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  • 1.
    Abdalla, Marie
    et al.
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Education and Teacher's Practice.
    Thörn, Amanda
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Education and Teacher's Practice.
    Flerspråkiga barns meningsskapande i mötet med den digitala plattan: En kvalitativ fältstudie i förskolan2022Independent thesis Basic level (university diploma), 10 credits / 15 HE creditsStudent thesis
    Abstract [sv]

    Syftet med detta självständiga arbete är att studera hur barn i en interkulturell förskola använder multimodala sätt att kommunicera med digitala och analoga spel för att skapa mening. Mer ingående handlar det om att bidra med kunskap om hur tecken inom lärande kan visas genom hur barnen använder och omskapar analoga samt digitala material utifrån sina egna intressen. Studien har inspiration från etnografi och metoden som har använts för att samla in material har genomförts med deltagande observationer i form av fältanteckningar. Analysen utgår från ett designorienterat perspektiv som används för att visa hur barn och förskollärare kommunicerar med olika teckensystem och uttryckssätt vid användning av en digital platta och analoga brickspel. Resultatet visar hur barnen skapar mening genom att titta, peka och tala, hur de använder analoga bilder för att transformera sin förståelse av siffror och antal och hur de ändrar sitt meningserbjudande. 

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  • 2.
    Abrahamsson, Erica
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Education and Teacher's Practice.
    Obligatorisk läxhjälp på fritidhemmet: Vårdnadshavares och lärare i fritidshem uppfattningar om läxhjälp på fritidshemmet2018Independent thesis Basic level (professional degree), 10 credits / 15 HE creditsStudent thesis
    Abstract [sv]

    Syftet med denna studie är att undersöka vilken uppfattning vårdnadshavare och lärare i fritidshem har angående obligatorisk läxhjälp på fritidshemmet samt om fritidshemmets verksamhet får några konsekvenser om obligatorisk läxhjälp införs. Studiens metod bygger på en kvalitativ enkätundersökning med 38 vårdnadshavare samt kvalitativa personliga intervjuer med 5 olika lärare i fritidshem från 5 olika skolor. Resultatet visar att uppfattningarna som vårdnadshavare har angående obligatorisk läxhjälp på fritidshemmet var både positiv och negativ. En del anser att läxhjälp på fritidshemmet är bra eftersom många barn har långa dagar på skolan och fritidshemmet. Andra anser tvärtom att läxhjälp är skolans ansvar och inte ska förekomma på fritidshemmet. Det framkommer även att lärare i fritidshem är överens med vårdnadshavare. Argument som förs fram är rättvisa och andra menar att fritidshemmet är ett komplement till skolan inte deras förlängda arm. Fritidshemmets verksamhet påverkas enligt vårdnadshavare och lärare i fritidshem på olika sätt. Det framkommer att läxhjälp ett par gånger i veckan inte inverkar på verksamheten, dock behövs det mer personal i så fall. Medan andra menar att utevistelse och annat påverkas. 

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  • 3.
    Abramsson, Markus
    et al.
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Education and Teacher's Practice.
    Abedali, Moseib
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Education and Teacher's Practice.
    Uppdrag Filmskapande: Ett utvecklingsinriktat arbete om hur filmskapande kan utveckla verksamheten kring digitala verktyg.2020Independent thesis Basic level (professional degree), 10 credits / 15 HE creditsStudent thesis
    Abstract [en]

    After conducting the current situation analysis, we were able to find that there was a need and a desire of the teachers to develop the teaching with digital tools. Thus, the development-oriented project aimed to develop the teaching with digital tools and contribute to the students' and teachers' konwledge through digital tools. The work was founded on the action-model in planning, action, observation and reflection. The starting point of the work is to take into account the interests of the students and the teachers in how each action was carried out, in order to gain a meaningful and motivation in carrying out the task. The results of the actions varied depending on the students' content in the films. Content in music videos, for example, could culminate in a learning linked to dance and collaboration, while content in lego building showed abstract skills as patience. The teachers' projects differed somewhat from the students'. The teachers put more focus on filmmaking and that the content would be adapted accordingly, while the students' focus was based on the content. After the interviews, the teachers showed a developed competence in the area as well as a newfound will to work with digital tools. Based on the result, such a project with specific filmmaking can develop teaching from the teachers 'perspective and contribute to students' learning through motivation and meaningfulness.

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  • 4.
    Ackesjö, Helena
    et al.
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Pedagogy and Learning. Linnaeus University, Linnaeus Knowledge Environments, Education in Change.
    Dahl, Marianne
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Education and Teacher's Practice. Linnaeus University, Linnaeus Knowledge Environments, Education in Change.
    Pedagogisk takt i fritidspedagogisk undervisning: En välregisserad dans mellan lärare och elever.2022In: Nordisk tidsskrift for pedagogikk og kritikk, E-ISSN 2387-5739, Vol. 8, no 1, p. 63-77Article in journal (Refereed)
    Abstract [en]

    This study aims to create knowledge about relational aspects in teachers’ descriptions of school-ageeducare teaching. With the support of the concept of pedagogical pace, the interpersonal aspectsthat emerge in the descriptions of the pedagogical meeting and the interaction between teachersand pupils are made visible. The empirical material consists of individually written reflectionswhere the teachers describe their teaching based on the didactic questions when, where, how andwhat. Based on a qualitative content analysis, three themes emerge that illustrate teachers’ pedagogicalpace in the school-age educare teaching; To lead the teaching, To follow and capture the teachingand To take joint responsibility of the teaching. The study shows that pedagogical pace is situational and immediate, and it creates different teaching situations. The descriptions illustrate how theteacher can choose to stop and respond to the pupil or ignore what happens in the joint meeting.When the pedagogical gaze is forward-looking and open towards the pupils, the school age educareteaching is described as a well-directed dance where teachers and pupils alternately lead and followand where a shared responsibility is taken through the openness and trust of those involved.

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  • 5.
    Ackesjö, Helena
    et al.
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Pedagogy and Learning.
    Herrlin, KatarinaLinnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Education and Teacher's Practice.
    Att undervisa barn i skolstartsålder2024Collection (editor) (Other academic)
  • 6.
    Ackesjö, Helena
    et al.
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Pedagogy and Learning.
    Lindqvist, Per
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Education and Teacher's Practice.
    Nordänger, Ulla Karin
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Education and Teacher's Practice.
    “Betwixt and Between”: Leisure-time Teachers and the Construction of Professional Identities2019In: Scandinavian Journal of Educational Research, ISSN 0031-3831, E-ISSN 1470-1170, Vol. 63, no 6, p. 884-898Article in journal (Refereed)
    Abstract [en]

    In 2014, a newly formed group of teachers graduated from Swedish universities. In addition to their qualification as leisure-time pedagogues, their degree includes teaching practical/aesthetical subjects in compulsory school. This group of teachers thus has to relate to dual professional identities and to maintain a balance between the socially oriented leisure-time centres and a goal- and results-driven school. In this article we describe their first two years after graduation, trying to get hold of their negotiation of professional identities and orientation in the professional landscape. Results shows that the graduates try to balance own ideals and hybrid professional intentions against traditional professional identities and labour market conditions and that position in a liminal phase might be crucial for the outcome.

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  • 7.
    Ackesjö, Helena
    et al.
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Pedagogy and Learning. Linnaeus University, Linnaeus Knowledge Environments, Education in Change.
    Lindqvist, Per
    Mälardalen university, Sweden.
    Nordänger, Ulla Karin
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Education and Teacher's Practice. Linnaeus University, Linnaeus Knowledge Environments, Education in Change.
    De första åren i yrket: nyutexaminerade lärares upplevelser av en ny yrkesroll2020In: Fritidshemmets pedagogik i en ny tid / [ed] Björn Haglund, Jan Gustafsson Nyckel, Karin Lager, Malmö: Gleerups Utbildning AB, 2020, 1, p. 101-117Chapter in book (Other academic)
  • 8.
    Ackesjö, Helena
    et al.
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Pedagogy and Learning. Linnaeus University, Linnaeus Knowledge Environments, Education in Change.
    Wernholm, Marina
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Pedagogy and Learning. Linnaeus University, Linnaeus Knowledge Environments, Education in Change.
    Gardesten, Jens
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Education and Teacher's Practice. Linnaeus University, Linnaeus Knowledge Environments, Education in Change.
    Mjuka förmågor: vad är det och vad kan det bidra till?2022In: Undervisning och ledarskap på fritids: Perspektiv på fritidshemmets pedagogiska uppdrag / [ed] Helena Ackesjö & Björn Haglund, Stockholm: Innovation, forskning och utveckling i skola och förskola (IFOUS) , 2022, p. 57-68Chapter in book (Other academic)
  • 9.
    Ackesjö, Helena
    et al.
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Pedagogy and Learning.
    Wernholm, Marina
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Pedagogy and Learning.
    Gardesten, Jens
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Education and Teacher's Practice.
    Soft skills – a way to conceptualize school-age educare’s teachers’ work with children’s social skills2023In: NERA Conference 2023 15–17 March, Oslo.Digitalization and Technologies in Education – Opportunities and Challenges, 2023Conference paper (Refereed)
  • 10.
    Ackesjö, Helena
    et al.
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Pedagogy and Learning.
    Wernholm, Marina
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Pedagogy and Learning.
    Krasniqi, Mergim
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Education and Teacher's Practice.
    An Attractive School-Age Educare: Free Choices as Expanded or Limited Agency2024In: Education Sciences, E-ISSN 2227-7102, Vol. 14, no 9, article id 937Article in journal (Refereed)
    Abstract [en]

    The present study aimed to investigate and problematize an attractive school-age educare (SAEC) from the children’s perspectives. Which different aspects of quality appear in the children’s narratives about the SAEC activities? This was achieved by listening to children’s narratives and their voices. Forty-three children aged 6 to 10 participated in group conversations with the staff intheir SAEC center. The study is theoretically based on a childhood sociological lens where childrenare recognized as active participants and agents for change and therefore important to listen to.The results show that an attractive School-Age Educare requires committed staff who inspire new discoveries, its own identity-specific premises with appropriate materials, the provision of planned and guided activities, the offering of unexpected and non-routine activities, and space for children’s agency to influence and to choose and to direct one’s own time. It is shown that free choices can both expand and limit children’s agency. In addition, the study illustrates how conversations with children can form a basic method for both developing quality and making the contextual factors for children’s agency visible.

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  • 11.
    Adam, Adam
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Education and Teacher's Practice.
    Samverkan med vårdnadshavare i förskolan: En kvalitativ studie om vårdnadshavare med annat modersmål än svenska2024Independent thesis Basic level (degree of Bachelor), 10 credits / 15 HE creditsStudent thesis
    Abstract [sv]

    Syftet är att få kunskap om hur vårdnadshavare med annat modersmål än

    svenska uppfattar formell samverkan med förskolan och vilka perspektiv de

    har på vad som utgör möjligheter och svårigheter i denna samverkan. Fem

    vårdnadshavare med annat modersmål intervjuades från två olika förskolor.

    Hermeneutik utgör grunden för studien, och empirin samlades in genom en

    kvalitativ metod med semistrukturerade intervjuer. Frågorna formulerades för

    att generera svar som kan adressera studiens frågeställningar och följer

    Vetenskapsrådets etiska principer noggrant.

    Resultaten avslöjar att vårdnadshavarna är medvetna om och deltar på olika

    sätt i den formella samverkan med förskolan. Studien identifierar åtta samverkansformer

    med två olika karaktärer. En huvudsamverkan är individorienterad

    och barncentrerad (inskolning, utvecklingssamtal, dokumentation

    och daglig kontakt), medan den andra huvudsamverkan är grupporienterad och

    vårdnadshavarfokuserad (introduktion, föräldramöte, föräldraråd, digitala

    verktyg, daglig kontakt och interkulturella förhållningssätt).

    Resultaten indikerar att föräldramötet och utvecklingssamtalet är väl mottagna

    av vårdnadshavarna, medan inskolningen och introduktion uppfattas som upprepande.

    Förskolans samverkan med föräldrar med annat modersmål än

    svenska står inför situationella svårigheter, särskilt avseende språkliga och

    kulturella aspekter. Arbetslagets kompetens, ömsesidig respekt och engagemang

    framstår som

  • 12.
    Adam, David
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Education and Teacher's Practice.
    Högstadiets fysiklektioner och ”en dator per elev”: Vilken potential ser lärare och hur upplever de den?2019Independent thesis Basic level (professional degree), 10 credits / 15 HE creditsStudent thesis
    Abstract [sv]

    Svenska grundskolan närmar sig en tid när alla elever har egna datorer. Vissa lärare har arbetat med detta i många år och andra bara några. Frågan som undersöks i denna uppsats är vilken potential fysiklärare ser i denna utveckling och hur de upplever potentialen. Sju naturvetenskapslärare från Sydsverige intervjuades på ett semistrukturerat sätt och data analyserades med en fenomenografisk ansats. Resultatet visar att den potential som lärare beskriver kan kategoriseras som skapande, innehåll och interaktion men att det finns störningar som påverkar alla kategorier. Analys av hur lärare upplever potentialen belyses med följande kategorier; noggrannhet, effektivitet, flexibilitet och illustrativ. Uppsatsen försöker att undersöka både de negativa och positiva aspekterna inom dessa kategorier. Vidare forskning som undersöker hur elever upplever dessa kategorier av potential skulle kunna bidra till en bättre helhetsbild.

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  • 13.
    Adell Kind, Malin
    et al.
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Education and Teacher's Practice.
    Ouro-Nimini, Rehina
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Education and Teacher's Practice.
    "Vi vill ha bild varje dag": Ett interkulturellt bildpedagogiskt utvecklingsarbete med fokus på att utveckla självtillit och samhörighet på fritidshem2020Independent thesis Basic level (professional degree), 10 credits / 15 HE creditsStudent thesis
    Abstract [en]

    The‌ ‌development‌ ‌work‌ ‌aims‌ ‌to‌ ‌develop‌ ‌and‌ ‌strengthen‌ ‌the‌ ‌students'‌ ‌self-confidence‌ ‌as‌ ‌

    well‌ ‌as‌ ‌the‌ ‌experience‌ ‌of‌ ‌belonging‌ ‌by‌ ‌using‌ ‌intercultural‌ ‌art‌ ‌education‌ ‌as‌ ‌a‌ ‌tool‌ ‌in‌ ‌

    swedish‌ ‌after school.‌ According to the scool management,  the swedish after-school needs to be more structured. They have found many of the students who are there do not have this structure and security with them from home. Therefore, the school management believes that it is extra important for the students to experience this at the swedish after school. We‌ ‌used‌ ‌action‌ ‌research‌ ‌as‌ ‌a‌ ‌method‌ ‌for‌ ‌this‌ ‌intercultural‌ ‌art‌project‌ ‌that‌ ‌lasted‌ ‌for‌ ‌five‌ ‌weeks.‌ ‌There‌ ‌were‌ ‌fifteen‌ ‌students‌ ‌from‌ ‌second grade ‌registered.‌The‌ ‌art‌ ‌project‌ ‌was‌ ‌planned‌ ‌and‌ ‌executed‌ ‌on‌ ‌nine‌ ‌occasions‌ ‌where‌ ‌the‌ ‌students‌ ‌could‌ ‌create‌ ‌their‌ ‌own‌ ‌house‌ ‌based‌ ‌on‌ ‌pictures‌ ‌taken‌ ‌of‌ ‌the‌ ‌houses‌ ‌located‌ ‌in‌ ‌the‌ ‌school's‌ ‌immediate‌ ‌surroundings.‌ ‌Together‌ ‌they‌ ‌built‌ ‌a‌ ‌small‌ ‌community‌. We want the students to have an understanding that we are all a part in the community, it is our expreciences and backgrounds that develope our common community.‌The‌ ‌students‌ ‌and‌ ‌the‌ ‌staff‌ ‌in‌ ‌the‌ ‌swedish‌ ‌after-school‌ ‌were‌ ‌interviewed‌ ‌in‌ ‌groups‌ ‌at‌ ‌the‌ ‌beginning‌ ‌of‌ ‌the‌ ‌project.‌ ‌The‌ ‌project‌ ‌was‌ ‌documented‌ ‌through‌ ‌audio‌ ‌recordings‌ ‌of‌ ‌the‌interview‌ ‌with‌ ‌the‌ ‌staff,‌ ‌photographs‌ ‌of‌ ‌the‌ ‌student’s‌ ‌arts‌ ‌and‌ ‌field‌ ‌notes.‌ The‌ ‌interviews‌ ‌showed‌ ‌that‌ ‌students‌ ‌and‌ ‌staff‌ ‌experienced‌ ‌the‌ ‌swedish‌ ‌after-school‌  ‌in‌ ‌different‌ ‌ways.‌ ‌The‌ ‌staff‌ ‌thinks‌ ‌it‌ ‌can‌ ‌be‌ ‌a‌ ‌though‌ ‌climate,‌ ‌but‌ ‌the‌ ‌students‌ ‌feel‌ ‌that‌ ‌they‌all‌ ‌help‌ ‌each‌ ‌other.‌ ‌The‌ ‌result‌ ‌of‌ ‌the‌ ‌complete‌ ‌development‌ ‌work‌ ‌shows‌ ‌that‌ ‌there‌ ‌is‌ ‌a‌ ‌clear‌ ‌need‌ ‌for‌ ‌controlled‌ ‌activities.‌ ‌We‌ ‌found‌ ‌that‌ ‌the‌ ‌students‌ ‌appreciated‌ ‌intercultural‌ ‌art‌-education.‌ ‌It‌ ‌helped‌ ‌the‌ ‌student‌ ‌to‌ ‌experience‌ ‌self-confidence‌ ‌and‌ ‌belonging‌ ‌at‌ ‌the‌ ‌swedish‌ ‌after school.‌ ‌The‌ ‌students‌ ‌were‌ ‌proud‌ ‌of‌ ‌what‌ ‌they‌ ‌had‌ ‌created‌ ‌together

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  • 14.
    Adolfsson, Carl-Henrik
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Education and Teacher's Practice.
    Big ideas, soft governance: managing large-scale school improvement at the national agency level in Sweden2024Conference paper (Refereed)
    Abstract [en]

    In the Nordic curriculum theory tradition, questions linked to educational reforms and school governance have long been a crucial research issue (Lindensjö & Lundgren, 2000; Englund, 1986; Wahlström & Sundberg, 2018). The mainly focus in this tradition has over time been on the relationship between changed societal conditions and (trans-)national school policy and its implications for local school practice. However, less attention has been paid to the processes that occur between the national political decision level and the national school agency level. That is, national educational policy and state policy directives must often, in a first step, be interpreted and operationalized by a national school agency in more concrete school reforms and programs before they are implemented at the local schools.

    In this study, the implementation of a national large-scale school improvement program in Sweden, “Collaboration for the best school as possible” (CBSP) has been used as an empirical case. Based on a neo-institutional theoretical point of departure (e.g. Scott, 2001, 2008) in combination of sense-making theory (e.g. Weick, 1995, 2001) this paper aims to explore the state governance of the CBSP and how officials at the state agency level made sense of the ideas behind the reform and operationalized them in policy actions. Officials of the Swedish National Agency for Education (SNAE) were interviewed. This interview data in combination of Swedish Government Official Reports and formal directives from the Ministry of Education were analyzed to identify how regulatory rules, professional norms and cultural–cognitive beliefs shaped SNAE’s design of the program. 

    The results show how different types of governance logics (i.e. regulatory rules, professional norms and cultural–cognitive beliefs) set the direction for managing the CBSP. In particular, the lack of clear regulatory directives enabled Officials’ sensemaking processes, clearly influenced by normative ideas and cultural–cognitive beliefs.

  • 15.
    Adolfsson, Carl-Henrik
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Education and Teacher's Practice.
    Large-scale school improvement: results of and conditions for systemic changes within coupled school systems2024In: Journal of educational change, ISSN 1389-2843, E-ISSN 1573-1812Article in journal (Refereed)
    Abstract [en]

    The aim of this study was to explore the results of and conditions for systemiclarge-scale school improvement. Through a multi-level analysis and a theoreticalframework inspired by organization- and sensemaking-oriented theories, the studyexamines how a Swedish large-scale school improvement program, “Collaborationfor the Best School Possible,” played out in two Swedish municipalities. Schoolactors at four organizational levels (at the National Education Agency, Local Education Authority, school leader, and teacher levels) in the two municipalities wereinterviewed. Because these school actors’ sensemaking is linked to different aspectsof the national largescale improvement program, the analysis shows a variation inthe strengthening of the couplings between these organizational levels. The different nature of the couplings affected the implementation process and the results ofthe program. While the national large-scale program seemed to have contributed toan improvement in the schools’ quality assurance systems and leadership practices,there were difficulties in maintaining general and sustainable changes in schools’instructional practices. The conclusion of the study was that, even if a nationallarge-scale school improvement program is well designed and backed up with manyresources, it must be perceived as legitimate among the local school actors at thedifferent organizational levels. This points to the importance of managing the balance between top-down efforts and visions and local professional knowledge andexperience.

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  • 16.
    Adolfsson, Carl-Henrik
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Education and Teacher's Practice.
    Local Quality Management -  Local School Governance in Sweden in the light of a re-centralization movement2022In: Education between Hope and Happening – Developing Powerful Curriculum Theorizing in Challenging Times, 9:e Nordiska Läroplansteorikonferensen, Linnéuniversitetet, 20-21 oktober 2022, Abstracts, Linnéuniversitetet , 2022, p. 10-11Conference paper (Refereed)
    Abstract [en]

    In Sweden, as in many other decentralized school systems, extensive responsibility and autonomy has been delegated to Local Educational Authorities (LEA). However, decades of declining student achievement and decreased equality between schools have spurred an intensive critique against the Swedish school system and triggered a more state-regulated governing with aim to take stronger control over the schools’ outcomes. Considering such a ‘re-centralization’ movement, new conditions between the state, the local education authorities (LEA) and the schools has emerged (Wahlström & Sundberg, 2017a; Adolfsson, 2018). In the light of such a changing governing landscape, questions linked to local school governance can be raised. Based on results from two research projects conducted in two large-sized Swedish municipalities, the aim of this paper is to explore and theorize the dynamics of local school governance. The research question guiding this paper can be formulated as: In the light of an emerging re-centralization movement in Sweden, what governing strategies and actions do the LEAs apply to control and manage the schools?

    Considering a ‘classical’ perspective of school governance (Lindesjö & Lundgren, 2014) four aspects of governance is often mentioned: regulation, economy, ideology (content) and evaluation. In this paper, these aspects are understood in light of a neo-institutional theoretical framework (Scott, 2008). From this perspective, three dimensions can be highlighted regarding how institutions control and affect other institutions, respond to external pressure, and seek legitimacy: regulative (rules and sanctions), normative (prevalent norms, expectations and ideals), and cognitive-cultural/discursive (shared conceptions and frames of meaning-making). These theoretical concepts enable to elucidate the character of the different strategies and actions that LEA undertake in the local governance strategies of the schools.

    Empirical data from two research projects have been used to answer the research question (Adolfsson & Alvunger, 2020; Håkansson & Adolfsson, 2021; Adolfsson & Håkansson, 2021). These two projects had a common interest in the dynamic interplay between the LEA and principals in relation to a changed governing and policy landscape in Sweden. The data collections in these research projects were carried out through a multi-method approach (Tashakkori and Teddlie, 2010) in terms of policy analysis of local policy documents, interviews with various LEA actors and observations of meetings between LEA administration and school principals.  

    In relation to the concept ‘Local quality management’ (Adolfsson & Håkansson, 2021) the results illustrate that the local school governance often is organized and conducted within the context of the LEA’s quality assurance systems. The following strategies can be distinguished as especially important:       

    -          Governance through shared visions and language

    -          Governance through standardization and ‘Benchmarking’

    -          Governance through assessment and quality dialogues 

    -          Governance through competence intervention 

    Compared to national governance strategies, local quality management strategies are constituted by more normative and culture/cognitive elements rather than regulative. Finally, I’ll argue that ‘quality management’ should be seen as a fifth dimension of school governance.  

     

    References 

    Adolfsson, Carl-Henrik (2018). Upgraded curriculum? An analysis of knowledge boundaries in teaching under the Swedish subject-based curriculum. Curriculum Journal, 29(3), 424-440.

    Adolfsson, C-H., & Alvunger. D. (2020). Power dynamics and policy actions in the changing landscape of local school governance. Nordic Journal of Studies in Educational Policy, 6(2), 128–142.

    Adolfsson, C. & Håkansson, J. (2021a). Mötet mellan den statliga och kommunala kvalitetsstyrningen inom ramen för Samverkan för bästa skola. Pedagogisk forskning i Sverige, 26 (1). 15-41.

    Håkansson, J. & Adolfsson, C. (2021). Local education authority’s quality management within a coupled school system: strategies, actions, and tensions. Journal of Educational Change.

    Lindensjö, B., & Lundgren, U. P. (2014). Utbildningsreformer och politisk styrning. Stockholm, Liber

    Scott, W. (2008). Institutions and organizations: Ideas and interests. London: Sage.

    Tashakkori, A., & Teddlie, C. (2010). Sage handbook: Mixed methods in social and behavioral research. London: Sage.

    Wahlström, N., & Sundberg, D. (2017). Transnational curriculum standards and classroom practices: The new meaning of teaching. Routledge

  • 17.
    Adolfsson, Carl-Henrik
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Education and Teacher's Practice.
    The local governance of Swedish schools in light of a new educational policy landscape empirical exploration and theoretical elaboration2024In: Nordic Journal of Studies in Educational Policy, ISSN 2002-0317, Vol. 10, no 2, p. 85-97Article in journal (Refereed)
    Abstract [en]

    In the Nordic curriculum theory (CT) tradition, questions linked to educational change and school governance have long been a crucial research issue. However, despite several decades of decentralized school systems, local school governance has been a highly neglected field of research. Considering the changing landscape of school governance in terms of re-centralization, where the state’s aim is to take stronger control of school outcomes, the conditions for local school governance have changed. Based on results from two research projects in two Swedish municipalities, and from a neo-institutional theoretical perspective, the aim of this article is to contribute to the CT research field by exploring and theorizing on local school governance. Four management strategies that local educational authorities (LEAs) employed to manage the schools could be distinguished: local school management via i) data use, ii) the standardization and formalization of schools’ quality assurance processes and routines, iii) quality dialogues, iv) professional learning and best practices. These management strategies and activities were mostly organized, and conducted within the scope of the LEAs’ quality assurance systems and were primarily built on normative and cultural – cognitive elements. A way to conceptualize this form of governance is through the concept of ‘local quality management’.

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  • 18.
    Adolfsson, Carl-Henrik
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Education and Teacher's Practice.
    Upgraded curriculum?: An analysis of knowledge boundaries in teaching under the Swedish subject-based curriculum2018In: Curriculum Journal, ISSN 0958-5176, E-ISSN 1469-3704, Vol. 29, no 3, p. 424-440Article in journal (Refereed)
    Abstract [en]

    This article offers a contribution to the current debate about knowledge and the curriculum, especially initiated by social realist writers. The enacted Swedish subjects-based curriculum for compulsory schooling is examined and is also used as a significant case with the aim of discussing practical implications of social realist claims regarding knowledge and the curriculum. Video-recorded lessons from grade six in six different Swedish schools, in combination with teacher interviews, are explored within the scope of a curriculum theory framework with the purpose of illuminating dominant patterns of knowledge boundaries and knowledge conceptions. The study shows how the Swedish subject-based curriculum frames teaching in a direction where a disciplinary knowledge conception with fixed knowledge boundaries predominates over other knowledge forms. The subject-based curriculum also appears to produce an ‘overloading’ of content, which implies that pupils’ questions and experiences are avoided and dismissed in the teaching practice.

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  • 19.
    Adolfsson, Carl-Henrik
    et al.
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Education and Teacher's Practice.
    Alvunger, Daniel
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Education and Teacher's Practice.
    A study on policy pressures and power dynamics in the changing landscape of local school governance2018Conference paper (Refereed)
    Abstract [en]

    The aim with this paper is to explore local school governance in the Swedish schooling system by focusing on the local authority and principals through a lens of neo-institutional theory. The study is conducted against a backdrop of current trends in global and national educational policy where it in the Swedish context is possible to identify two major shifts:

     

    • new ways of how the state seeks to control the schools’ outcomes at the expense of the local authorities room for exercise of power– a ‘re-centralisation’
    • the emergence of a new dynamic between the local authority and principals.

     

    In the early 1990s, the Swedish school system was decentralised and the municipalities were given authority for the governing of the schools. A new goal- and outcome-based quality system was introduced that put the municipalities in Sweden in a new position. However, during the last decades transnational organisations and associations such as the OECD and the EU have gained greater influence over education policy (Robertson & Dale, 2015). New policy spaces have emerged that transcend, but also converge within, national borders (Sassen, 2006). Accountability, standardisation and increased student results stand out as important ingredients in current global reform agendas (Wahlström & Sundberg, 2017a; Anderson-Levitt, 2008). In Sweden, declining student achievement in PISA has made policy-makers inclined to be informed by policy solutions from the OECD (Wahlström, 2017). Paired with a strong focus on student achievement, the notion of a school system in a state of crisis grew. Altogether, this have spurred an intensive critique against the decentralised schooling system and triggered a trend of ‘re-centralisation’ in Sweden, meaning a shift towards a more state-regulated governing of the school system (Wahlström & Sundberg, 2017; Adolfsson, 2013) . The government has introduced several reforms and incentives that involves the local management of schools. These include, for instance, a new national curriculum for the compulsory and the upper secondary schooling, a School Inspectorate for auditing and monitoring schools; A reformed Education Act emphasising the local authority’s responsibility for equity and student achievement, and strengthening the principals’ authority; Professional development programmes; and new specialist functions in school (Alvunger, 2015; Adolfsson & Alvunger, 2017). These policy movements have altogether challenged the relations between the state, the local authorities and the schools in Sweden. In light of these changes and with reference to the presented aim of this paper, we ask ourselves the following research questions:

    • How do representatives of the local authority experience and respond to the pressure and influence from the state through the focus on equity and the improvement of student results in national educational policy discourse?
    • What strategies do the local authority employ for governing the schools in the municipality?
    • In what ways do principals respond to the tension in the ‘dual’ governance from the state and the local authority?

     

    The paper draws on a ‘classical’ theoretical and methodological framework of curriculum theory (i.e. the frame-factor theory), with its different levels of analysis – the societal/ideological level, the programmatic level; and the school/classroom level (Lundgren, 1972). When it comes to the more specific analysis of the consequences of the changed conditions of governing and exercise of control at the local policy level, a neo-institutional theoretical perspective will be used (Scott, 2008). From this perspective, three dimensions can be highlighted regarding how institutions seek to control and affect other institutions, respond to external pressure and seek legitimacy: regulative (rules and sanctions for legitimacy), normative (evaluation and moral legitimacy), and cognitive-cultural/discursive (shared conceptions and frames of meaning-making (2008).

     

    Methods and material

     

    This paper has a mixed-method design, where the research design aims at preserving the complexity and deepening the perspective of the research questions being addressed while at the same time obtaining different, but complementary data on the same phenomenon (Cresswell, 2010; Cresswell and Clark, 2007). The study of local governance with the local authority and principals is conducted in three steps. The first of the research questions, i.e. how representatives of the local authority experience and respond to policy pressure from the state, will be answered by using secondary data from a project that investigated the municipalities as policy actors in light of the implementation of the new national curriculum for compulsory schooling in Sweden (Wahlström & Sundberg, 2017). It includes a survey (n= 727) and interviews with representatives from local authorities in Sweden. The two remaining sets of research questions, comprising local authorities’ strategies for governing schools and principals’ responses, will be answered through a case study of a large municipality in southern Sweden (135 000 inhabitants) using a survey (n=61; response rate 62 %) to principals and 4 semi-structured focus-group interviews with principals and representatives of the local authority. The survey consisted of questions about experiences of the subsequent organisation, governing structures, the communication of aims between different levels, collaborative structures and arenas, professional development, curriculum support and the role of functions for school development. The quantitative data was then analysed and used for asking follow-up and questions in the interviews, targeting specific items regarding experiences of expectations from the institutional environment, policy pressures, governing structures and strategies to cope with certain arrangements in the environment. The interviews thus provided complementary qualitative data and gave a richer description of the principals’ views.

     

    Expected outcomes

     

    Representatives from the local authority emphasise that the national governance of schools to a higher extent and in a more explicit way is directed towards the schools as units as a result the recent educational reforms. They claim that the autonomy of principals following the Education act has created greater clarity. Meanwhile, it has impeded their agency in matters concerning enactment of government policy and curriculum. In combination with the emphasis on local authorities as being responsible for quality assurance, allocating resources for equity and student achievement, the local authorities’ ability to control internal processes of schools has decreased significantly. It seems that local authorities’ space for regulative sanctions and mechanisms has been weakened. In order to compensate, local authorities apply strategies of soft governance for controlling the schools. These strategies are characterised by normative and cognitive/discursive dimension and may be comprised by one or a combination of the following:

    • Re-structuring the organisation and controlling communication
    • Use expert teachers to monitor and control internal professional development/school improvement efforts of schools
    • Competition through rewarding schools which comply to reforms, show best practice and have high-performing students
    • Standardisation measures to ensure greater coherence and compliance

     

    The principals describe a more generous space for action with the Education act, but they also experience a higher degree of pressure to improve student achievement and goal attainment, both from the local authority and from the state. This pressure is expressed in different ways. The local authority presents comparisons of results between schools which triggers competition. The principals are bound to report results or other statistical data on request, which in turn may cause a negative pressure from their teachers. In addition, principals describe how a lot of resources in terms of time and money are invested to ‘pass’ inspections from the national agency.

     

    References

    Adolfsson, C-H. (2013). Kunskapsfrågan – En läroplansteoretisk studie om gymnasieskolans reformer mellan 1960-talet och 2010-talet [The question of knowledge – a curriculum study of the Swedish upper secondary school reforms between the 1960s and 2010s]. Dissertation, Linnaeus University.

     

    Adolfsson, C-H., & Alvunger, D. (2017). The nested systems of local school development : Understanding improved interaction and capacities in the different sub-systems of schools. Improving Schools. 20. 195-208.

     

    Alvunger, D. (2015).
Towards new forms of educational leadership? The local implementation of förstelärare in Swedish schools.
Nordic Journal of Studies in Educational Policy, 1(3), 55–66.

     

    Anderson-Levitt, K. M. (2008). Globalization and curriculum. In: M. F. Connelly (Ed.), The Sage handbook of curriculum and instruction (pp. 349–368). London: Sage Publications.

    Creswell, J. W. (2010). Mapping the developing landscape of mixed methods research. In A. Tashakkori, & C. Teddlie (Eds.), Sage handbook of mixed methods in social & behavioral research (pp. 45–68). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.

    Creswell, J. W., & Plano Clark, V. (2007). Designing and conducting mixed methods. London: SAGE.

    Lundgren, U.P. (1972). Frame factors and the teaching process: A contribution to curriculum theory and theory of teaching. Stockholm: Almqvist & Wiksell.

     

    Robertson, S., & Dale, R. (2015). Towards a ‘critical cultural political economy’ account of the globalising of education, Globalisation, Societies and Education, 13(1), 149–170, DOI: 10.1080/14767724.2014.967502

    Sassen, S. (2006). Territory, authority, rights: From medieval to global assemblages. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.


    Scott, W. (2008). Approaching Adulthood: The Maturing of Institutional Theory. Theory and Society, 37(5), 427-442.

    Wahlström, N., & Sundberg, D. (2017). Transnational curriculum standards and classroom practices. The new meaning of teaching. New York, NY: Routledge.

    Wahlström, N. (2017). The travelling reform agenda: The Swedish case through the lens of OECD. In N. Wahlström, & D. Sundberg (Eds.), Transnational curriculum standards and classroom practices. The new meaning of teaching (pp. 15–30). New York, NY: Routledge.

     

  • 20.
    Adolfsson, Carl-Henrik
    et al.
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Education and Teacher's Practice. Linnaeus University, Linnaeus Knowledge Environments, Education in Change.
    Alvunger, Daniel
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Education and Teacher's Practice. Linnaeus University, Linnaeus Knowledge Environments, Education in Change.
    Power dynamics and policy actions in the changing landscape of local school governance2020In: Nordic Journal of Studies in Educational Policy, ISSN 2002-0317, Vol. 6, no 2, p. 128-142Article in journal (Refereed)
    Abstract [en]

    In this paper, we theorize on local school governance through a multi-method case study of a large-sized Swedish municipality by drawing on neo-institutional theory. In light of a changing governing landscape in Sweden in terms of a ‘re-centralization’, new conditions between the state, the local education authorities (LEA) and the schools have emerged. The aim of this study is to examine what policy actions the LEA employ for governing the school and in what ways that principals respond and handle these policy actions. The results point to the fact that the LEA uses a bench-marking strategy through its quality assurance system and intervene if results are poor. Principals seek support from the LEA, but are anxious that their autonomy will be diminished and therefore function as ‘gate-. The system for quality assurance is appreciated by principals, but standards aimed at framing discursive communication on quality are criticized. Principals turn to managers below the superintendent, which creates a tension between managers. The study shows that different levels and actors must be taken into account in order to achieve a comprehensive understanding of the multi-layered field of local policy enactment.

  • 21.
    Adolfsson, Carl-Henrik
    et al.
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Education and Teacher's Practice.
    Alvunger, Daniel
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Education and Teacher's Practice.
    The selection of content and knowledge conceptions in the teaching of curriculum standards in compulsory schooling2018In: Transnational Curriculum Standards and Classroom Practices: The New Meaning of Teaching / [ed] Ninni Wahlström & Daniel Sundberg, London: Routledge, 2018, p. 98-115Chapter in book (Refereed)
  • 22.
    Adolfsson, Carl-Henrik
    et al.
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Education and Teacher's Practice.
    Forsberg, Eva
    Sundberg, Daniel
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Education and Teacher's Practice.
    Evidently, the Broker Appears as the New Whizz-kid on the Educational Agora2019In: New Practices of Comparison, Quantification and Expertise in Education: conducting empirically based research / [ed] Christina Elde Mølstad & Daniel Pettersson, Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge, 2019, p. 99-110Chapter in book (Refereed)
  • 23.
    Adolfsson, Carl-Henrik
    et al.
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Education and Teacher's Practice.
    Forsberg, Eva
    Uppsala university, Sweden.
    Sundberg, Daniel
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Education and Teacher's Practice.
    När evidensrörelsen kom till den svenska skolan2018In: Den evidensbaserade skolan: Svensk skola i skärningspunkten mellan forskning och praktik / [ed] Daniel Alvunger & Ninni Wahlström, Stockholm: Natur och kultur, 2018, p. 71-99Chapter in book (Refereed)
  • 24.
    Adolfsson, Carl-Henrik
    et al.
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Education and Teacher's Practice. Linnaeus University, Linnaeus Knowledge Environments, Education in Change.
    Håkansson, Jan
    Dalarna University, Sweden.
    Data Analysis for School Improvement within Coupled Local School Systems: Which Data and with what Purposes?2023In: Leadership and Policy in Schools, ISSN 1570-0763, E-ISSN 1744-5043, Vol. 22, no 3, p. 714-727Article in journal (Refereed)
    Abstract [en]

    From a new institutional theoretical perspective, this article explores school actors’ sense making linked to data-based decision making (DBDM) policy in general and processes of data analysis in particular. The study revealed how actors’ interpretation of and response to DBDM requirements pointed to strong and weak couplings between and within the local school system’s different organizational levels. While teachers primarily emphasized informal, daily analyses, the LEA and principals placed importance on formal, district and school-based analyses. In the same way teachers to a greater extent think that too much resources is spent on collecting and analyzing data rather than on innovation and school improvement.

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  • 25.
    Adolfsson, Carl-Henrik
    et al.
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Education and Teacher's Practice.
    Håkansson, Jan
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Education and Teacher's Practice.
    Evaluating School Improvement Efforts: Pupils as Silent Result Suppliers, or Audible Improvement Resources?2018In: International Journal of Learning, Teaching and Educational Research, ISSN 1694-2493, E-ISSN 1694-2116, Vol. 17, no 6, p. 34-50Article in journal (Refereed)
    Abstract [en]

    This article contributes to a perspective of school development, where pupils‟ experiences of the teaching they encounter are regarded as a result of improvement work. In a three-year research collaboration with four nine-year compulsory schools in a large Swedish municipality, researchers have continuously conducted group interviews with different actors, collected relevant documentation and reported their preliminary analyses to the schools. In the light of previous research, the results show that the development areas that have been in focus in the schools have in some cases had an impact on the teaching. However, no homogenous change is evident. Rather, the variation between classrooms, teachers and subjects is great, especially if the pupils‟ perspectives are taken into consideration. The pupils‟ experiences and voices on how the improvement work materialises in the classroom contribute to explaining the connections, or lack of them, between the school and classroom levels. 

  • 26.
    Adolfsson, Carl-Henrik
    et al.
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Education and Teacher's Practice.
    Håkansson, Jan
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Education and Teacher's Practice.
    Evaluating teacher and school development by learning capital: a conceptual contribution to a fundamental problem2019In: Improving Schools, ISSN 1365-4802, E-ISSN 1475-7583, Vol. 22, no 2, p. 130-143Article in journal (Refereed)
    Abstract [en]

    In light of an international policy movement to increase focus on students’ academic achievement, the question of how to improve schools has become an important issue at all levels in the school system. Substantial resources have been invested in reforms to improve conditions for pupils’ learning. Great expectations and responsibility are often placed on teachers in terms of their professional development (PD), the aim being to improve their teaching practices. Consequently, the question of how to evaluate the results of school improvement programmes, including teachers’ PD, has arisen. However, there is a lack of theoretical concepts that can capture the outcomes of such development in a qualified way. Taking inspiration from the research on teachers’ PD and theories relating to teachers’ knowledge and capabilities, the aim of this study is to outline a conceptual framework that can serve as an analytical tool when evaluating both school improvement initiatives in general and school actors’ learning in particular. Four types of learning capital that are intended to reflect the central aspects of teachers’ and school organisations’ learning and the capabilities linked to teaching practice and its development are outlined. This conceptual framework is applied and exemplified based on the results of a three-year research project evaluating a school improvement programme in a Swedish municipality. Finally, some conclusions are drawn regarding the different types of analysis possible with the current conceptual framework related to the evaluation of school improvement efforts.

     

  • 27.
    Adolfsson, Carl-Henrik
    et al.
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Education and Teacher's Practice.
    Håkansson, Jan
    Dalarna University, Sweden.
    Local Quality Management for Developing Schools’ Capacity Building. A Multiyear Study2024In: Research in Educational Administration and Leadership, E-ISSN 2564-7261Article in journal (Refereed)
    Abstract [en]

    In recent decades, there has been a growing body of research that highlights local education authorities (LEA) as potential contributors to support school capacity building and result development. Despite this, there are few empirical studies that have explored what effects different strategies and policy actions from the LEAs actual have over time. Based on results from a five-year research project in a major Swedish municipality, the aim with this multiyear and multi-level study is to explore the effects of a LEA’s quality management processes of six schools’ capacity building. The results from the study show a clear strengthening of the schools’ improvement agenda, improvement organization and improvement leadership of the six schools. Two LEA strategies can be distinguished as especially important to explain the school improvements: i) systematic and long-term data-based school improvement routines and processes; ii) quality dialogues for monitoring and support. Two conclusions can be drawn: i) the importance for the LEA to be responsive so its improvement strategies are integrated into the schools’ local school improvement system; ii) the importance that the LEA work with multifaceted strategies containing aspects of control and accountability and learning and support.

  • 28.
    Adolfsson, Carl-Henrik
    et al.
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Education and Teacher's Practice. Linnaeus University, Linnaeus Knowledge Environments, Education in Change.
    Håkansson, Jan
    Dalarna university, Sweden.
    Mötet mellan den statliga och kommunala kvalitetsstyrningen inom ramen för Samverkan för bästa skola2021In: Pedagogisk forskning i Sverige, ISSN 1401-6788, E-ISSN 2001-3345, Vol. 26, no 1, p. 15-41Article in journal (Refereed)
    Abstract [sv]

    Inom ramen för det svenska decentraliserade skolsystemet har ansvaret för att bygga upp, utveckla och bedriva ett systematiskt kvalitetsarbete i första hand varit en fråga för huvudmän och skolor att hantera. I ljuset av en ökad re-centralisering av skolan har uppbyggandet av olika kvalitetssystem för uppföljning och kontroll av skolornas resultat också kommit att utgöra ett viktigt sätt för huvudmannen att styra skolan på. I studien benämns detta i termer av kvalitetsstyrning. I och med Samverkan för bästa skola har dessa gränsdragningar mellan det lokala och det nationella kommit att utmanas. Studien bygger på intervjudata inhämtad på fyra skolor som deltar i Samverkan för bästa skola, från skolförvaltningen i samma kommun samt genom intervju med en representant från Skolverket. Utifrån begreppen löst kopplade system och organisatoriska rutiner studeras vad som karaktäriserar den nationella respektive den kommunala kvalitetsstyrningen samt vad som sker i mötet dem emellan på skolor som genomgår insatser inom ramen för Samverkan för bästa skola, samt med vilka konsekvenser. Resultatet av studien visar bland annat på att idéer och metoder om databaserad skolutveckling utgör viktiga legitimitetsgrunder för såväl den kommunala som den nationella kvalitetsstyrningen. Den nationella kvalitetsstyrningen via Samverkan för bästa skola är dock betydligt mer intensifierad och når längre in i skolornas organisation.  

  • 29.
    Adolfsson, Carl-Henrik
    et al.
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Education and Teacher's Practice.
    Håkansson, Jan
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Education and Teacher's Practice.
    The Local Education Authority’s Implementation of a Capacity-building model for school improvement – obstacles and possibilities2019In: Presented at ECER 2019, 2019Conference paper (Refereed)
    Abstract [en]

    General description on research questions, objectives and theoretical framework (600 words)

    In school systems around the world, there is an increasing focus on pupils’ academic achievements and school results. This has resulted in an intensified control of pupils’ levels of achievement (cf. PISA) and increasing demands for school actors and decision-makers to improve schools. In this respect, Sweden is no exception. Ages of declining student achievement, decreased equality between schools have spurred an intensive critique against the Swedish school system and triggered a more state-regulated governing of the school system in terms of several national reforms, which altogether aim to take control over the schools’ outcome (Wahlström & Sundberg, 2017; Adolfsson, 2018). In light of such a policy movement the Local Education Authorities (LEA) and schools’ responsibility for pupils’ achievement and equality have been highlighted and strengthened in Swedish policy. In addition, to ensure the quality of the teaching and the professionalism of the teachers, a revision of the Swedish Education Act was carried out in 2010. This revision stipulated, among other things, that all schools and local school authorities must conduct a systematic improvement work. This had led to a discussion of how school on a local basis can build capacity to improve themselves. In this context, LEA, in the Swedish municipalities, have become important policy actors (Wahlström & Sundberg, 2017b). To strengthen the schools own capacity for improvement, but also to increase the control over the schools’ processes and outcomes, the construction and implementation of different quality systems has been an important strategy for the local education authorities (Adolfsson & Alvunger, 2017; Håkansson & Sundberg, 2016).

    In this paper, we will put this ‘meso-level’, i.e. the relationship between LEA and the schools, in focus. We mean that this is an important, but many times overlooked, relationship when it comes to understand processes and outcomes related to the implementation of local quality systems and school improvement initiatives (Rorrer, Skrla & Scheurich, 2008). Based on an ongoing three-year research project in a major municipality in Sweden, the overall aim is to investigate a LEA: s attempt to implement a new quality system at the schools in the municipality, as a way to control and strengthen the schools’ improvement work. The following research questions are addressed in the paper:

    1. How and which central aspects of the schools’ improvement work tries LEA control and strengthened through the implementation of a new quality system?

    2. In what w   ay do school actors respond to LES’s attempt to implement the quality system?

    3. Which different factors can be distinguished as notably important for the outcome of the implementation process?

    The relationship between the LED and the current schools are understood and analysed from a neo-institutional theoretical perspective (Scott, 2008). From this perspective, three dimensions can be highlighted regarding how institutions (in this case the LED and the current schools) seek to control and affect other institutions, respond to external pressure and seek legitimacy: regulative (rules and sanctions), normative (prevalent norms, expectations and ideals ), and cognitive-cultural/discursive (shared conceptions and frames of meaning-making). This perspective enable us to elucidate the character of the different strategies and actions that LED undertake in the implementation of the new quality model. To understand the implementation processes that occurred at the different schools, theoretical inspiration is acquired from implementation theory (Fixen et al. 2005; Lundquist, 1987; Lipsky, 1980). This theory put analytical focus on central implementation factors such as clarity, school actors knowledge, legitimacy, time, leadership, organisation, school culture etc, which thus help us to understand the result of the implementation processes of the different schools. 

    Methods/methodology (400 words)

    The overall research project, which this specific study is conducted within, has a mixed-method inspired design. The aim with such an approach is to deepening the understanding of the current research questions being addressed through obtaining different, but complementary data on the phenomenon that stand in focus for the study (Cresswell, 2010; Cresswell and Clark, 2007). In this specific sub-study, we have followed the education authority’s implementation process at six different schools in the current municipality. The current schools are located in areas with differences in socioeconomic and ethnic backgrounds and each school was followed for a school year, which made it possible to contextually place and understand the implementation process within the structure, organization and culture of the schools.

    In line with the theoretical points of departure and the general aim to elucidate patterns of the local school authority’s implementation of the new quality system and school actors’ understanding and response of the quality system, following methods and empirical data have been used. i) content analysis of central policy documents ii)  observations (n=xx) iii) 24 semi-structured interviews with key actors at the different schools (n=50). Accordingly, an extensive empirical material have been collected. To conduct a contextual understanding of each school, central documents regarding the local schools’ organisation, policy and vision, leading and management structure, pupils’ achievement, school improvement strategies were at a first step analysed. This contextual understanding was important for the next step, when data related to LEA implementation of the new quality system at the single schools were collected. This was carried out through participating observations at the different kinds of meetings that occurred amongst LEA and the current schools. Finally, as a way to deepen the understanding of the school actors’ response to the new quality system, semi-structured interviews with central key actors at the single school were carried out.

     

    Expected outcomes (300 words)

    The relationship between the LEA and the schools will finally be discussed and problematized in light of the following preliminary results:

    -          The implementation of the quality system occurred through a number of steps: 1. an introduction meeting between represents from the LEA and key actors from the schools 2. a quality dialogue two months later and 3. a quality seminary arranged by the LEA where the principals from the involving schools were participating. In contrast to a more traditional ‘regulative’ strategy of governing the schools, the LEA’s implementation of the current quality system, in terms of these different activities, was characterized by a more normative and discursive way of controlling the schools’ improvement work (i.e. soft governance).

    -          We could distinguish a variety in the initial stage of the implementation process regarding in what degree the school actors consider the LEA’s quality system as legitimate. The same variety between the schools was notably concerning how they perceived the idea and the purpose behind the new quality system but also how LEA’s system should be incorporated with their own local quality systems.

    -          Factors that may explain these differences in the implementation process is firstly, a notably ‘knowledge-gap’, that existed between the schools. That is, principals and other key actors’ knowledge and competencies about local systematic quality work in terms of, for example, data collection, interpretation and using different methods of analysis, seem to be crucial for the implementation process. A second crucial factor seems to be how the principals organized his or her school improvement work, including delegation of responsibility and how different school actors’ knowledge and competencies were used in an appropriate way.

  • 30.
    Adolfsson, Carl-Henrik
    et al.
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Education and Teacher's Practice.
    Nordholm, Daniel
    Uppsala University, Sweden.
    Organizational Routines and Theorizing in Large-Scale School Improvement — Exploring a Swedish Design2024In: Leadership and Policy in Schools, ISSN 1570-0763, E-ISSN 1744-5043, p. 1-18Article in journal (Refereed)
    Abstract [en]

    In many countries, we can see a movement to more large-scale and system-wide approaches to school improvement. The aim of this article is to study and theorize on conditions for school actors’ knowledge building within such large-scale school improvement reforms. Using a Swedish large-scale school improvement program, “Collaboration for the Best School Possible” (CBSP), as a case and the concepts of organizational routines and theorizing as theoretical lenses, we explore questions linked to school improvement design and conditions for school actors’ knowledge building. Internal policy documents from the Swedish National Agency of Education and interviews with responsible officials constitute the empirical material for the study. The results point to a great variation concerning the degree of standardization and formalization of the CBSP design. This implies that some parts of the CBSP process are to a large degree conditional on individuals’ competences, experiences, and attitudes. An important conclusion from the study is that an efficient large-scale school improvement design should contain organizational routines that can reinforce the interplay between the different levels of the school systems, but also create conditions for integrating research to nurture different types of theorizing. Such design will generate conditions for professional knowledge building and educational change

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  • 31.
    Adolfsson, Carl-Henrik
    et al.
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Education and Teacher's Practice.
    Sundberg, Daniel
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Education and Teacher's Practice.
    Att forskningsbasera den svenska skolan: Policyinitiativ under 25 år2018In: Pedagogisk forskning i Sverige, ISSN 1401-6788, E-ISSN 2001-3345, Vol. 23, no 1-2, p. 39-63Article in journal (Refereed)
    Abstract [sv]

    Även om ”en skola på vetenskaplig grund” idag är ett högaktuellt ämne är det ingalunda något nytt fenomen. I artikeln studeras tendenser i policyinitiativ som de senaste 25 åren haft till syfte att forskningsbasera den svenska skolan. Utgångspunkt tas i de problembilder som framkommer i policy samt vilka modeller för forskningsbasering som samtidigt lyfts fram som lösningen på dessa problem. Resultatet pekar mot att det de senaste 25 år har skett en succesiv förskjutning från indirekta till mer direkta initiativ. Under 1990-talet och det tidiga 2000-talet var många policyinitiativ ordnade utifrån att främst vilja skapa de rätta förutsättningarna för en forskningsbasering av skolan. Under 2000-talet blir initiativen alltmer fokuserade och ambitiös med syfte att åstadkomma direkta förändringar i lärares undervisning. När det kommer till modeller för forskningsbasering blir det samtidigt alltmer tydligt hur policy vänder sig till och söker legitimitet hos delvis nya aktörer och institutioner, som exempelvis hälso-sjukvården. Med detta går det också att urskilja en insnävning vad gäller att definiera och innehållsligt välja ut vilken forskning som bör sprids till skolans aktörer. Konsekvensen med en sådan modell för forskningsbasering menar vi kan bli att läraren främst får inta rollen som passiva mottagare av forskning.

  • 32.
    Adolfsson, Carl-Henrik
    et al.
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Education and Teacher's Practice.
    Sundberg, Daniel
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Education and Teacher's Practice.
    Forsberg, Eva
    Uppsala University, Sweden.
    Evidently, the Broker is the New Whiz-kid at the Education agora2018Conference paper (Refereed)
  • 33.
    Adolfsson, Carl-Henrik
    et al.
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Education and Teacher's Practice.
    Sundberg, Eva
    Uppsala university, Sweden.
    Sundberg, Daniel
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Education and Teacher's Practice.
    Evidently, the Broker is the New Whiz-Kid at the Education Agora2018In: NERA 2018 - 46th CONGRESS Educational Research: Boundaries, Breaches and Bridges: Abstracts, 2018, p. 106-Conference paper (Refereed)
  • 34.
    Agnell, Emma
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Education and Teacher's Practice.
    Language choices in the EFL-classroom: The actions and perceptions of four secondary school teachers in Sweden2019Independent thesis Basic level (professional degree), 10 credits / 15 HE creditsStudent thesis
    Abstract [en]

    The Swedish National Agency for Education encourages the exclusive use of the target language (TL) in the English language classrooms. However, one may question if this is observed, as the Swedish Schools Inspectorate, in their qualitative investigation of the Swedish schools, headlined the section on language use in their observation of English lessons in the years 6-9 as “too much English in Swedish”. They found that nearly half the lessons failed to provide sufficient opportunities for pupils’ communicative competence to develop and problematized this partly as a result of lack of pedagogical training among teachers. Nonetheless, the role of the first language (L1) in the foreign language classroom is controversial. Some favor an exclusion of the L1 while others believe the L1 has an important role. This essay problematizes four English teachers’ language choices in the classroom, with the theoretical approaches that the TL should be used extensively, but that neither teachers nor pupils should be prohibited from using the L1 as it can serve important purposes and facilitate language learning if used strategically. In this study, four English teachers were interviewed to investigate what determines their language choices. It was found that while teachers primarily based their language choices on pedagogical views and knowledge about language learning, for some the choice of language was not always strategic or pedagogical. In this study, the reasons for both their strategical and inadvertent uses are investigated. This study also investigated how the teachers perceive the pupils’ language choices, and what implications these perceptions may have.

  • 35.
    Aguilar, Ann Charlotte
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Education and Teacher's Practice.
    Samarbete med hemmen: En kvalitativ studie om högläsning i förskolan i interkulturell miljö2023Independent thesis Basic level (professional degree), 10 credits / 15 HE creditsStudent thesis
    Abstract [sv]

    Föreliggande examensarbete är utfört som en vetenskaplig studie med fokus på ett problemområde inom förskolepedagogik. Studien syftar till att bidra med kunskap om hur förskollärare möjliggör för samarbete med vårdnadshavare om högläsning, med specifikt fokus på interkulturell miljö. Utgångspunkten är att högläsning bidrar till barns språkutveckling. Samarbete med vårdnadshavare om högläsning i interkulturell miljö i förskolan bidrar till att barnen får möjlighet att utveckla sina individuella förutsättningar, och att barnen och deras vårdnadshavare förstår utbildningens mål. Studien har en socialkonstruktionistisk ansats och har genomförts utifrån en kvalitativ metod med semistrukturerade intervjusamtal med nio förskollärare. I resultatet framkommer att högläsning sker vid de undersökta förskolorna av förskollärare. Samarbete sker på initiativ av förskollärarna vilket bidrar till möten och att förskolan kan komplettera hemmet. Dock framkommer av resultatet att ömsesidighet saknas, vilket är en av förutsättningarna för interkulturell miljö. Det kan slutligen konstateras att studiens resultat främst visar på mångkulturell miljö, och i vissa sammanhang interkulturell miljö men även monokulturell miljö.

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  • 36.
    Ahlbäck, Tor
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Education and Teacher's Practice.
    Digitala skrivtavlor - till vad, hur och varför?: En studie om den digitala skrivtavlans betydelse för grundskolans digitalisering utifrån ett lärarperspektiv2018Doctoral thesis, monograph (Other academic)
    Abstract [en]

    The purpose of this thesis is to examine in what aspects the interactive whiteboard (IWB) has contributed to the digitalization of our schools, and how it may have changed the actual teaching in the classroom. This research explores this question from a didactic perspective, as well as from the perspective of the teachers’ reflections. The main research questions are: What do teachers use the IWB for? How do teachers use the IWB? Why do teachers use the IWB? These questions have been analyzed within a didactic framework, which is based on the expanded didactic triangle (Hudson & Meyer 2011) and the logic of events (von Wright 1983). Data was collected by interviews and surveys. The analysis was done abductively, based on a mixed methods approach. The results show that the IWB has the function of a digital hub in whole-class teaching, being mainly used as a computer projector, film projector and digital whiteboard. The main value of the IWB according to the study is that it provides the teacher access to digital information during a class. In their response, teachers express a wish to vary and adapt the teaching to include the IWB, in order to increase student motivation and participation. The study shows major differences with regards to the extent and the ways that the IWB is used in relation to teacher and school, leading to differences in pupils’ learning. Moreover, the complexity of teaching increases with the introduction of the IWB, as it requires the development of the teacher’s knowledge and skills. The study indicates that the use of the IWB implies a shift of the norm in school’s whole-class teaching to become more digital. The results are further discussed through four aspects of education: classroom practice, teachers, the school as an organization and society as a whole. The results imply that in order to develop teachers’ didactic repertoire, teachers need to be given clear assignments as well as opportunities for investigating the possibilities and limitations of digital tools, including developing and describing different methods and their advantages and disadvantages. This is proposed to be an area for further research in general and subject didactics, through action and participatory research.

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  • 37.
    Ahlin, Emma
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Education and Teacher's Practice.
    Valfritt eller begränsande?: Ett antal unga mäns upplevelser om hur manlighetsnormer påverkar deras lärande.2020Independent thesis Basic level (professional degree), 10 credits / 15 HE creditsStudent thesis
    Abstract [sv]

    I diskussioner som förekommer om den svenska skolan i media och på flera institutionella nivåer inom politiken talas det ofta om pojkars allt sämre resultat i skolan och att vi måste göra ”något” för att de ska komma ifatt flickorna. Frågan är vad det är som behöver förändras i skolan?  Vissa hävdar att skolan skall anpassas efter pojkars behov, fråga blir då vilka dessa behov är och om de ser de lika ut för alla pojkar? Är behoven som pojkar har kopplat till att de är just pojkar ur biologisk synpunkt eller finns svaret i vad som behöver förändras i våra föreställningar om hur en pojke/man skall vara? I tidigare forskning om ämnet pojkars prestationer i skolan, framkommer ofta att de dominerande maskulinitetsnormer som går att identifiera i samhället i stort också går att identifiera i skolans värld. Forskningen tyder på att pojkar i många skolor hindras från att prestera bra i skolan och ta till sig kunskap på grund av de rådande maskulinitetsnormerna. Den kritiska maskulinitetsforskningen har på ett tydligt sätt markerat att normer som tidigare setts som begränsande för flickor visar sig alltså vara begränsande på många sätt även för pojkarna.

     

    Det övergripande temat för denna studie är att undersöka ett antal unga mäns uppfattningar om hur de upplever att maskulinitetsnormer påverkar möjligheten till inlärning och kunskapsinhämtning.

     

    Genom kvalitativa intervjuer har material samlats in för att kunna konstruera kunskap om deras uppfattningar angående upplevelsen av maskulinitetsnormers påverkan på inlärning samt hur de upplever att homosocialitet påverkar valmöjligheten att studera och ta till sig kunskap.   

     

    Resultatet av studien har visat att unga män på gymnasiet upplever att det finns maskulinitetsnormer som skapar olika förväntningar på individer utifrån vilka inriktningar individen läser, samt hur gruppens inställning till studier påverkar individens inställning.    

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  • 38.
    Ahlström, Amanda
    et al.
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Education and Teacher's Practice.
    Brolander, Lisa
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Education and Teacher's Practice.
    Fri och lustfylld tid: En kvalitativ intervjustudie om rekreation i fritidshem2018Independent thesis Basic level (university diploma), 20 credits / 30 HE creditsStudent thesis
    Abstract [sv]

    Det övergripande syftet med forskningsstudien är att få en ökad förståelse för hur rekreation kan komma till uttryck i fritidshemmet. Intentionen är att ta reda på hur både elever och lärare uppfattar rekreation i fritidshem. Studien bygger på semistrukturerade intervjuer där syftet är att få en ökad förståelse för hur lärare i fritidshem upplever sitt arbete med rekreation.  Då vårt syfte även är att ta reda på elevers upplevelse av rekreation i fritidshemmet har vi använt ett designat barnsamtal. Studien genomförs med sex lärare samt sexton elever på två olika fritidshem. Resultatet av studien visar att lärare i fritidshem upplever en viss osäkerhet kring rekreationsbegreppets innebörd samtidigt som de främst kopplar rekreation till lugna och stillsamma aktiviteter.  Studien visar även att lärarna anser att elever har större möjlighet att uppleva rekreation under sin fria tid i fritidshemmet vilket är samstämmigt med vad analysen av studiens genomförda barnsamtal visar. En central del i elevers upplevelse av rekreation i fritidshem grundar sig i deras känsla av att ha roligt vilket leder till en samlad bedömning av att elevers upplevelse av rekreation till stor del kan likställas med att ägna sig åt lustfyllda aktiviteter.

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  • 39.
    Ahlén, Sara
    et al.
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Education and Teacher's Practice.
    Wirblad, Julia
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Education and Teacher's Practice.
    ”Jag skulle säga att det blir mer fri lek ute fast ändå inte. Det blir lite både och.”: En studie om förskollärares uppfattningar om undervisning i utomhusmiljön på förskolan2023Independent thesis Basic level (professional degree), 10 credits / 15 HE creditsStudent thesis
    Abstract [sv]

    Syftet med studien är att vinna kunskap om förskollärares uppfattning om undervisning i utomhusmiljön på förskolan. Kvalitativa data bearbetas för att skapa ett sammanhang och en förståelse. Resultatet delas in i olika kategorier som visar variation av uppfattningar om undervisning i utomhusmiljön samt av förskollärarens roll. Huvudkategorierna utgörs av uppfattning om undervisning utomhus och om förskollärarens roll utomhus. Utvecklingspedagogikens begrepp: lärandets objekt och lärandets akt utgör studiens teoretiska ramverk, där begreppen används för att förstå och tolka studiens insamlade data (Asplund Carlsson & Pramling Samuelsson 2014). 

    Resultatet i denna studie visar att förskollärarnas erfarenheter och syn på undervisning i utomhusmiljön på förskolan varierar, samt att förskollärarnas uppfattning om sin roll kan se olika ut beroende på situation. Förskollärarna uppfattar att undervisning i förskolans utomhusmiljö handlar om de förutsättningar som förskollärarna skapar för att ge barnen det bästa möjliga lärandet. De uppfattar sin roll som betydelsefull för att kunna utveckla barnen mot de mål som är utvalda i verksamheten. Förskollärarnas uppfattning är att de ska skapa olika lärmiljöer och utveckla barnen men en problematik synliggörs. Studien visar på att förskollärare vill bedriva undervisning i alla miljöer men att de saknar vissa förutsättningar.

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  • 40.
    Ahmed, Waqas
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Education and Teacher's Practice.
    Hur gick det till när nyanlända elever lärde sig algebra i Sverige jämfört med deras hemland?: En kvalitativ studie av nyanlända elevers uppfattningar om genomgångar, arbetssätt och arbetsuppgifter inom svensk matematikundervisning2018Independent thesis Basic level (professional degree), 10 credits / 15 HE creditsStudent thesis
    Abstract [sv]

    Syftet med studien är att kartlägga nyanlända gymnasieelevers uppfattningar om genomgångar, arbetssätt och arbetsuppgifter inom svensk matematikundervisning jämfört med matematikundervisningen i deras hemland. Elevintervjuer med 5 elever, som kombineras med klassrumsobservationer, gjordes för att samla in data. Studien befinner sig på elevnivå och resultat visar att det finns skillnader mellan Sveriges och hemlandets matematikundervisning. Eleverna tycker att matematikundervisning i Sverige är mer givande och omfattande är hemlandets. De är nöjda med lärarens inställning i klassrummet.

    Det framkommer också att eleverna känner sig begränsade på grund av språk brister i det svenska språket. På grund av sina språk brister visade eleverna rädslan att bli utskrattade och utpekade av sina klasskamrater. Studien kan vara en hjälp för lärarna som undervisar nyanlända elever om hur eleverna upplever matematikundervisning i Sverige och vilken inverkan med skillnader har på dem. 

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  • 41.
    Airey, John
    et al.
    Stockholm University, Sweden.
    Patron, Emelie
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Education and Teacher's Practice. Linnaeus University, Faculty of Health and Life Sciences, Department of Chemistry and Biomedical Sciences.
    Wikman, Susanne
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Health and Life Sciences, Department of Chemistry and Biomedical Sciences.
    Making the Invisible Visible: The role of undergraduate textbooks in the teaching and learning of physics and chemistry2023In: Designing futures: The 11th International Conference on Multimodality; Book of abstracts, London Conference, London: UCL , 2023Conference paper (Refereed)
    Abstract [en]

    As disciplines, undergraduate physics and chemistry leverage a particularly wide range of semiotic systems (modes) in order to create and communicate their scientific meanings. Examples of the different semiotic systems employed are: spoken and written language, mathematics, chemical formulae, graphs, diagrams, sketches, computer simulations, hands-on work with experimental apparatus, computer simulations, etc. Individual semiotic resources within this range of semiotic systems are coordinated in specific constellations (Airey & Linder, 2009) in order to mediate scientific knowledge. In this Swedish Research Council project, we are interested in the representation of scientific phenomena that cannot be seen. The question we pose is: How is scientific knowledge mediated when we cannot directly interact with the phenomena in question through our senses?  We adopt a social semiotic approach (Airey & Linder, 2017; van Leeuwen, 2005), to investigate the ways in which two phenomena—electromagnetic fields and chemical bonds—are presented in undergraduate textbooks. To do this we carried out a semiotic audit (Airey & Erikson, 2019) of eight textbooks (four in each discipline). We note that the individual resources used have a mixture of affordances—whilst the majority retain high disciplinary affordance, others are unpacked (Patron et al. 2021) providing higher pedagogical affordance. We discuss the ways in which the resources have been combined and orchestrated (Bezemer & Jewitt, 2010) in order to attempt to make visible that which is invisible, and identify a number of potential problems. In earlier work, Volkwyn et al. (2019) demonstrated how experimental work with physics devices can make the Earth’s magnetic field accessible to students through chains of transduction. Thus, we propose that encouraging transductions across the semiotic resource systems provided in textbooks may help students to experience the invisible.

    References

    Airey, J. (2006). Physics students' experiences of the disciplinary discourse encountered in lectures in English and Swedish (Licentiate dissertation, Department of Physics, Uppsala University).

    Airey, J. (2009). Science, language, and literacy: Case studies of learning in Swedish university physics (Doctoral dissertation, Acta Universitatis Upsaliensis).

    Airey, J. (2015). Social Semiotics in Higher Education: Examples from teaching and learning in undergraduate physics. In In: SACF Singapore-Sweden Excellence Seminars, Swedish Foundation for International Cooperation in Research in   Higher Education (STINT) , 2015 (pp. 103). 

    Airey, J., & Eriksson, U. (2019). Unpacking the Hertzsprung-Russell diagram: A social semiotic analysis of the disciplinary and pedagogical affordances of a central resource in astronomy. Designs for Learning, 11(1), 99-107.

    Goodwin, C. (2015). Professional vision. In Aufmerksamkeit: Geschichte-Theorie-Empirie (pp. 387-425). Wiesbaden: Springer Fachmedien Wiesbaden.

    O’Halloran, K. (2007). Mathematical and scientific forms of knowledge: A systemic functional multimodal grammatical approach. language, Knowledge and pedagogy: functional linguistic and sociological perspective, 205-236.

    Patron, E. (2022). Exploring the role that visual representations play when teaching and learning chemical bonding: An approach built on social semiotics and phenomenography(Doctoral dissertation, Linnaeus University Press).

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  • 42.
    Alatalo, Tarja
    et al.
    Dalarna University, Sweden.
    Norling, Martina
    Mälardalen University, Sweden.
    Magnusson, Maria
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Education and Teacher's Practice. Linnaeus University, Linnaeus Knowledge Environments, Sustainable Health.
    Tjäru, Sofie
    Åbo Akademi University, Finland.
    Hjetland, Hanne
    University of Oslo, Norway.
    Hofslundsengen, Hilde
    Western Norway University of Applied Sciences, Norway.
    Høgtlesing og tidlig skriving i svenske og norske barnehager2020In: Norsk Barnehageforskningskonferanse: Å skape bærekraftige barnehager – perspektiver, muligheter og utfordringer, 2020, p. 14-14Conference paper (Refereed)
    Abstract [no]

    Bakgrunn: Tidlig skriftspråkutvikling har vist sammenheng med senere lese- og skriveferdigheter i skolen. I barnehagen er det behov for en didaktikk der lek er kjernen, og hvor alle barn får mulighet til å kommunisere, utforske og leke med skrift. For å få til dette har det betydning hvordan et innhold som skrift representeres og behandles i barnehagen. Hensikten med denne studien er å bidra med kunnskap om hvordan nordiske barnehagelærere tilrettelegger for skriftspråklæring i nordiske barnehager. Følgende forskningsspørsmålet er sentralt: Hvilken oppfatning, praksis og erfaringer beskriver barnehagelærere at de har med høytlesing og skriving?

    Metode: 76 barnehagelærer i Sverige og 92 barnehagelærer i Norge besvarte et spørreskjema med åpne og lukket spørsmål om høytlesing og skriving. Resultatene ble analysert med frekvensanalyse i SPSS og med kvalitativ innholdsanalyse av åpne spørsmål.

    Resultater: Preliminære funn viser at det er mindre skriving på småbarnsavdeling og stor variasjon i tekstmiljøet knytt til skriving for eldre barn. Høytlesing er en sentral del av barnehagens virksomhet, men det er stor variasjon i vilkårene for høytlesning, hva som leses, hvorfor og hvor ofte det leses.

    Implikasjoner for praksis: Studien kan styrke barnehagelærers didaktikk innenfor språk og kommunikasjon gjennom å løfte frem eksempel på hvordan barnehagelærer legger til rette for høytlesing og skriving. Barnehagelærer trenger kunnskap om høytlesing som en didaktikk hvor skriftspråket er i sentrum og hvordan man tilrettelegger for skriving om funksjon, og ikke først og fremst som form, for de yngste barna.

  • 43.
    Alatalo, Tarja
    et al.
    Dalarna University, Sweden.
    Norling, Martina
    Örebro University, Sweden.
    Magnusson, Maria
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Education and Teacher's Practice. Linnaeus University, Linnaeus Knowledge Environments, Sustainable Health.
    Tjäru, Sofie
    Åbo Akademi University, Finland.
    Hjetland, Hanne Næss
    Oslo Metropolitan University, Norway.
    Hofslundsengen, Hilde
    Western Norway University of Applied Sciences, Norway.
    Read-aloud and writing practices in Nordic preschools2024In: Scandinavian Journal of Educational Research, ISSN 0031-3831, E-ISSN 1470-1170, Vol. 68, no 3, p. 588-603Article in journal (Refereed)
    Abstract [en]

    Preschool teachers’ read-aloud and writing practices were investigated using a questionnaire about how activities were planned and organized, and what their purpose was. The results indicate that early literacy practices were not planned systematically. Most of the preschool teachers (77%) reported having storybook read-alouds at least three times per week. A large minority (45.5%) reported never or seldom using writing activities, and rarely in play. The main aims of read-alouds were to promote learning and development, create a sense of community, and regulate group activities. The main aims of writing practices were to learn about letters, understand the function of print, and arouse interest in writing. We discuss the implications of these findings in relation to a need for a didactic approach, where play is the core of early literacy practices.

  • 44.
    Alestam, Nina
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Education and Teacher's Practice.
    Inkludering i fritidshem: En kvalitativ studie om hur nyanlända elever inkluderas i fritidshemmet2020Independent thesis Basic level (professional degree), 10 credits / 15 HE creditsStudent thesis
    Abstract [sv]

    Syftet med denna studie är att beskriva och klargöra hur lärare inom fritidshem arbetar för att bidra till inkludering av nyanlända elever i elevgruppen på fritidshem. Studien synliggör även vilka svårigheter lärarna möter i arbetet med inkludering av nyanlända elever. Studien utgår från en kvalitativ metod genom semistrukturerade intervjuer med fem utbildade lärare i fem olika fritidshem belagda på olika delar i landet. Intervjuerna utfördes för att ta del av lärarnas erfarenheter i fritidshemmen samt exempel utifrån verksamheten. Studiens resultat visar att det skiljer sig markant i både kunskap om, och hur man arbetar med inkludering av nyanlända elever mellan olika fritidshem. I resultatet redogörs olika arbetssätt på hur lärare i fritidshem arbetar med inkludering av nyanlända elever. Studien redogör även de svårigheter lärare i fritidshem möter i arbetet med inkludering av nyanlända elever. Det framkommer om vikten av en trygg miljö och en aktiv lärare i arbetet med inkludering av den nyanlända eleven.

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  • 45.
    Alette, Mikaela
    et al.
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Education and Teacher's Practice.
    Olsson, Jessica
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Education and Teacher's Practice.
    ”Att verkligen vara där och lyssna in, att inte bara finnas”: En studie om förskollärares möjligheter för utveckling i att möta barn i behov av särskilt stöd.2022Independent thesis Basic level (professional degree), 10 credits / 15 HE creditsStudent thesis
    Abstract [sv]

    Syftet med vår studie är att belysa förskollärares arbetssätt och syn över sin utveckling i mötet med barn som har funktionsvariation. Vi vill undersöka hur förskollärare upplever denna interaktion, vilka arbetssätt de använder sig av och vad som har bidragit till att de arbetar som de gör idag. Studien utfördes genom intervjuer som kvalitativ metod och data har granskats genom induktiv metod. Vid kategorisering av vårt material utgick vi från ett sociokulturellt perspektiv och Nilholms (2003) specialpedagogiska perspektiv. Genom vår teoretiska ram kunde förskollärares förhållningssätt analyseras och vilka stödmedel förskollärarna har fått för att utvecklas i sin profession. Studien blir relevant då det finns för lite forskning som talar direkt om hur förskollärare upplever sitt arbete med barn som har funktionsvariation. I den tidigare forskning vi har hittat framkommer det hur förskollärare, pedagogers roll är av betydelse för barnen när det kommer till deras upplevelse och möjlighet att få utbildning i förskolan.

    Resultatet visade att förskollärare med kompetensutveckling hade mer lyckade interaktioner med barn som har funktionsvariation. Resultat visade även att förskollärare har tillgång till flera olika stödmedel om resurserna sätts in och att det är relationen till barnen som lägger grunden för deras arbete.

  • 46.
    Alfredsson, Ida
    et al.
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Education and Teacher's Practice.
    Molina Marchese, Bianca
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Education and Teacher's Practice.
    Att lyfta språken är ett sätt att visa respekt: En kvalitativ studie om hur förskollärare uppfattar arbetet med inkludering av barns modersmål i förskolan.2023Independent thesis Basic level (professional degree), 10 credits / 15 HE creditsStudent thesis
    Abstract [sv]

    Studiens syfte är att bidra med kunskap om vilka strategier och redskap som yrkesverksamma förskollärare använder i arbetet med att inkludera barns modersmål. Två forskningsfrågor har formulerats utifrån syftet; Vilka specifika strategier och redskap använder förskollärare för att inkludera barns modersmål? och Vilka utmaningar upplever förskollärare att de ställs inför i arbetet med att inkludera barns modersmål? En kvalitativ metod används för att besvara syfte och forskningsfrågor och semistrukturerade intervjuer används som datainsamlingsverktyg. För att analysera datan har ett sociokulturellt perspektiv använts och ett antal sociokulturella begrepp har valts ut; scaffolding, artefakt, proximala utvecklingszonen och mediering. I studiens resultat framkommer att förskollärarna använder en rad strategier och verktyg i arbetet med barns språk. Utifrån analysen kan en slutsats dras gällande att endast ett fåtal av respondenterna använder specifika strategier och verktyg med avsikt att inkludera barns modersmål i utbildningen. De övriga arbetssätt som framkommer i resultatet ämnar underlätta i kommunikation och språkutveckling på ett mer generellt plan i relation till det svenska språket. En ytterligare slutsats är att de socioekonomiska områden som respondenternas arbetsplatser är belägna i kan tolkas ha en påverkan på i vilken utsträckning barns modersmål inkluderas i utbildningen. Avslutningsvis visar resultatet att samtliga respondenter anser att barns modersmål bör lyftas fram i utbildningen, trots det framkommer även ett antal utmaningar i arbetet med modersmålen.

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  • 47.
    Alfredsson, Ulrika
    et al.
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Education and Teacher's Practice.
    Johansson, Åsa
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Education and Teacher's Practice.
    Muntligt berättande som språkutvecklande verktyg för flerspråkiga barn: Förskollärares erfarenheter och kunskaper om muntligt berättande2022Independent thesis Basic level (professional degree), 10 credits / 15 HE creditsStudent thesis
    Abstract [sv]

    Syftet med studien är att bidra med kunskap om hur förskollärare upplever att muntligt berättande påverkar språkutvecklingen hos flerspråkiga barn. Studien utgår från en kvalitativ metod. Empirin samlades in genom fem semistrukturerade intervjuer. Fyra förskollärare intervjuades individuellt och två förskollärare deltog i en gruppintervju. Förskollärarna arbetade i fyra olika mångkulturella förskolor samt i en förskoleklass. Urvalet var målstyrt genom att handplocka informanter med lång yrkeserfarenhet med flerspråkiga barn. Empirin som framkom i intervjuerna kategoriserades systematiskt utifrån studiens olika frågeställningar. Resultatet analyserades därefter utifrån tidigare forskning och ett sociokulturellt perspektiv för att hitta mönster, likheter och skillnader i förskollärarnas svar. I resultatet framkom att muntligt berättande som en språkutvecklande metod främjar språkutvecklingen hos flerspråkiga barn men utförs med varierande tillvägagångssätt. Vidare framkom det att muntligt berättande främjar barnens ord- och begreppsförråd, språkuppbyggnad och innehållsförståelse. Däremot visar resultatet skillnader på förskollärarnas upplevelser av miljöns betydelse för det muntliga berättandet, om det ska vara en uppbyggd miljö eller inte.

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  • 48.
    Algotsson, Cecilia
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Education and Teacher's Practice.
    Teknikdidaktikens vad och hur.: En kvalitativ studie om hur förskolepedagoger synliggör teknik i förskolan.2019Independent thesis Basic level (professional degree), 10 credits / 15 HE creditsStudent thesis
    Abstract [sv]

    Abstrakt

    Titel- Teknikdidaktikens vad och hur. En kvalitativ studie om hur förskolepedagoger synliggör teknik i förskolan.

    Title­ Technology educations what and how. A qualitive study about how preschool teachers visible technology in preschool.

     

    Enligt tidigare studie har pedagoger svarat att teknikundervisning är svårt och komplicerat att göra. Ibland förväxlas teknik med andra ämnen på grund av att teknikintresset är litet bland pedagoger samtidigt står det i styrdokumentet Läroplanen för förskolan att barnen ska få möjlighet att urskilja teknik i vardagen och skapa med olika redskap och material.

     

    Syftet med denna studie är att studera om hur förskolepedagoger synliggör teknik i förskolan. Studien genomfördes på två förskolor i samma kommun i Sverige. Empirin bygger på observationer som sträcker sig från planerade aktiviteter till barnens fria lek till rutinsituationer i förskolans vardag. Observationerna genomfördes på tre avdelningar: två med äldre barn och en med yngre barn. Resultatet analyserades med utgångpunkt från utvecklingspedagogikens lärandets objekt och lärandets akt. Resultatet visar att förskolepedagoger i förskolan synliggör användandet av artefakter, lösningars variationer, skapande i konstruktionslek och tekniska system genom att förklara ställa frågor och visa. Förskolepedagogernas teknikundervisning ägde rum i olika situationer under dagen såsom i planerade aktiviteter, fri lek och rutinsituationer.

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  • 49.
    Alhoghazy, Raneen
    et al.
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Education and Teacher's Practice.
    Benbouzid, Adel
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Education and Teacher's Practice.
    Pedagogisk syn på lek: En kvalitativ studie om hur fritidslärare resonerar kring lek i fritidshemmet2024Independent thesis Basic level (professional degree), 10 credits / 15 HE creditsStudent thesis
    Abstract [sv]

    Denna studie undersöker hur fritidslärarna resonerar kring lek samt deras roll i barnens lekaktiviteter. Genom en kvalitativ forskningsstudie baserad på semistrukturerade intervjuer av sex fritidslärare som arbetar på olika skolor har vi försökt att närma oss lek som metod och hur lärare uppfattar och använder lek i sin praktik. Resultaten av studien belyser den spontana lekens betydelse i det sociala samspelet för att barn ska känna sig som en del av gruppen. Vad beträffar lärarens roll framställer resultaten den noggranna balansen mellan att stödja den spontana fria leken samtidigt som lek introduceras som en pedagogisk metod som kan vara av betydelse för barns interaktion och mediering av samhällets normer. Det mesta i denna studie tyder på att lek inte är fri utan snarare står i en nära relation till den miljö som omger barn vilket gör att leken blir mer styrd än fri. Leken framställs i resultaten som en process där barn är viktiga medaktörer. Fritidslärarens ansvar för att skapa en passande lekmiljö och deras roll i att styra leken för att garantera ett förutbestämt resultat blir framträdande. Lek blir i detta avseende ett viktigt redskap som kan hjälpa läsaren att förstå hur dessa processer fungerar och kan utvecklas till en effektiv metod inom fritidshemmets verksamhet.

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  • 50.
    Allgurén, Axel
    Linnaeus University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Education and Teacher's Practice.
    Samspelets betydelse för eleverna på fritidshemmet: En studie om barns samspel2020Independent thesis Basic level (professional degree), 10 credits / 15 HE creditsStudent thesis
    Abstract [sv]

    Syftet med detta arbete är att bidra med kunskap om hur eleverna samspelar med varandra vid genomförande av samarbetsövningar. Att eleverna tar lärdom av varandra är en viktig del inför deras framtida liv och det är därför av vikt att de lär sig hur samspel fungerar. Studien bygger på observationer under fritidstiden där samspelet mellan eleverna under samarbetsövningar stod i fokus. Resultatet visar att eleverna använder sig av samspel och utnyttjar varandras styrkor i genomförandet av aktiviteter. Utifrån observationerna visade resultatet att eleverna använder sig av olika former av samspel, men även att samspelet inte alltid går som planerat

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