This thesis consists of two studies, described in two papers, and a re-analysis of data from these studies. The aim is to broaden the knowledge about what contributions a learning theory, variation theory (Marton, 2015), can give to teachers’ teaching practice. The studies have an action research approach (Elliot, 1991). Data was generated in the two studies with two different “teacher groups” having different learning goals for their students. Each group consisted of a researcher and five mathematic teachers. Variation theory was used as a theoretical tool to plan, teach and assess teaching in the context of a Professional Learning Community (PLC) called Subject Didactic Groups. The empirical data consists of audio recordings and documentations from meetings with one of the teacher groups as well as video recordings from student interviews and one of the teachers teaching, in the other group. The thematic analysis (Braun & Clarke, 2006) resulted in the following themes: With variation theory as a theoretical tool the teachers could a) specify what the students needed to learn, b) design and teach tasks that afforded possibilities for the students to learn what was identified as necessary to learn and c) focus on and assess qualities in the students answers. This study suggests that variation theory is a learning theory that has bearing on teachers’ teaching practice.

Visual representations are frequently used in teaching as well as in social and science studiesin order to capture and explain complex and abstract phenomena. However, they can bechallenging, complex and difficult to understand. This study, which is carried out within theframework of a research project, aims to investigate how a visual representation can be usedin teaching in order to qualify elementary pupils’ comprehension about democracy, moreclosely by using a flowchart to describe the legislative process. Before this study wasconducted the research group analysed phenomenographically the conceptual understandingof a flowchart of the legislative process of students in the 5th, 8th and 10th grade andidentified the critical aspects of this phenomenon. The method chosen for this study wasorganizing and conducting a lesson based on those identified critical aspects of the flowchartof the legislative process. A pre- and post-test on it were written by the participants whoseresults have been analysed phenomenographically based on the outcome space of thephenomenographic analysis of the research group. The analysis of the pre- and post-testaimed to investigate the pupils’ conceptions of the phenomenon before and after the lessonwhich therefore indicated which of the two critical aspects were discerned during the lesson.Parts of the conducted lesson and discussions between the pupils were analysed, too. Thisanalysis intended to identify elements during the lesson where the critical aspects seemed tobe possible for the pupils to discern. The results of the study showed that although the lessondid not facilitate for the pupils to discern both critical aspects simultaneously, many of themqualified their conception of the phenomenon from before the lesson to after, by havingdiscerned one of the critical aspects. Thus, using visual representations by focusing ondiscerning critical aspects can facilitate a qualified comprehension/conception of complexphenomena.

Föreliggande studie är inriktad på hur lärare i gymnasieskolan ser på möjligheten att inkludera världslitteratur och texter från olika kulturer i svenskämnet. Syftet är att undersöka lärares beskrivna arbetssätt och motiv till att välja denna litteratur till sin undervisning. Postkolonial teori, interkulturellt lärande och det litteraturteoretiska begreppet främmandegöring utgör tillsammans ett teoretiskt ramverk för studien. Det empiriska materialet består av fyra semi-strukturerade intervjuer med svensklärare på gymnasienivå. Resultatet indikerar att lärarna finner det aktuellt att genom världslitteratur lyfta fram allmänmänskliga teman, demokratiska frågor och kulturell mångfald. Således är likheter och skillnader mellan människor en av flera aspekter som lärarna berör. En potentiell problematik som resultatet påvisar är att lärarna uppfattar att elever tolkar skönlitteratur dokumentärt. / The present study focuses on how upper-secondary school teachers consider the possibility of integrating world literature and texts from other cultures in the Swedish subject. The aim is to examine teachers' narrations of their teaching and their motifs for choosing world literature as part of their teaching. Postcolonial theory, intercultural learning and the literary term estrangement constitute the theoretical framework. The empirical material involves four semi-structured interviews with Swedish subject teachers. The result suggests that the teachers find it relevant to use world literature as a context for discussing universal human themes, democratic issues and cultural diversity. Accordingly, similarities and differences between people are one of several aspects that the teachers address. The result raises one potential problem where the teachers report that students tend to interpret fiction documentary.

This study aims to explore the potential benefits and disadvantages of utilizing video game narratives in Swedish EFL teaching. The subject is approached through a qualitative literature review of previous research on the use of video games in the process of L2 acquisition. The results are then discussed from a sociocultural perspective, in relation to the frameworks introduced in the background and to the Swedish steering documents. The results indicate that video games are likely to be part of many students’ out-of-school experiences of the English language and that playing video games can be seen as an example of extramural language learning. The results also highlight how engaging in multiplayer video game narratives can aid L2 acquisition by for example increasing motivation, expanding learner vocabulary and by providing learners with strategies for discourse management such as politeness, humor and small talk. The collaborative and interactive nature of the video game narrative and of video game communities is also shown to align well with the Swedish steering documents that promote social interaction and the development of communicative competence. However, direct classroom implementation of video games is problematized by the fact that not all students have previous experience or tools for interacting with the video game format of storytelling and that gender discrepancies in video game consumption could lead to boys benefiting more than girls from language learning through video game narratives.

Die Szene der Qualitätsentwicklung in Lehre und Studium ist in Bewegung. Wissenschaftsorganisationen wie der Wissenschaftsrat (2008) oder die Hochschulrektorenkonferenz (2008) empfehlen mit Nachdruck, neue Initiativen und Anstrengungen in Lehre und Studium voranzutreiben. Allerorten werden zudem auf Hochschul-, Landes- und Bundesebene Lehrpreise ausgelobt.

Unter Social Media werden Medien und geeignete Werkzeuge verstanden, mit denen Internetnutzer/-innen gemeinsam Informationen, Erfahrungen und Wissen austauschen (Blogs, Foren, soziale Netzwerke, Wikis usw.). Neben sehr bekannten Plattformen wie facebook, twitter, youtube, blogspot oder linkedIn existieren hunderte weitere mit extrem wachsenden Nutzer/-innenzahlen, wobei die Hochschulen selbst an diesem tiefgreifenden Wandel scheinbar noch nicht strategisch beteiligt sind. Anhand der folgenden Best-Practice-Beispiele werden Möglichkeiten des Einsatzes von Social Media in der Lehre und im Wissenstransfer aufgezeigt.

Die HTW Dresden bietet ihren Studienanfänger_innen einen auf OPAL basierenden Blended Learning-Kurs Einführung in das wissenschaftliche Arbeiten an, der mit den Bereichen Selbstmanagement, wissenschaftliches Schreiben, Präsentieren und Poster die Studierenden auf ihr Studium, ihre Abschlussarbeit und deren Verteidigung vorbereitet. Durch engagierte Betreuung bleibt der enge Kontakt zum/zur Lehrenden bestehen und der/die Studierende wird in Problemsituationen aufgefangen und motiviert.

Im Folgenden soll aufgezeigt werden, dass Hochschuldidaktik sich im Verlauf der Hochschulreformdebatte der 70er Jahre zunehmend als Wissenschaftsbereich etablierte und schließlich im Rahmen von Bologna grundsätzlich neuen Aufwind bekommen hat und so die Chance erhält, die Forderungen aus dem "shift from teaching to learning" tatsächlich umgesetzt hat.

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