The study explores, through a combination of qualitative and quantitative methods, the existence of Mode 2 knowledge and programmes in the South African higher education sector. It begins by theorising about knowledge and takes as a point of departure the propositions about theory-building which state that to explain social phenomena, a system of ideas is required, the conceptual tools of which are able to explain the essential dynamics of such phenomena. It goes on to describe a crisis in a system of ideas that, together with valid critiques, demands to be re-examined as well as the potential for advancing alternative lines of thought. A critical reading and understanding of existing theories leads me to believe that independently, they are all inadequate to explain the relationship between knowledge production and South African higher education in an era of globalisation. This includes the all-encompassing framework of neo-Marxism, the excessive consumerism of academic capitalism, the equation of the worker with modern technology in post-industrialism and the`lax relativity', complacent and, indiscriminate celebration of diversity in post-modernism. By combining the `culturally sensitive' critical post-modernism of William Tierney and George Subotzky with the concept of `late capitalism' as proposed by Frederic Jameson, it is possible to establish a relationship between globalisation and South African higher education on the one hand, and between its' policy and knowledge production on the other. Against the features of the newly proffered theoretical framework of `critical postmodernism in late capitalism', the study examines the new higher education policy and legislation and ensuing discourse, with particular reference to the Gibbons thesis. It then explores, by using an empirical investigation, the extent to which Mode 2 knowledge production exists in South African higher education. This is done through a selected programme from a former technikon in that demonstrates the key assumptions and perceptions about Mode 2 as held by lecturing staff and as embedded in the structure, design and content of the programme. With the results obtained the study finally makes recommendations for the establishment of a paradigm-shift and for new practices in knowledge production in higher education in South Africa. / Educational Studies / D. Ed. (Comparative Education)

Barn spenderar en stor del av sin tid i olika institutioner som skola och fritidshem. I den delen av vardagen som definieras som fritid gör barn olika val av aktiviteter. Begreppet motorik är i detta sammanhang en aspekt av aktiviteter som är intressant att undersöka. Människors rörelseförmåga och rörelsemönster är den generella definitionen på motorik som delas in i finmotorik och grovmotorik. Tidigare forskning visar att pojkar generellt har en mer utvecklad motorik än flickor och att dessa skillnader blir större ju äldre de blir. Syftet med vår uppsats är att undersöka barns val och deltagande i finmotoriska och grovmotoriska aktiviteter på fritidshemmet. Vi har även tittat på hur faktorer som miljö, verksamhet och pedagogers samspel med barnen och deras aktiviteter relaterar till varandra. Studiens resultat grundar sig i observationer på två olika fritidshem i Sverige. Resultatet har granskats med hjälp av våra teoretiska utgångspunkter, genus och sociokulturellt perspektiv. Det som har framkommit i denna studie är att i valet av aktiviteter som är grovmotoriska eller finmotoriska väljer pojkar generellt grovmotoriska aktiviteter och flickor finmotoriska. Sammanfattningsvis i denna studie framgick det att miljö, pedagogers handlingar, barns intressen, förväntningar, föreställningar, normer och olika grader av strukturer i verksamheten utgör faktorer som kan ha betydelse för barns aktivitetsval på fritidshemmet.

The study explores, through a combination of qualitative and quantitative methods, the existence of Mode 2 knowledge and programmes in the South African higher education sector. It begins by theorising about knowledge and takes as a point of departure the propositions about theory-building which state that to explain social phenomena, a system of ideas is required, the conceptual tools of which are able to explain the essential dynamics of such phenomena. It goes on to describe a crisis in a system of ideas that, together with valid critiques, demands to be re-examined as well as the potential for advancing alternative lines of thought. A critical reading and understanding of existing theories leads me to believe that independently, they are all inadequate to explain the relationship between knowledge production and South African higher education in an era of globalisation. This includes the all-encompassing framework of neo-Marxism, the excessive consumerism of academic capitalism, the equation of the worker with modern technology in post-industrialism and the`lax relativity', complacent and, indiscriminate celebration of diversity in post-modernism. By combining the `culturally sensitive' critical post-modernism of William Tierney and George Subotzky with the concept of `late capitalism' as proposed by Frederic Jameson, it is possible to establish a relationship between globalisation and South African higher education on the one hand, and between its' policy and knowledge production on the other. Against the features of the newly proffered theoretical framework of `critical postmodernism in late capitalism', the study examines the new higher education policy and legislation and ensuing discourse, with particular reference to the Gibbons thesis. It then explores, by using an empirical investigation, the extent to which Mode 2 knowledge production exists in South African higher education. This is done through a selected programme from a former technikon in that demonstrates the key assumptions and perceptions about Mode 2 as held by lecturing staff and as embedded in the structure, design and content of the programme. With the results obtained the study finally makes recommendations for the establishment of a paradigm-shift and for new practices in knowledge production in higher education in South Africa. / Educational Studies / D. Ed. (Comparative Education)

The divided Swedish subject – a comparison of the curriculums in Swedish and Swedish as a second language The aim of this essay is to examine and appose the curriculums of the school subjects Swedish and Swedish as a second language in upper secondary school in relation to prevalent second language development research and didactics. My theoretical framework consists of discourse theory and the socio-cultural perspective on teaching and learning. The overall purpose of this essay is biramous and the study aims towards answering the following questions: 1. What didactic considerations are made in the two curriculums? And 2. In what ways is the curriculum in Swedish as a second language based on prevalent second language development research, and in what ways is it not? To answer these questions I have chosen discursive analysis as my main method to examine and compare the curriculums in order to delineate what implications its language use and goal formulations has for the perception of both student groups and in turn the possible quality of their language education. Through my analysis I have found that the curriculum for Swedish as a second language have some bearing in second language research, but that the differences between the two subjects’ curriculums as a whole lack feasible reasoning. The differences in language use and goal formulations between the two curriculums comes across as a result of both fleeting reasoning as well as fleeting judgement in relation to didactics and second language education. My proposition is to have a united Swedish subject for the currently existing student groups with the possibility of a new version of Swedish as a second language intended solely as a temporary educational form for newly immigrated students to assist their early Swedish acquisition.

The purpose of this work is to investigate and shed light on how children’s literature is used in the after – school center, if there are any conversations with children’s literature as a starting point and if children’s literature and conversation from the books are used as tools to let students process issues concerning themselves, their lives and their thoughts. The servey was conducted in the form of a web-based questionnaire and the questionnaire responses were then analyzed from three different theoretical perspectives: a socio-cultural perspective, an environmental psychological perspective and Aidan Chamber’s model The Reading Circle. From the point of view of the socio-cultural perspective, communication and language are in focus and the interplay between the common thinking and the individual’s thinking is a prerequisite for development and learning. This perspective is set in relation to how conversation about read books can become tools for students’ development. The environmental psychological perspective in this work is about how noise affects students’ concentration and analytical ability, how the design of the room affects students’ views of both themselves and what the room should be used for and that the environment is also a matter of social impact. The reading circle offers a holistic perspective on the reading process, which is about choosing a book, reading the book, being able to reflect on and react to the book’s content, and then want to start over with the next book. Conclusions drawn from this study are that children’s literature is used in leisure centers to varying degrees, that the physical environment in the form of, for example, limited opportunities for quiet places affects the extent of student’s individual reading, and that books discussions and structured reflections based on children’s literature occur to a very limited extent. / Syftet med detta arbete är att undersöka och belysa hur barnlitteratur används i fritidshemmet, om det förekommer några samtal med barnlitteraturen som utgångspunkt och om barnlitteratur och samtal utifrån böckerna används som verktyg för att låta eleverna bearbeta frågor som berör dem själva, deras liv och deras tankar. Undersökningen har genomförts i form av en webbaserad enkät och enkätsvaren har sedan analyserats utifrån tre olika teoretiska perspektiv: ett sociokulturellt perspektiv, ett miljöpsykologiskt perspektiv samt Aidan Chambers modell Läsandets cirkel. I det sociokulturella perspektivets utgångspunkt står kommunikation och språk i fokus och samspelet mellan det gemensamma tänkandet och den enskildes tänkande är en förutsättning för utveckling och lärande. Detta perspektiv sätts i relation till hur samtal omkring lästa böcker kan bli verktyg för elevernas utveckling. Det miljöpsykologiska perspektivet i detta arbete handlar om hur buller påverkar elevers koncentration och analysförmåga, hur rummets utformning påverkar elevernas syn på både sig själva och på vad rummet ska användas till samt att miljö även är en fråga om social påverkan. Läsandets cirkel erbjuder ett helhetsperspektiv på läsprocessen som handlar om att välja bok, att läsa boken, att få reflektera över och reagera på bokens innehåll, för att sedan vilja börja om med nästa bok. Slutsatser som dragits av denna undersökning är att barnlitteratur används i fritidshemmen i varierande grad, att den fysiska miljön i form av till exempel begränsade möjligheter till lugna platser påverkar omfattningen av elevers enskilda läsning, samt att boksamtal och strukturerade reflektionstillfällen utifrån barnlitteraturen förekommer i mycket begränsad omfattning.

Sammanfattning Förskollärares arbetsmiljö med fokus på stress är en masteruppsats i pedagogik med syftet att försöka belysa förskollärares egna uppfattningar. Det fanns många rapporter om förskollärare, arbetsmiljö och stress, på senare år larmrapporter. Därför undersöks också hur myndigheter och andra parter beskriver arbetsmiljöproblem. Varför syns inga förbättringar av arbetsmiljön och varför blev så många förskollärare sjuka? Hittades några svar hos förskollärare själva? Metoden blev en tematisk analys av kvalitativa intervjuer med 20 förskollärare i Stockholm. Studiens teoretiska perspektiv är ramfaktorteorin, sociokulturellt perspektiv, psykosocial miljö och stress inklusive krav-kontroll-stöd modellen. Några av de viktigaste resultaten blev: Förskolebarnen ingår inte i arbetsmiljölagen, det finns statistiska problem med att mäta barngruppers storlek 15 oktober bara varje år, det är problem att all statistik slår ihop förskollärare och fritidspedagoger, ska förskollärare undervisa 40 timmar/ vecka, det saknas likvärdighet för till exempel planeringstid och ökad arbetad tid hemma. Studien föreslår vidare forskning. / Abstract Preschool teachers 'work environment with a focus on stress is a master's thesis in pedagogy with the aim of trying to shed light on preschool teachers' own perceptions. There were many reports on preschool teachers, work environment and stress, in recent years alarm reports. Therefore, it is also investigated how authorities and other parties describe work environment problems. Why are there no improvements in the work environment and why did so many preschool teachers become ill? Were any answers found among preschool teachers themselves? The method was a thematic analysis of qualitative interviews with 20 preschool teachers in Stockholm. The theoretical perspective of the study is the framework factor theory, sociocultural perspective, psychosocial environment and stress including the requirements-control-support model. Some of the most important results were: Preschool children are not included in the work environment law, there are statistical problems with measuring the size of children's groups on 15 October only every year, it is a problem that all statistics combine preschool teachers and leisure educators, preschool teachers must teach 40 hours / week, it is missing equivalence for, for example, planning time and increased time worked at home. The study proposes further research.

Målet i detta examensarbete är att studera språkutveckling genom att undersöka hur den sociokulturella lärandeteorin och språkteorin SFL är framträdande i lågstadielärares berättande om sin undervisning inom de samhällsorienterade ämnena med andraspråkselever. Dessutom har jag undersökt hur multimodala medier används i SO-undervisningen med andraspråkselever enligt lågstadielärares berättande. Mina frågeställningar är följande: “Hur framträder den sociokulturella lärandeteorin och språkteorin SFL i den samhällsorienterande undervisningen med andraspråkselever utifrån lågstadielärares berättande?" och “Hur beskriver lågstadielärare användandet av multimodala medier inom den samhällsorienterande undervisningen med andraspråkselever?". Studien bygger på Lev Vygotskijs sociokulturella lärandeteori, Michael Hallidays systemisk-funktionella språkteori och teorier om multimodalitet. Studien är kvalitativ och den empiriska datan samlades in via semistrukturerade intervjuer med fem lärare från en högindex skola i Malmö. Resultatet visar att ett sociokulturellt förhållningssätt är att föredra med andraspråkselever, där kooperativt lärande lyfts som en framgångsrik lärmetod. Michael Hallidays teori (SFL) är gynnsam som grundar sig i att utgå från elevernas förkunskaper i undervisningen. Dessutom visar resultatet att en multimodal undervisning är viktigt för framgångsrikt lärande med andraspråkselever. I diskussionen presenteras resonemang och slutsatser utifrån resultatet som besvarar frågeställningarna. Vidare behandlar diskussionsdelen hur forskningen påverkar den framtida yrkesprofessionen och hur man kan forska vidare kring ämnet. / The goal is to study language development by investigating how the sociocultural learning theory and the language theory SFL are prominent in primary school teachers' narratives about their teaching in the socially oriented subjects with second language students. In addition, I have investigated how multimodal media are used in SO teaching with second language students according to primary school teachers' narratives. My questions are the following: "How does the socio-cultural learning theory and the language theory SFL appear in the social orientation teaching with second language students based on the primary school teachers' narration?" and "How do primary school teachers describe the use of multimodal media within the social orientation teaching with second language students?". The study is based on Lev Vygotsky's sociocultural learning theory, Michael Halliday's systemic-functional language theory and theories of multimodality. The study is qualitative and the empirical data was collected via semi-structured interviews with five teachers from a high index school in Malmö. The result shows that a socio-cultural approach is preferable with second language students, where cooperative learning is highlighted as a successful learning method. Michael Halliday's theory (SFL) is favorable, which is based on starting from the students' prior knowledge in teaching. In addition, the results show that multimodal teaching is important for successful learning with second language learners. In the discussion, reasoning and conclusions are presented based on the results that answer the questions. Furthermore, the discussion part deals with how the research affects the future professional profession and how to do further research on the subject.