Oscar Olsson

Oscar Ulrik Bernhardin Olsson, born in Helsingborg on the 4th of July 1877 and died in Danderyd on 25 January 1950. He is regarded as the father of study circles. He created the first study circle in Sweden in 1902 as part of the International Order of Good Templars

The study circle for the International Order of Good Templars was the first environment for establishing the basis and principles of the study circle. According to Olsson the features of a study circle were:

It became apparent that the study circles were a way of empowering and emancipating the working class, as higher education was not a possibility for them due to financial reasons and the need for the young generations to provide for the whole family as soon as they were physically able to.So the study circle was a way of gaining knowledge and education without the financial neccesities. As Olson put it “The emancipation of the working class should be a task for the workers themselves”

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