In 2014, the Swedish leisure-time centres after school became widely criticized on several occasions by school authorities. The cause for its criticism was a reflection of leisure time-centres with lots of untrained staff and a lack of pedagogical aspirations. The conclusion of the criticism was that these leisure-time centres do not fulfil their potential. However, these assessments has only to a limited extent become a part of the public educational discourse in Sweden. This discourse has mainly focused on the decreasing results in the Swedish school, which has caught the attention in the media and ended up on the political agenda. The flaws in the leisure-time centres have been far more overlooked and its function has been unclear. This study explores representations of the leisure-time centres and its missions and aims. It also examines how after-school teachers and their skills, duties and attributes are represented. This has been done by studying descriptions of the leisure-time centres in three different municipalities and 154 recruitment ads for after-school teachers. The results of these data collections shows a dominant cooperative discourse, where many of the leisure-time centres and the after-school teachers most important tasks and assignments is more to be found in school activities rather than at the leisure-time centres. The conclusion of the study is that the leisure-time centres have lost its value-based core and instead its function has been integrated as a resource center in school to make sure that the aims for school is to be achieved. That has transformed the after-school teacher into a flexible employee, which constantly has to be prepared for and have a positive approach to new circumstances.

The historical background and previous research on my subject refers to a certain uncertainty in a professional teacher's professional identity that still remains. The difficulty is excreted in ignorance in leading fields and uninteresting colleagues in between. My aim of the study is to gain an insight into the activities at the leisure home and how teachers view their professional role as well as how they take on the dual assignments that the identification in the school subject entails. I have chosen a qualitative method for my interviews and my selection was six teachers in leisure-time centres working in schools around Stockholm. I have used Roger Saljö's interpretation of socio-cultural theory, whose basic idea is that learning takes place in interaction between a group of people and an individual. My research shows that there are external factors that govern and influence the leisure teacher's choices and conditions and that the traditional school is prioritized. Despite the teachers' uncertainty about what their professional identity should be called in the leisure home, the image education has nevertheless strengthened their self-confidence and how they today teach the students. / Den historiska bakgrunden och tidigare forskningen kring mitt ämne hänvisar till en viss osäkerhet i en fritidslärarens yrkesidentitet som ännu kvarstår. Svårigheten utsöndras i okunskap i ledande fält samt ointresse kollegor emellan. Mitt syfte med studien är att få en inblick i verksamheten på fritidshemmen och hur lärare ser på sin yrkesroll samt hur de tar sig an de dubbla uppdragen som legitimationen i skolämnet bild medför. Jag har valt en kvalitativ metod för mina intervjuer och mitt urval var sex lärare i fritidshem som arbetar på skolor runt Stockholm. Jag har använt mig av Roger Säljös tolkning av den sociokulturella teorin, vars grundtanke är att lärande sker i samspel mellan en grupp människor och individ. Min underökning visar att det är yttre faktorer som styr och påverkar fritidslärarens val och förutsättningar samt att den traditionella skolan prioriteras. Trots lärarnas osäkerhet på vad deras yrkesidentitet ska kallas på fritidshemmet, har ändå bildutbildningen stärkt deras självförtroende och hur de idag undervisar eleverna.

The next part of this thesis deals with the development of children and youth participation, it explains the term 'participation', brings up the specification and importance of youth participation and it deals with the range of participative pedagogy as well. The second part enquires into leisure time centres. The term 'leisure time' is explained in conection with children and youth and conditions and activities of these centres are discussed especially aming at children and youth centres. A function of after-school education is mentioned and the issue of using free time is dealt with in such a way that its utilization can support their active participation. The final part discusses functioning of participation in assorted children and youth centres in South Bohemia. The survey is focused on the examination of grades and forms of participation in a hobby group.