evidence of emo-
moralizing wisdom». tional scarring in a field of study that is driven by
Depaepe’s constructions of history when put to- insecurities about its identity and its future direc-
gether in this way do not appear particularly coher- tion.
ent or consistent, and should certainly not be ac- I would prefer less of the sackcloth and ashes,
cepted as representing history as a settled body of and a more inclusive vision. If there is much in our
knowledge or understanding. It is important for us history as a field that might be criticized, we might
to remember that the nature of history is problem- also point to its successes and achievements, of
atic and contested, and that in appealing to history which there are many. We could also remind our-
we should as historians of education be prepared to selves that there is a grand tradition in the history
engage in the arguments around it. The more of education that reaches across the diverse con-
standard notions of history that Depaepe puts for- stituencies of education, history and the social sci-
ward are also not entirely of a piece with each oth- ences. This might indicate a common and integrat-
er and do not always follow logically from each ed mission for our field, with a potential to contrib-
other. Moreover, his more contentious claims are in ute to education, history and the social sciences
one respect on the conservative wing of current his- alike, rather than divergent and competing paths
torical thinking and in another way on the radical or frameworks. Depaepe does a passable impres-
fringe. His stern warnings about separating the past sion of Moses or Isaiah, but surely it is time for the
from the present echo the stentorian tones of old- history of education to move on to a New Testa-
fashioned types such as the English Tudor historian ment.

Do we need commandments?
• Rebecca Rogers

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s I began to read Marc Depaepe’s «Ten Com- discourse about discourses whose interpretation re-
mandments», my first reaction was to won- quires a multi-perspective point of view? As I pon-
der whether such assertions were really nec- dered these different propositions, however, and
essary. Commandments suggest crisis, a need for especially as I moved toward the final three, my
guidance, the sign of a beleaguered subfield, seek- puzzled expression gradually dissipated. I had, to
ing legitimacy. Do we need to be reminded that the an extent, seen the light. Not perhaps the light of
history of education is history, and that the content God, but rather, I saw the usefulness of the exercise.
of this history concerns the educational past? Do To understand my puzzlement and ensuing illumi-
we need to be reassured that concern for the nation a few words of context are necessary.
present is unavoidable, but that our task is not to When I began my graduate work in Paris in 1982,
study the present? Do we need to be told that the I saw myself as an apprentice historian, interested
history of education, like all forms of history, is a in education, working on the educational past of

ZpH Jg. 16 (2010), H. 1

35
 19th-century French girls. If I was aware of com- their past and that education plays an important
Diskussion
mandments, they were not these. Instead, I felt role in that relationship.
more or less consciously, the weight of a specific his- As a result, many famous French historians have
toriographic tradition and a specific moment: that devoted part of their careers to aspects of the his-
of the Annales school and its social historical meth- tory of education. François Furet worked on the his-
od. Thou shalt quantify, certainly guided me in my tory of literacy, Mona Ozouf has written extensively
initial years in the archives. And, then, as cultural about the Republican school, and Pierre Nora has
history assumed a greater sway: thou shalt not for- done much to write educational figures and educa-
get individuals. Thou shalt question identities. tional texts into the grand narrative of French his-
When I went on the job market in the United States, tory. Moreover, well known historians of education
newly clothed as a woman’s historian, I added: Thou have made their mark on the profession as a whole.
shalt compare girls with boys. When I moved back Antoine Prost, probably best known as a specialist
to France to teach European history at a French uni- in education, is the author of Douze Leçons pour
versity, I changed my historical clothes back to that l’histoire, that like Depaepe’s commandments, seeks
of the historian of education. My reasons for doing to distill for students the rules of the profession
so speak a great deal to my initial puzzlement read- (Prost 1996). When I first started teaching the his-
ing «The Ten Commandments of Good Practices in tory of education in a French history department, I
History of Education Research». felt no need to justify the subject of my class, no
In the United States in the 1990s, women’s and need to apologize or defend. In short, initially, I felt
gender history was all the rage. I quickly learned no need to have recourse to commandments spe-
North American academics found women’s history cific to the history of education. Increasingly, how-
far more sexy than the history of education. Best ever, I referred to Prost’s lessons, recognizing many
then to recognize identities are multiple and adopt students were not in fact very clear that history is in
the one that provoked interest and debate. Back in fact the product of historians, «an endless construc-
France, I discovered a very different institutional tion of new, contemporary stories about the past,»
and academic environment. Most scholars politely as Depaepe writes.
ignored the existence of women’s and gender his- Why then my sense of illumination reading these
tory, and the word «genre» in association with his- ten propositions? Why think seriously about the
tory provoked mere puzzlement. Gender was gram- specificity of our task as historians of education to-
matical not an analytical category to all but a few. day in 2010? I would argue that institutional posi-
Far better then to speak of my interest in education tioning provides a powerful incentive to defend a
in a country that still basks in the achievements of method and a positioning with respect to the
the Third Republic educational reformers. All French present. My move from teaching in an American
schoolchildren learn who Jules Ferry was and be- department of history to a French department of
lieve he created the conditions for a democratic so- history taught me a great deal about the politics of
ciety thanks to free, secular, and obligatory school- subfields within history. Ironically perhaps, the
ing. I can’t think of a single educational reformer French disinterest or disdain for women’s history is
whose initiatives made their way into my conscious- what caused me over the past ten years to reclaim
ness during my schooling in the United States, and that label more and more; my own writing about
there is no associated conviction that democracy theory, method and historiography has been very
begins with access to public education. focused on defending women’s and gender history
Claiming authority as a historian of education in since this continues to be a battle for legitimacy
France positioned me in a grand tradition. When (see Rogers 2007). So while I felt no need for com-
Pierre Nora published the imposing collection of es- mandments teaching the history of education, the
says about French Lieux de Mémoire, the first vol- opposite was true for women’s history.
ume on the Republic devoted an entire section to But I now teach in an education department, the
«pedagogy», with articles by some of the most lone historian among sociologists, philosophers,
prominent French historians of the time. Nora con- psychologists, anthropologists, or colleagues trained
tributed two essays, about the historian and text- in the «sciences de l’éducation», as the French have
book writer Ernest Lavisse and Ferdinand Buisson’s baptized the group of academics who work on edu-
dictionary of pedagogy, while Jacques and Mona cation. I quickly realized this new setting, and the
Ozouf interpreted the classic Republican textbook, disciplinary uncertainties that characterized this
La Tour de la France par deux enfants (Nora setting, required new teaching practices. It’s from
1984a+b; Ozouf/Ozouf 1984). Later volumes about this positioning that I now wish to reexamine why
the Nation pursued this interest in objects of the we might very well need commandments to guide
educational past, be they textbook classics, the us as scholars and teachers.
khâgne (the preparatory programs to enter the For the first time in my academic life, I find my-
grandes écoles), or once again Lavisse as author of self teaching exclusively the history of education.
L’Histoire de France (Nora 1986; Milo 1986; Sirinelli For students studying education in my department,
1986). A cursory perusal of these volumes makes history is a minor field, represented only by me.
very clear the French have a visceral relationship to Moreover, it is a field that is disturbingly unmeth-

36 ZpH Jg. 16 (2010), H. 1

odological compared to sociology and psychology. Simon 1987). I read about systematization and seg-

Diskussion
Grounded in a commitment to empirical research, I mentation with considerable interest at the time,
adhere to Marc Depaepe’s vision when he describes because aspects of these theoretical frameworks
a methodology of «common sense»; I frequently re- helped to make sense of broad changes in educa-
fer in my classes to the historian as artisan, as Marc tional systems in the past. But ultimately I did not
Bloch argued, or indeed the historian as poacher find these frameworks particularly useful in my own
(thinking of de Certeau). But for students seeking work on the emergence of a secondary school sys-
Science and method in their study of educational tem for girls in France. Or rather, I borrowed aspects
phenomenon, this plea for common sense often of their framework, along with frameworks elabo-
does not make sense to them. Increasingly, I have rated in other scholarly contexts and argued that
realized I need to be far more clear about what his- this theoretical bricolage helped me make sense of
tory is and its relationship with time. In this case, my empirical material. Ultimately, however, the in-
however, my concerns are related to teaching his- formed reader of my latest book certainly sees more
tory, not specifically the history of education. traces of scholarship on gender, and the enduring
For these un-historically minded students, how- influence of Foucault and Bourdieu than of seg-
ever, there are a number of problems related spe- mentation or systematization.
cifically to education that make certain of Depaepe’s More generally, it strikes me that the areas of re-
commandments highly useful. Most arrive in my search that fall under the title «history of educa-
class with a set of convictions about the history of tion» are so diverse, including such objects as child-
education in France imbibed at the bottle, so to hood, schools, teachers, academic disciplines, text-
speak. Notably they cherish a belief in the republi- books, extracurricular organizations, adult educa-
can myth the school has done much to construct: tion, that I wonder what theoretical framework
Jules Ferry as champion of the people, liberating forged within the history of education could possi-
schooling from the tyranny of religious ideology; bly offer the structure Depaepe argues for in our
universal schooling and meritocracy as the key to efforts to make sense of the «chaos of the educa-
France’s grandeur. Their ability to read this histori- tional past». If Müller, Ringer and Simon attracted
cal narrative as interpretation is limited, at best. attention at the time, it is because their object of
Oddly, many have no problem repeating the lessons analysis was restricted to a specific time period,
of Bourdieu’s sociology of education alongside a 1870–1920, and to a specific level of education, the
portrayal of an inegalitarian past over which the secondary school system. Can one really imagine ex-
Third Republic triumphed some 130 years ago, planatory models forged within the history of edu-
thanks to its educational reformers. Although I cation that would serve broadly the needs of our
strive in my lessons to demythologize this vision, very diverse constituencies as both scholars and stu-
most of my students still desperately need to recite dents?
commandment number six: thou shalt demytholo- This goal might be justified, I think, if we were to
gize former narratives and discourses about the his- add an eleventh commandment to the list: thou
tory of education. shalt resolutely compare. Boys and girls (of course),
Teaching in an education department with schol- but also across national borders, between metropole
ars and students mostly interested in the present and colony, between able and disabled, young and
also brings home daily the necessary distance from old, poor and rich, black and white. The need for
the present which was much less apparent in a his- comparison, which is inherent to the exercise of his-
tory department. So, for those of us in education tory, emerges most clearly, I believe, in teaching
departments or teacher-training institutions these when the need to make sense of complexity be-
commandments make good sense, as they remind comes a form of categorical imperative. Certainly, it
us of the ideological power of educational systems is in the classroom that I find myself most conscious-
and the need to unmask the working of this power ly reaching for explanatory models that will enable
in our teaching and scholarship. students to anchor overwhelming quantities of in-
My final remarks would like to move beyond formation to some sort of interpretive framework.
good sense, questioning what Depaepe means Through comparison, I find students often under-
when he calls for the development of theoretical stand more clearly; without comparison, including
and conceptual frameworks from within the history with the present, they tend to flounder, particularly
of education, and then suggesting the addition of when their background and interests are not really
one more commandment that might usefully guide historical. In proposing this final commandment I
us as researchers and teachers. Since I believe firmly realize I am not exactly breaking new ground. Back
that the history of education is history, I wonder in 1903 the sociologist and economist François Simi-
what fine-grained explanatory models he envisions and, published a famous article Méthode historique
that would be specific to the history of education. et science sociale where he wrote: «seule la com-
This makes me think, for example, of the effort paraison rend la détermination et le classement
made over thirty years ago by Detlef Müller, Fritz praticable et l’intelligence possible» (Simiand
Ringer and Brian Simon to provide such models 1903/1987, p. 146). Common sense perhaps, but
with respect to secondary education (Müller/Ringer/ sometimes common sense bears repeating.

ZpH Jg. 16 (2010), H. 1

37
 In France today, as the government dismantles References
Diskussion
teacher training and the future of «les sciences de Milo, Daniel: Les classiques solaires. In: Pierre Nora (ed.): Les
Lieux de mémoire. II: La Nation, vol. 3, Paris: Gallimard
l’éducation» as departments committed to produc- 1986, p. 517–562
ing educational research seems threatened, I fear Müller, Detlef/Ringer, Fritz/Simon, Brian (eds.): The Rise of
for the future of the educational system. As we the Modern Educational System. Structural Change and
Social Reproduction, 1870–1920. Cambridge/Paris: Cam-
spend our time filling out tables indicating how our
bridge University Press/Editions de la Maison des sciences
classes open professional doors and teach profes- de l’Homme 1987
sional competencies, I’m more than ever convinced Nora, Pierre (1984a): Lavisse, instituteur national. In: Pierre
of the need for cultivating non-utilitarian skills Nora (ed.): Les Lieux de mémoire. I: La République. Paris:
Gallimard 1984, p. 247–289
(commandment # 10). Yes, the (cultural) history of
Nora, Pierre (1984b): Le «Dictionnaire de pédagogie» de Fer-
education has a place in the education of all, and in dinand Buisson. In: Pierre Nora (ed.): Les Lieux de mémoi-
the training of teachers in particular. Not because re. I: La République. Paris: Gallimard 1984, p. 353–378
the «lessons of the past» can guide us in the present, Nora, Pierre: «L’Histoire de France» de Lavisse. In: Pierre No-
ra (ed.): Les Lieux de mémoire. II: La Nation, vol. 1. Paris:
but because those lessons can tell us about the
Gallimard 1986, p. 317–375
weight of ideology, the risks of silences becoming Ozouf, Jacques/Ozouf, Mona: Le tour de la France par deux
discrimination, the importance of reading critically. enfants. In: Pierre Nora (ed.): Les Lieux de mémoire. I: La
Now all good history should do this, but the history République. Paris: Gallimard 1984, p. 291–321
Prost, Antoine: Douze leçons pour l’histoire. Paris: Editions
of education, by its subject, allows us to communi- du Seuil 1996
cate to our students a form of critical thinking Rogers, Rebecca: The Politics of Writing the History of French
about the historicity of the skills, institutions, teach- Girls’ Education. In: History of Education Researcher
ers, and directives they are experiencing which in 80(2007), pp. 136–144
Simiand, François: Méthode historique et sciences sociales
the end, I believe, is the most useful lesson we can (1903). Paris: Editions des archives contemporaines 1987
transmit. And so, yes, we may indeed need com- Sirinelli, Jean-François: La Khâgne. In: Pierre Nora (ed.): Les
mandments, not because the history of education is Lieux de mémoire. II: La Nation, vol. 3. Paris: Gallimard
1986, p. 589–624
in crisis, but because education is in crisis.

Keine Regel ohne Ausnahme

• Karin Priem

«Das wird sowohl durch eine Untersuchung histo- dass eine Antwort ausgeblieben ist. Die ursprüng-
rischer Episoden als auch eine abstrakte Analyse liche Idee, anarchistisches Denken mit rational-
des Verhältnisses von Denken und Handeln ge-
strukturiertem Denken in einen Wettstreit treten
zeigt. Der einzige allgemeine Grundsatz, der den
Fortschritt nicht behindert, lautet: Anything goes. zu lassen, konnte so bedauerlicherweise nicht mehr
Die Idee einer Methode, die feste, unveränderli- verwirklicht werden. Paul Feyerabends Ausfüh-
che und verbindliche Grundsätze für das Betreiben rungen, oben in einem kleinen Ausschnitt beispiel-
von Wissenschaft enthält und die es uns ermög- haft festgehalten, können dennoch für jedes Regel-
licht, den Begriff ‹Wissenschaft› mit bescheidenem,
werk, auch für ein Regelwerk, das sich teilweise
konkreten Gehalt zu versehen, stösst auf erhebli-
che Schwierigkeiten, wenn ihr die Ergebnisse der gegen Regeln wendet, eine gute Diskussionsgrund-
historischen Forschung gegenübergestellt werden. lage sein. Dabei möchte ich gleich beichten (um die
Dann zeigt sich nämlich, dass es keine einzige Re- religiöse Sprache ebenfalls zu bedienen), dass ich
gel gibt, so einleuchtend und erkenntnistheore- den von Marc Depaepe aufgestellten zehn Geboten
tisch wohlverankert sie auch sein mag, die nicht zu
im Grossen und Ganzen zustimmen kann. Ich ver-
irgendeiner Zeit verletzt worden wäre. Es wird
deutlich, dass solche Verletzungen nicht Zufall suche lediglich aus Gründen der intellektuellen Be-
sind; … Einer der auffälligsten Züge der neueren weglichkeit, gelegentlich Widersprüche und Kom-
Diskussionen in der Wissenschaftsgeschichte und mentare zu formulieren. Dabei lese ich Marc De-
Wissenschaftstheorie ist ja die Erkenntnis, dass Er- paepes provokative Enzyklika auch als eine Art pa-
eignisse und Entwicklungen … nur deshalb statt-
radoxe Intervention wider erstarrte Formeln.
fanden, weil einige Denker sich entweder ent-
schlossen, nicht an gewisse ‹selbstverständliche›
methodologische Regeln gebunden zu sein, oder Zum ersten Gebot
weil sie solche Regeln unbewusst verletzten.» Diesem Gebot stimme ich nicht uneingeschränkt zu.
Denn Bildungs- und Erziehungsgeschichte kann
Paul Feyerabend, Wider den Methodenzwang,
auch dazu beitragen, Grosstheorien zu korrigieren
1986, S. 21
und systematisches Wissen zu erzeugen. Dies ge-
schieht vor allem durch die Auswertung höchst un-
Paul Feyerabend charakterisiert sein Buch Wider terschiedlicher Quellengattungen. Die Analyse au-
den Methodenzwang als provokativen Brief an sei- tobiographischer und visueller Quellen kann zum
nen Freund Imre Lakatos, dessen Tod dazu führte, Beispiel dazu beitragen, die Annahme einer Deter-

38 ZpH Jg. 16 (2010), H. 1

minierung der Subjekte durch gesellschaftliche sein. Darüber hinaus führt natürlich auch Metho-

Diskussion
Strukturen zu relativieren. Umgekehrt muss aber den- und Quellenvielfalt zu einer Vielfalt der Ge-
auch davon ausgegangen werden, dass in den Ver- schichten. Dennoch: der Wettstreit der Geschichten,
mittlungs- und Aneignungsformen kultureller Prak- ihre Umformulierungen und Neuinszenierungen
tiken – wie zum Beispiel Lesen und Schreiben – des Vergangenen dürfen nicht zum blossen Spiel re-
strukturelle Bedingungen einer Gesellschaft eben- duziert werden. Denn es sind Machtfragen und Es-
falls implizit eingeübt werden. In beiden Fällen ste- sentialismen, die Geschichte und Geschichtsschrei-
hen aus meiner Sicht durchaus systematische Kern- bung wie ein roter Faden durchziehen. Der Wett-
probleme erziehungswissenschaftlichen Denkens streit der Geschichten ist daher nicht beliebig, son-
zur Diskussion. dern sollte gerade Analysen der vielfältigen Formen
der Macht zum Gegenstand haben.
Zum zweiten Gebot
Das zweite Gebot ist als Arbeitsprinzip der Histo- Zum sechsten Gebot
rischen Bildungsforschung uneingeschränkt zu un- Es steht für mich ausser Frage, dass Geschichtsschrei-
terstützen. Gegenstand der Bildungs- und Erzie- bung der ununterbrochenen Befragung von Ge-
hungsgeschichte ist die Vergangenheit, die wiede- schichte und Geschichtsschreibung dienen sollte.
rum grundsätzlich als fremd und unbekannt anzu- Dazu gehört auch die Einsicht, dass Geschichte kei-
sehen ist. Um eine reflexive Distanz zu wahren und ner aufsteigenden Linie folgt, dass sie keine ge-
ideologischen Missbrauch zu vermeiden, ist Metho- schlossene Logik kennt und dass wir uns ihren Er-
denvielfalt sowie internationale und interdiszipli- scheinungsformen immer wieder neu nähern müs-
näre Zusammenarbeit in der bildungs- und erzie- sen. Siegfried Kracauer kritisiert in seiner 1969 erst-
hungshistorischen Forschung wünschenswert (vgl. mals in englischer Sprache erschienenen Geschichte
erstes Gebot). – Vor den letzten Dingen die Einseitigkeit des «de-
terministischen Prinzips» in der Geschichtsschrei-
Zum dritten Gebot bung, welches sich bei genauer Betrachtung «nicht
Es ist richtig, dass wir unsere Forschungsfragen in verifizieren» lasse (Kracauer 1969, S. 37). Er spricht
der Gegenwart finden und dass wir unsere metho- in diesem Zusammenhang von der «Magie der
dologischen Entscheidungen angesichts des vorhan- Chronologie» (ebd., S. 47), von einer «Fata morga-
denen Quellenmaterials und aktueller erkenntnis- na» (ebd., S. 37), von Verzerrung, Anmassung und
theoretischer Debatten und methodologischer Ori- einem Ersatz für die «theologische Interpretation
entierungen treffen. Wissenschaftliche Beobach- der Geschichte» (ebd., S. 44). Dem gegenüber stellt
tung und Aufmerksamkeit sowie entsprechende er die Vorstellung von Geschichte als «Reich» des
Operationen wie zum Beispiel ordnen, einteilen, Unvorhergesehenen, Nicht-Kausalen (ebd., S. 39).
strukturieren und vergleichen unterliegen häufig Geschichtsschreibung ist in den Augen Kracauers
aktuellen Forschungsparadigmen, sozialen und po- daher immer ein «zweischneidiges Unternehmen»
litischen Kontexten sowie zeitgenössischen ästhe- (ebd., S. 54), bei dem es intellektuell sowohl um
tischen und kulturellen Formeln (vgl. Daston/Gali- Muster und Zusammenhänge als auch um Wider-
son 2007). sprüchliches und Unerwartetes gehen soll.

Zum vierten Gebot Zum siebten Gebot

Das vierte Gebot betont erneut, die distanzierte Keine Gegenrede: Eine multiperspektivische und in-
und offene Haltung, die wir gegenüber der Vergan- terdisziplinäre Interpretation der Erziehungs- und
genheit einnehmen sollen. Marc Depaepe postu- Bildungsgeschichte und ihrer Quellen ist absolut
liert hier ein Prinzip des Dialogs gegenüber dem wünschenswert.
Fremden sowie ein prinzipielles NEIN zu einem mit
dem Lineal gezogenen Verlauf der Geschichte. Sehr Zum achten Gebot
überzeugend finde ich den Hinweis auf Michel de Erziehungs- und Bildungsgeschichte soll, das wird
Certeau. Dieser Querdenker regt dazu an, dass wir hier zum Ausdruck gebracht, weder reines Fakten-
unseren Umgang, unsere Gebrauchsweisen der His­ wissen ausbreiten noch ausschliesslich sozial- oder
torie und ihrer Überlieferungen sowie unsere Fabri- kulturwissenschaftliche Grosstheorien bestätigen.
kation der Geschichte kritisch hinterfragen. Es bedarf, und hier möchte ich Marc Depaepe un-
terstützten, einer theoretischen Aufmerksamkeit,
Zum fünften Gebot die stärker auf die Eigenart erziehungs- und bil-
Hayden White hat mit seiner Metahistory (1973, dt. dungshistorischer Forschung gerichtet ist. Hier sehe
1991) zeigen können, wie stark Geschichtsschrei- ich in der Erforschung kultureller Praktiken einen
bung einer «Poetik der Geschichte» unterliegt und Ansatzpunkt, da hier Vermittlungs- und Aneig-
damit einen «fiktiven Charakter» aufweist (White nungsprozesse kultureller und struktureller Bedin-
1991, S. 15). Geschichtsschreibung bedient sich ei- gungen unmittelbar im Zentrum stehen. Curriculare
ner bestimmten Sprache, sie weist bestimmte Nar- Inhalte, didaktische Formen, epistemologische Leh-
rative auf und muss sich insofern immer ihrer nor- ren und ihre sozial distinktiven Implikationen, dies
mativen und strategischen Implikationen bewusst sind die Inhalte, an denen die Historische Bildungs-

ZpH Jg. 16 (2010), H. 1

39
 forschung ihr theoretisches Bewusstsein schulen Keine Regel ohne Ausnahme. Diese Aussage sollte
Diskussion
kann. sowohl die Analyse der Vergangenheit leiten als
auch unsere Loyalität gegenüber wissenschaftlichen
Zum neunten Gebot Schulen immer wieder in Frage stellen.
Diesem Gebot habe ich nichts hinzuzufügen (vgl.
dazu auch Koinzer/Loeffelmeier 2009). Literatur
Daston, Lorraine/Galison, Peter: Objektivität. Frankfurt am
Main 2007
Zum zehnten Gebot De Certeau, Michel: Kunst des Handelns. Berlin 1988
Bildungs- und Erziehungsgeschichte sind Marc De- Feyerabend, Paul: Wider den Methodenzwang. Frankfurt
paepe zufolge Mittel gegen den «Terror des unmit- am Main 1986
Koinzer, Thomas/Loeffelmeier, Rüdiger (Hrsg.): Aus der (Bil-
telbar Nützlichen» in einer neoliberalen Epoche, in dungs-) Geschichte lernen? Gerhard Kluchert zum 60. Ge-
der Nutzen, Gewinn und Verwertbarkeit an erster burtstag. In: Zeitschrift für Pädagogische Historiographie
Stelle stehen. Geschichte kann insofern die Gegen- 14(2009), S. 68–88
wart relativieren und – so möchte ich hinzufügen – Kracauer, Siegfried: Geschichte – Vor den letzten Dingen.
Werke Band 4. Frankfurt am Main 2009
sie kann zeigen, dass die Bedingungen der Gegen- White, Hayden: Metahistory. Die historische Einbildungs-
wart veränderbar sind. kraft im 19. Jahrhundert in Europa. Frankfurt am Main
1991
Kurzes Resümee und elftes Gebot

Die Zehn Gebote und das Dilemma der

Adressaten
• Bernd Zymek

W
er könnte den Zehn Geboten widerspre- Ich würde mich gern auf diese reine Forschungs-
chen? Aber wie bei den Zehn Geboten arbeit beschränken (und hätte dann ein gutes Ge-
vom Berge Sinai, die unsere Moral im All- wissen), aber sobald ich nicht mehr nur forsche,
tag bestimmen sollen, so ist es auch bei den Ten sondern meine Forschungsergebnisse in Texte fas-
Commandments aus Leuven, die wir in der Praxis sen oder gar im Zusammenhang erzählen muss,
der History of Education Research beachten sollen: wenn ich also vom Forscher zum akademischen
Sie werfen für die Gemeinde der Gläubigen und die Schriftsteller werde, dann habe ich Schwierigkeiten
akademische Gemeinde der Bildungshistoriker trotz und Gewissensnöte, denn dann schaffe ich es nicht
ihrer Eindeutigkeit durchaus Fragen auf. Wie kön- mehr, einen lesbaren Text zu verfassen, in dem ich
nen die Geboten in den Widersprüchen des Alltags alle ethischen Standards des Forschers beachte. Ich
eingehalten werden, was bedeuten sie in konkre- bin hin und her gerissen: Ich würde mich deshalb
ten Situationen, wie müssen sie im Wandel der Zeit gern auf die Rolle des Forschers zurückziehen, aber
neu verstanden werden? Zum Glück enthalten die gleichzeitig weiss ich, dass es nicht nur um mein gu-
Zehn Gebote einer guten History of Education Re- tes Gewissen als Forscher geht, sondern auch um
search aus Leuven auch noch Erläuterungen, die den Kampf um die Erinnerung, um das kollektive
weiter helfen und vieles noch überzeugender ma- Gedächtnis, also um Konflikte, die in der (akademi-
chen. Aber wie das so ist bei allen Geboten: auch schen und professionellen) Gemeinde ständig aus-
bei denen, die sie verstehen und beachten wollen, getragen werden. Dann geht es nicht mehr nur um
bleiben dennoch ständig Fragen und Zweifel. Hier Forschung, sondern auch um Identitätsbildungspro-
sind meine: zesse in der akademischen Gemeinde und in den
Wenn ich nur Bildungsforschung (History of Edu- Professionen unserer Studierenden, um Hilfen für
cation Research) betreiben würde, dann hätte ich deren Orientierung im Berufsalltag. Wie kann ich
es leichter. Dann würde ich mich nur von meinem so schreiben, dass ich den Forscher nicht verrate
Berufsethos als Forscher leiten lassen. Dann würde und doch in diesen kulturellen Kämpfen Gehör fin-
ich immer neue Quellen und Daten sammeln, die den und verstanden werden kann?
alten Quellen immer besser zu verstehen versuchen, Verschlimmert wird dieses Dilemma noch da-
dann würde ich multiperspektivisch vorgehen, dann durch, dass in der grösseren Gemeinde, bei den
würde ich die Quellen und Daten immer im Kontext Nicht-Experten, bei vielen Studierenden und in der
interpretieren, dann würde ich mir immer bewusst breiten Öffentlichkeit, weiterhin historische Erzäh-
machen, dass ich Teil eines Diskurses über histori- lungen über die Bildungsgeschichte populär sind,
sche Diskurse bin. Dann würde ich nur in diesem die ich (und andere) als Forscher längst als Mythen
Sinne forschen und diejenigen kritisieren, die das entlarvt, als fehlerhaft kritisiert haben. Ich leide da-
Berufsethos des Forschers nicht (immer) beachten, runter, dass naive Geschichten, erbauliche Geschich-
die an alten Mythen und Interpretationen hängen. ten von wohlmeinenden Männern, tapferen Frauen

40 ZpH Jg. 16 (2010), H. 1

und armen Kindern lieber gehört und gelesen wer- liebsten in den Elfenbeinturm zurückziehen, so wie

Diskussion
den, als meine Tabellen und Zahlenreihen, die ich die Kollegen der anderen grossen Fraktion, die frü-
mühevoll zusammengestellt habe, obwohl sie (nach her noch der Auffassung waren, dass ein «heiligen-
meiner Überzeugung) ein treffenderes Bild der Er- mässiges Leben», also ein Leben im Sinne der Gebo-
ziehungsgeschichte bieten. Ich kann doch nicht, um te, nicht im Alltag, sondern nur im Kloster möglich
in den Konflikten um die kollektive Erinnerung mit- ist.
mischen zu können, auch solche naive Geschichten Lieber Marc Depaepe, Sie haben mich zwar durch
erzählen – oder muss ich es doch, damit wir in der ihre Ten Commandments of Good History of Educa-
akademischen und weiteren Gemeinde noch gehört tion in meinem Berufsethos bestärkt, aber meine
werden? Und jetzt sollen die Geschichten auch noch inneren Konflikte im Alltag der kulturellen Kämpfe
so erzählt werden, dass sie in multiple-choice-tests bleiben.
abgefragt werden können? Ich möchte mich am

Rethinking History of Education:

Historiological Issues
• Rosa Bruno-Jofré

I
t is an opportune time to address not only the ments don’t, in my reading, have a religious conno-
place of history of education in the various cur- tation, but convey with a sense of authority the ur-
rents within main stream history, but also the gency to rethink what we do in history of education
place of theory in history of education. The under- now. This is a time when education once more is
standing of what is acceptable to the requirements profoundly affected by utilitarian policies, faculties
of standards of historical criticism has been debated of education are abandoning the teaching of his-
vigorously by historians in the last twenty years in a tory of education in teacher preparation programs
search for a richer understanding of the past. The in most North American Faculties of Education, and
impact of anti-racist approaches, social semiotics, there is a need to develop theoretical tools out of
cultural studies, post-structuralist positions, femi- the uniqueness of history of education. Not so long
nist theories, post-colonial theories, and others, on ago, history itself went through a critical process
history of education led no only to new questions, that questioned the very possibility of historical
but also to emerging methodological issues to be knowledge.
discussed. Thus, for example, history of education I will address each one of the ten propositions.
has not been alien to the movement to a general- Proposition 1, «The history of education is histo-
ized attachment to discursiveness that gained ry», deals with one of the major issues in education-
preminence in the 1980s. al historiography. I wrote somewhere else, relying
The rather recent relativist challenge to the basis on Christian Lorenz, that history has a reflexive
of historical knowledge under the banner of post- character and historical narratives define us, but
modernism has lost momentum. The main issue in doing and teaching history cannot be subservient
historiology (approaches, themes and concepts un- to various agendas and goals at the expense of evi-
derpinning the study of history) is why it is impor- dence and methods (Bruno-Jofré/Schiralli 2002). It is
tant to know the past – in this case in relation to problematic when the writing of history appears
education – and not whether or not historians can subordinated to ulterior political contemporary
know the past. I am glad a leading and most distin- goals such as the definition of Canadian identity or
guished historian of education, Marc Depaepe, de- national unity or the creation of an European con-
cided to open the debate on good practices in his- sciousness. The issue here is that the social functions
tory of education. of education may permeate the writing of history
The provocative title The ten commandments of of education.
good practices in history of education reminds me Proposition 2, «And its content is the educational
of the eleven educational creeds, which included past», raises two important points. One is the rele-
Dewey’s famous My pedagogical creed, published vance of the context when analyzing educational
at the end of the nineteenth century, following the matters and the richness that interdisciplinary ap-
request of Ossian Herbert Lang, in The School Jour- proaches bring to history of education. I consider
nal (Bruno-Jofré/Jover 2009). At the time, the no- that this is a claim for analytical positions, which
tion of belief had been seriously questioned and have been often neglected in favour of a fin-de-
the scientific method had emerged strongly while siècle militant particularism and, in some cases, the
religious views still had an important presence in adoption of a somewhat vulgar discourse analysis.
the United States educational scene; all of this in The other point addressed in proposition 2 leads us
the process of modernization. The ten command- to the various dangers that emerge from lack of

ZpH Jg. 16 (2010), H. 1

41
 neutrality (which Thomas Haskell differentiates seems to be a never-ending task in the history of
Diskussion
from objectivity, vgl. Haskell 1998) and to the need education», is powerful and reinforces the rele-
to distinguish between propaganda and historical vance of the role of the historian of education as a
scholarship. This proposition encourages a discus- public intellectual who, of necessity, will not please
sion of detachment in the historical enterprise. I her audience, but encourage a critical understand-
think that it would be important to open a dialogue ing of the past.
on the postmodern ethnocentric attack on objectiv- Proposition 7, «The most important aim of the
ity. history of education remains interpretation, but in-
Proposition 3, «Presentism is not a methodologi- terpretation from a multi-perspective point of
cal ‹sin› but rather an unavoidable condition of re- view», provides a good piece of practical wisdom. I
search in the history of education», deserves more agree with Depaepe that given the nature of edu-
analysis and seems related to proposition 2 and my cation, history of education calls for a multi-per-
previous reference to the distinction made by Tho- spective, multi-layered framework of interpreta-
mas Haskell between objectivity and neutrality. Fur- tion.
thermore, I would include here a discussion on em- In proposition 8, «The interpretative qualities of
pirical considerations, evidence and methodological the research may be improved by developing theo-
rules, distinction between science and ideology or retical and conceptual frameworks from within the
what Fay refers to as the dialectical tension be- history of education», Depaepe attacks one of the
tween the rhetorical and the scientific attitudes in major issues in history of education. I would further
historiology (Fay 1998). While the historical con- say that theorization is often reduced to attempts
juncture will influence our interrogation of the at «proving» the value of models built on simplified
past, a situation which is unavoidable since history Foucaldian discourses of the self and its governance
has a reflexive character as indicated above and any without a critical reading of Foucault’s theory of
interpretation is perspectival, history of education knowledge and science and his notion of truth.
may easily be concerned with explaining the However, we need to acknowledge some work in
present. The latter (an approach normally motivat- history of education that shows an intelligent inte-
ed by the profound political character of education) gration of Foucaldian theories. The point made by
may lead to a collection of topics, disconnected his- Depaepe is extremely important. We need a theori-
tories, and to a consequent presentism that neglects zation rooted in history of education having as an
processes, continuity, discontinuities, and ruptures important reference the nature of education and
– in other words the temporal and spacial dimen- its many facets and inter-relations.
sions. Paradoxically, consideration of those process- I have addressed Proposition 9, «The added value
es may indeed lead to a rich connection with the of such a history of education consists of nothing
present. more than pure wisdom – there are no concrete les-
Proposition 4, «History of education must avoid sons to be drawn from the educational past», when
being a history of the present, let alone for the discussing proposition 4. I would like to add that
present», touches the issue we have been discussing increased attention to methods of historical inquiry
in previous lines. Depaepe puts it in the best possi- would help avoid subservience to pressing political
ble way: «let the past be fully the past». However, agendas.
historians should be able to communicate better Proposition 10, «Nevertheless, such a (cultural)
with the wider public and encourage the public to history of education has a place in the education of
analyze issues and question historical claims made people in general and in the training of teachers in
by the press or by politicians. particular», is particularly relevant at a time when
Proposition 5, «History of education is, like every history of education is practically disappearing from
history, a discourse about discourses», opens the teacher education programs particularly in Canadi-
door for further discussion on the ways Foucault’s an Faculties of Education. Stressing generic think-
ideas are integrated as interpretative theories in ing skills absent from the complex contexts within
history of education. It would be pertinent to fur- which historical problems emerge, while suitable
ther the debate on the notion of historical account for economic purposes and in line with an instru-
as the product of a specific discourse as well as on mentalist approach to educational research, can ac-
Foucault’s understanding of power and knowledge tually have undesirable intellectual weaknesses and
given its impact on history of education. Without politically disempowering consequences.
this discussion this proposition is somewhat ambig-
uous. It can be read as a theoretical engagement References
Bruno-Jofré, Rosa/Jover, Gonzalo: El Ideal Democrático en el
with discursiveness. The proposition can also be un-
Ideario Pedagógico Americano de Finales del Siglo XIX y
derstood as one of the qualities of interpretation in su Transposición en Dos Escenarios de Habla Hispana. In:
the sense that all interpretation is done from a par- María Reyes Berruezo Albéniz/Susana Conejero López
ticular point of view or a particular position, hence (Eds.): El Largo Camino hacia una Educación Inclusiva. La
Educación Especial y Social del Siglo XIX a Nuestros Días.
its revisability. The latter is not necessary related to
Pamplona: Universidad Pública de Navarra 2009 (vol. 1),
discursive theories. pp. 23–33
Proposition 6, «Therefore, demythologizing Bruno-Jofré, Rosa/Schiralli, Martin: Teaching History: A Dis-

42 ZpH Jg. 16 (2010), H. 1

 cussion of Contemporary Challenges. In: Encounters/En- well Publishers 1998, pp. 299–319

Diskussion
cuentros/Rencontres on Education 3(2002), pp. 117–129 Fay, Brian: Introduction: The Linguistic Turn and Beyond in
Haskell, Thomas: Objectivity is not Neutrality: Rhetoric ver- Contemporary Theory of History. In: Brian Fay/Philip
sus Practice in Peter Novick’s That Noble Dream. In: Brian Pomper/Richard T. Vann (Eds.): History and Theory, Con-
Fay/Philip Pomper/Richard T. Vann (Eds.): History and temporary Readings. Massachusetts: Blackwell Publishers
Theory, Contemporary Readings. Massachusetts: Black- 1998, pp. 1–12

Historians and the Present:

On Marc Depaepe’s Decalogue
• Toshiko Ito

T
he year 2009 was packed with commemora- 2. Thou shalt write about the educational past
tions of historical landmark events: the Ver- 3. Thou shalt not fret excessively about presentism
sailles Treaty, the outbreak of the Second 4. Thou shalt not write a history of the present, nor
World War, the founding of the Federal Republic of for the present
Germany and the fall of the Berlin Wall, all had These commandments do not, however, alleviate
their claims on remembrance. Accordingly, Europe my ambivalence towards the relation between the
was in a commemorative mood and its media were past and the present, and the tenth commandment,
busy reporting on history and probing related ques- if anything, actually reinforces it: «Thou shalt teach
tions of national and European identity. I attended people and especially teachers in that spirit». I don’t
elder statesman Richard von Weizsäcker’s reading believe that educators will ever seek a complete
on the occasion of the publication of Der Weg zur separation between the past and the present. How
Einheit (The Path to Unity), which reminded me of can the tenth commandment be reconciled with
his celebrated speech of 1985: «anyone who closes the first four commandments?
their eyes to the past is blind to the present». In real life, a considerable number of educational
Weizsäcker holds younger generations accountable historians do not only research the history of educa-
not for the past, but for its historical consequences. tion, but also teach the history of education to stu-
Deeply impressed, I was reminded of how impor- dents, who are frequently teacher candidates and
tant it is to connect the past with the present. At occasionally in-service teachers. This occupational
the same time, I remain convinced that every his- duality begets conflicting demands. In their research
torical period is unique and must be understood on into the history of education, historians should
its own terms; the historian Leopold von Ranke’s draw a sharp line between the past and the present.
observation still holds true that hasty connections They should respect the past as the past, accept that
between the past and the present need to be re- the past is over, and have the humility to make their
sisted. Today, I am as ambivalent about the relation analyses answer the spirit of the times they investi-
between the past and the present as I was a quarter gate. Students should learn from researchers how
of a century ago. to keep a sober distance from the past and how to
In the autumn of 2009, I received the Ten Com- put the facts of the past into proper perspective.
mandments of Good Practices in History of Educa- Yet in their teaching, historians also should con-
tion Research issued by Marc Depaepe, on which I sciously relate the present to the past. They should
would like to make a few comments because they be able to perceive the past as the seed from which
caused me to re-consider the relation between the the present sprang. Students are expected to be
past and the present, and because they also have a aware of the continuity between the past and the
bearing on the discussion about historians and the present, and apply its lessons to the present. Re-
present in Japan. Depaepe urges in the sixth com- searchers need to respond to the demands of their
mandment: «Thou shalt demythologize former nar- fields, while educators need to respond to practical
ratives and discourses about the history of educa- demands. The demands on researchers, thus, can
tion». Historical researchers, if they stick to their never be reconciled with the demands on educa-
analytical task, cannot be «the best speakers at jubi- tors.
lees or celebrations because they do not at all say In my own specialisation within the Faculty of
what the party goers or guests of honor want to Education at a Japanese state university, eighty per-
hear». Thus Depaepe embraces von Ranke’s posi- cent of the students obtain the teacher’s certificate
tion on the relation between the past and the (but only approximately thirty percent of them will
present and reiterates the need to focus on the become teachers), and twenty percent of the stu-
past, as emphatically distinct from the present, in dents aspire to enroll in the master’s course to study
the first four commandments: further. I feel keenly that the majority of the stu-
1. Thou shalt remember that the history of educa- dents expect their courses to be oriented towards
tion is history practical goals. The students are encouraged in this

ZpH Jg. 16 (2010), H. 1

43
 expectation by the course evaluation form, which to deal exclusively with the past, but to relate the
Diskussion
asks them if the contents of a course addressed or past to the present, to look not only for answers to
spoke to present problems. The evaluation form for the questions of origin, but to address future direc-
courses in the liberal arts explicitly asks if the con- tions and current policy making as well. According
tents of a given course were related to the present, to the official view, the past continuously and seam-
and in courses that are mandatory for the teacher’s lessly evolves into the present. The appropriate un-
certificate, the evaluation form even includes the derstanding of educational problems in the past is,
question if the contents of a course contributed to- therefore, the unquestionable prerequisite for solv-
wards improving teaching practices. It is hard not to ing educational problems in the present. It is true
conclude that the students’ preference for utility is that the Society has been trying to establish the his-
aided and abetted by a corresponding institutional tory of education as an independent academic dis-
bias. cipline, but it has pursued its work almost exclusive-
In Japan, the history of education was first intro- ly within the framework of teacher training.
duced as a discipline to educational training insti- The Society reviewed half a century of its work in
tutes in 1872: Every teacher training facility has its fiftieth bulletin, in 2007, and found that the his-
since been required to offer courses in the subject. tory of education as a discipline has been too de-
The Normal School Act of 1886 stipulated that the pendent on teacher training curricula. The history
history of Japanese education and the history of of education as a subject is secure within the frame-
education abroad were required subjects in any work of teacher training, as it is protected, in a
teacher training curriculum. In 1892, the contents sense, by the legislation that governs teacher certi-
of these subjects came to be described in detail and fication. But having been downgraded to elective
included the outline of the history of education as status and suffering from lack of interest by practi-
basic knowledge for the teaching profession, fa- cally-minded prospective teachers, attendance in
mous educators’ biographies as a motivational courses on the subject has dwindled, and the weight
model for the teaching profession, and principles attributed to it continues to diminish. In step with
and methodological ideas as a practical basis for the decline of the subject, the discipline is now
the teaching profession. The Teacher Certification looked down upon as synonymous with ivory-tower
Act of 1949, however, downgraded the history of scholarship. The Society recently declared its inten-
education from compulsory to elective status, which tion to decouple the history of education from its
means that teachers nowadays can enter their pro- traditional association with teacher training and
fession without ever having taken a class in the his- join the social sciences and the humanities, but the
tory of education. In actual fact, while the demands outcome of this initiative is dubious: while the Soci-
of practical relevancy tend to deter prospective ety boasts an increase in its membership, the
teachers from studying the subject, its defenders, in number of university positions in the discipline
the spirit of the law, claim the subject to be irre- keeps diminishing.
placeable for three reasons: In 1991, a new society was founded, the Society
1. Students will take pride in their future position if for the Study of Modern Educational Thought,
they are familiar with the thoughts and practices which renamed itself to History of Educational
of great educational thinkers and great educa- Thought Society in 1997. In 2008, this new society
tors. organized a symposium dedicated to reviewing its
2. Students will develop greater analytical acuity activities and positions. Opinion at the symposium
when dealing with today’s educational problems turned out to be divided into two main camps.
if their perspective on the future of education One party held that the discipline should reso-
has been enriched by an understanding of its lutely resist practical demands. In their opinion,
past. they need to give in to practical demands only if
3. Students will attain greater sophistication, which they want to hold on to their power to dominate
stands them in good stead in the teaching pro- the educational discussion. However, researchers
fession, if they understand the history of educa- should not necessarily aim to hold that power; they
tion and didactics. should courageously decide to be the opposition
Researchers have been engaged in this discussion party. As researchers in the history of education,
for a while. In 1956, Japan saw the founding of the they should remain free from the practical demands
Society for Historical Research of Education, origi- of the present, including the perceived need to de-
nally presided by Arata Osada (1887–1961), an in- termine the course of educational policy-making.
ternationally renowned researcher on Johann Hein- Today, historians need to have the courage of their
rich Pestalozzi. The society started out small, with conviction to keep a determined distance from the
104 members, and its purpose of research into the present. History of education does not aim to learn
history of education worldwide has branched into from the past, but to analyze the past. Future and
three fields since 1960: historical research into Japa- incumbent teachers can, however, profit greatly
nese education, Asian education, and Western edu- from it, because it strengthens their ability to ana-
cation. The society has since grown to over 900 lyze the contemporary situation. In other words,
members, and its researchers are now supposed not the discipline does not deal with the present direct-

44 ZpH Jg. 16 (2010), H. 1

ly, but it can contribute to teacher training indirect- «unavoidable conditions of research in the history

Diskussion
ly by sharpening the ability to think in historical di- of education» and encourages researchers to «avoid
mensions. as much as possible the presentistic and perspectiv-
The other party stressed that the discipline must istic pitfalls» while devoting themselves to under-
not betray its obligation to respond to practical is- standing the past on its own terms. In his tenth
sues, but should abandon its subservient relation- commandment, however, the reference to the
ship with the world of practical affairs. Historians present does not have any negative overtones. This
should not continue to play junior partner to the modulation rests on the belief that the devotion to
practical realm and offer specious historical disqui- the past – counter-intuitively in the eyes of many –
sitions on issues dictated to them, but grasp the ini- does not lead to the exclusion of the present, but
tiative and locate current problems on their own. will actually be serviceable to it: «Historical research
Once their subservience is abandoned, historians (…) transcends the shortsightedness of our own
can discover problems of which there is no aware- time by making it clear that this prevailing driver
ness yet in the practical realm and that otherwise for utility is an element of the long-term process of
might have gone unnoticed. This party contends modernization and thereby, at the very least, holds
that historians engaged in unprejudiced academic the door open for a critical corrective». Depaepe is
research can offer fresh perspectives to the practi- unwavering in his faith that true dedication to the
cal realm. past, unprejudiced by the needs of the day, will be
The two parties reason from opposing premises: beneficial to the present.
One party dismisses the demands of the practical Regardless, my ambivalence towards the relation
realm so that they can tend to their own academic between the past and the present remains undi-
business. The other party welcomes the demands of minished. The conflicting arguments for keeping
the practical realm as a touchstone of their ability the past and the present apart complicate the rela-
to set the political agenda. Both parties, however, tion between the past and the present rather than
propose the same strategy: historians simply need solve it. What is clear is this: the age in which the
to keep their distance from the present, because history of education had its remit defined by the
this distance enables them to contribute to the needs of the teaching profession is over. Are we en-
common good by virtue of their original perspec- tering an age in which research, no longer tethered
tive. to utility, will be able to contribute all the more ef-
In his Decalogue, Depaepe summarily rejects pre- fectively to educational policy-making? Hope
sentism. He does not regard presentism as a meth- springs eternal in the human breast.
odological shortcoming, but classes it among the

An Atheist(‘s) Manifesto
• Daniel Sergio Friedrich

A
s the Divine Tables descend upon education- As the Commandments dutifully note, the (edu-
al historiography, the Commandments de- cational) past is chaotic, a space undefined and in-
mand a reflection about our practices, while definable in itself. However, the introduction of
at the same time, about the need for command- structure into that past is not merely the effect of
ments as such. At the risk of already starting with a the creative genius and disciplinary rigor provided
heresy towards the Divine, I suggest historicizing by the historian, but the necessary consequence of
the terms in which the Commandments engage us, his or her intervention. In fact, the past becomes
that is, ironically in light of their warning, to his- the past as the historical discourses operate upon it,
toricize their present (and presence). since one of the structures being introduced is the
Perhaps the most salient feature of the Com- particular notion of temporality that allows the his-
mandments in need of questioning is the clear-cut torian to place people and events within a historical
division they present between past, present and fu- narrative. Let us not forget that the past was not
ture. The Commandments stipulate that the past always the past, at least not in the ways modern
shall remain the past, and while presentism is una- societies understand it, as evidenced by cyclical con-
voidable, doing a history of the present in order to ceptions of temporality framing the thought and
produce certain effects in the now falls certainly action of different societies past and present. The
into the realm of sin. Now (pun intended) this intervention of a subject that embodies the quali-
presents a problem, as what is considered to be the ties of the modern agent is a condition of possibility
(educational) past is intimately related to the prob- for the establishment of history as a disciplinary
lems facing the (educational) present. Contrary to field.
the Divine Law, the past is never just the past, and Furthermore, it is not only a temporal structure
thus it cannot be left to be fully the past. that historians impose upon the «raw material» of

ZpH Jg. 16 (2010), H. 1

45
 the past. As much as the Commandments may want or prescriptive pedagogy. (Actually, not intervening
Diskussion
to avoid a history for the present, it is hard to imag- in the present is not an option, as the production of
ine looking at the past responding to no particular knowledge in itself is an intervention).
problem. What triggers historical research is always The difference between doing a history of the
a problem in or of the present, calling on the past present, that is of intentionally wanting to «hazard
in helping to provide interpretations about, for ex- our way of being in the present» – a present that
ample, the historical limits of the grammar of does not present us with a fair, just way of being
schooling in the possibilities of reform, or the ways some of us would happily leave un-hazarded –, and
in which the pedagogization of society becomes the pedagogization of the past Depaepe is con-
possible through schooling. I would even go as far cerned about is of utmost importance. Educators
as saying that the search for «pure wisdom», the that look at history seeking the morals of the story
only «added value» of educational historiography, transform the past into ingredients for a recipe that
is nothing but a problem of the present, a motiva- needs to be followed in order to achieve the per-
tion seeped deep in the need to know in ways that fect future. Through their lens, these lessons are in-
are unique to contemporary epistemological condi- herent components of the past, and it is just a mat-
tions. The task of demythologizing that Depaepe ter of inverting George Santayana’s statement, now
argues for is also composed by a set of problems in barely more than a cliché: «Those who cannot re-
the present and a historically inscribed assumption member the past are condemned to repeat it» (San-
about what is real and what is false. The myths, tayana 1905, p. 284). If we remember the past, then
sometimes central to the conceptions of schooling and only then will we be able to move forward.
that circulate both inside and outside academia, Doing a history of the present does not offer
can only be understood as in need of refutation as such certainties. The «hazard» introduced by the
long as they present a problem for the researcher. history of the present that I am speaking about is in
As Foucault demonstrated with the case of mad- the potency of understanding our own selves as
ness, among others, the constitution of an episte- products of a multiplicity of «inconsequential de-
mological problem cannot be separated from its tours», the crossing of discursive practices coming
constitution as a political problem, and from the from the most disparate sources, and random events
production of knowledge and categories that shape that we, within our historically constructed subjec-
both the problem and the field. In this sense, «pure» tivities, attempt to shape into a meaningful narra-
wisdom is never pure, as «purity» is a political cate- tive. Its usefulness lies in the possibilities that are
gory as much as it is an epistemological one. The opened up upon the process of troubling of those
myth of maintaining clear disciplinary boundaries is narratives and the shattering of the boundaries
not merely a Commandment but a political-episte- that those narratives hold on us. However, there is
mological problem of the present! never a promise of «moving forward», never a cer-
All of this is not to say that the past should be tainty about the direction of the future. This is
the source of moralizing lessons for the present. As clearly a non-utilitarian usefulness, yet it serves to
the Commandments dictate, embedding history intervene in the present by means of disruption.
with a sense of morality, be it progressive or regres- Finally, should historians accept the will to or-
sive, a story of salvation or damnation, transforms ganize knowledge under the assumption that there
history into something different. It is in this sense exist certain rules and standards aimed at protect-
that the pedagogization of the educational past ing its disciplinary purity? I recognize that this is
becomes dangerous, since the search for the morals one of the main discursive practices that frame cur-
in the story only allows for a very particular type of rent thought. To evoke Commandments, even if
narrative to be told, one that continuously confirms said in a form that mocks prevailing sentiments,
these morals. The «cultivation of the culture of the may re-inscribe what Benjamin called an «empty
non-utilitarian» is thus a tempting path to virtue. It time» (Benjamin 2007), that is a sense of progres-
results from the historicizing of utilitarian episte- sion that is devoid of the presence of the now. This
mologies, exposing them as part of the moderniz- is not to suggest that one can live outside of disci-
ing process, and provides a salvation from the «ter- plinary rules and standards, but the very usefulness
ror of the immediately useful». Amen. of the disciplinary guides in the practice of produc-
But to join the pulpit, however, is not sufficient, ing knowledge is that they continually require his-
for the «useful» travels on different planes that do toricizing. That historicizing is to make visible the
not necessarily imply utilitarianism. Producing consensus that demarcates, encloses, and interns
«pure wisdom» could be seen as useful in regards what is considered valid and what is not. A set of
to the purpose of having a more accurate idea of commandments that descend from above, even
the past under the particular assumptions discussed with evoking uncertainties within its certainties, al-
above. The publication of the Commandments, it is low simple mortals to focus just in the correct fol-
implied, would be useful in achieving an epistemo- lowing of said commandments, without having to
logically sound educational historiography. And a worry about the conditions under which these com-
history of the present, I would argue, can be useful mandments are intelligible. Yet, if one was to find
in intervening in the present without a moralizing the knowledge and epistemological practices need-

46 ZpH Jg. 16 (2010), H. 1

ed to disrupt or «hazard» the present, one must al- References

Diskussion
low for the playfulness of mind that pushes and Benjamin, Walter: Theses on the Philosophy of History. In:
Illuminations. New York: Schocken Books 2007, pp. 253–
denaturalizes the boundaries set in place by the dis- 264
ciplinary rules. That is the paradox of the Com- Santayana, George: The Life of Reason: Introduction, and
mandments: while they may lead some to a pre- Reason in common sense. New York: C. Scribner’s Sons
1905
scription on ways of thinking, they also open up the
space for the discussion on those very rules. And
this is the type of discussion that accepts no Divine
law.

Zehn Gebote – aber wer schreibt den

Katechismus?
• Heinz-Elmar Tenorth

E
s mag ein wenig sehr ambitiös (oder zu selbst- Gebote nicht irrt? Und wenn schon der Laie Bedarf
ironisch) sein, einige sehr plausible und wahr- an Erläuterung hat: Wer übernimmt die Rolle der
scheinlich konsensfähige Hinweise zur guten Theologie, nicht nur kirchenhistorisch, sondern
Praxis in der bildungshistorischen Forschung durch dogmatisch?
Zählweise und Benennung in biblische Höhen zu Marcs knappe Sätze, kaum mehr als dreieinhalb
heben. Einige Rückfragen sind ja sofort unvermeid- Seiten, können ja schwerlich die Rolle ausfüllen, die
lich: In welcher Rolle spricht M.D. – als Gott oder sich die Gebote geltungstheoretisch anmassen. Man
Moses, von welchem Berg ist er herabgestiegen, erkennt zwar den Hintergrund mancher Debatten,
wie sehen die Tafeln aus, die er trägt (droht irgend- Michel Foucault und seine unhistorischen Anhänger
wo das goldene Kalb und wird er die Tafeln zer- kriegen zu Recht ihr Fett ab, Johann Gustav Droy-
schmeissen), verheisst er uns mit den Geboten, wie sen und Leopold von Ranke, ohne Namensnennung,
in der Bibel – Exodus 20,1-21 ist ja der locus classicus auch, aber nach langen Diskussionen zwischen Hay-
– auch für die historische Bildungsforschung den den White und Arthur Danto (et tutti quanti), dem
Einzug ins Gelobte Land, schliessen wir mit ihm den alten und neuen Revisionismus, Sammelbänden von
Bund? Die Sinai-Pose, das merkt man dann, ist auch Manfred Heinemann bis Sol Cohen, editorischen
für den Historiker eher beschwerlich, man wird Leistungen von Frank Simon bis Antonio Novoa sind
wahrscheinlich die Tafeln niedriger hängen müssen. diese vier Seiten zu wenig. Berühmte Katechismen
Aber als Provokation mag es durchgehen. der jüngeren Zeit, beispielsweise der holländische,
Akzeptiert man nämlich, für einen Kommentar, den vielleicht der flämische Belgier M.D. in seinem
den Dekalog als Metapher für strikte Regelvorga- Bestand führt, hat (in der deutschen Übersetzung)
ben und historisiert man diese Sprech- und Zählwei- 566 Seiten und er geht zu Recht davon aus, dass
se, dann provoziert der neue belgische Historiogra- auch der Dekalog die «Umschreibung, Anwendung,
phie-Dekalog zunächst einige sehr schöne, gat- Deutung immer nötig» (Glaubensverkündigung
tungs- und kontextspezifische Fragen. Zehn Gebote 1966/1968, S. 418) hat (und er nennt zum Glück für
sind gut – aber wie sorgt man dafür, dass sie einge- die religiöse Praxis nicht die ganzen Bibliotheken,
halten werden? Reicht ISCHE und das Review Ver- Konzilien und Beschlüsse, die auf 566 Seiten kon-
fahren von Paedagogica Historica? Auch den Kon- densiert verarbeitet werden). Das, was hier für «das
text von Sünde, Beichte und Busse werden nicht nur Gewissen der Menschheit» (ebd., S. 417) gilt, das
alte Katholiken vermissen. Aber, wer zählt die sie- darf man für das bessere Ich der pädagogischen His-
ben Todsünden der historischen Bildungsforscher? toriographie natürlich auch erwarten. Dogmatische
Ich würde etwa Quellenarmut, Archivvermeidung, Arbeit, Metahistorie, vielleicht sogar Klassenkampf
falsche Kausalsuggestionen, kontextfreie Analysen, in der Historiographie-Theorie ist nicht entbehrlich,
national-kulturelle Fixierungen, Ableitungsargu- wenn man zehn Gebote formuliert, sondern not-
mentation oder Erzeugung narrativer Langeweile wendig. In zwei Richtungen will ich einen solchen
als solche vorschlagen1 (und nebenbei: offenbar hat Kommentar versuchen, allerdings ganz pragma-
man bei zehn Geboten drei Übertretungen frei – tisch, nur an guter Praxis orientiert, und dann eine
bleibt also Präsentismus erlaubt?). Vor allem aber kleine Randbemerkung für die Praxis und die Prak-
bleiben ja das hermeneutische Problem und die da- tiker der Bildungshistorie anfügen; denn auch die
mit angesprochenen Fragen; denn selbst der Deka- Dogmatik, die Theologie belegt es, lebt ja vom
log versteht sich nicht von selbst (Du sollst nicht tö- ständigen Kommentar der Einfälle der anderen.
ten vs. Du sollst nicht morden?). Insofern: Wer Meine erste Frage beim Lesen war. Worüber
schreibt den Katechismus, den die Kirche bereithält, spricht er gar nicht? Erstaunlicher Weise spricht
damit der gute Gläubige sich im Verständnis der M.D. nicht von den Quellen, die für die pädagogi-

ZpH Jg. 16 (2010), H. 1

47
 sche Historiographie – oder sagen wir heute doch be und Utopie lauten zumeist die pädagogisieren-
Diskussion
besser: historische Bildungsforschung, nachdem wir den Übersetzungen der Zeitschemata und man lan-
die ‹Geschichte der Pädagogik› zu den Akten der det unweigerlich in der historiographisch wenig
identitätstiftenden professionellen und nationalen sinnvollen Situation, Vergangenheiten binär zu co-
Narrative abgelegt haben? – notwendig sind. Das dieren, gute Traditionen von einem belastenden
ist vielleicht zu nahe am Handwerk, aber an sich Erbe zu unterscheiden oder Utopien als einzulösen-
hatte ich den gebieterischen Verweis auf die Quel- de Zukünfte neu ins Recht zu setzen.
len ziemlich früh erwartet, vielleicht sogar als eige- Der Umgang mit den Zeitschemata wird leichter
nes Gebot unter den ersten drei (die bekanntlich im und zugleich für präsentistische Aneignung kompli-
Dekalog von Gott handeln, also der ersten Referenz zierter, wenn man sich der etwas knappen Rede
der Gebote, bevor es zum Menschen übergeht, also über die Vergangenheit noch einmal annimmt und
zur Theorie, wie bei M.D.). Ich riskiere einfach einen sich einiger Vorschläge für Zeitschematisierungen
Vorschlag (elf wäre dann auch nicht mehr so escha- erinnert, die zum Beispiel von Niklas Luhmann vor-
tologisch belastend): Erschliesse systematisch neue liegen (Luhmann 1973/1975). Das grundlegende
Quellen und Archive, solche, die für dein Thema Problem des Historikers steht dabei im Mittelpunkt,
wichtig sind, denn erst damit beginnt bildungshis- dass er es mit vergangenen Gegenwarten zu tun
torische Forschung (nicht schon mit der ableitenden hat, die selbst noch ihre eigenen Vergangenheiten
Illustration theoretisch starker Sätze, die Philoso- und Zukünfte hatten, ohne dass ihre Zukünfte alle
phen in armchair research erfinden). Man könnte, zu noch realisierten Zukünften in späteren Gegen-
im erläuternden Text zu diesem Gebot, in den not- warten oder gar zu heute noch gegenwärtigen Ver-
wendigen katechetischen Erörterungen, die Erfolge gangenheiten wurden; denn natürlich gibt es einen
der letzten Dekaden in Erinnerung rufen, den Wert Bruch von Entwicklungen und das Nichteintreten
von Zahl und Bild und Material neben Texten unter- denkbarer Zukünfte genau so wie kontinuierende
schiedlichster Gattung (Normen, Reflexionen, Ego- Entwicklungen, die eine längere Gegenwart haben
Dokumenten) erläutern und den Sinn für Differen- als viele Zukünfte, die sie begleitet haben. Man re-
zen und Problemhinsichten schärfen – good prac­ konstruiert deshalb immer, narrativ, Vergangenhei-
tice könnte die Konsequenz sein. Der Verweis auf ten als je gegenwärtige Vergangenheiten, auch
die diversen turns, natürlich auf den lingustic turn, dann, wenn sie ihre gegenwärtige Vergangenheit
den ich jetzt im Text erkenne, ist mir schon zu theo- nur für den Historiker haben, der über sie schreibt.
rienah. Historiographie ist doch zuerst der mühsa- Besser als der absteigende Blick in die Geschich-
me Versuch, über eine verstreute, lückenhafte, in te, der immer nur die Vorgeschichte der eigenen
sich disparate Überlieferung eine plausible Ge- Gegenwart sucht, ist deshalb der aufsteigende
schichte zu erzählen und die Überreste so zum Spre- Blick, der von historischen Vergangenheiten und
chen zu bringen, dass sie gute Quellen werden. deren Vorgeschichten und Zukünften, als ihren
Selbstverständlich, sie sollen gute Quellen für ihre Nachgeschichten, erzählt – und sich gelegentlich
Zeit werden, man bringt sie nicht zum Sprechen, dadurch überraschen lässt, dass die Zukunft einer
wenn man sie in unseren Kontext stellt, obwohl vergangenen Gegenwart ausgerechnet in die Reali-
man sie natürlich nur zum Sprechen bringt, wenn tät unserer eigenen Zeit mündet. Das mag artifiziell
man sie nicht nur in ihren Eigenwerten und -welten aussehen, besonders dann, wenn man zusätzlich
liest, sondern in einen, ihren historischen Kontext noch berücksichtigt, was notwendig berücksichtigt
stellt (wobei der Singular sich kaum empfiehlt, weil werden muss, dass nämlich die Zeiten der Objekte
es angesichts der Überdetermination historischer der historischen Forschung – Menschen, Institutio-
Ereignisse wohl immer mehrere Kontexte geben nen, Diskurse, Materialien, Klassen, Ungleichheit,
dürfte). Fortschritt (etc.) – noch ihre je eigene Zeit haben,
Meine zweite Frage angesichts solcher Probleme die in der jeweiligen Gegenwart als Gleichzeitigkeit
war: Kann man seine theoretischen Grundannah- des Ungleichzeitigen identifizierbar ist. Angesichts
men teilen, das, was er über «History» sagt oder solcher Fragen und der erkennbaren Komplikatio-
über die Vergangenheit? Man nimmt dankbar zur nen, die sie in der Arbeit des Historikers auslösen,
Kenntnis, dass er den Präsentismus als Problem früh sollte man sich vielleicht auch noch einmal der Ent-
einführt, aber dann doch sehr rasch für offenbar haltsamkeit in Sachen Theorie erinnern, die M.D.
unvermeidlich hält. Darüber, über Zeitschematisie- zeigt. Neben dem natürlich richtigen Hinweis, diese
rungen, lohnt aber die weitere Diskussion. Es geht Theorie im eigenen Revier, das heisst in dem der
um die Zuordnung von Vergangenheit, Gegenwart Analysen des Aufwachsens in Gesellschaften zu su-
und Zukunft, das ist nicht strittig, aber kontrovers chen, bleibt M.D. doch sehr vorsichtig. Das mag
ist doch die Bedeutung der drei Kategorien. Soll man begrüssen, weil das Erzählen von Geschichten
man die Pädagogen fragen, die das alltäglich ja sich offenbar doch nicht in reiner Form als Umset-
auch für ihr Geschäft reklamieren (z.B. Klafki 1958)? zung einer historischen Sozialwissenschaft verste-
Das würde ich eher nicht empfehlen, weil man sich hen lässt2, aber weitere Suche lohnt bestimmt.
dann sehr rasch die normative Aufladung und prag- Das führt zu meinem abschliessenden kleinen
matische Recodierung einhandelt, die in diesem Mi- Hinweis, der angesichts von zehn Geboten vielleicht
lieu bei Zeitproblemen dominiert: Tradition, Aufga- etwas blasphemisch klingt, aber ernst gemeint ist,

48 ZpH Jg. 16 (2010), H. 1

ohne ihn zum Gebot zu erheben. Pecca fortiter war Anmerkungen

Diskussion
in Zeiten der Reformation dann erlaubt, wenn man 1 Unkenntnis oder bewusstes Ignorieren der Forschungsla-
ge ist eine wissenschaftlich weiter als in der Historiogra-
nur gebührend Busse tat. Sich der Freuden der Ab- phie verbreitete Sünde, deshalb zähle ich sie hier nicht –
weichung von Geboten zu erinnern, ist deshalb obwohl die Historiker natürlich am besten Hermann
mein letzter empfehlender Hinweis. Gelegentlich Heimpels Grundsatz zu verbreiten wissen «Lesen schützt
vor Neuentdeckungen!».
präsentistisch denken und sich inspirieren lassen,
2 Man lese für diese Differenz Baberowski 2009.
das kann so viel Freude machen, wie eine Zeit lang
nur an Theorie zu denken, und erst dann wieder an Literatur
Geschichten. Auch nur Quellen zu edieren kann Baberowski, Jörg: Über die schöne Schwierigkeit, Geschichte
schön sein, ohne eine Interpretation, nur zum Ver- zu schreiben. In: Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung 29. Juli
2009, S. N3
gnügen des Betrachters, der seinen Sinn darin selbst
Glaubensverkündigung für Erwachsene (1966). Deutsche
suchen mag. Es ist doch kein Zufall, dass die Todsün- Ausgabe des holländischen Katechismus. Nijmwegen/Ut-
den immer mehr Anhänger haben als die Gebote, recht 1968
und natürlich ein Glück, dass es neben der Busse Klafki, Wolfgang: Die Erziehung im Spannungsfeld von Ver-
gangenheit, Gegenwart und Zukunft. In: Die Sammlung
auch das Vergessen gibt. Gelegentlich muss man
13(1958), S. 448–462
deshalb auch aktiv am Vergessen arbeiten. Wer soll- Luhmann, Niklas: Weltzeit und Systemgeschichte (1973). In:
te uns, durch besseres Verstehen natürlich, von der Niklas Luhmann: Soziologische Aufklärung 2. Opladen
Last der Vergangenheit befreien können, wenn 1975, S. 103–133
nicht der Historiker – das als Vorschlag für das
zwölfte Gebot, als Dank an M.D. und zur Befreiung
vom Psychoanalytiker, den er zum Glück auch nicht
bemüht hat.

ZpH Jg. 16 (2010), H. 1

49