Since 2003 the University West in Sweden offers distance courses in Social work and Social pedagogy. The three year program is given in collaboration with a number of local learning centers throughout the country. The technology of videoconferencing enables the teacher to interact with students even though they are separated geographically.

The study deals with this kind of education seen from the perspective of both students and teachers. The main objective is to illuminate significant aspects of this kind of phenomenon in terms of how students and teachers describe and experience problems and potential embedded in this model. The discussion rests on four overall questions:

1) What are the motives for students to choose this kind of education?

2) What kind of expectations did the students have before they started the program?

3) How do students experience/describe strengths and weaknesses connected to this model?

4) What experiences do the teacher's have working with this kind of distance education?

The empirical data has been collected using mainly group interviews and observations. The analysis rests heavily on theories concerning symbolic interactionism and socio-cultural learning. The study underlines that both students and teachers embrace the potential in this form of education, giving more groups the possibility of combining their studies with a sense of regional belonging. However the interviews and observations also reveal weaknesses with this kind of educational model. There is a risk that students at the local learning centers consider themselves as being excluded by teachers and other students at campus; and that the gap between the university and the local learning centers becomes too wide. To prevent this from happening communication and confirmation from the teacher is crucial. But eventhough this scrutiny identifies weaknesses within the technology of videoconferencing, technology alone does not determine the outcome of the teaching. If a teacher manages to show great engagement and structure, this functions as a mechanism weakening the barrierof technology. At the same time it is clear that the model of videoconferencing, from a teacher perspective, can be an obstacle, which emphasizes the importance of developing the technology further and how this technology is being handled by the teacher.

Finally, we consider the model with local learning centers and videoconferencing as a unique model for education, but that the model, when it comes to areas such as pedagogy, organization and technology, must be allowed to function and develop according to its own premises. 

Artikeln handlar om hur välfärdsorganisationer och deras tjänstemän kopplade till aktivitets- och sysselsättningsåtgärder agerar i mötet med den enskilde och vilka berättelser som skapas om individerna. Artikeln diskuterar hur projektdeltagaren omgärdas av en fortgående medikalisering och en social fragmentisering, där projektdeltagarens problematik reduceras och där individens egen röst tycks få ett begränsat utrymme.

Detta är en studie om hur yrkesverksamma välfärdsaktörer med akademisk socialpedagogisk utbildning, förstår och beskriver socialpedagogik i teori och praktik. Studien har genomförts bland yrkesverksamma, före detta studenter på socionomprogrammet med inriktning mot socialpedagogik vid Stockholms universitet och det Socialpedagogiska programmet vid Högskolan Väst. Syftet är att beskriva och analysera de yrkesverksamma studenternas föreställningar om socialpedagogik som kunskapsfält och som praxis, samt hur socialpedagogiken kommit till uttryck i den egna yrkespraktiken. Studien bygger på intervjuer med 27 personer. Genom samtal och genom de berättelser vi tagit del av från respondenternas yrkesvardag har deras syn på socialpedagogik som fenomen, som värdegrund, som mål, metod och förhållningssätt växt fram.Analysen av yrkespraktiken tar utgångspunkt i tre teoretiska idealmodeller av socialpedagogik; den anpassande, den mobiliserande och den demokratiska, konstruerades som ett resultat av en tidigare intervjustudie med social-pedagogiska forskare (Eriksson 2006). I synen på socialpedagogikens värdegrund syns en samstämmighet bland respondenterna i den här studien och forskarna i den tidigare studien. Hur värdegrunden tar sig uttryck i praktiken är dock inte lika tydligt. Respondenterna ger uttryck för teorier, värderingar och förhållningssätt, men tvingas att i konkreta situationer handla pragmatiskt. Respondenternas sätt att förhålla sig till situationen är att inta ett pragmatiskt förhållningssätt, ett förhållningssätt som vi benämnt "den pragmatiske socialpedagogen". De försöker att upprätthålla, vad de menar är ett socialpedagogiskt förhållningssätt, trots administrativa och organisatoriska begränsningar. Det handlar om att hantera det upplevda handlingsutrymmet.

I denna bok söker vi samla idéer och tankar från olika tidsepoker för att formulera en socialpedagogik för framtiden. För att de idéer som historiskt formulerats om socialpedagogiken ska vara användbara måste de förstås utifrån och kopplas till den nutida situationen. Boken tecknar en aktuell bild av socialpedagogisk verksamhet och forskning i Sverige, kompletterad med internationella utblickar.

In Sweden there are several different professions that work within the welfare sector. Two of these are social pedagogues and socionoms. This article examines the similarities and differences between these professional fields by exploring four areas in more detail: education, the history of ideas and theory, research and practice. The results show that there are not only many differences but also some similarities. In practical work, social pedagogues and socionoms often work side by side and perform similar tasks. They are located in the same areas and often use the same methods. When it comes to the differences in educational history and current educations, they are large although they can also be found in, for example, the history of ideas. Furthermore, research in the various areas differs. In social pedagogy the interest has to a greater extent been focused on an understanding of the discipline through studies of the history of ideas, while in social work today one often focuses on studies of professional methods. Today’s challenges in the welfare sector require new knowledge, ways of thinking and understanding. Here, social pedagogy with its philosophical roots and humanistic values can play an important role.

This article focuses on social pedagogy and how social pedagogical approaches are used in Swedish welfare contexts. Social pedagogy as a phenomenon has existed in a variety of settings and during different periods of time. However, the meaning of social pedagogy as a concept depends to a great extent on the context in which it occurs, and the concept therefore has various connotations. The aim of this article is to analyse and discuss trends, directions and goals in social pedagogical practice. Three research projects (cases) are described, analysed and related to three theoretical models. The three cases – (1) a 'drive-in football' project for young people in a suburb, (2) an alternative residential caresetting for young people with learning disabilities, and (3) a 'future workshop' for older people – involved different situations and different audiences, all with elements of marginalisation and exclusion. The analysis of the three examples shows that social pedagogical practice in the Swedish context is characterised by the challenge of balancing the tensions between the individual and the collective, between emancipation and adaptation and between action and negotiation. The social pedagogical activities are also characterised by the fact that they all contain social, practical and existential dimensions of social support and an approach rooted in ethical core values.

The point of departure for this study is a need of more knowledge about to which extent and in what way organized meeting places can have a meaning for older persons as a place for social networking.The study was performed with use of interviews and participant observations at two different meeting places run by the municipality. As a first step a content analysis was made based on the empirical data. This analysis showed thatvisits on a more or less regular basis gave a structure to everyday life that felt important for the visitors. The meetings with other old persons contributed to a feeling of social cohesion and replaced experiences of loneliness. These results were significant for both meeting places. As a second step, an analysis linked to theories on social networks gave a more deep knowledge about the essence of the social networks which were developed and the significance of thesenetworks. The analysis shows that most of the networks could be described as thin ties (that is: relatively superficial and noncommittal network ties). These ties could mainly be described in terms of conversation contacts. In spite of that these contacts could be described as thin, they have an emotionalvalue in contributing to a sense of community and safety. Some networks also showed to have a potential for a development towards thin friendship ties.As a summary of the results the most significance of meeting places for older persons were the contribution to give a feeling of being part of a community. This adds a value of meaning and safety in everyday life for older persons.The study shows how important it is to take into consideration to organize meeting places when planning for aging in place for older persons. This could be seen as an important strategy for preventing loneliness and health problems among older people.