Swedish for teaching in grades 4-6

Module 1 Introduction to the School Subject Swedish, 3 ECTS cr
An overview of the history and development of the school subject Swedish is provided. Different approaches to teaching and learning the subject are problematised and content is discussed and analysed in relation to the national curriculum for upper primary education. Students are introduced to academic writing,

Module 2 Language and Literacy Development 10.5 ECTS cr
Several aspects of the Swedish language are discussed, in particular its structure and variation. Students develop a meta language which is central in dealing with children's language development and linguistic awareness. Theoretical perspectives on language and literacy are introduced and different approaches for supporting children's language development and language awareness are treated. Some central language purity issues and linguistic variation in terms of the variables gender, age and linguistic, social and cultural background are described and analysed. Children's different disposition for learning to read and write are described, including bilingual issues. Information retrieval from various sources is discussed and how credibility is tested. Theoretical sessions alternate with practical exercises to provide tools for teaching reading and writing in upper primary education.

Module 3 Children's Literature, 15 ECTS cr
Students are prepared for teaching children's literature in upper primary education.The module includes an outline of the history of children's literature, an introduction to some research perspectives on children's literature and the study and analysis of a selection of literary texts from different epochs. The texts are studied and discussed in comparison with multimodal text types such as film, television and computer games. The concept children's literature and genre characteristics are problematised and the texts are related to different literary and sociocultural contexts with an emphasis on issues of the canon, gender, identity, class, ethnicity and sustainable development. Students are introduced to different models of approaching literature, with an emphasis on book discussions. Aesthetic learning processes are included.

Module 4 Teaching the School Subject Swedish, 6 ECTS cr
Theoretical perspectives on the teaching of the school subject Swedish are treated. The students discuss reading strategies for understanding and interpreting narrative texts and non-fictional prose and analyse and assess children's texts and writings, applying the necessary conceptual tools to work with children's language and literacy development. Students are also introduced to reading and writing difficulties. Curricular documents, national tests and diagnostic material with a focus on grading and assessing the linguistic levels of the relevant age groups are studied.

Education level: Undergraduate level

Selection:

Selection is usually based on your grade point average from upper secondary school or the number of credit points from previous university studies, or both.

This course is included in the following programme

• Primary school Education Programme with workplacement (studied during year 2)
• Primary Education Programme: Teaching in grades 4-6: Science (studied during year 2)
• Primary Education Programme: Teaching in grades 4-6: Social Science (studied during year 2)
• Primary Education Programme (studied during year 2)
• Primary School Education Programme with workplacement (studied during year 2)