Film som didaktiskt verktyg i historieundervisningen

This degree project was written within the framework of the teachers’ programme at Malmö University, with a specialisation in the subject of history. The project deals with teachers’ views on narrative film as a tool for teaching history. The empirical research was conducted in the form of qualitative interviews with three history teachers in southern Sweden. The purpose of the study was to enquire as to how history teachers implement film as a tool in history teaching at upper secondary level. The theories used to analyse the interviews were mostly restricted to the German hermeneutic tradition and the concepts of historical consciousness, historical culture and uses of history. This study found that history teachers use films to a wide extent and for varied purposes. Common strategies include using film to raise interest in the subject, using film to analyse uses of history and using film as a basis for source criticism. All of the teachers interviewed pinpointed the many pitfalls of using films in history teaching without a clear purpose; however, they all used films to some extent and found support for doing so in the national syllabus for the subject of history in Sweden. Conclusively, films can be a useful tool for teaching history; however, one must be aware of the pitfalls of doing so aimlessly and without clear intent