Human dignity within teacher education: A matter of individualism, competitiveness, and strategic rationality

Human dignity is a grand concept that is assumed to play an important role in education. However, no widely accepted universal definition of human dignity exists. The aim of this study was to examine the Discourse of Human Dignity within teacher education, especially with respect to how Swedish teacher educators make meaning of the concept of human dignity. Findings show that four subdiscourses are involved in the Discourse of Human Dignity within teacher education. These discursive constructions are influences by outcomes of, for example, life-science research, and British and/or American media discourses.

► The Discourse of Human Dignity within teacher education consists of at least four different subdiscourses.
► The most prominent subdiscourse associates full human dignity to ‘the perfect body’.
► Human dignity is rarely viewed as a universal feature that belongs to all persons.
► Human dignity within teacher education is characterised by strategic actions.
► Human dignity is mostly about winning benefits on the expense of others.