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Swedish – An updated school subject?
rounding world. Assimilating and working through a text does not necessarily imply reading,
it may involve listening, drama, role plays, films, videos and looking at pictures.
As can be seen from the above example, language and literature are treated as equally
important. However, in the sections which more directly specify the qualitative direction
desired in school, the subject is to some extent differently constructed. For example,
in the section Goals to aim for, the discourse comments on all of the four layers
described in the initial part of this paper. Yet a specific emphasis is put on speaking,
reading and writing texts with different purposes in various contexts (layer 3). Language
rather than literature serves as the focus of discussion (Skolverket, 2008:84):
The school in its teaching of Swedish should aim to ensure that pupils develop their ability
to read, understand, interpret and experience texts of different kinds and adapt their reading
and work on texts to its purpose and character.
This difference in what is foregrounded in the subject of Swedish becomes even more
prominent when comparing the sections discussed above with the sections that specify
what all students at a minimum should have attained by the end of the third, fifth
and ninth year in school.
In the goals to be attained by the end of the third year the attention is turned more
towards the craftsmanship of reading and writing and, more specifically, decoding
(layer 1) and towards the actual contents of the texts (layer 2). Students should for
example “be able to read with fluency texts that are familiar and closely related to their
specific contexts or, be able to spell correctly, words which they themselves often use
when writing and words which frequently recur in texts related to their specific contexts”
(Skolverket, 2008:87). This could of course be expected from the first school years
when the fundaments of literacy are built. It is notable, however, that the mentioning of
norms and values of the subject is completely omitted in these formulations for grade 3.
When comparing the goals to be attained by the end of the third year with subsequent
years, a progression can be noted that primarily has to do with a shift towards
reading and writing for different purposes and in different contexts (layers 2 and 3).
By the end of year 5 students should, for example (Skolverket, 2008:87-88):
– be able to read with fluency, both aloud and to themselves, and understand events and
meaning in books and non-fiction written for children and young persons, and be able to
discuss their experiences from reading, as well as reflect over texts,
– be able to produce texts for different purposes as a tool for learning and communication
By the end of year nine, students are to a larger extent expected to reflect upon their
activities, as expressed in the following quotation (Skolverket, 2008:88):
– Students should be able to read literature appropriate to their age from Sweden, the Nordic
area, and other countries, and also read non-fiction and newspaper articles on general
subjects, as well as be able to reproduce the contents coherently and also reflect on this.
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