Tilsyn som styringsform i forholdet mellom staten og kommunene

This paper focuses on supervision as a governing tool in the relationship between the state and the municipalities. A clarification and discussion of the concept of supervision is made. The specific character of the states supervision of the municipalities is related to the overall local-central relationship. The relation between control and supervision is emphasized in addition to supervision as a governing activity by itself. Also the relation between the internal control and supervision within the municipalities and the external control from the central government is discussed. The historical development of supervisory- and control arrangements between the state and the municipalities are presented, Focus is on the formative period before 1920, and from1970 until today. Supervision, as a governing tool, is an imprecisely concept which varies from a sector to another. Due to that fact we illustrate this point further by examining the sectors of social security and primary education. The concept of supervision is related to the general concept of governance and some possible effects of supervision are discussed, especially the impact on learning. A central point is that sector specific values and governing norms, both historical and current, influence the way supervision is exercised. A main argument in the paper is about the continuous tension between supervision as control or as counselling. A second is the importance of contextual conditions and a third point to be made is the discrepancy between the legal framework of control and supervision and the actual organisations and relations