The aim of this article is to study the space for multilingualism and multiliteracy in the development of literacy skills through critical literacy in Swedish for Immigrants. The focus is on adult second language learners (L2 learners) with low education and Hornberger's continua of biliteracy is used for the analysis of material from classroom…

Mock elections are an increasingly popular form of active learning, adopted in many European countries and the United States. However, we have limited knowledge regarding the extent to which they enhance students' civic competence. This article analyzes data from over 9,000 students aged 13-19 who participated in a 2022 mock election in Sweden.…

Purpose: Treating Active Citizenship as a sum of behavioral indicators requires certain prerequisites that can be difficult to meet in practice (e.g. structural validity and measurement invariance). We explore a different approach, in which we treat Active Citizenship as a categorical, rather than a linear, construct. Design: Based on longitudinal…

Following legislation in 2010, all Swedish teachers, at all levels, had a double mission: to teach democracy as well the content of their subject. This mission was seen as troublesome by evaluating authorities, among others. In the latest state curriculum, rhetoric has re-emerged as a central element of Swedish mother-tongue high school education…

This paper discusses how Bernsteinian concepts ('pedagogic rights', 'discursive gaps' and 'pedagogic code') from the field of sociology of education can be used as didactic tools to illuminate how different ways of organising teaching in VET has implications for citizenship preparation. The paper is based on results from a five-year research…

The concept of democracy is a central component in education policy at all levels, yet its meaning can be interpreted in a number of ways. This paper examines how democracy is conceptualised and utilised as a legitimising force driving education policy reform. More specifically, attention is given to the use of democracy in the process of…

The role of adult education in the shaping and fostering of democratic citizens is prevalent in current transnational and national policy discussions; a significance which has been further infused by the past few years' historically high migration flows. This article focuses specifically on the role of adult education in shaping asylum seekers…

Purpose: This paper examines how vocational civics teachers navigate structural constraints and their understanding of the challenges involved in preparing vocational students for democratic citizenship. Design/methodology/approach: Using a discursive psychological approach to analyse interview material, the study discusses identified discourses…

Purpose: The study examines students' conceptions of power and important aspects of teaching for developing the ability to analyse power relations in social science. Methodology: Phenomenography is used in the analysis of 155 student essays, to identify different ways of analysing societal power issues. Findings: When conducting a qualified…

Increasingly pervasive digital technologies in societies are placing complex demands on the development of young people's digital citizenship and digital competence. Social science education and teacher education (TE) play important, but poorly understood, roles in this development. Through reflexive thematic analysis of semi-structured…

This article aims to analyse how the emerging Swedish school system in the early nineteenth century can be understood within the context of a gradual break-up of the estate society and its replacement with a class society in which citizenship was an important foundation. This is done through the discussion of the conceptions of citizenship on two…

The aim of this article is to increase our understanding of how history and social studies teachers in vocational preparation programmes (VET) in Sweden relate to the obligation of preparing students for their future lives as citizens. Previous research on VET programmes has primarily emphasised predetermined roles of education. Different critical…

Purpose: This article aims to discuss what kind of teaching is required to enable students to critically review financial issues in a way that is in accordance with a broad citizenship education. Method: Content analysis where an assessment of students' answers was compared and aligned with Westheimer & Kahne's (2004) theory driven conceptions…

Patriotism is an important and well-accepted value in educational institutions. As a civic virtue, it has always been included in education/training programs. This study aims to compare research articles on teaching of patriotism that were conducted in the last 20 years. The document analysis method was employed in the study for this purpose. The…

In the Nordic countries, there is a culturally rooted understanding of nature as a 'good' place for children. The aim of the article is to deconstruct this understanding by exploring how different mobile preschools -- buses that bring children to different places on a daily basis -- relate to nature spaces and children's learning and well-being in…