Purpose: The aim of this study was to explore the link between upper secondary school students' experiences of school democracy and their future role as democratic citizens, focusing on a comparison between men and women. Design/methodology/approach: The data derives from a questionnaire conducted to all last year upper secondary school students…

Our guiding thesis in this article is that the recent burgeoning discussion of differentiation in the context of education has to do with critiques of the globalization theories that have been popular since 1990. In doing so, however, these critically motivated discussions run the risk of overlooking the historical roots of differentiation, which…

The concept of democracy is a central component in education policy at all levels, yet its meaning can be interpreted in a number of ways. This paper examines how democracy is conceptualised and utilised as a legitimising force driving education policy reform. More specifically, attention is given to the use of democracy in the process of…

The objective of this article is to explore differentiation of education through juridification. We examine changes in school governing, including trends towards globalization and marketization, as well as increased regulatory intervention in addressing complex social problems. Drawing on Luhmann's theory of functional differentiation and…

The aim of the article is to offer a base for discussions on educational equality from the viewpoint of changes in the world causing widening disparities between pupils and students. The essence and possibilities of educational equity and equality in the Nordic educational realm are discussed from six viewpoints. The outcome is that all children…

Unlike many other countries, in Sweden there are more significant paths to political leadership than the university degree. Most Swedish political parties offer leadership training programmes that include practical and ideological content and several have a design rooted in the popular education movement. This article explores how party political…

Background: A supportive context is essential for successful implementation processes. Local politicians are delivery system actors who might both enable and hinder the implementation of health and social policies. Aims and objectives: The study examines the relationship between perceived prerequisites and the type of actions taken by local…

The lack of fully trained teachers is a national challenge in Sweden despite numerous attempts by authorities to approach the issue from a long-term perspective. The proportion of fully trained teachers needs to increase by just over 50% by 2035, and the imbalance will continue for many years to come. Many actors such as the media and politicians…

In Sweden, the Compulsory School for Students with Intellectual Disabilites (CSSID) is currently experiencing political change, as this type of school is being renamed and is undergoing organisational changes. The inclusion of children with intellectual disabilities (ID) in schooling, and in general society, has been challenged and debated for…

Political parties are widely recognised as indispensable actors in democratic systems. One way to illustrate the actions and role of political parties is to explicate various party functions that may be carried out in a political system. The aim of this paper is to explore the relationships between the organisation of party education and five…

Trade union collaboration on issues of social justice connects workers to each other and to their wider communities and is therefore considered a strategy of union renewal. Prior to their amalgamation on 1 January 2023, Lärarförbundet (Swedish Teachers' Union) and Lärarnas Riksförbund (National Union of Teachers in Sweden) collaborated…

This paper explores educational trade fairs as part of the contemporary networked governance of public sector education. The focus is on the forms and functions of network governance in educational trade fairs and how different powers of private and public networking actors and ideas are played out, including the wider implications for education.…

Education reform efforts stemming from the Programme in International Student Achievement have strengthened in recent years, particularly in response to the growth of global references societies -- high achieving educational jurisdictions such as Finland, Hong Kong-China, and more recently Estonia and Singapore. Despite political rhetoric,…

Eco-Schools is the world's largest sustainable school program. Drawing on biopolitical theory and fieldwork conducted in Rwanda, South Africa, Sweden and Uganda, this article explores and compares how Eco-Schools is enacted in contexts marked by widely differing socio-economic living conditions. Attention is drawn to the biopolitical rationalities…

In today's world of multimedia communication, the use of multiple modes of discourse is prevalent in various fields. The international academic community has taken an interest in studying multimodality from different perspectives. This paper uses CiteSpace 6.1.R6 to visually analyze literature on multimodal discourse studies (MDS) in the Web of…