Professor

Elin Eriksen Ødegaard

Field of work

I am a professor of education with a PhD in educational sciences from the University of Gothenburg (2007). Currently, I work as the Director of  KINDknow  - Centre for Early Childhood Education and Care Research. Here, since the start in 2018, I have built capacity for competence, knowledge and innovation in the kindergarten sector based on a commitment to sustainability and the best interests of all children. 

I am also head of the Research School NORCHILD [NORBARN], the kindergarten sector's first research school. The research school is an innovation for promoting skills that are just as relevant to research as to the rest of working life.  

I took the initiative for the Exploration and Pedagogical Innovation Laboratories in 2020, an exploration laboratory, where we co-create across and conduct practice-developing research through workshops. 

I do a wide range of research on various topics within kindergarten research, but my main expertise is Narrative Inquiry, children's collaborative narratives, play and exploration. I have extensive management experience; as a board member of a kindergarten, vice-dean for research, editor and editorial board tasks in several journals, and as an elected leader of organisations and board positions. I supervise PhD candidates, am an advisor in international research projects and give invited lectures about my research. I like communicating my research and creating research translation (films, etc) and I founded the KINDknow Notes Series. 

I lead the following ongoing projects:  

  • KINDKNOW-Kindergarten Knowledge Centre for Systemic Research for Diversity and Sustainable Futures [BARNkunne] (Research Council of Norway, 2018-2028: NOK 50.6 million).
  • NORCHILD Research School for Early Childhood Education  [NORBARN] (Research Council of Norway, 2022-2030, NOK 16 million).
  • EX-PED-LAB - Sustainable Design in kindergarten sector through Exploration and Pedagogical Innovation Laboratories (The Research Council of Norway, 2021-2025, NOK 12 million).
  • One Ocean - Exploration - 2022- 2026 (HVL and various funding sources)
  • Water and Waterscape - Children's rights to clean water (HVL)

I am also a researcher in these projects: 

  •  MoveEarly - Move, Play, Explore in Early Childhood Education (The Research Council of Norway, chaired by Eivind Aadland)
  • Playing Transitions (Danish Research Council, chaired by Helle Marie Skovbjerg)

I have led these completed projects:

  • 2011-2017: Nordic Childhood(s) in Transformation (Nordic Ministries, 900 Euro)
  • 2009-2014: Kindergarten as an arena for education (Research Council of Norway, NOK 4.5 million)
  • 2000-2014: Kindergarten as an arena for learning and formation (UDIR), Working group for the framework plan for kindergartens (Ministry of Education and Research/UDIR), Learning through guidance (UDIR and NORDPLUS),  Management of kindergarten teacher education (VESTNORSK Nettverk (VESTNORSK Nettverk ). 

Invitations, awards and positions of trust

  • Invited speaker in Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Greece, China, South Korea and Australia. 
  • Editorial board of the International Journal of Early Childhood Education (from 2025)
  • Editorial Board of International Journal of Childhood in the Anthroposcene (from 2025)
  • Editorial Board of International Journal of Play (from 2009) 
  • Editor of Nordic Kindergarten Research (2020-2023)
  • Award of Recognition (Etnhokino, Bern, 2025) for Sea Portrait - The Children of the North Sea. 
  • 1st prize for best pedagogical concept used in film (International Educational Film Festival, UiT - The Arctic University, 2024) for Sea Portrait - Children by the North Sea.
  • Elected treasurer and deputy chair of World OMEP, member of the World OMEP Excectutive board (2020-2023).
  • Scientific advisor for 'Playful learning Research' led by Helle Skovbjerg, funded by the Lego Foundation (2020-2024). 
  • Scientific advisor for 'World Care', led by Ditte Winther Lindquist, funded by the Research Council of Denmark and Aarhus University (2020-2024).
  • Scientific advisor for 'Play responsive teaching' led by Niklas Pramling, funded by the University of Gothenburg (2019-2023)
  • Scientific advisor in 'Children's grief and grive in ECEC', led by Lasse Lipponen, funded by the Finnish Academi (2020-2023)
  • Steering group for PRODIALOG - an NFR project led by Helse-Bergen
  • Bergen Ambassador - award from Visist Bergen and Bergen Municipality (2021-present)
  • Member of the editorial board of the 'International Journal of play' (2013-present)
  • Editor of the Journal of Nordic Early Childhood Education and Care Research (2020-2023)
  • Adjunct Professor at the University of Tromsø – The Arctic University of Norway (2012-2023)
  • OMEP World Treasurer and member of the Executive Committee of the World Organisation for Early Childhood Education (OMEP) (2020-2023)
  • Board member of the National Research School for Teacher Education (NAFOL, 2016-2022)
  • Head of Secretariat for BIN - Children's Culture in the Nordic Region (2012-2018)
  • Research award: HiB - R&D Award 2013 for high quality in research and research management
  • I led a working group that submitted a draft of a new Norwegian framework plan for kindergarten content and tasks in 2014 and was an advisor on the final draft (2016). 
  • Elected leader of the Norwegian OMEP 2009-2013. 

For my publications: see Cristin 


Teaches

  • PhD Research School NORBARN, HVL
  • PhD supervision, HVL,
  • Continuing and further education, external assignments


Researching

  • Play, movement and exploration
  • Sustainability in a kindergarten perspective 
  • Co-creation
  • Narrative methodology
  • Formation
  • Kindergarten history
  • The kindergarten's natural landscape 


Research groups

Publications

  • Forskningens rolle i utviklingen av barnehagekvalitet

    Agneta Phil, Elin Eriksen Ødegaard (2025)
  • Å forstå og bruke forskning – Hvorfor, hva og hvordan ?

    Elin Eriksen Ødegaard (2025)
  • Verksted - Vi skaper drømmescenario - Verksted for ledning av förskolan på vetenskapens grund

    Elin Eriksen Ødegaard (2025)
  • A Pedagogy of Emergent Ocean Literacy – Narrative accounts of children’s explorations in the coastal landscapes of Western Norway

    Elin Eriksen Ødegaard, Åsta Birkeland, Czarecah Tuppil Oropilla (2024)
  • What was the driving force for amending the Kindergaten Act in 2006? Why did the Norwegian government find it necessary to integrate childhood education and care, instead of operating it separately?

    Elin Eriksen Ødegaard (2024)
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