The aim of conducting the following research is to observe how teachers in upper secondary school create conditions for developing disciplinary literacy in social science. Additionally, the aim is to examine how teachers reflect upon their practices regarding pupils’ development of disciplinary literacy. In order to carry out the aim of the research overview, two research questions were constructed. The theoretical foundation of the research consists of Vygotsky’s socio-cultural perspective, which includes the concepts mediation, appropriation, scaffolding and the Zone of Proximal Development. Furthermore, Bloom’s Taxonomy of Cognitive Learning Objectives was used in order to provide a cognitive perspective. Research on disciplinary literacy, mainly that of Shanahan and Shanahan, combined with social science research formed an additional framework for analysis. The data consists of both qualitative, semi-structured interviews with two social science teachers and collected teaching material. Consequently, a qualitative content analysis was conducted using the aforementioned theoretical framework. Results show that teachers consider perspective-taking an essential ability in social science and that the development of disciplinary literacy is a linear progression from simpler, factual concepts to complex, analytical concepts. Further, social science is characterized by its large content-specific vocabulary. In addition, teachers experience that pupils struggle with scientific reading and writing, which are skills that are viewed as essential. The chosen didactic methods of the teachers include authentic texts and examples, and content-specific vocabulary was viewed as a key component for developing disciplinary literacy. With the zone of proximal development in mind, the teachers consciously challenge the students with more complex material.Finally, the implications of the results are discussed in relation to previous research, the theoretical background and the Swedish curricula for upper secondary school. Lastly, suggestions for future research are discussed.

Föreliggande studie syftar till att undersöka vilka stödstrukturer lågstadielärare uppger att de bygger i klassrummet för att stötta organiserade samtal i svenskundervisningen. Studien tar sin utgångspunkt i den sociokulturella teorin där begreppet stödstruktur är centralt. Vidare har semistrukturerade intervjuer besvarats skriftligt av sju lågstadielärare och i analysen av empirin användes två kategoriseringar av stödstrukturer: intellektuella och fysiska (Säljö, 2000:100). De intellektuella stödstrukturer som framkom i studien är läraren som kommunikativ förebild, det sociala klassrumsklimatet, elevens självkänsla samt kamratlärande. De fysiska stödstrukturer som utkristalliserades i materialet var klassrumsmöblering, text- och bildstöd samt andra fysiska artefakter. Av dessa ansåg flertalet lärare att textoch bildstöd var den bäst fungerande stödstrukturen. Lärarens sätt att visa och vägleda eleverna till att föra samtal, det vill säga att vara en kommunikativ förebild, var ytterligare en stödstruktur som uppfattades som framgångsrik. Bland intervjusvaren nämndes tämligen få fysiska artefakter, vilket var ett oväntat resultat.

Nontraditional students enrolled in online courses tend to drop out within their first year because they do not have the basic literacy skills or essential college skills needed for success. They often need the guidance of an online instructor. The purpose of this case study was to explore the perceptions of instructors and students about the effectiveness of Skype as a scaffolding tool for increasing academic achievement for underprepared students in online remedial English composition courses through interactions with their instructor. The conceptual framework included Bruner's cultural-psychological theory of education, Vygotsky's social constructivist theory, and Siemens's connectivism theory. The study was centered on 4 research questions; the first 2 focused on students' and instructors' perceptions of student writing based on student-instructor Skype interactions, and the last 2 concentrated on students' and instructors' perceptions of Skype's effectiveness to scaffold English composition skills to remedial online students. The data sources were 6 student interviews, 2 instructor interviews, and 12 audio recordings of Skype sessions. Data were analyzed for patterns and themes using open coding. The key findings were that students and instructors perceived the Skype interactions created changes in students' writing because of ease of use, indispensableness, rapport, and skill acquisition. This study may affect positive social change by informing online instructors and other personnel of online institutions of higher education about the importance of real-time interactions between students and instructors and providing services for underprepared students using Skype to help enhance their learning of critical writing skills.

Tidigare forskning har visat att fysisk aktivitet integrerat med andra ämnen kan påverka barns lärande på ett positivt sätt. Syftet med studien var därför att undersöka hur förskollärare beskriver sitt arbetssätt med fysisk aktivitet som redskap i undervisningen samt hur förskollärare beskriver sin roll när det gäller fysisk aktivitet. Studien utgick från en kvalitativ metod där empirin samlades in genom att intervjua fem förskollärare. För att kunna besvara forskningsfrågorna analyserades empirin utifrån utvalda begrepp från det sociokulturella perspektivet. Resultatet visar att de intervjuade förskollärarna beskriver fysisk aktivitet som ett redskap i barns lärande, eftersom de upplever att barn naturligt använder kroppen i sitt lärande. Förskollärarna i studien upplever att deras roll är att stötta och inspirera barnen till att bli fysiskt aktiva. De beskriver att det är viktigt att läsa av barnens behov för att kunna stötta dem på bästa sätt. Slutsatsen är att förskollärare upplever att barn lär sig genom att integrera fysisk aktivitet i sitt lärande och att förskollärarna anser sig spela en betydande roll i barns utveckling av sina fysiska förmågor.

Vi har skapat en pekbok för de yngsta barnen på förskolan som är mellan 1–3 år.Pekbokens innehåll utgår från Bishops sex matematiska aktiveter och har en tillhörandehandledning som kan ge stöd i hur förskolepersonal didaktiskt kan planeramatematikundervisning för de yngsta barnen i förskolan. Handledningen innehållerförslag på aktiviteter att utföra tillsammans med barnen för att kunna arbeta efter måleni förskolans läroplan inom matematik och språk. Handledningen har utformats så attförskollärare och barnskötare ska få möjlighet att skapa egen förståelse och en trygghet ihur de kan synliggöra vad matematik innebär i förskolans olika vardagssituationer. Enenkät skickades ut till förskollärare och barnskötare för att ta del av deras erfarenheterav matematikundervisning men också hur de använder sig av barnlitteratur. Enkätenssvar på de fasta frågeställningarna visade på en osäkerhet avseendematematikundervisning och med hjälp av de öppna frågorna fick förskollärarna ochbarnskötarna möjlighet till att utveckla sina svar om vad de behövde stöd och merkunskap inom. Enkätresultatet kunde vi använda som underlag och stöd i vad vibehövde tydliggöra och förenkla i pekboken men också i handledningen. Enkätenstyrker det forskningen visar om att förskollärare känner en viss osäkerhet kringmatematik och att undervisa de yngsta barnen i förskolan samt att det inte forskas likamycket på matematik för barn mellan 1-3år som för de äldre förskolebarnen. Pekbokentillsammans med handledning kan därför ge didaktiskt stöd till planering ochgenomförande av matematikundervisning för de yngsta barnen.

Based on the democratic values that the Swedish curriculum wants to mediate, the aim of thisstudy is to investigate what support pupils with speech anxiety receive and wishes to receivein grade 4-6. This study is a multi-method research - a research that combines qualitative andquantitative methods within the same project. The qualitative method is used to answer thefirst two research questions directed at the teachers. These are “How do three teachers planthe oral parts considering pupils with speech anxiety?” and “What kind of support isparticularly favorable according to the teacher's experience?” The quantitative method is usedto answer the last research question addressed to pupils which is “What support do theteachers’ pupils want if they have speech anxiety?” The theoretical framework used for this study is Pauline Gibbons' understanding of theconcept scaffolding which was originally founded by Lev Vygotsky and is a branch of hissociocultural theory. The results of this study show that some teaching methods andadaptations are particularly effective. These include: language development strategies, givingpupils time for preparation and to practice at home/with friends, present orally only for theteacher or a small group, join the group that presents without speaking, have a friend standingwith them at presentations, record a video as an alternative and to plan oral sub-goals in thedevelopment talks. Another key part is the teacher's behavior towards and relationship withthe pupils, which can play a crucial role in their development. Pupils with speech anxiety tendto not tell the teacher about it unless they have a good relationship, which can lead to notgetting the help that they need. The classroom climate is also addressed as an importantaspect. Overall, the teachers and pupils agree on which support is most successful. Theconclusion of this study is that pupils with speech anxiety performs better in environmentsthey experience as safe and with people they feel safe with.

Since the Covid19 pandemic there has been a rise in the use of digital platforms such as online-game based learning platforms (OGBLPs) to diversify the learning experiences of students. This paper investigates the implementation, challenges, and benefits of online game-based learning platforms for English learning of students with English as a second language (ESL) in Sweden’s upper secondary schools. We aimed to explore teachers’ experiences of students’ vocabulary acquisition and whether it is facilitated by employing OGBLPs. We also examined the benefits and challenges of using OGBLPs for vocabulary acquisition. For this purpose we employed a qualitative approach where five upper secondary school English teachers were interviewed. All data was later transcribed, where responses from the interviews were used to highlight how teachers used OGBLPs, and what they considered challenges and benefits. Overall, teachers reported positive attitudes towards the use of OGBLPs as it influences elements such as student engagement and leads to increased motivation. However, all participants of this study also claim that OGBLPs ought to be used in combination with a theme or presentation connected to curriculum content as they doubt the effectiveness of OGBLPs in vocabulary acquisition when used in isolation, as a single learning activity.

Syftet med studien är att ge kunskap om användning av läsförståelsestrategierhos sex elever i årskurs 5 och hur medvetna de är om de strategier de användervid läsning. Studien utgår från sociokulturell teori, och materialet är insamlatvia sex deltagande observationer när elever i årskurs 5 utför en läsförståelseuppgift. En läsförståelsestrategi som eleverna använde var att reda ut oklarheter i form av betydelsen av vissa ord. En annan var att göra inferenser, vilketsamtliga sex elever visste att de skulle göra. En stor del av dem förstod dockinte hur de skulle göra, och de saknade ett metaspråk för att kunna förklara hurde gick till väga. Den typ av stöttning eleverna var i behov av var beroende avelevernas kunskapsnivå. De två elever med mest utvecklade kunskaper behövde minst stöttning medan de två med minst utvecklade kunskaper behövdemest stöttning, och de bad också om hjälp i större utsträckning än de övriga.

The overall purpose of the present study is to investigate experiences of adaptations and special support during the final years of school, from junior high school to high school. Part of the aim is to analyse teachers' perceptions of the support they provide in the Swedish language subject to students who have dyslexia and/or reading and writing difficulties. The other part is to establish how students with dyslexia and/or reading and writing difficulties perceive the support they receive. To achieve the aim, three semi-structured interviews were conducted with one junior high school teacher and two high school teachers, all of whom are experienced teachers in Swedish. Furthermore, three semi-structured interviews were conducted with high school students.                      The empirical evidence obtained was analysed based on Lev Vygotskij's sociocultural theory. The results show that the teachers partially agree on how they can adapt the teaching of Swedish for students with dyslexia and/or reading and writing difficulties from a socio-cultural perspective. Furthermore, the results demonstrate that the three teachers believe that they lack on-going education about dyslexia and reading and writing difficulties. The results from the interviews with the high school students show that they experience less support from teachers at high school compared to junior high school. We can conclude that Swedish teachers need more knowledge about the causes of dyslexia and other reading and writing difficulties in order to design sustainable and well-functioning support and adaptations. Another conclusion is that most of the teachers (2 out of 3) have insight into how the external conditions in the learning environment can be adapted to accommodate students’ reading and writing problems. A second conclusion drawn from the high school students' responses is that they would like more support from teachers in all subjects, not only Swedish. The final conclusion, which is considered very important, is their wish for the teachers to acknowledge and highlight their strengths instead of pointing out their weaknesses.

This dissertation investigates the question, "How can the procedural rhetoric of three whole-body educational games improve the understanding of self-regulated learning with digital technology?" It explores three whole-body educational games (WBEGs) using a quantitative study, a case study, and analyses of their procedural rhetoric to better understand the roles these types of games can have in teaching digital literacy and self-regulated learning (SRL) skills. The three WBEGs, Waves, Color Mixer, and Light and Mirrors, are each intended to teach science concepts to players. These games are similarly structured in that they all invite players to immerse themselves in the game by standing on the "screen" (the games project images on the floor). The WBEGs differ from traditional console video games because they receive input from players via motion-sensing technology, requiring players to make large movements with their bodies to influence elements within the game. This study explains SRL as a complex combination of internal (mental) behavior, external (observable) behavior, and interpersonal (social) behavior, identifying within three WBEGs the presence of elements supporting the SRL behaviors of goal setting, strategy planning, collaboration, progress monitoring, feedback, and reflection. These findings inform the understanding of SRL by revealing that each game includes a different combination of SRL-supporting elements that encourage the use of SRL skills in different ways. SRL scaffolding features are those elements within a WBEG that guide players to use certain SRL strategies, helping and supporting their efforts much like construction scaffolding supports a building as it is being erected. This dissertation also utilizes analyses of procedural rhetoric to investigate the techniques reinforced by the underlying structure of these three WBEGs in an effort to further the understanding of digital literacy in education and sociocultural contexts. All three WBEGs appear to emphasize player agency and collaboration. Waves and Light and Mirrors encourage player strategy, while Color Mixer rewards speed and rote knowledge. These reinforced techniques perpetuate the underlying cultural values of accuracy, collaboration, problem-solving, autonomy, and scaffolding. This study discusses these values in the contexts of education and society.