From an early age Swedish students typically use and learn English as a second language in out-of-school contexts, for example when watching TV and video clips and playing computer games online. This is an important premise for learning English in school. It is hence of interest to understand relations between learning in and out of school, especially considering the digitalization of Swedish schools and new media technologies becoming available for all students.

This study aims at describing students’ accounts of learning English in out-of-school contexts and their reasoning of how this learning relates to learning English in school. The data consists of interviews with 47 eleven-year-olds. Goffman’s concept of framing is used as an analytic tool. The results are presented in terms of two dimensions of reasoning; Accepted and Non-Accepted Language Learning Environments and Language Learning as Intention or Side-Effect. Results on what environments students regard as important for learning English are also reported.