In this article, we contribute to a discussion of ethics within school bullying research by reflecting on our own recent ethnographic study into the relations between school bullying and the institutional context of schooling conducted at three elementary schools and one lower-secondary school in Sweden. We argue for a reflexive, responsive, and…

The number of students diagnosed with autism is increasing. In Sweden, it is today possible to find both special classes and special schools dedicated to students with autism. This study explores the meaning that the diagnosis assumes in two special educational contexts. Data were collected from interviews with 23 students and questionnaires…

Purpose: The aim of this study was to explore the link between upper secondary school students' experiences of school democracy and their future role as democratic citizens, focusing on a comparison between men and women. Design/methodology/approach: The data derives from a questionnaire conducted to all last year upper secondary school students…

In this article, Special Educational Needs Coordinators' (SENCOs) boundary work in Swedish upper-secondary school is examined in comparison with similar special education professionals in a Nordic context. Here, boundary work is understood as SENCOs' attempts to shape and influence boundaries, distinctions and demarcations between agents and…

In this paper, we investigate how professional cultures and situated, material and external contexts relate to dynamic low- and underperforming schools in Scandinavia, particularly how the leadership is constructed through the leader, the followers and the situation. The first school studied was a low-performing school in Norway called…

The aim of this study is to explore what happened -- and why -- in a collaboration between ourselves as researchers and school leaders from two different schools in Sweden. The theory of practice architectures is used to frame the study. The goal of the collaboration was to enhance the scientific foundation of school practices, which motivated the…

This article addresses the ways in which Swedish history textbooks for upper secondary schools published between 1994 and 2011 deal with the most recent past. The textbooks are chronologically organized and follow history into the textbook authors' time, and each new edition of the textbooks includes the latest developments. The article inquires…

Background: Within classroom research, there has long been agreement on the importance of dialogue and discussion for student learning. However, how the concept of knowledge influences classroom conversation needs further investigation, as this has key implications for students' active participation. Purpose: Our research sought to conceptualise…

This paper aims to share new knowledge about tensions in establishing a new school in a marketised educational landscape, with a special focus on teachers' experiences of enacting a highly profiled vision. The paper is based on a single case study using observations, surveys, interviews and document studies. To cover the complex enactment process,…

This paper takes an interest in migrant families' educational strategies in the upper-secondary school market in Stockholm. Based on interviews with parents and children in families living in a socially and economically disadvantaged neighbourhood, the analysis shows how conversion of symbolic and economic capital and assets between…

Are teachers and principals aligned in their perceptions of the core components of the theory of Leadership for Learning across countries, or are there subgroups of schools in which there is misalignment? The purpose of this study is to examine the extent to which a congruency-typology model of leadership for learning is distributed across…

The study presented in this article examines the internal consistency of the formal Swedish history curriculum for the upper-secondary school. The research question addresses the extent to which disciplinary aspects--also referred to as vertical knowledge discourses--are transferred from fields of knowledge production to the Swedish formal history…

The current study investigated the spatial restructuring of the Swedish upper secondary school market over time, which happened as a consequence of school choice reform started in the early 1990s. The school choice reform enabled students to choose and attend schools (public or private) based on preference rather than residential area.…

The purpose of this study is to analyse (1) newly arrived parents' accounts of collaboration in Swedish school context and (2) depicted triads and alliance constellations presented during interviews with recently arrived parents regarding the collaboration in Swedish school context. The study's analysis is based on secondary empirical material…

Reading and discussing texts as a means for learning subject content are regular features within educational contexts. This paper presents an approach for intertextual content analysis (ICA) of such text-related discussions revealing what the participants make of the text. Thus, in contrast to many other approaches for analysing conversation that…