Åsa Karlsson Sjögren, ‘Desirable qualifications and undesirable behaviour: Teachers in Swedish schools for poor children, c. 1780–1820’

This chapter analyzes how male and female teachers in Swedish town schools for poor children circa 1780–1820 were described, what qualities and experiences were of the greatest importance, possible gender differences, how the teachers succeeded, the scope of their activities and how the school boards dealt with unsuccessful teachers. For the teachers of this study pedagogical content knowledge was crucial, as well as knowledge of the subjects taught. One skill that became more evident was the ability to teach pupils how to write. Most female teachers were not skilled enough in writing, probably because of their inferior social status.