Success Factors in Teaching Reading and Writing : A praxis-oriented study based on school practices

The aim of this study is to analyse the factors underlying successful reading and writing education and the educational conditions promoting reflective didactic skills, focusing on the students’ develop­ment of reading and writing abilities. Large international surveys indicate that the consensus concerning read­ing and writing education achieved by science during the past decade has had limit­ed impact on class­room activities. Thus, an underlying question is how research results can be implement­ed in every­day schoolwork. This study uses a praxis-oriented approach by working with classroom observations and reflective communication with teachers about learning processes and pedagogical methodology. The importance of the teachers having a solid theoretical background is underlined since it enables them to identify the students’ developmental stage, to adapt the instruction accordingly and to instant­ly grasp pedagogical opportunities to interpret and utilize the diagnostic signals. Another conclusion is that successful reading and writing education must be viewed in a context of language develop­ment as a whole, involving both its oral and its written aspects. This study also demonstrates that re­search results are perceived by teachers to be more accessible and relevant when the focus is on applied peda­gogics, allowing theory and practical applications to interact. The teachers’ professional development is shown to be an on-going, interactive, social process in which organisation, time and communicative meetings play an important part. Abduction proves to be an effective learn­ing strategy in the development of professional competence whereby academic know­ledge and on-the-spot know-how are allowed to coalesce in practically useful know­ledge. The study’s praxis-oriented approach has made it possible to define the teachers’ experience-based know­ledge at the same time as the theoretical knowledge in the field has developed. This opens up possibilities for scientific theories to establish themselves in practical school work.En bearbetad version av Catharina Tjernbergs avhandling, med titeln "Framgångsrik läs- och skrivundervisning: en bro mellan teori och praktik", ISBN 9789127137387, finns utgiven på förlaget Natur och kultur 2013.</p

Form, funktion och innehåll i samspel

Form, funktion och innehåll i samspel är del 1 i modulen Tidig läsundervisning på Skolverkets hemsida. Webbmodulen ingår i området Språk-, läs- och skrivutveckling (Läslyftet) </p

Specialpedagogik i skolvardagen : En studie med fokus på framgångsfaktorer i läs- och skrivlärande

This is a praxis-oriented case study of written language activities in Forms 1–5 in the nine-year Swedish compulsory school. The emphasis is on pupils at risk of de­veloping reading and writing disabilities. The aim of this study is to analyse the factors underlying successful reading and writing education and the pedagogical conditions promoting re­flective didactic skills, focusing on the students’ develop­ment of reading and writing abili­ties. The praxis-oriented approach is expressed by means of working with classroom ob­servat­ions and reflective communication with the teachers. Four classes at the junior and intermedi­ate levels of the nine-year compulsory Swedish school have been studied for two years. Both the schools and the teachers have been chosen strategically. Quantita­tive and qualitative data indicate that the selected schools have special qualifications. The teachers were chosen because they have proved particu­larly successful in devel­oping reading and wri­ting abilities of their pupils, including those with docu­mented reading and writing disabilities. Reports from the National Swedish Agency for Education, as well as large inter­na­t­ional surveys, indicate that the consensus concerning reading and writing edu­cation achieved by science during the past decade has had very little impact on everyday class­room activities. One of the underlying questions is how research re­sults are suc­cessfully implemented in everyday school work. The results show that the teachers use a wide variety of methods in response to the wide variety of students´ requirements. The lessons are characterized by in­tense activity on the part of both teacher and pupils, and of a high level of interac­tivity in communi­cation, reading, writing and counting. A surprising pattern is that the teach­ers very consciously work with oral presentation in various topics and genres. This gives students with reading and writing difficulties an op­portunity to succeed. The instruction is notable for being well-structured, with a balance between form and function, a high level of challenging tasks and visibilization of individual pro­gress. The special needs education aspect of the instruction appears in the te­achers’ abilities to arrange pedagogical situations in which a wide variety of abilities can be expressed and developed. The teachers show a positive belief in their stu­dents and strive to make them successful in a social context. This study indicates the importance of a solid theoretical background, enabling the te­acher to identify the developmental stage the student is at and to adapt the instruction accordingly. Another important factor is the ability of the teacher to in­stantly see and grasp pedagogical opportunities and to interpret and utilize the diag­nostic signals in the classroom. One im­portant conclusion is that reading and writing education, in order to be successful, must be viewed in a context of lan­guage development as a whole, involving both its oral and its writ­ten aspects. This study also demonstrates that research results are perceived as more acces­si­ble and relevant by the teachers when the researchers’ focus is on applied peda­gog­ics, al­lowing theory and practical applications to interact. This opens up the possi­bility of es­tablishing and incor­porating scientific theories on learning in every­day, practical school work.Detta är en longitudinell studie som tar sin utgångpunkt i Tjernbergs magisterstudie (Tjernberg, 2007). Detta innebär att vissa avsnitt från denna återfinns i licentiatavhandlingen, främst i de teoretiska utgångspunkterna och metodavsnittet. (Denna not tillfogades 20121201.

Om konsten att möta elever i läs- och skrivsvårigheter : En retrospektiv fallstudie

The development of five individual pupils’ writing abilities, as reported by six of their teachers, is analysed. The thoughts and reflexions inspired by the everyday interaction between the teacher and the pupil suffering from some kind of reading and writing disability are presented. The purpose is to capture what was unique and characteristic in the measures that triggered a positive response in the pupils. Some of the questions answered in this study are: How does the phenomenon of reading and writing disabilities manifest itself in the classroom, and what are the consequences for the individual pupil of the various pedagogical measures available? One conclusion that may be drawn from this study is that there is no cut-and dried method for working with pupils suffering from reading and writing disabilities. Nor is there any such thing as a standard pupil with this disability. Instead, both the type and the extent of the problem vary greatly, and individual pupils develop their own personal strategies to cope with them and take in new knowledge. Also the skills of the individual pupils vary widely, and the possibility to use and develop them is dependent on the pedagogical context he/she is part of, on the actions of the individual teacher and several other interacting environmental factors. It also becomes clear that the ’capacity’ of the individual pupil, rather than being a fixed constant, is entirely dependent on the context. There is a strong correlation between the successful development of the pupil and the sensitivity, empathy, imagination, competence and ability of the teacher to capture opportunities as they arise. Some common features of the teachers involved in this study were that they helped their pupils to structure their thinking and involved them in their own acquisition of knowledge, and that their education was focused on the process rather than the goal. The methods they used were based on both theoretical knowledge and practical experience. They were well versed in many different theories and methods, and prepared to try different things till they found the best solution for the individual pupil. The communication between teacher and pupil was the cornerstone of their tuition. The classroom situation was characterised by a mixed group of pupils where individual measures constituted a natural component. The borderline between ‘ordinary’ and remedial teachers was deliberately blurred. Instead a spirit of constructive co-operation prevailed where all available resources were used in the work with the pupils. Events that promoted progress in the individual pupil were episodes where he experienced success and stood out in a positive sense among his class-mates. On these occasions the teacher had succeeded in identifying some specific skill possessed by the pupil, and made it visible also to the pupil himself and the people surrounding him. It was also a matter of identifying and challenging the individual weaknesses of the pupil, and of making him conscious of the progress he made. The social context surrounding the pupil did, of course, play a vital part in these positive events. This study demonstrates that a thorough linguistic diagnose followed by carefully tailored tuition is far superior to other kinds of remedial tuition in enhancing the reading-and writing abilities of the individual pupil. The common method of lumping together a group of pupils with widely varying types of reading and writing disabilities into a ’remedial class’ did, by contrast, appear to be an unfortunate strategy.

Specialpedagogiska insatser - på vilket sätt för att ge effekt? : Betydelsen av insatsernas tidpunkt och innehåll för barn i riskzonen för läs- och skrivsvårigheter

I denna studie analyseras skriftspråksutvecklingen hos sex elever i riskzonen för läs- och skrivsvårigheter. Syftet med studien är att klarlägga vilken roll specialpedagogiska insatser spelar för elevers skrift-språkliga utveckling. Har innehållet i stödet någon betydelse för elevernas utveckling och vad händer när stödet uteblir? Studien fokuserar på tidig kontra sen identifiering av elevernas läs- och skrivsvårigheter samt påföljande insatser. I detta sammanhang analyseras också hur dessa insatser påverkar elevernas självförtroende och motivation för skolarbetet. Resultatet tyder på att det inte främst är tidpunkten för insatserna som är det mest betydelsefulla för en positiv utveckling, utan snarare innehållet i stödet. Det är det språkliga stödet, anpassat till elevernas specifika svårigheter och utvecklingsnivå, som är den avgörande faktorn. Detta stöd bygger på träning i fonologisk medvetenhet, korrela-tionen mellan fonem och grafem, uppbygg-nad av ordförrådet och utvecklande av effektiva lässtrategier. Tidpunkten för insatserna är inte generaliserbar utan beroende av problemets art och det enskilda barnets förutsättningar. Det framkommer i studien att det skedde en positiv utveckling av läs- och skrivförmågan i samtliga fall, oavsett om de var tidiga eller sena. Det skedde även en positiv social utveckling. De tre barnen som fick sena insatser fick emellertid genomgå en period med flera negativa följdverk-ningar, men så snart de språkliga insatserna kom till stånd vändes den negativa trenden och arbetsglädjen byggdes successivt upp. Specialundervisning, där språket inte spelar någon central roll, visade sig i denna studie inte ge någon större effekt. Resultaten från studien visar på ett övertygande sätt att det är av yttersta vikt att de barn som ligger i riskzonen för läs- och skrivsvårigheter får en omsorgsfull språklig utredning gjord till exempel av logoped. Elevens problem bör utredas i grunden så att rätt hjälp kan anvisas till varje enskild elev. Det måste också finnas en koppling mellan utredningen och de pedagogiska insatserna. Studien visar även att det är viktigt att det finns tillgång till pedagoger med ändamålsenlig kompetens för att uppnå önskvärt resultat. Mycket i denna studie tyder på att tidsmarginalerna är små i barnets tidiga utveckling. Man måste därför studera tidpunkten för insatserna mera specifikt i förhållande till barnets utvecklingsnivå och problemets art för att barnet ska få hjälp på rätt nivå så att läsinlärningen blir framgångsrik. Studien understryker betydelsen av meningsfullhet, god självbild, motivation och sammanhang för eleverna. This study investigates the development of the reading and writing ability of six pupils in danger of developing reading and writing disabilities. The purpose is to investigate the effects of remedial teaching on their reading and writing abilities. How much does the contents of the teaching matter, and what happens when remedial teaching is not forthcoming? The focus is on comparing the consequences of early vs. late discovery of the disability, and of the ensuing measures taken. The self confidence and motivation of the pupils are also analysed in this context. My results imply that the content of the remedial teaching is of greater importance to a favourable development than an early discovery. The crucial factor is the adaptation of the linguistic support to the specific problems and developmental level of each individual pupil. The support consists in developing phonological awareness, phonem-graphem correlation, vocabulary and efficient reading strategies. As for the timing, no generalised conclusions can be made. The outcome is dependent on the nature of the problem, and of the preconditions and capacities of the individual child. The study shows that there was a positive development of the reading and writing ability in all six cases, regardless of whether the discovery of the disability was early or late. There was also a positive social development. In the three cases where the remedial teaching came late, the children went through a period that had several adverse consequences, but as soon as the supportive measures were initiated the negative trend was broken, and the joy of learning developed gradually. Remedial teaching where the focus was not primarily on linguistic development did, however, seem to have little effect. This study demonstrates clearly how vital it is that children in danger of developing reading and writing disabilities are carefully examined by, e.g., a speech therapist. Their individual problems must be thoroughly investigated, so that the supportive measures can be tailored to suit their needs. Hence, the examination must be closely linked to the pedagogical efforts. The study also shows that access to pedagogues with an adequate competence is crucial to the achievement of a favourable result. There are strong indications in this study that the time windows are quite narrow in the early development of a child. The timing of the remedial teaching must be more specifically studied, and related to the developmental level and specific problems of each individual child, in order to achieve an optimal reading development. This study emphasises the importance to the pupils of relevance, a positive self image, motivation and coherence

Stöttningsinteraktion : Undervisningssituationens scaffolding?

I den här artikeln prövas ett nytt svenskt begrepp för engelskans scaffolding, nämligenstöttningsinteraktion. Syftet är att med hjälp av en adekvat svensk benämning skapa engemensam förståelse av ett komplext begrepp och därigenom vidga förståelsen för dessanvändning i undervisningssammanhang. Designorienterade teorier lyfts in för att stödja vårtprövande. Dessa teorier belyser ytterligare en viktig interaktion, nämligen den mellan elev, lärareoch artefakt. Utifrån designteoriernas syn på lärande, som omfattar interaktion, utmaning,kollektiv aktivitet och internalisering, menar vi att själva innebörden av begreppet scaffoldingkan beskrivas. I artikeln framställs stöttningsinteraktion som en interaktiv handling i en socialkontext, där elever ges möjligheter att utveckla sina kunskaper och förmågor genom utmaningoch stöttning inom den närmsta utvecklingszonen. Stöttningsinteraktionen omfattar utöver enmedveten planering (design) och iscensättning ett aktivt förhållningssätt. Denna interaktion,mellan lärare-elev-kamrater-artefakter ger eleven möjlighet att förstå, internalisera och befästanya kunskaper i kollektiva lärsituationer

Intentions and flexibility : navigating complex literacy practices in primary education

Background: Children develop within a complicated and dynamic textual world. In the primary school classroom, one of the most important tasks for teachers involves the design of learning envir-onments and situations that can support all students’ literacy devel-opment. Although the identification of students with weaker skills is relatively well researched, there is a need for deeper understand-ing of how teachers address the variation of literacy skills within their classrooms. This article focuses attention on teachers’ naviga-tion of complex literacy practices within the primary classroom, which involves supporting the literacy development of children with a variety of needs, abilities and experiences.Purpose: The study aimed to investigate how primary education teachers and special educational needs teachers described their intentions and ways of designing learning for complex literacy practices in order to sustain a culture of inclusive education design.Methods: A total of 24 primary education and special educational needs teachers across four schools in two Swedish municipalities participated in focus group discussions. In-depth data analysis was based on design-oriented theory, applying the central concepts of intentions and flexibility to the teachers’ accounts of literacy development.Findings: According to the analysis, the participating teachers perceived advantages in using multimodal methods, collaborative learning, motivation and joyfulness, as well as learning structures and support. They discussed the challenges around supporting students’ literacy progress, describing their preparedness and the flexibility, or transformation competence (using different teaching resources in different situations at different times) involved in navigating complex literacy practice in the classroom for the ben-efit of all students.Conclusions: The study highlights the significance of teachers’ intentions to prevent, identify and remove barriers to students’ literacy development. It suggests that the part played by flexibility in determining solutions to challenges in classroom practice should not be overlooked in relation to supporting students’ literacy learn-ing progress. Implications also include greater recognition of the importance of continuous professional development to support inclusive practice, with opportunities for collegial learning and collaboration

Fördelar och nackdelar med treterminssystem : En rapport om terminsindelningens betydelse för elevernas lärande

Vi redovisar i denna rapport en genomlysning av kunskapsläget om skolsystem som har skolår med två respektive tre terminer. En analys av för- och nackdelar med treterminssystem jämfört med tvåterminssystem har gjorts i syfte att synliggöra vilka faktorer som påverkar elevers lärande. Flera av de undersökningar vi tagit del av indikerar att treterminssystem kan ha vissa fördelar, framför allt för elever med socioekonomiskt utsatt bakgrund, men det finns även undersökningar som tyder på det motsatta och någon entydig fördel med något av systemen tycks inte föreligga. Vi har även jämfört PISA-resultat från åtta länder med olika terminssystem (Estland, Finland, Frankrike, Japan, Portugal, Sverige, Storbritannien och USA) och kan konstatera att det inte finns några vetenskapliga belägg för att treterminssystem har några uppenbara fördelar gentemot det nu i Sverige rådande tvåterminssystemet. Vår analys visar således att det inte finns belägg för att flytta ledighetsveckor från sommarlovet till andra lov under terminen. Det finns däremot belägg för att lärandet kan förbättras om eleverna får mer tid tillsammans med professionellt skickliga lärare