The School for Life: Understanding N.F.S. Grundtvig

Learn about the philosopher who first wrote about a folk school or “school for life”. Anders Holm, the author of the Essential Grundtvig, will introduce the life, work, and impact of Grundtvig. Grundtvig is a tremendous force in Denmark and has broad influence around the world including within the current North American Folk School Movement. Practitioners and scholars from various fields increasingly show interest in his life, ideas, and the spread of his influence. Grundtvig's work was a force for creating democracy in Denmark and continues to support democracies around the world.

In this 90-minute webinar and discussion, Anders will provide an overview of Grundtvig’s life and work followed by reflections on Grundtvig’s impact on Denmark and the world. Participants will then have the opportunity to discuss Grundtvig’s influence and/or impact in their own context in small groups to include educational impacts, political impacts, and more.

Here’s what Linda Woodhead, Professor, Dept of Politics, Philosophy and Religion Lancaster University, UK, has to say about The Essential Grundtvig:

“As someone who managed to square the circle between liberalism and respect for national and local cultures, N.F.S. Grundtvig has never seemed more relevant. This masterful introduction presents the great man’s life, work and a small sample of his own writing, and discusses their contemporary relevance. Grundtvig’s wide-ranging work will be of interest to historians, theologians, literary scholars and those in religious studies, cultural studies, political science and educational research. Accessible to the general reader as well, it will be a welcome addition to many libraries.”

Link to Event Flyer

This webinar is funded through the Folk Education Network grant funded by the Office of Research and Evaluation at AmeriCorps under Grant No. 22REACA001 through the National Service and Civic Engagement research grant competition. Opinions or points of view expressed in this document are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official position of, or a position that is endorsed by, AmeriCorps.