The aim of this paper is to present how religion and religious dimensions are viewed, understood and discursively negotiated in the classroom for civic orientation for adult migrants in Sweden. Civic orientation courses are organized by the state/municipality for adult migrants who have recently been granted a residence permit in Sweden (cf. Bauer et al.; von Brömssen et al., 2022). The aim of the courses is to inform about Swedish society, with the intention of furthering migrants’ “integration” into the new country (informationsverige). For this paper we use ethnographic data from civic orientation courses and explore how religion and religious dimensions are located, presented and discursively negotiated in the classroom.  Theoretically we draw on a Foucauldian framework and the concept of governmentality (Dean, 2010) complemented with theories on religious pluralization and secularization in contemporary Western societies (Davie, 2001, 2023; Nordin, 2023). Our analysis shows that in the civic orientation courses, religion and religious phenomena are generally avoided or silenced. Instead, there is a strong discourse, emphasizing the separation between religion and state in Sweden. Also, the recognition of non-Christian holidays such as Walpurgis Eve and Midsummer Eve are articulated as Swedish, and interesting and fun to take part in. This can be understood as a transmission of “civil religion”; the implicit religious values of a nation, as expressed through public rituals, symbols, and ceremonies on sacred days and at sacred places (Davie, 2001). We show how Sweden throughout the courses and through the communicators’ articulations, positions itself as a highly secular country vis-à-vis assumed religious migrants. This paper adds to previous research exploring the “civic turn” in migration studies (Bech et al., 2017) and raise critical questions concerning religion, the state, integration, and education for adult migrants in Sweden, as well as in all Nordic welfare states.

This article accounts for religious education (RE) in the Swedish national curriculum and syllabi, which currently consists in three sub-areas: “religions and other worldviews”, “religion and society”, and “ethics and questions of life”. Research from the different sub-areas is discussed in order to describe the challenges the subject faces in teaching today. Some of the societal contexts and major school reforms that have contributed to changes in the subject since the 1920s are explained. The article argues that RE is sometimes appreciated but also has weak legitimacy and a rather unclear aim of teaching.

Der Beitrag bietet einen Überblick über den aktuellen Stand des religionskundlich angelegten Religionsunterrichts in Schweden. Er orientiert sich an der Struktur der geltenden Lehrpläne, die drei thematische Schwerpunkte vorsehen: „Religionen und andere Weltanschauungen“, „Religion und Gesellschaft“ sowie „Ethik und Lebensfragen“. Aktuelle Forschungerträge zu diesen drei Schwerpunktgebieten werden in problematisierender Absicht vorgestellt und diskutiert. Dabei treten heutige Herausforderungen des Faches ebenso zutage wie historische Hintergründe und kontextuelle Faktoren, die zu Veränderungen in der Begründung und Ausgestaltung des Religionsunterrichts seit den 1920er Jahren beigetragen haben. Der Aufsatz führt vor Augen, dass der Religionsunterricht durchaus Wertschätzung erfährt, zugleich aber unter Legitimationsdruck steht, was auch mit einer teilweise unklaren Zielperspektive zusammenhängt.

Book abstract:

In this volume, questions are addressed revolving around religious literacy and education. The term religious literacy is explored as the ability to discern and analyze intersections of religion with social, political, and cultural life in pluralistic societies. Questions about what types of religious literacies are possible in a non-confessional, and even secular, educational context are in focus. It delves into the intricate relationship between religious literacy, religious education in the Nordic countries, and the development of subject knowledge and generic abilities. The Nordic countries, as modern secular welfare states with shared characteristics, provide an intriguing framework for comparison. The exploration of variations in the organization, content, and goals of religious education in Finland, Denmark, Norway, and Sweden sheds light on the process of shaping educational content within specific historical and societal contexts and the anthology broadens its scope by incorporating global perspectives from the Indian, Italian, and Indonesian contexts.

The volume features contributions from 18 researchers who explore empirical, methodological, and theoretical aspects of religious literacy and education. The concept of religious literacy, encompassing both knowledge and generic skills, proves to be indispensable for navigating the diverse religious and non-religious worldviews present in pluralistic societies.

Tailored for students, educators, education researchers, and policymakers, this anthology contributes to the ongoing discourse on religious literacy. It not only provides valuable insights into the Nordic educational landscape but also fosters a global dialogue on the crucial role of education in understanding diverse worldviews.

The aim of this qualitative study was to explore the experiences of migrant adult learners in Swedish for Immigrants (SFI) with bilingual fiction reading, and to understand how their teachers perceived its impact on the learners' literacy and language development. Bilingual fiction reading in this study involved reading fiction in both the mother tongue and in Swedish as a Second Language.

The study applies a theoretical framework using translanguaging-based pedagogy (cf. García, 2009) combined with Langer’s (2017 [1995]) theories about learning through transformative fiction reading, Paran’s (2008) model for literature and language integrated didactics and Cummin’s (2011, 2017) concept of literacy engagement.

Based on semi-structured interviews with adult migrant learners and their teachers, and an analysis of reading journals written by the learners, this research was conducted by means of semi-structured interviews with learners and teachers, and reading journals written by the learners. Findings suggest that bilingual fiction reading is seen as supporting learning through translanguaging and an experience-based, collaborative pedagogy. However, to some learners, the reading task was too challenging, which might be due to the literature choice and a low literacy level. A general observation is that there is a shortage of translated fiction for adult learners in Sweden.

The aim of this study was to investigate the experiences of inclusion and exclusion in academia, with a primary focus on ethnicization/racialization within a local University in Sweden. The discussion about structural discrimination in the Swedish labour market has been going on in the public discourse for several decades. The main focus has been on the inequality between women and men in working life (see, for example, SOU 1993:7; SOU, 1998:6; SOU, 2014:81, but discrimination against non-Swedes and/or non-whites has also been noted, albeit to a somewhat lesser degree (see e.g. Mählck, 2013; Osman, 2021; de los Reyes, 2008; SOU 2005:56; SOU 2006:59). The question of how gender interacts with other categorisations, such as ethnicity and/or ‘race’ have been shown even less interest. Nor has discrimination in higher education attracted much attention, and Swedish as well as European academia is relatively little researched from critical perspectives on power, inclusion, and exclusion. However, the fact that academia, like other educational institutions, always includes aspects of power is nothing new (Ahmed, 2012; Bethoui & Leivestad, 2019; Hübinette & Mählck, 2016). To investigate these issues, the following four questions were in focus: 

1) To what extent do employees perceive themselves included or excluded in relation to ethnicity/’race, class, gender/gender identity, religion, age, sexuality and disability.  

2) What experiences and understandings of inclusion and exclusion processes do employees express?

3) In what contexts do employees perceive that inclusion/exclusion occurs? 

4) How is ethnification/racialization perceived to interact with other social categorizations in relation to inclusion/exclusion? 

Although ethnicity/’race’ has been the focus of the study, we also asked how these categorizations were perceived to interact with gender, age, class, religion and to some extent sexuality and disability. The employees we interviewed have also spontaneously highlighted the importance of how gender, age and class are perceived to affect such things as collegial treatment and career conditions.

As research has pointed out, these are complex processes of demarcation and exclusion that rarely allow themselves to be understood with the help of a social category belonging alone (see, for example, de los Reyes, 2007). Although there are experiences of exclusion that are perceived to have a clear basis in the person's ethnic origin or skin color, such orders cannot be said to be stable and unambiguous (cf. Lundström, 2017).Since norms and notions of ethnicity/'race' are mutually constituted by other power relations, and since social positioning is always context-dependent, we saw it as an analytical necessity to apply an intersectional perspective on the processes of ethnicization and racialization that we investigated. (cf. Mählck, 2012 p. 31). The concept of intersectionality can be traced to the work by black feminist researchers concerned with how oppressive power is embedded in societal structures and systems The intersectional theory concerns primarily how the exercise of power, through intersecting domination and oppression, affects individuals who face multiple social inequities, with consequent multiple marginalisations (Collins, 2019). This criticl social theory gave a lens to analyse understand inclusion and exclusion within a local university context. 

[. . .]

The academy, like any other workplace, is characterized by social, difference-creating processes that, seemly inevitably, results in unequal working conditions among employees. Subtile, informal structures of power, as opposed to the formal once, are both complex and difficult to detect, but research show that patterns of inequality based primarily on gender, ethnicity, religion and language create difficult obstacles to inclusion and equal treatment in academia. So, how about University West? How inclusive are we as an organization? What do the employees themselves have to say, if asked? The overall aim of our research project was, in accordance with the above-mentioned questions, to seek knowledge about employees’ thoughts on, and experiences of, inclusion in everyday working life at University West, with a particular focus on ethnicity.

Both qualitative and quantitative research methods were used for collecting and processing of data. In order to gain an overview of employees’ perceptions of inclusion at University West, a questionnaire, primarily linked to the seven grounds of discrimination, was distributed to all employees. In total 101 responses were received. In parallel with the survey, thirteen in-depth interviews were conducted with employees at the university’s various work units. A comprehensive interview guide with relatively open questions about work and career opportunities was used. The majority of the interviewees are teachers and researchers, and most of them have a migrant background.

The survey shows that experiences of differential treatment are mainly related to gender, age, academic position and social class. Respondents with a migrant background feel that they receive less respect from colleagues than those with a Swedish background, and the same applies to those who consider it difficult to communicate in Swedish. Disparaging comments in everyday work life are mainly linked to factors such as not being able to speak Swedish, nationality, age and ethnicity. The prevalence of derogatory speech about both women and men shows relatively high figures.

During the interviews, it emerged that most of the informants enjoy their work, but that some problematic patterns and behaviours make it difficult to feel welcomed and completely “at home” within the organization. “Us - and - them” categorizations, not least based on ethnic background, but also based on gender, age and religion, are highlighted. A lack of curiosity about experiences and competencies of “others”, alongside with a mono-lingual norm where a perceived demand for “correct” Swedish reinforces the presence of a non-inclusive mono-culture and a feeling of constantly being positioned as “the Other” in everyday working life. Language, not unexpectedly, emerges as a key factor in the demarcation between “us” and “them”, as do restrictive behaviour codes and other local norms. There are several perceived obstacles to work and career opportunities, but the one that most often is mentioned is a lack of personal connections and informal networks within which inquiries and recruitment are perceived to take place on a personal basis rather than on documented experience, merits and skills. Allying oneself with the “right” people, making friends with persons who has power and influence, is seen as a fundamental prerequisite for moving upwards within the organization. The interviewees also pointed to a culture of silence in which it is perceived as difficult, or futile, to raise problems relating to discrimination, racist jargon or sexual harassments. A lack of transparency when it comes to internal funding and recruitment, and a clear discrepancy between organisation’s articulated values and what it really looks like in reality, are further examples of problems raised.

In summary, the empirical data shows us that employees have various experiences of exclusionary behaviors, mechanisms and patterns in everyday working life at Högskolan Väst, and that a greater sensitivity among colleagues and management to unequal working conditions and issues concerning inclusion, is requested. Our hope is that this study will contribute to a more open discussion about these types of sensitive issues, issues that more often need to be addressed as a common problem for the entire organization, rather than a problem for just a few.

Akademin, precis som alla andra arbetsplatser, kännetecknas av sociala, skillnadsskapande processer som till synes oundvikligen resulterar i ojämlika arbetsvillkor bland de anställda. Subtila, informella maktstrukturer, till skillnad från de formella, är både komplexa och svåra att upptäcka, men forskning visar att mönster av ojämlikhet baserade på främst kön, etnicitet, religion och språk skapar svåra hinder för inkludering och likabehandling inom akademin. Så, vad sägs om Högskolan Väst? Hur inkluderande är Högskolan Väst som organisation? Vad har de anställda själva att säga om de tillfrågas? Det övergripande syftet med vårt forskningsprojekt var att, i enlighet med ovan nämnda frågeställningar, söka kunskap om anställdas tankar om, och erfarenheter av, inkludering i det dagliga arbetslivet på Högskolan Väst, med särskilt fokus på etnicitet.

Både kvalitativa och kvantitativa forskningsmetoder användes för insamling och bearbetning av data. För att få en överblick över medarbetarnas uppfattningar om inkludering på Högskolan Väst skickades en enkät, främst kopplad till de sju diskrimineringsgrunderna, ut till samtliga medarbetare. Sammanlagt inkom 101 svar. Parallellt med kartläggningen genomfördes tretton djupintervjuer med medarbetare på högskolans olika arbetsenheter. En omfattande intervjuguide med relativt öppna frågor om arbete och karriärmöjligheter användes. Största delen av de intervjuade är lärare och forskare, och de flesta av dem har invandrarbakgrund.

Undersökningen visar att upplevelser av särbehandling främst är relaterade till kön, ålder, akademisk position och social klass. Respondenter med invandrarbakgrund upplever att de får mindre respekt från kollegor än de med svensk bakgrund, och detsamma gäller de som anser att det är svårt att kommunicera på svenska. Nedsättande kommentarer i vardagen är främst kopplade till faktorer som att inte kunna svenska, nationalitet, ålder och etnicitet. Förekomsten av nedsättande uttalanden om både kvinnor och män är relativt hög.

Under intervjuerna framkom att de flesta av informanterna trivs med sitt arbete, men att vissa problematiska mönster och beteenden gör det svårt att känna sig välkommen och helt ”hemma” inom organisationen. ”Vi-och-dom”-kategoriseringar, inte minst utifrån etnisk bakgrund, men även utifrån kön, ålder och religion, lyfts fram. En brist på nyfikenhet på ”de andras” erfarenheter och kompetenser, tillsammans med en enspråkig norm där ett upplevt krav på ”korrekt” svenska förstärker närvaron av en icke-inkluderande monokultur och en känsla av att ständigt positioneras som ”den Andre” i det dagliga arbetslivet. Språket framstår inte oväntat som en nyckelfaktor i gränsdragningen mellan ”vi” och ”dem”, liksom restriktiva beteenderegler och andra lokala normer. Det finns flera upplevda hinder för arbets- och karriärmöjligheter, men det som oftast nämns är brist på personliga kontakter och informella nätverk där förfrågningar och rekryteringar upplevs ske på personliga grunder snarare än på dokumenterad erfarenhet, meriter och kompetens. Att alliera sig med ”rätt” personer, att bli vän med personer som har makt och inflytande, ses som en grundläggande förutsättning för att komma uppåt inom organisationen. De intervjuade pekade också på en tystnadskultur där det upplevs som svårt, eller meningslöst, att ta upp problem som rör diskriminering, rasistisk jargong eller sexuella trakasserier. Bristande transparens när det gäller intern finansiering och rekrytering, och en tydlig diskrepans mellan offentliga värderingar och hur det verkligen ser ut i verkligheten, är ytterligare exempel på problem som framkommer.

Sweden’s strategy during COVID-19 with restrictions but no firm closure of the society surprised the rest of the world and was questioned, not least by neighbouring countries. This article analyses public discourses on space and place for health and care in the Swedish daily press during the first year of the pandemic, 2020. Critical discourse analysis was conducted on daily press newspaper articles to approach issues of space, place, health and care during the COVID-10 pandemic.

The findings suggest three main discourses. First, a powerful discourse on unity against the threat is articulated, urging citizens in Sweden to be loyal in the national space. Secondly, an affirming national reconstructing discourse is manifested, related to constructions of borders of national space but also in relation to places of family life and social contacts to ‘flatten the curve’ and stay healthy. Thirdly, later in the period the overarching discourse of the nation and its loyal citizens was torn apart and increasing tensions were articulated due to, as it appeared, the uncertain actions from the government.

This study adds to the literature on a theoretical and practical level. Raising awareness on nationalist discourses in relation to place, space, health, and care could prove important in combating inequalities in the local society as well as when cooperating on an international level.

Vikten av effektiv språkundervisning för vuxna utrikesfödda är högaktuell via regeringens förslag om tidsbegränsning av SFI och Skolinspektionens (2024) rapport om undervisningens brister. Forskning med transspråkande ansats visar hur förstaspråket kan gynna andraspråksutveckling (Mörnerud, 2010 m fl), men studier inom vuxenutbildning pekar mot en monolingvistisk norm (Norlund Shaswar, 2020; Rosén & Lundgren, 2021).Detta tvåspråkiga läsprojekt belyser problematik kring studievillkor och brist på översatt vuxenlitteratur. Samtidigt prövas ny metodik baserad på såväl litteracitet (Luke & Freebody, 1999; Skerrett, 2015), flerspråkighetsforskning (Garcia, 2011, m fl) och litteraturdidaktisk teori (Langer, 1995/2017; Paran, 2008). I litterariseringsprogram för andraspråksinlärare har tvåspråkig läsning använts länge inom genrepedagogik nationellt och internationellt (Wedin et al, 2018; Ramirez, 2020), men beträffande läsning av skönlitteratur har lättläst dominerat inom vuxenutbildning nationellt. Dock riskerar textformen i lättläst att fördröja språk- och läsutveckling (Lundberg & Reichenberg, 2008; Reichenberg, 2014). Läsprojektets syfte är att undersöka huruvida tvåspråkig läsning av skönlitteratur blir språkutvecklande för andraspråksinlärare med olika studiebakgrund. Forskningsfrågor rör hur vuxna andraspråksinlärare erfar tvåspråksläsning av skönlitteratur, hur lärare på vuxenutbildning erfar att tvåspråksläsning påverkar språk- och litteracitetsutveckling samt hur lärare anpassar sin undervisning utifrån målgrupp. Tidigare forskning visar att vuxnaslitteracitetspraktiker bortses från i undervisningen (Wilinger, 2021), trots att litteraturläsninggynnar ordförrådet (Duncan & Webb, 2019), språkutveckling (Yang, 2001) samt ger betydelseskapande litteracitetspraktiker (Walldén, 2020).Vår studiedesign baseras på fokusgruppsintervjuer av andraspråksinlärare, individuella intervjuer av lärare samt läsjournaler. Resultaten tyder på språk- och litteracitetsutveckling, ökat läsintresse, utvecklad metalingvistisk medvetenhet, ökat talflytmen också hur låg litteracitet på modersmålet innebär stora utmaningar. 

Syftet med denna kvalitativa studie är att undersöka hur vuxna immigranter erfar tvåspråksläsning av skönlitteratur på både modersmålet och svenska och hur lärare uppfattar att immigranternas andraspråksutveckling påverkas. Transspråkande och/eller tvåspråkig läsning av olika slags texter för vuxna har länge använts inom litterariseringsprogram (se exv. Wedin et al, 2018; Ramirez, 2020), även om studier i Sverige pekar mot en dominant monolingvistisk norm inom vuxenutbildning (Norlund Shaswar, 2020; Rosén & Lundgren, 2021). [. . .]