The number of teacher assistants and other support staff, commonlyreferred to as educational paraprofessionals, has grownsubstantially over the past decade in Swedish compulsory schools.Despite their widespread presence, paraprofessionals’ roles in theSwedish school context is characterised by a high degree of ambiguityas they carry out a diverse range of tasks. Given this ambiguity,we explore the construction of 58 educationalparaprofessionals’ occupational identity in a compulsory schoolsetting in Sweden. Drawing on Gary Fine’s notion of occupationalrhetorics, we argue that the rhetorics and imagery used by theseparaprofessionals to define and frame their work functions asa keyhole into their occupational identity. By analysing the occupationalrhetorics expressed in their written responses to open-endedsurvey questions about their work tasks, task preferences, andperceived illegitimate tasks we identified three distinct framingsof their work (i.e., rhetorical patterns). These distinct rhetoricalpatterns, which we describe as the rhetorics of the RelationalAnchor, Operational Facilitator and Supportive Educator, illustratehow their occupational identity is not a comprehensive whole butrather constructed through imagery that frames and defines theirwork. Delving into the rhetorics embedded in their descriptions oftheir preferred and illegitimate tasks, we find that their preferredoccupational identity and occupational positioning is tied to performingrelational tasks and inhabiting the relational space inschools. Our results illustrate the tensions paraprofessionals navigatein their construction of a meaningful occupational identity andhighlight the need to clarify the professional territory that theyoperate in within the school context.

Syftet med artikeln är att exemplifiera och diskutera hur fritidspedagogiskundervisning kan designas för att präglas av valfrihet och meningsfullhetsamtidigt som undervisningen genomförs med en systematik och lärarstyrning.Artikeln centreras runt en nyfikenhet på vad som händer när fritidspedagogiskundervisning designas för att fokusera på de sociala dimensionersom traditionellt har beskrivits som fritidshemmets kärna. Empirin består avskriftliga reflektioner av sju olika undervisningsaktiviteter där fritidshemslärarehar planerat, genomfört och utvärderat fritidspedagogisk undervisning medintentionen att utveckla elevers mjuka förmågor. För att synliggöra lärarnasundervisningsdesign används det teoretiska perspektivet Design för lärande ianalyserna. Resultaten visar hur systematiserad och genomtänkt fritidspedagogiskundervisning kan genomföras med aktiviteter och metoder som stården fritidspedagogiska traditionen nära och baseras på elevernas vilja att delta(eller inte). Således kan frihet och styrning integreras för att göra undervisningenmeningsfull. Dessutom verkar systematik och utvärdering bidra till attsynliggöra elevers utveckling av mjuka förmågor.

The number of educational paraprofessionals is increasing in Swedish schools. Despite their growing presence, these support roles have gone largely unnoticed in Swedish educational research. This study addresses this gap by mapping this group through examining the frequency of their deployment, the nature of their professional titles, job duties, job requirements and employment terms using survey data collected in Swedish lower secondary schools. These data were analyzed descriptively to identify potential tendencies and variations in their deployment. The results show that the use of paraprofessional support roles is relatively widespread, with an average of one paraprofessional support staff member for every five teachers. The findings also reveal a heterogeneous and fragmented professional landscape characterized by a wide range of job titles and diverse responsibilities. Moreover, the distribution and use of paraprofessionals differs between public and private lower secondary schools and across socio-economic contexts. Finally, considerations for future research are discussed, highlighting the need for research into how this growing reliance on paraprofessional support staff affects educational outcomes, teacher roles and student support structures in lower secondary schools.

This study explores how school-age educare (SAEC) in Sweden can make a difference for children living in areas with socioeconomic challenges. The Swedish school-age educare offers education and care for children aged 6-12 years old, before and after school. The mission of the SAEC is to complement school teaching and compensate for children’s living conditions. A central point of departure for this study is that the location of an SAEC program matters, as where children live and where the school-age educare centers are situated impact children’s life conditions and their prerequisites for succeeding in school (Lindbäck, 2021; Valizadeh, 2023). The study is theoretically grounded in Biesta’s concepts subjectification and qualification, which are used as aspects of education. According to Biesta (2009), education impacts on processes of subjectification – discourses of becoming a subject. The qualification discourse of education involves providing children with the knowledge, skills, and understanding needed to cope with future education, enabling them to act effectively in the world (Biesta, 2022). The aim of this study is to explore how SAEC adapts to the local circumstances and individual needs of pupils living in areas with socioeconomic challenges and how SAEC can contribute to promote pupils’ continued learning and knowledge development for further education and life. The following research question guides the study: What claims are made about the SAEC contribution to pupils in terms of subjectification and qualification?Data consist of 13 interviews with school leaders working in schools in socioeconomic vulnerable areas, neighborhoods at risk, and particularly exposed zones identified by the Swedish Police. Qualitative content analysis was applied. Three categories emerged regarding the claims made about children: the child in need, the child at risk and the child with pluricultural experiences. Four aspects were identified regarding how SAEC can contribute to qualifying children for further education: by supporting the development of their self-esteem, by nourishing the development of soft skills, by supporting children’s language skills, and by designing activities that broaden their knowledge of the surrounding society. Moreover, two aspects were identified regarding how SAEC can contribute to children’s qualification for life: broadening children’s horizons and instilling a belief in the future. Thus, this study contributes with nuanced descriptions of how the SAEC can compensate and make a difference in children’s life conditions. The SAEC can also provide children with the prerequisites for succeeding in school. Considering the increasing socioeconomic disparities in Swedish society, the SAEC´s compensatory work may become even more important in the future. Another conclusion is that SAEC centers are important spaces for care and supervision, where children's basic needs are met. Hence, in areas with socioeconomic challenges, the SAEC’s mission to compensate appears to be prioritized over its mission to teach.  

The aim of this study is to explore how School-Age Educare Centers (SAEC) adapt to the circumstances and needs of pupils living in areas with socioeconomic challenges, and how SAEC can contribute to promote pupils’ continued learning and knowledge development for further education and for life. The Swedish school-age educare offers education and care for children aged 6-12 years old, before and after school. The following research question guides the study: What claims are made about the SAEC contribution to pupils in terms of subjectification and qualification? Data consist of 13 interviews with school leaders working in schools in vulnerable areas, neighborhoods at risk, and particularly exposed zones identified by the Swedish Police. Qualitative content analysis was applied. The study is theoretically grounded in Biesta’s concepts subjectification and qualification, which are used as aspects of education. This study contributes with nuanced descriptions of how the SAEC mission to compensate and complement is claimed to be put into practice. One conclusion is that school-age educare centers can make a difference in children’s life conditions and prerequisites for succeeding in school. Another conclusion is that school-age educare centers emerge as potential arenas for crime prevention 

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.

Denna essä ger perspektiv på hur fritidshemmet som utbildningsinstitution och fritidspedagogisk undervisning kan kopplas till begreppet måluppfyllelse. Kritiska perspektiv på sådana kopplingar synliggörs i essän, följt av en analys av villkor som ändå framhåller fritidshemmets potential i detta avseende. Genom att förädla fritidshemmets särart, och tydligt relatera denna utbildningsform till olika mål, kan potential synliggöras som annars riskerar att negligeras.