In science education, critical discussions on the engagement of industrial actors in STEM education are scarce. In this study, we take the perspective that industrial STEM education initiatives are an arena for governing STEM education. The aim is to contribute to a critical discussion on the involvement of industrial actors in STEM education by…

The article explores the major features of the Swedish Government's new initiative--a school based Upper Secondary Apprenticeship model. The analyses are guided by activity theory. The analysed texts are part of the parliamentary reform-making process of the 2011 Upper Secondary School reform. The analyses unfold how the Government, the Swedish…

This policy profile on education in Sweden is part of the "Education Policy Outlook" series, which presents comparative analysis of education policies and reforms across the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries. Building on the OECD's substantial comparative and sectorial policy knowledge base, the…

Located differentially (and to its detriment) within a status hierarchy of knowledge, vocational education has been called upon to satisfy an increasing range of political and social needs, including meeting the needs of industry and government and catering for increasing pupil diversity. Faced with stubbornly immobile rates of school completion…

Policy documents for schools and education are being increasingly standardised all over the world and some research claims that a global curriculum is developing in which aspects such as entrepreneurship, lifelong learning and sustainable development are common denominators. This is regarded as a sign that economic rationality is gaining more and…

This paper focuses on the multi-sectoral regional growth partnerships established as part of the new Swedish regional policy. It asks the question whether participation in these partnerships marks a closer involvement on the part of universities in the processes of regional governance. This paper argues that at least part of the explanation for…

The connection between lifelong learning and knowledge economy is the central focus of this article. The two themes play a major role in the political debate both at the European and the local level. The focus is a curriculum theoretical point of view. This means that the justification of assumptions, values, and arguments will be tested, mainly…

This document contains an analysis of the present and future need for employee training in Sweden. The following goals are assumed: (1) employee training should be designed to achieve the goals of the individual, the community, and working life; (2) it should promote security of employment; (3) it should help achieve the goal of giving every adult…

Six observers studied both school-to-work transition programs for youth and retraining programs for adult workers in three Western European countries--West Germany, Sweden, and England. They identified European solutions to a pressing problem in the United States: youth and adult workers whose skills are inadequate for today's and tomorrow's jobs.…

All young persons in Sweden have to complete 9 years of basic compulsory schooling. More than 95 percent opt for an additional 2 or 3 years of upper secondary school, after which they have free access to further education. The system of adult education is designed to bridge the gaps between generations and to provide opportunities for recurrent,…

This volume, the second of a two-volume publication, comprises 15 papers that present the work of individual European projects dealing with learning within organizations. These five chapters in Part 1, The Meaning of the Learning Organization, examine the conceptual frameworks and dilemmas at the heart of the notion of the learning organization:…

This paper sketches major programs for adult education in Sweden, the Soviet Union, France, and England and considers several policy implications for adult education in the United States. The first section examines the reforms in Swedish public education designed to facilitate social equality, with special emphasis on the study circle. A…

Sweden's educational system was analyzed to determine the degree of coherence that exists between compulsory education, upper secondary education (which in Sweden includes both vocational and general education), and the various forms of adult education available. First, the objectives and structure of the following components of Sweden's school…

The extent to which vocational education and training (VET) policy is nurturing lifelong learning in Sweden was examined through a review of recent policy documents issued by various Swedish government agencies and data from comparative studies compiled by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development and the International Adult…