This study examines American and British middle class expats’ educational strategies in Berlin, Germany, from a Bourdieusian perspective. I argue that globalization and an increased mover population make it necessary to study the expat population, a social group that has been largely neglected in sociological research. The study explores the elementary school choices expats make for their children in the host country and how their educational strategies relate to the expats’ inherited and acquired cultural capital. Information was gathered through the statements of six American and British interviewees, interviews which were conducted in fall 2018. The interviewees were asked questions about their elementary school choices, their educational priorities, pastime activities and their own upbringings. The educational strategies were similar to those of specific middle class groups that, according to previous research, are characterized by high cultural capital. The interviewees in this study did however prove to be more idealistic than those specific middle class groups, and they made adjustments to their educational strategies to cater for their expatriatism. The prevalence and importance of liberal values had been passed on to the interviewees by their parents. In terms of choosing schools for their children they valued individuality, independence and cultural diversity. They also valued cosmopolitanism. The interviewed expats did not necessarily see themselves as bound to one country or nationality and they wanted the same perceived freedom for their children. They primarily chose local public schools for their children in attempts to acquire cultural capital, to ensure that their children integrated culturally and developed a fluency in German. Local public schools was the natural choice for expats with German partners, while expats with expat partners often found it difficult to decide against private international schools due to their struggles with cultural integration.

It is estimated that by 2025 there will be approximately 8.26 million students enrolled in over 15,000 international schools globally. This increased expansion of international schooling cannot be disconnected from a process of globalisation where neoliberal policies have influenced the growth of education markets. International schooling arrives as a welcomed option to students and families looking for alternatives to national programmes which are perceived to be rigid and unchanging in a new globalised economy. With enrolment rates increasing over twenty percent in the Americas, Asia-Pacific, Africa, Europe, and the Middle East regions, the International Baccalaureate Organisation is perhaps the fastest growing educational group offering international schooling around the globe.  In this qualitative comparative case study, fourteen students enrolled in the International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme (IBDP) across four schools were asked about their experiences in the process of school choice in the Swedish education market. Semi-structured interviews were employed to explore student’s motivations and strategies in choosing the IBDP over national programmes. Utilising a grounded theory methodology linked with Bourdieu’s theories on symbolic capital, the study attempts to understand student’s choice behaviours. Findings revealed that regardless of social or educational background, students share similar motivations and strategies for choice making. Further analysis demonstrated that a collective perception of the IB alongside similar ideals of self-identity and class influence and legitimise their choice behaviours. The implication of these findings demonstrate that choice behaviours in the Swedish education market work to establish a degree of social reproduction and differentiation. / Det beräknas att år 2025 kommer cirka 8,26 miljoner elever att gå i över 15 000 internationella skolor globalt. Denna ökade expansion av internationell skolgång kan inte separeras från en globaliseringsprocess där neoliberal politik har påverkat tillväxten på skolmarknaden. Internationell skolgång framstår som ett möjlighet för studenter och familjer som söker alternativ till nationella program, som uppfattas vara oföränderliga i en ny globaliserad ekonomi. När antalet inskrivna ökar med över tjugo procent i Amerika, Asien och Stillahavs-området, Afrika, Europa och Mellanöstern, är Internationella Baccalaureatorganisationen kanske den snabbast växande utbildningsgruppen som erbjuder internationell skolgång runt om i världen.  I denna kvalitativa jämförande fallstudie utfrågades fjorton elever i IB-programmet (Internationella Baccalaureat, IBDP) vid fyra skolor om sina erfarenheter av skolvalet på den svenska gymnasieskolmarknaden. Semi-strukturerade intervjuer användes för att undersöka studenternas strategier och motivation för att välja IBDP framför nationella program. Med hjälp av metod byggd på grundad teori (grounded theory), kopplad till Bourdieus begrepp symboliskt kapital försöker studien förstå elevernas strategier vid gymnasievalet. Resultaten visade att oavsett social eller pedagogisk bakgrund delar eleverna likartad motivation och likartade strategier vid skolvalet. Ytterligare analys visade att en kollektiv föreställning om IB tillsammans med liknande ideal beträffande självidentitet och klass påverkar och legitimerar deras val. Implikationen av dessa resultat visar att valbeteenden på den svenska skolmarknaden bidrar till viss del till en social reproduktion.

Syftet med studien är att genom kritisk granskning få en fördjupad förståelse av fristående gymnasieskolors multimodala kommunikation på sina hemsidor gentemot grundskoleelever och deras vårdnadshavare. Avsikten är att jämföra de friskolor i Stockholmsområdet som hade högst respektive lägst meritvärde för antagning höstterminen 2019. För att undersöka detta används multimodal analys av tio fristående gymnasieskolors hemsidor. Resultatet presenteras utifrån olika kategorier med en bakgrund i sociosemiotisk teori. I resultatet framkommer att skolorna i gruppen med högst antagningsgräns ofta använder liknande semiotiska resurser vilka skiljer sig från de skolor med lägst antagningsgräns som inom sin grupp använder sig av semiotiska resurser som liknar varandras. De olika skolorna riktar sin kommunikation till olika grupper av elever och vårdnadshavare. Alla skolor använder sina egna semiotiska resurser för att skapa mening. Kombination av de semiotiska resurserna på en skolas hemsida skapar en viss förståelse hos betraktaren. / The purpose of this study is to achieve a greater understanding of multimodal communication towards prospective students and their guardians on webpages of independent upper secondary schools in Sweden. The intention is to compare independent schools in the Stockholm area which had the highest as opposed to the lowest limit of admission in the autumn of 2019. To investigate this, multimodal analysis of the websites of ten independent upper secondary schools is used. The results are presented in different categories based on social semiotic theory. Furthermore, the results show that the schools in the group with the highest admission limit often use similar semiotic resources and that they differ from the schools with the lowest admission limit. This group on the other hand, use semiotic resources that are similar to one another. The different schools direct their communication towards different groups of students and guardians. Schools use several individual semiotic resources which create understanding in combination with each other.

The study is made in Nacka, a suburb of the capital of Sweden, Stockholm, and focuses on “the parental school choice" that takes place when children start in first grade at the age of six.  New differences in the number of pupils attending various municipal schools have appeared after reforms in the early 1990s giving parents free choice of elementary school for their children. Some schools are located in areas where most children have a middle class background, while others are placed in less attractive surroundings where the parents have a lower educational status, and are more often immigrants. Parents living in the latter kind of surroundings can now send their children to schools further off, but located in more attractive areas. This leads to some schools get an increasing number of pupils and others gets a decreasing. The income of schools in Sweden is largely based on the number of pupils; the idea behind the reform is that schools with a good educational quality should be rewarded by the system. But other factors also influence the parent’s choice; bad rumors, good reputations, the number of children with immigrant background, the physical surroundings and social atmosphere where the school is located, and maybe also ethnical prejudice. My study concerns the grounds upon which school the parents choose the first school for their children in a part of Nacka municipality. The study is based on staff interviews from a school located in a socio-economically disfavored area as well as interviews and questionnaire surveys with parents having a choice between the nearby school and a school located in a more wealthy area. I found that the parent’s primary criterion when choosing schools is still proximity. When looking at the group that has opted out the most nearby schools however, the reputation of the local school – the spreading of bad rumors – proved to be a major influence. An example from the answers I received is the following: I chose a school based on the number of immigrants in it, my child should have a safe schooling, it’s said that schools with a lot of immigrants have an atmosphere that is much tougher, I’ve heard from others, that the “apartment complex” school is a tougher school to attend. (Interview Lisa, verbal, March 2010) Many parents obviously prefer not to have their children attend a school located in a socio-economic disfavored area with a large low-income and/or immigrant population. They are worried that their children will have trouble even getting the final grade from primary school, which is a precondition to entering the secondary, “gymnasium” level.

The purpose of the study is to create an understanding of the continued stratification within the school in relation to the school choice. Through understanding parents' motives behind choice and non-choice of a segregated school and differences between those motives. The study is qualitative interview study based on eight interviews with parents that live in a segregated area and have children that go to elementary school. This segregated area is in a medium sized city in Sweden. Theories that have been used are Jenkins social identity, Skegss disidentification and respectability and Marinis social values and norms. The results of study show that parents justify both choice and non-choice of school with what they consider to be the right social context for their children. It is important what student composition the school has for their children to feel group affiliation, but also because there is a fear of exclusion. As for differences in motives, parents choose to not choose the nearby segregated school because they do not want to be associated with the notion that exists about the area´s parents. This shows that the free choice of school can also be understood based on the parents´ identity- creating practices.

In the 1990s, Sweden implemented the internationally debated school choice reform, introducing unprecedented freedom in education for students within its school system. This allowed students to attend the school of their choosing without being confined by school district. In order to maintain relevance since its inception, the reform has required several amendments to the Education Act, made over the years by a variety of governments and parliaments with differing political ideologies. Despite the political divergence of these governments and parliaments, however, the motivation behind and implementation of these amendments have shown to be quite similar across the board. From this vantage point, it is of sociological interest to investigate how free school choice is portrayed in the government's bills and the parliament’s debates when adopting changes to the Education Act during the years 1992/93, 2009/10 and 2020/21 within the various discursive fields. To do so, this study has employed  Ernesto Laclau and Chantal Mouffe's (2014) perspective on discourse theory and found three prominent discourses; the free student, the quality of the education and the diversity and segregation in the school. By examining each discourse and its signs and elements, nodal points have been identified. Through analysis of said nodal points, the study concludes that there has been a shift in the analyzed documents’ central discourse over time through discursive struggles for hegemony and the re-articulation of nodal points and elements. This highlights a possible underlying ideological and power struggle within the overarching discourse surrounding free school choice.

Syftet med denna studie är att förklara varför en segregerad skola läggs ner och vad som händer med elever som ofrivilligt möter en ny skolkultur. Jag vill förtydliga de politiska besluten som legat till grund för förändringen och vilka konsekvenser beslutet får för eleverna. Syftet är också att belysa vilken betydelse en annan skolkultur med ett inkluderande arbetssätt har för de elever som tvingas byta skola mitt under högstadiet.   Som kvalitativ metod för datainsamling har jag valt intervjuer med ansvariga politiker samt med ett antal elever som tvingats byta skola. Dessutom har jag gjort uppföljningar av trivselenkäter och betygsresultat för de berörda eleverna jämfört med de elever i samma årskurs som inte gått på mottagande skola under hela högstadiet.   Politikernas avsikt med att lägga ner skolan var att bryta segregationen och de sjunkande elevresultaten. Man ville också, via en omläggning av flera verksamheter, använda de nyrenoverade lokalerna bättre. Lyckades man då med sitt beslut? Resultatet visar att betygsresultaten förbättrades för de elever som bytt skola, t o m mer än för eleverna i referensgruppen. Eleverna säger att de känner sig välkomna på den nya skolan, de uppskattar framförallt lärarna och tycker att undervisningen är bättre. Men de får inte så många nya vänner och flera säger att de längtar tillbaka till sin gamla skola.   Utifrån studiens resultat kan vi dra följande slutsatser. Politikerna lyckades med sin avsikter och känner sig nöjda med beslutet flera år senare, även om man erkänner att det funnits brister i informationen. Att lägga ner en skola är både ovanligt och äventyrligt. Ur ett elevperspektiv är det inte optimalt att tvingas byta skola mitt under högstadiet. Även om det går bra för deras resultat blir den nya skolan aldrig riktigt deras. / The purpose of this study is to explain why a public high school in Växjö, Sweden, dealing with issues of segregation and falling results, closed down and what happened to the students who involuntarily had to change schools and meet a new school culture. I want to clarify the politicians’ reasons that formed the basis for the decision and the consequences of the decision for the students. The study also aims to highlight the importance of a school culture with an inclusive approach for students who are forced to change schools in the middle of high school.   As qualitative methods for data collection, I have chosen interviews with the politicians and a number of the affected students. Additionally, the students’ results and their well-being (as expressed by the students themselves in surveys) after changing schools were followed and compared to a reference group of students in the same grade who also hadn’t been attending the receiving school from the start of high school.   The politicians’ intent when deciding to close down the school was to break the segregation and the long-term trend of falling results. Moreover, they wanted to improve the usage of some newly renovated facilities through a reorganization of several activities. So, did the politicians achieve what they hoped when drafting this unusual and risky decision? In this study, I show that the affected students improved their grades, their improvement being even larger than the students in the reference group. Additionally, students expressed through the surveys that they felt welcome in the new school, that they appreciated the teachers and found the teaching in their new school better than previously. However, they also expressed troubles making new friends and some were longing to return to their old school.   My conclusions from this study are the following: The politicians succeeded with their intentions and feel satisfied with the decision several years later, although acknowledging that there had been shortcomings regarding the information they distributed to the students and their parents. From a student perspective, it is not optimal to have to change schools in the middle of high school. Even though they improved their grades after the change, they never felt completely at home in their new school.

Avhandlingen beskriver och analyserar hur skolvalfriheten som policy, det vill säga uppfattad möjlighet och hot tar sig i uttryck i vardaglig praktik. Aspekter av diskurser, praktiker analyseras i avhandlingen utifrån olika aktörers handlingshorisonter. Avhandlingens kontext består av en urbant belägen lokal skolmarknad, inom vilken aktörers praktiker och strategier undersöks. Avhandlingen behandlas således hur ungdomar, familjer och skolprofessionella navigerar skolvalfriheten i en alltmer polariserad och storstadsregion. Teoretiskt ramas studien in av Pierre Bourdieu sociologi samt koncept från det kulturgeografiska fältet. Metodeoliskt bygger avhandlingen på empiri insamlat med etnografiska metoder under läsåret 2012-2013. I de fem empiriska kapitlen diskuteras hur föreställda geografier, skolhabitus, rykten och symboliska gränser förhandlas av studiens aktörer. I det avslutande kapitlet diskuteras och analyseras avhandlingens främsta bidrag. Kapitlet lyfter också några frågeställningar som måste adresseras för ett mer jämlikt utbildningssystem. / This thesis explores and analyses how school choices are made and perceived in an urban local school market. The thesis uses concepts from the French sociologist Pierre Bourdieu and theories working with the concept of place and space. Using ethnographical methods, it explores the geography of school choice, while the empirical material describes and analyses school choices in a local school market structured by socio-economic as well as symbolic boundaries. The five empirical chapters discuss and analyse imaginary geographies, school habitus, hot and cold knowledge, and symbolic boundaries. The concluding chapter discusses the main findings and addresses some questions regarding how to make the educational system more equitable.

This study examines young people’s subjective experiences of changing school environments from resource-poor primary schools to resource-rich upper secondary schools in Stockholm. Previous statistics show that resource-poor primary schools located in the most socio-economically vulnerable parts of the city have the lowest grade point average and lower educational quality/standards. Based on young people’s stories (who have had such experience of school environment change), it is the purpose to understand the reason behind their decision to change school environment as well as to analyze their experience of it (with focus on well-being, adaptation and social relationships). The study is qualitative and five semi-structured interviews are conducted. Based on Bourdieu’s theories of capital, symbolic violence, social field and habitus, Collins’ theory of social rituals, and McPherson et. Al’s theory of homophily, the results show that students showing study motivation and high grades are given priority in the field of education, resulting in inequity. Therefore, teachers and school staff have a great deal of influence on peers' school choice. The reasons for the change of school differs between foreign- and Swedish-born. The former group emphasizes integration into the Swedish society, the latter emphasizes the identification with the school’s profile and has greater knowledge of the school system. The adaptation to the new school environment was problematic at first, due to the socio-economical differences between the students. The educational level was also much higher, which shows a deteriorating equivalence in the Swedish school system. In addition, the majority of the students were ethnic Swedes, which reflects the pattern of school segregation in Stockholm. These aspects lead to common feelings of exclusion, showing patterns of homophilic social relationships based on different criteria. Joint activities show that those structural differences can be blurred.

För de flesta elever utgör gymnasieskolan det sista steget före universitetsstudier, och inom vissa program får eleverna till och med en försmak av högre utbildning. Gymnasiet sammanfaller med en period i ungdomen som kan vara emotionellt utmanande, vilket gör det angeläget att erbjuda eleverna en klar, tydlig och rättvis vägledning så långt det är möjligt. Skoldisciplin omfattar många olika aspekter och kan ha olika betydelser för olika människor, vi syftar dock främst på olika skolformer. I denna kunskapsöversikt utförs en omfattande undersökning och jämförelse mellan de två huvudtyperna av skolor inom det svenska utbildningssystemet: de traditionella, kommunala skolorna och de fristående, ofta mer specialiserade skolorna. Kunskapsöversiktens primära mål är att djupgående förstå och belysa deras distinkta egenskaper, pedagogiska strategier och deras inverkan på elevernas prestationer, sociala utveckling och beslutsprocesser gällande skolval. Ett viktigt fokusområde är att utforska hur skolvalet bidrar till socioekonomisk och etnisk segregation i grundskolan. Detta inkluderar att analysera hur olika skolmiljöer påverkar elevers sociala interaktioner och elevprestationer. Kunskapsöversikten avser att utvärdera hur fristående skolor med specifika profiler, som exempelvis idrott eller teknik, påverkar elevengagemang och prestation jämfört med de mer generellt utformade läroplanerna i kommunala skolor. Viktigt att tillägga är att det även finns kommunala skolor med specifika profiler. Ett centralt tema i kunskapsöversikten är att förstå orsakerna bakom elevers och föräldrars val av skoltyp. Detta omfattar att undersöka faktorer som geografisk närhet, skolans sociala och akademiska rykte, samt uppfattade framgångsnivåer. Genom att samla in både kvantitativ och kvalitativ data, syftar kunskapsöversikten till att ge en mångfacetterad bild av hur dessa faktorer samverkar i skolvalsprocessen. Kunskapsöversikten ämnar också att analysera skillnaderna i betygssättning mellan fristående och kommunala skolor, samt hur dessa skoltyper förbereder elever för högre utbildning och yrkesliv. Genom att adressera dessa aspekter syftar kunskapsöversikten till att utröna mönster och tendenser mellan fristående och kommunala skolor, och att bidra till en fördjupad förståelse för de olika skoltypernas fördelar och nackdelar på ett statistiskt och lokalt plan. Detta inkluderar en granskning av hur skoltypen påverkar elevernas framtida akademiska och yrkesmässiga möjligheter, samt en bedömning av hur väl eleverna är rustade för framtida utmaningar beroende på deras skolbakgrund. Denna förståelse är avgörande för att informera beslutsfattare, utbildningspolitiker, lärare, föräldrar och elever om de olika skoltypernas potential och begränsningar. Kunskapsöversiktens resultat kommer förhoppningsvis kunna ge värdefulla insikter för samhällskunskapslärare och andra intressenter inom utbildningsområdet. Genom att besvara frågan om huruvida fristående eller kommunala skolor erbjuder bättre möjligheter och/eller högre betyg, och hur de skiljer sig i termer av pedagogiska metoder, elevprestationer och sociala dynamiker, bidrar denna kunskapsöversikt till en bredare och mer nyanserad diskussion om utbildningens framtid.