Harriet Zilliacus, PhD

Description of research and teaching

Title of Docent at the University of Helsinki, November 2022
Acting professor of education, Department of Education 01/8/2020→31/12/2020, 01/09→31/10/2022
Postdoctoral researcher, Department of Education 01/03/2015 → 31/12/2017

Harriet Zilliacus is a university lecturer at the Faculty of Educational Sciences, and teaches mainly within the degree programme for general and adult education conducted in the Swedish language. She also teaches within the degree programmes for teacher and early childhood education. In her teaching she strives to integrate sustainability perspectives and research on diversity, multilingualism, minority issues and social justice in relation to pedagogy (See research community Diversity, Multilingualism and Social Justice in Education). She has developed several courses, including the master degree courses Utbildningsplanering för en hållbar framtid (Educational policy development towards a sustainable future) and Utbildningssociologi i ett globalt perspektiv (Educational sociology in a global perspective), and the bachelor degree course Vuxenpedagogik och lärande i förändring (Adult education and the changing features of learning). Starting from the academic year 2023-2024 she is the responsible teacher for a sustainability education course for all Swedish-speaking bachelor students at the Faculty. Harriet Zilliacus also teaches qualitative research methods and has extensive experience as thesis supervisor.

Harriet Zilliacus’ research within sustainability education focuses especially on questions on worldviews and the possibilities for transformative change through policy development, school education, and in adult education and learning. Her research interests and previous publications also include multicultural education and multilingual education in the comprehensive school education and in teacher education, Finnish worldview education, as well as arts-based qualitative research methods. Her doctoral dissertation from 2015 was in the field of intercultural and worldview education, and titled “Supporting Student Identities and Inclusion in the Minority Religious and Secular Ethics Education – A Study on Plurality in the Finnish Comprehensive School”. For personal copies of her publications that are not Open Access or are still in press, please contact Harriet through e-mail at [email protected].