Studied education, psychology, history, and German at the University of Bern; worked in children’s homes, youth work, teacher education, and education administration; head of the Education Staff Division in the Department of Education of the Canton of Solothurn (1997–1999); education research at the University of Bern (1987–1997), University of Zurich (1999–2003), and University of Geneva (2002–2003) on history of education, education policy, school theory, and teacher education; 2003–2007: professor of education and head of the Institut Forschung und Entwicklung at the FHNW School of Education at the University of Applied Sciences and Arts Northwestern Switzerland in Aarau (and its predecessor institution, Pädagogische Hochschule der Fachhochschule Aargau); since 2008: professor of education, chair of Historical Research in Education and Governance of the Education System at the Institute of Education, University of Zurich.