Using IEA International Civic and Citizenship Education Study (ICCS) Data: Northern Lights on ICCS

This chapter introduces the Nordic context of civic and citizenship education in schools including reviews of previous results and research on IEA’s International Civic and Citizenship Education Study (ICCS). By discussing the issues relevant to democratic citizenship education that are of central significance in the four Nordic countries, this chapter argues for new cross-country comparative analyses of ICCS data based on themes typically engaging Nordic scholars, including students’ understandings of citizenship, school principals’ understandings of the priorities of citizenship education, digital citizenship education, environmental citizenship education, and inequalities and citizenship education. Furthermore, this chapter provides a layout of the volume through positioning the five analytical chapters across contesting the understanding of civic engagement and democratic dispositions in Nordic democracies.