Syftet med arbetet är att undersöka hur föräldrar från postsovjetiska länder som har flyttat till Sverige uppfattar begreppet jämställdhet, hur uppdelningen av deras vardagssysslor ser ut, hur deras medvetenhet kring det jämställdhetsarbete som förskolan enligt läroplanen ska utföra ser ut samt om deras uppfattning om begreppet är likadan med vad Läroplanen för förskolan säger. I studien intervjuades fyra föräldrar från två postsovjetiska länder, resultatet analyserades med hjälp av fenomenografisk ansats. I resultatet framkom det att föräldrarnas uppfattning om begreppet jämställdhet kan vara helt annan än den som står i Läroplanen för förskolan. De föräldrar vars uppfattning om jämställdhet skiljde sig från den svenska uppfattningen menade att jämställdhet är ett påhittat problem eftersom kvinnor och män har lika rättigheter i ett modernt samhälle, dock skyldigheterna är olika och det är biologiska skillnader som ligger till grund för det. Främst syns det i hushållsysslornas fördelning där den traditionella arbetsfördelningen finns kvar. Alla informanter var välmedvetna om att det är en stor skillnad mellan hur jämställdhetsarbetet ser ut i Sverige och hur det var i deras respektive länder. Ingen av de intervjuade föräldrarna visste vilka jämställdhetsmål som finns i Läroplanen för förskolan, inte ens alla visste att det finns ett dokument som styr förskolans verksamhet. Man kan dra slutsats att föräldrar från postsovjetiska länder med en annan uppfattning om jämställdhet, utan intresse för jämställdhetsfrågor samt bristande samverkan mellan förskola och hem, istället för att stödja och komplettera förskolans uppdrag kan motverka förskolans jämställdhetsarbete. / The aim of this study is to find out how parents from former soviet republics who emigrated to Sweden understand the concept of gender equality, how their distribution of daily chores looks like, how their awareness about gender equality work, which the pre-school should be carrying  out according to the curriculum, looks like and if their understanding of gender equality concept is the same with the pre-school curriculum. In this study there were interviewed four parents from two former soviet republics. The result was analyzed by phenomenographic approach. The result  showed that the parents’ understanding of gender equality concept could be completely different from what the pre-school curriculum means. Those parents who didn’t  agree with the pre-school curriculum description of gender equality meant that the concept of gender equality was a made-up problem, because men and women have the same rights in a modern society, but their obligations are different and that depends on biological differences. It is foremost visible in distribution of daily chores where the traditional chores distribution hasn’t changed. All the parents were aware of the huge difference between the work being done in Sweden in matter of gender equality and how it was in their countries of origin. None of the parents knew what gender equality aims are in the curriculum for the pre-school. Not even every one of them knew about the existence of such document. The conclusion is that parents from the former soviet republics, with a different understanding of gender equality and insufficient cooperation between the pre-school and the families, instead of supporting and supplementing the pre-school’s mission are counteracting the pre-school’s gender equality work.

Family centres have become a common institution to promote health and wellbeingamong young children (0-6 years of age) and their parents in Sweden. Thecore of the work is usually based on both maternal and child health care, a preschooland social services, all located under the same roof in the local community.The family centre in this study, known as the "Family House", was the firstof its type to be built in the city of Kristianstad, Sweden.The overall aim of the thesis was to understand family centre practice throughprofessionals' and parents' perceptions of the Family House and its relationship to modernity.The study employed a qualitative design using phenomenography as method tocapture people's perceptions of the practice. The research also drew on the approachof action research, where participants and researchers co-generateknowledge through collaborative communicative processes. Data was generatedfrom semi-structured interviews conducted with nineteen professionals andsixteen individual parents. Dialogue sessions with the professionals of the studyhave been held in order that they and the researcher could enter into a dialoguebased on the findings of the interviews. Data was consequently also generatedfrom these meetings.The way the professionals perceived the practice of the Family House fell intothree categories, namely, as a professional service, the provision of an informalmeeting place for professionals and families with young children or as a broadcommunity-based centre. Parents' perceptions fell into four categories; as aprofessional reception to obtain expert guidance and support, a study circle andliving room to informally share experiences and socialising, and a playgroundfor children where children could interact and learn social skills.One core finding of this thesis is that family centre practice for those involvedcontained a balancing act between simple modern expertise to control the futureand late modern opportunities for self-realisation and reflexivity.Parents and professionals shared the responsibility for children's well-being andthe distinction between private and public was blurred since parents used theHouse as a social arena for developing personal relations. It was also an arenafor integration between Swedes and immigrants based on engagement for bothcultural diversity and similarity.

Reporting the findings from a phenomenographic study of students' experiences of web-based information searching, this thesis describes how the identified four conceptions, and their structures of awareness, might influence future information literacy curriculum design and web based resources for academics, librarians, and students. Alongside the reported study in this thesis, the first electronic outcome space is also outlined and presented. This electronic outcome space is an enhancement to ways of presenting phenomenographic study findings. Using a phenomenographic approach, the project aimed to uncover variation in students' experiences of web-based information searching. Data gathering during 2000 - 2003 involved investigations of student diary work, video-filmed searching using a think-aloud protocol, and a series of interviews conducted over several semesters. Incorporating first year, third year, and postgraduate student perspectives, the participants, who were from the Queensland University of Technology, came from six of the eight university faculties. Different cultures, ages and genders were represented. During the interviews the students were asked to describe a recent search experience, and to describe how they learn to search for information using various web-based tools. Careful attention was paid during interviews to asking students to explain their interpretation of key concepts in the subject area. Analysis involved an iterative process of seeking meaning and structure. Amongst the group of students interviewed, four categories of explicit variation were discovered and these have been described drawing largely from the words of the participants. Two categories of implicit variation are also proposed. Each explicit category is presented in terms of referential and structural components constituted in terms of the critical dimensions of variation including focal elements, approaches to learning, and reflective practice. The possibility of implicit categories is proposed based on the findings and on the levels of IT skill amongst participants. The study also sought to explore how this type of research into student learning can influence both the design of learning experiences and academic development resources, particularly in relation to teaching and learning information searching as part of the information literacy agenda. Using the categories of description, which showed the variations in student's web-based information searching experiences, it is hoped that the further research outlined will enlighten attempts to design existing assessment to work more effectively, to bring about desired changes in students' experiences of information searching behaviour. The structure of awareness section of each category has revealed the elements that need to be attended to in re-designing assessment. It is hoped that in modifying assignments it will enable the simultaneous attention of students to the already identified relevant dimensions of the information searching experience.